Search results for: Hangzhou metropolitan area

Authors: S. Trafela, X. Xua, K. Zuzek Rozmana

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In this study, we used an accurate and precise method to measure the electrochemically active surface areas (Aecsa) of nickel electrodes. Calculated Aecsa is really important for the evaluation of an electro-catalyst’s activity in electrochemical reaction of different organic compounds. The method involves the electrochemical formation of Ni(OH)₂ and NiOOH in the presence of adsorbed oxalate in alkaline media. The studies were carried out using cyclic voltammetry with polycrystalline nickel as a reference material and electrodeposited nickel nanowires, homogeneous and heterogeneous nickel films. From cyclic voltammograms, the charge (Q) values for the formation of Ni(OH)₂ and NiOOH surface oxides were calculated under various conditions. At sufficiently fast potential scan rates (200 mV s⁻¹), the adsorbed oxalate limits the growth of the surface hydroxides to a monolayer. Although the Ni(OH)₂/NiOOH oxidation peak overlaps with the oxygen evolution reaction, in the reverse scan, the NiOOH/ Ni(OH)₂ reduction peak is well-separated from other electrochemical processes and can be easily integrated. The values of these integrals were used to correlate experimentally measured charge density with an electrochemically active surface layer. The Aecsa of the nickel nanowires, homogeneous and heterogeneous nickel films were calculated to be Aecsa-NiNWs = 4.2066 ± 0.0472 cm², Aecsa-homNi = 1.7175 ± 0.0503 cm² and Aecsa-hetNi = 2.1862 ± 0.0154 cm². These valuable results were expanded and used in electrochemical studies of formaldehyde oxidation. As mentioned nickel nanowires, heterogeneous and homogeneous nickel films were used as simple and efficient sensor for formaldehyde detection. For this purpose, electrodeposited nickel electrodes were modified in 0.1 mol L⁻¹ solution of KOH in order to expect electrochemical activity towards formaldehyde. The investigation of the electrochemical behavior of formaldehyde oxidation in 0.1 mol L⁻¹ NaOH solution at the surface of modified nickel nanowires, homogeneous and heterogeneous nickel films were carried out by means of electrochemical techniques such as cyclic voltammetric and chronoamperometric methods. From investigations of effect of different formaldehyde concentrations (from 0.001 to 0.1 mol L⁻¹) on electrochemical signal - current we provided catalysis mechanism of formaldehyde oxidation, detection limit and sensitivity of nickel electrodes. The results indicated that nickel electrodes participate directly in the electrocatalytic oxidation of formaldehyde. In the overall reaction, formaldehyde in alkaline aqueous solution exists predominantly in form of CH₂(OH)O⁻, which is oxidized to CH₂(O)O⁻. Taking into account the determined (Aecsa) values we have been able to calculate the sensitivities: 7 mA mol L⁻¹ cm⁻² for nickel nanowires, 3.5 mA mol L⁻¹ cm⁻² for heterogeneous nickel film and 2 mA mol L⁻¹ cm⁻² for heterogeneous nickel film. The detection limit was 0.2 mM for nickel nanowires, 0.5 mM for porous Ni film and 0.8 mM for homogeneous Ni film. All of these results make nickel electrodes capable for further applications.

Keywords: electrochemically active surface areas, nickel electrodes, formaldehyde, electrocatalytic oxidation

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Authors: Clara Voyvodic

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Transitions from conflict to peace are by no means smooth nor linear, particularly from the perspective of those living through them. Over the last few decades, the changing focus in peacebuilding studies has come to appreciate the everyday experience of communities and how that provides a lens through which the relative success or efficacy of these transitions can be understood. In particular, the demobilization of a significant conflict actor is not without consequences, not just for the macro-view of state stabilization and peace, but for the communities who find themselves without a clear authority of territorial control. In Colombia, the demobilization and disarmament of the FARC guerilla group provided a brief respite to the conflict and a major political win for President Manuel Santos. However, this victory has proven short-lived. Drawing from extensive field research in Colombia within the last year, including interviews with local communities and actors operating in these regions, field observations, and other primary resources, this paper examines the post-accord transitions in Colombia and the everyday security experiences of local communities in regions formerly controlled by the FARC. In order to do so, the research focused on a semi-ethnographic approach in the northern region of the department of Antioquia and the coastal area of the border department of Nariño that documented how individuals within these marginalized communities have come to understand and negotiate their security in the years following the accord and the demobilization of the FARC. This presentation will argue that the removal of the FARC as an informal governance actor opened a space for multiple actors to attempt to control the same territory, including the state. This shift has had a clear impact on the everyday security experiences of the local communities. With an exploration of the dynamics of local governance and its impact on lived security experiences, this research seeks to demonstrate how distinct patterns of armed group behavior are emerging not only from a vacuum of control left by the FARC but from an increase in state presence that nonetheless remains inconsistent and unpersuasive as a monopoly of force in the region. The increased multiplicity of actors, particularly the state, has meant that the normal (informal) rules for communities to navigate these territories are no longer in play as the identities, actions, and intentions of different competing groups have become frustratingly opaque. This research provides a prescient analysis on how the shifting dynamics of territorial control in a post-peace accord landscape produce uncertain realities that affect the daily lives of the local communities and endanger the long-term prospect of human-centered security.

Keywords: armed actors, conflict transitions, informal governance, post-accord, security experiences

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Authors: Mark Jackson

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Description: This paper is based on an theoretical analysis of the efficacy of the dominant model of policing in western jurisdictions. Those results are then compared with a similar analysis of a traditional reactive model. It is found that neither model provides for optimal delivery of services. Instead optimal service can be achieved by a synchronous hybrid model, termed the Convectory Policing approach. Methodology and Findings: For over three decades problem oriented policing (PO) has been the dominant model for western police agencies. Initially based on the work of Goldstein during the 1970s the problem oriented framework has spawned endless variants and approaches, most of which embrace a problem solving rather than a reactive approach to policing. This has included the Area Policing Concept (APC) applied in many smaller jurisdictions in the USA, the Scaled Response Policing Model (SRPM) currently under trial in Western Australia and the Proactive Pre-Response Approach (PPRA) which has also seen some success. All of these, in some way or another, are largely based on a model that eschews a traditional reactive model of policing. Convectory Policing (CP) is an alternative model which challenges the underpinning assumptions which have seen proliferation of the PO approach in the last three decades and commences by questioning the economics on which PO is based. It is argued that in essence, the PO relies on an unstated, and often unrecognised assumption that resources will be available to meet demand for policing services, while at the same time maintaining the capacity to deploy staff to develop solutions to the problems which were ultimately manifested in those same calls for service. The CP model relies on the observations from a numerous western jurisdictions to challenge the validity of that underpinning assumption, particularly in fiscally tight environment. In deploying staff to pursue and develop solutions to underpinning problems, there is clearly an opportunity cost. Those same staff cannot be allocated to alternative duties while engaged in a problem solution role. At the same time, resources in use responding to calls for service are unavailable, while committed to that role, to pursue solutions to the problems giving rise to those same calls for service. The two approaches, reactive and PO are therefore dichotomous. One cannot be optimised while the other is being pursued. Convectory Policing is a pragmatic response to the schism between the competing traditional and contemporary models. If it is not possible to serve either model with any real rigour, it becomes necessary to taper an approach to deliver specific outcomes against which success or otherwise might be measured. CP proposes that a structured roster-driven approach to calls for service, combined with the application of what is termed a resource-effect response capacity has the potential to resolve the inherent conflict between traditional and models of policing and the expectations of the community in terms of community policing based problem solving models.

Keywords: policing, reactive, proactive, models, efficacy

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Authors: T. Thein, S. Kalyar Myo

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Human uses visual information for understanding the speech contents in noisy conditions or in situations where the audio signal is not available. The primary advantage of visual information is that it is not affected by the acoustic noise and cross talk among speakers. Using visual information from the lip movements can improve the accuracy and robustness of automatic speech recognition. However, a major challenge with most automatic lip reading system is to find a robust and efficient method for extracting the linguistically relevant speech information from a lip image sequence. This is a difficult task due to variation caused by different speakers, illumination, camera setting and the inherent low luminance and chrominance contrast between lip and non-lip region. Several researchers have been developing methods to overcome these problems; the one is lip reading. Moreover, it is well known that visual information about speech through lip reading is very useful for human speech recognition system. Lip reading is the technique of a comprehensive understanding of underlying speech by processing on the movement of lips. Therefore, lip reading system is one of the different supportive technologies for hearing impaired or elderly people, and it is an active research area. The need for lip reading system is ever increasing for every language. This research aims to develop a visual teaching method system for the hearing impaired persons in Myanmar, how to pronounce words precisely by identifying the features of lip movement. The proposed research will work a lip reading system for Myanmar Consonants, one syllable consonants (င (Nga)၊ ည (Nya)၊ မ (Ma)၊ လ (La)၊ ၀ (Wa)၊ သ (Tha)၊ ဟ (Ha)၊ အ (Ah) ) and two syllable consonants ( က(Ka Gyi)၊ ခ (Kha Gway)၊ ဂ (Ga Nge)၊ ဃ (Ga Gyi)၊ စ (Sa Lone)၊ ဆ (Sa Lain)၊ ဇ (Za Gwe) ၊ ဒ (Da Dway)၊ ဏ (Na Gyi)၊ န (Na Nge)၊ ပ (Pa Saug)၊ ဘ (Ba Gone)၊ ရ (Ya Gaug)၊ ဠ (La Gyi) ). In the proposed system, there are three subsystems, the first one is the lip localization system, which localizes the lips in the digital inputs. The next one is the feature extraction system, which extracts features of lip movement suitable for visual speech recognition. And the final one is the classification system. In the proposed research, Two Dimensional Discrete Cosine Transform (2D-DCT) and Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) with Active Contour Model (ACM) will be used for lip movement features extraction. Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier is used for finding class parameter and class number in training set and testing set. Then, experiments will be carried out for the recognition accuracy of Myanmar consonants using the only visual information on lip movements which are useful for visual speech of Myanmar languages. The result will show the effectiveness of the lip movement recognition for Myanmar Consonants. This system will help the hearing impaired persons to use as the language learning application. This system can also be useful for normal hearing persons in noisy environments or conditions where they can find out what was said by other people without hearing voice.

Keywords: feature extraction, lip reading, lip localization, Active Contour Model (ACM), Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Two Dimensional Discrete Cosine Transform (2D-DCT)

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Authors: Elizabeth Crafton, Donald Ott, Teresa Cutright

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Harmful algal blooms (HABs), more notably cyanobacteria-dominated HABs, compromise water quality, jeopardize access to drinking water and are a risk to public health and safety. HABs are representative of ecosystem imbalance largely caused by environmental changes, such as eutrophication, that are associated with the globally expanding human population. Cyanobacteria-dominated HABs are anticipated to increase in frequency, magnitude, and are predicted to plague a larger geographical area as a result of climate change. The weather pattern is important as storm-driven, pulse-input of nutrients have been correlated to cyanobacteria-dominated HABs. The mobilization of aqueous and particulate nutrients and the response of the phytoplankton community is an important relationship in this complex phenomenon. This relationship is most apparent in high-impact areas of adequate sunlight, > 20ᵒC, excessive nutrients and quiescent water that corresponds to ideal growth of HABs. Typically the impact of particulate phosphorus is dismissed as an insignificant contribution; which is true for areas that are not considered high-impact. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of a simulated storm-driven, pulse-input of reactive phosphorus and the response of three different cyanobacteria assemblages (~5,000 cells/mL). The aqueous and particulate sources of phosphorus and changes in HAB were tracked weekly for 4 weeks. The first cyanobacteria composition consisted of Planktothrix sp., Microcystis sp., Aphanizomenon sp., and Anabaena sp., with 70% of the total population being non-diazotrophic and 30% being diazotrophic. The second was comprised of Anabaena sp., Planktothrix sp., and Microcystis sp., with 87% diazotrophic and 13% non-diazotrophic. The third composition has yet to be determined as these experiments are ongoing. Preliminary results suggest that both aqueous and particulate sources are contributors of total reactive phosphorus in high-impact areas. The results further highlight shifts in the cyanobacteria assemblage after the simulated pulse-input. In the controls, the reactors dosed with aqueous reactive phosphorus maintained a constant concentration for the duration of the experiment; whereas, the reactors that were dosed with aqueous reactive phosphorus and contained soil decreased from 1.73 mg/L to 0.25 mg/L of reactive phosphorus from time zero to 7 days; this was higher than the blank (0.11 mg/L). Suggesting a binding of aqueous reactive phosphorus to sediment, which is further supported by the positive correlation observed between total reactive phosphorus concentration and turbidity. The experiments are nearly completed and a full statistical analysis will be completed of the results prior to the conference.

Keywords: Anabaena, cyanobacteria, harmful algal blooms, Microcystis, phosphorous, response surface methodology

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Authors: Natalie Tyldesley-Marshall, Janette Parr, Anna Brown, Yen-Fu Chen, Amy Grove

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It is widely recognised in policy and research that the provision of services for children and young people (CYP) with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) is enhanced when health and social care, and education services collaborate and interact effectively. In the UK, there have been significant changes to policy and provisions which support and improve collaboration. However, professionals responsible for implementing these changes face multiple challenges, including a lack of specific implementation guidance or framework to illustrate how effective multi-agency working could or should work. This systematic review will identify the key components of effective multi-agency working in services for CYP with SEND; and the most effective forms of partnership working in this setting. The review highlights interventions that lead to service improvements; and the conditions in the local area that support and encourage success. A protocol was written and registered with PROSPERO registration: CRD42022352194. Searches were conducted on several health, care, education, and applied social science databases from the year 2012 onwards. Citation chaining has been undertaken, as well as broader grey literature searching to enrich the findings. Qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods studies and systematic reviews were included, assessed independently, and critically appraised or assessed for risk of bias using appropriate tools based on study design. Data were extracted in NVivo software and checked by a more experienced researcher. A convergent segregated approach to synthesis and integration was used in which the quantitative and qualitative data were synthesised independently and then integrated using a joint display integration matrix. Findings demonstrate the key ingredients for effective partnership working for services delivering SEND. Interventions deemed effective are described, and lessons learned across interventions are summarised. Results will be of interest to educators and health and social care professionals that provide services to those with SEND. These will also be used to develop policy recommendations for how UK healthcare, social care, and education services for CYP with SEND aged 0-25 can most effectively collaborate and achieve service improvement. The review will also identify any gaps in the literature to recommend areas for future research. Funding for this review was provided by the Department for Education.

Keywords: collaboration, joint commissioning, service delivery, service improvement

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Authors: Kush Kumar, Varun Joshi

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Slope instability is a major problem of the mountainous region, especially in parts of the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR). The on-going tectonic, rugged topography, steep slope, heavy precipitation, toe erosion, structural discontinuities, and deformation are the main triggering factors of landslides in this region. Besides the loss of life, property, and infrastructure caused by a landslide, it also results in various environmental problems, i.e., degradation of slopes, land use, river quality by increased sediments, and loss of well-established vegetation. The Indian state of Uttarakhand, being a part of the active Himalayas, also faces numerous cases of slope instability. Therefore, the vulnerable landslide zones need to be delineated to safeguard various losses. The study area is focused in Garhwal and Tehri -Garhwal district of Uttarakhand state along National Highway 58, which is a strategic road and also connects the four important sacred pilgrims (Char Dham) of India. The lithology of these areas mainly comprises of sandstone, quartzite of Chakrata formation, and phyllites of Chandpur formation. The greywacke and sandstone rock of Saknidhar formation dips northerly and is overlain by phyllite of Chandpur formation. The present research incorporates the lineament density mapping using remote sensing satellite data supplemented by a detailed field study via kinematic analysis. The DEM data of ALOS PALSAR (12.5 m resolution) is resampled to 10 m resolution and used for preparing various thematic maps such as slope, aspect, drainage, hill shade, lineament, and lineament density using ARCGIS 10.6 software. Furthermore, detailed field mapping, including structural mapping, geomorphological mapping, is integrated for kinematic analysis of the slope using Dips 6.0 software of Rockscience. The kinematic analysis of 40 locations was carried out, among which 15 show the planar type of failure, five-show wedge failure, and rest, 20 show no failures. The lineament density map is overlapped with the location of the unstable slope inferred from kinematic analysis to infer the association of the field information and remote sensing derived information, and significant compatibility was observed. With the help of the present study, location-specific mitigation measures could be suggested. The mitigation measures would be helping in minimizing the probability of slope instability, especially during the rainy season, and reducing the hampering of road traffic.

Keywords: Indian Himalayan Region, kinematic analysis, lineament density mapping, slope instability

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Authors: Mariam Tsitsagi, Ana Berdzenishvili

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Rainfall intensity change is one of the main indicators of climate change. It has a great influence on agriculture as one of the main factors causing soil erosion. Splash and sheet erosion are one of the most prevalence and harmful for agriculture. It is invisible for an eye at first stage, but the process will gradually move to stream cutting erosion. Our study provides the assessment of rainfall erosivity potential with the use of modern research methods in Kakheti region. The region is the major provider of wheat and wine in the country. Kakheti is located in the eastern part of Georgia and characterized quite a variety of natural conditions. The climate is dry subtropical. For assessment of the exact rate of rainfall erosion potential several year data of rainfall with short intervals are needed. Unfortunately, from 250 active metro stations running during the Soviet period only 55 of them are active now and 5 stations in Kakheti region respectively. Since 1936 we had data on rainfall intensity in this region, and rainfall erosive potential is assessed, in some old papers, but since 1990 we have no data about this factor, which in turn is a necessary parameter for determining the rainfall erosivity potential. On the other hand, researchers and local communities suppose that rainfall intensity has been changing and the number of haily days has also been increasing. However, finding a method that will allow us to determine rainfall erosivity potential as accurate as possible in Kakheti region is very important. The study period was divided into three sections: 1936-1963; 1963-1990 and 1990-2015. Rainfall erosivity potential was determined by the scientific literature and old meteorological stations’ data for the first two periods. And it is known that in eastern Georgia, at the boundary between steppe and forest zones, rainfall erosivity in 1963-1990 was 20-75% higher than that in 1936-1963. As for the third period (1990-2015), for which we do not have data of rainfall intensity. There are a variety of studies, where alternative ways of calculating the rainfall erosivity potential based on lack of data are discussed e.g.based on daily rainfall data, average annual rainfall data and the elevation of the area, etc. It should be noted that these methods give us a totally different results in case of different climatic conditions and sometimes huge errors in some cases. Three of the most common methods were selected for our research. Each of them was tested for the first two sections of the study period. According to the outcomes more suitable method for regional climatic conditions was selected, and after that, we determined rainfall erosivity potential for the third section of our study period with use of the most successful method. Outcome data like attribute tables and graphs was specially linked to the database of Kakheti, and appropriate thematic maps were created. The results allowed us to analyze the rainfall erosivity potential changes from 1936 to the present and make the future prospect. We have successfully implemented a method which can also be use for some another region of Georgia.

Keywords: erosivity potential, Georgia, GIS, Kakheti, rainfall

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Authors: Malcolm Richardson, Gabriele Richardson

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This paper illustrates how historical problems can be studied successfully using GIS even in cases in which data, in the modern sense, is fragmentary. The overall problem under investigation is how early (1300-1500) English schools of Common Law moved from apprenticeship training in random individual London inns run in part by clerks of the royal chancery to become what is widely called 'the Third University of England,' a recognized system of independent but connected legal inns. This paper focuses on the preparatory legal inns, called the Inns of Chancery, rather than the senior (and still existing) Inns of Court. The immediate problem studied in this paper is how the junior legal inns were organized, staffed, and located from 1292 to about 1500, and what maps tell us about the role of the chancery clerks as managers of legal inns. The authors first uncovered the names of all chancery clerks of the period, most of them unrecorded in histories, from archival sources in the National Archives, Kew. Then they matched the names with London property leases. Using ArcGIS, the legal inns and their owners were plotted on a series of maps covering the period 1292 to 1500. The results show a distinct pattern of ownership of the legal inns and suggest a narrative that would help explain why the Inns of Chancery became serious centers of learning during the fifteenth century. In brief, lower-ranking chancery clerks, always looking for sources of income, discovered by 1370 that legal inns could be a source of income. Since chancery clerks were intimately involved with writs and other legal forms, and since the chancery itself had a long-standing training system, these clerks opened their own legal inns to train fledgling lawyers, estate managers, and scriveners. The maps clearly show growth patterns of ownership by the chancery clerks for both legal inns and other London properties in the areas of Holborn and The Strand between 1450 and 1417. However, the maps also show that a royal ordinance of 1417 forbidding chancery clerks to live with lawyers, law students, and other non-chancery personnel had an immediate effect, and properties in that area of London leased by chancery clerks simply stop after 1417. The long-term importance of the patterns shown in the maps is that while the presence of chancery clerks in the legal inns likely created a more coherent education system, their removal forced the legal profession, suddenly without a hostelry managerial class, to professionalize the inns and legal education themselves. Given the number and social status of members of the legal inns, the effect on English education was to free legal education from the limits of chancery clerk education (the clerks were not practicing common lawyers) and to enable it to become broader in theory and practice, in fact, a kind of 'finishing school' for the governing (if not noble) class.

Keywords: GIS, law, London, education

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Authors: María Luisa Gonzalez-SanJose, Mihaela Mihnea, Vicente Gomez-Miguel

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The zoning methodology currently recommended by the OIVV as official methodology to carry out viticulture zoning studies and to define and delimit the ‘terroirs’ has been applied in this study. This methodology has been successfully applied on the most significant an important Spanish Oenological D.O. regions, such as Ribera de Duero, Rioja, Rueda and Toro, but also it have been applied around the world in Portugal, different countries of South America, and so on. This is a complex methodology that uses edaphoclimatic data but also other corresponding to vineyards and other soils’ uses The methodology is useful to determine Homogeneous Soil Units (HSU) to different scale depending on the interest of each study, and has been applied from viticulture regions to particular vineyards. It seems that this methodology is an appropriate method to delimit correctly the medium in order to enhance its uses and to obtain the best viticulture and oenological products. The present work is focused on the comparison of volatile composition of wines made from grapes grown in different HSU that coexist in a particular viticulture region of Castile-Lion cited near to Burgos. Three different HSU were selected for this study. They represented around of 50% of the global area of vineyards of the studied region. Five different vineyards on each HSU under study were chosen. To reduce variability factors, other criteria were also considered as grape variety, clone, rootstocks, vineyard’s age, training systems and cultural practices. This study was carried out during three consecutive years, then wine from three different vintage were made and analysed. Different red wines were made from grapes harvested in the different vineyards under study. Grapes were harvested to ‘Technological maturity’, which are correlated with adequate levels of sugar, acidity, phenolic content (nowadays named phenolic maturity), good sanitary stages and adequate levels of aroma precursors. Results of the volatile profile of the wines produced from grapes of each HSU showed significant differences among them pointing out a direct effect of the edaphoclimatic characteristic of each UHT on the composition of the grapes and then on the volatile composition of the wines. Variability induced by HSU co-existed with the well-known inter-annual variability correlated mainly with the specific climatic conditions of each vintage, however was most intense, so the wine of each HSU were perfectly differenced. A discriminant analysis allowed to define the volatiles with discriminant capacities which were 21 of the 74 volatiles analysed. Detected discriminant volatiles were chemical different, although .most of them were esters, followed by were superior alcohols and fatty acid of short chain. Only one lactone and two aldehydes were selected as discriminant variable, and no varietal aroma compounds were selected, which agree with the fact that all the wine were made from the same grape variety.

Keywords: viticulture zoning, terroir, wine, volatile profile

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Authors: Stephanie Zuba-Bates

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Purpose: This qualitative research study explored the lived experience of people with functional movement disorder (FMD) including how it impacts their quality of life and participation in life activities. It aims to educate health care professionals about FMD from the perspective of those living with the disorder. Background: Functional movement disorder is characterized by abnormal motor movements including tremors, abnormal gait, paresis, and dystonia with no known underlying pathophysiological cause. Current research estimates that FMD may account for 2-20% of clients seen by neurologists. Getting a diagnosis of FMD is typically long and difficult. In addition, many healthcare professionals are unfamiliar with the disorder which may delay treatment. People living with FMD face great disruption in major areas of life including activities of daily living (ADLs), work, leisure, and community participation. OT practitioners have expertise in working with people with both physical disabilities as well as mental illness and this expertise has the potential to guide treatment and become part of the standard of care. In order for occupational therapists to provide these services, they must be aware of the disorder and must advocate for clients to be referred to OT services. In addition, referring physicians and other health professionals need to understand how having FMD impacts the daily functioning of people living with the disorder and how OT services can intervene to improve their quality of life. This study aimed to answer the following research questions: 1) What is the lived experience of individuals with FMD?; 2) How has FMD impacted their participation in major areas of life?; and, 3) What treatment have they found to be effective in improving their quality of life? Method: A naturalistic approach was used to collect qualitative data through semi-structured telephone interviews of five individuals living with FMD. Subjects were recruited from social media websites and resources for people with FMD. Data was analyzed for common themes among participants. Results: Common themes including the variability of symptoms of the disorder; challenges to receiving a diagnosis; frustrations with and distrust of health care professionals; the impact of FMD on the participant’s ability to perform daily activities; and, strategies for living with the symptoms of FMD. Conclusion: All of the participants in the study had to modify their daily activities, roles and routines as a result of the disorder. This is an area where occupational therapists may intervene to improve the quality of life of these individuals. Additionally, participants reported frustration with the medical community regarding the awareness of the disorder and how they were treated by medical professionals. Much more research and awareness of the disorder is in order.

Keywords: functional movement disorder, occupational therapy, participation, quality of life

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Authors: Santhani M. Selveindran

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Background: Natural disasters are traumatic global events that are becoming increasing more common, with significant psychosocial impact on survivors. This impact results not only in psychosocial distress but, for many, can lead to psychosocial disorders and chronic psychopathology. While there are currently available interventions that seek to prevent and treat these psychosocial sequelae, their effectiveness is uncertain. The evidence-base is emerging with more primary studies evaluating the effectiveness of various psychosocial interventions for survivors of natural disasters, which remains to be synthesized. Aim of Review: To identify, critically appraise and synthesize the current evidence-base on the effectiveness of psychosocial interventions in preventing or treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and/or Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) in adults and children who are survivors of natural disasters. Methods: A protocol was developed as a guide to carry out this review. A systematic search was conducted in eight international electronic databases, three grey literature databases, one dissertation and thesis repository, websites of six humanitarian and non-governmental organizations renowned for their work on natural disasters, as well as bibliographic and citation searching for eligible articles. Papers meeting the specific inclusion criteria underwent quality assessment using the Downs and Black checklist. Data were extracted from the included papers and analysed by way of narrative synthesis. Results: Database and website searching returned 3777 papers where 31 met the criteria for inclusion. Additional 2 papers were obtained through bibliographic and citation searching. Methodological quality of most papers was fair. Twenty-five studies evaluated psychological interventions, five, social interventions whereas three studies evaluated ‘mixed’ psychological and social interventions. All studies, irrespective of methodological quality, reported post-intervention reductions in symptom scores for PTSD, depression and/or anxiety and where assessed, reduced diagnosis of PTSD and MDD, and produced improvements in self-efficacy and quality of life. Statistically significant results were seen in 27 studies. However, three studies demonstrated that the evaluated interventions may not have been very beneficial. Conclusions: The overall positive results suggest that any psychosocial interventions are favourable and should be delivered to all natural disaster survivors, irrespective of age, country, and phase of disaster. Yet, heterogeneity and methodological shortcomings of the current evidence-base makes it difficult to draw definite conclusions needed to formulate categorical guidance or frameworks. Further, rigorously conducted research is needed in this area, although the feasibility of such, given the context and nature of the problem, is also recognized.

Keywords: psychosocial interventions, natural disasters, survivors, effectiveness

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Authors: Divyanshoo Singh, Hemant Kumar Singh, Kumar Nilankar

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Major engineering constructions and foundations (e.g., dams, tunnels, bridges, underground caverns, etc.) in and around the Himalayan region of Uttarakhand are not only confined within hard and crystalline rocks but also stretched within weak and anisotropic rocks. While constructing within such anisotropic rocks, engineers more often encounter geotechnical complications such as structural instability, slope failure, and excessive deformation. These severities/complexities arise mainly due to inherent anisotropy such as layering/foliations, preferred mineral orientations, and geo-mechanical anisotropy present within rocks and vary when measured in different directions. Of all the inherent anisotropy present within the rocks, major geotechnical complexities mainly arise due to the inappropriate orientation of weak planes (bedding/foliation). Thus, Orientations of such weak planes highly affect the fracture patterns, failure mechanism, and strength of rocks. This has led to an improved understanding of the physico-mechanical behavior of anisotropic rocks with different orientations of weak planes. Therefore, in this study, block samples of phyllite belonging to the Chandpur Group of Lesser Himalaya were collected from the Srinagar area of Uttarakhand, India, to investigate the effect of foliation angles on physico-mechanical properties of the rock. Further, collected block samples were core drilled of diameter 50 mm at different foliation angles, β (angle between foliation plane and drilling direction), i.e., 0⁰, 30⁰, 60⁰, and 90⁰, respectively. Before the test, drilled core samples were oven-dried at 110⁰C to achieve uniformity. Physical and mechanical properties such as Seismic wave velocity, density, uniaxial compressive strength (UCS), point load strength (PLS), and Brazilian tensile strength (BTS) test were carried out on prepared core specimens. The results indicate that seismic wave velocities (P-wave and S-wave) decrease with increasing β angle. As the β angle increases, the number of foliation planes that the wave needs to pass through increases and thus causes the dissipation of wave energy with increasing β. Maximum strength for UCS, PLS, and BTS was found to be at β angle of 90⁰. However, minimum strength for UCS and BTS was found to be at β angle of 30⁰, which differs from PLS, where minimum strength was found at 0⁰ β angle. Furthermore, failure modes also correspond to the strength of the rock, showing along foliation and non-central failure as characteristics of low strength values, while multiple fractures and central failure as characteristics of high strength values. Thus, this study will provide a better understanding of the anisotropic features of phyllite for the purpose of major engineering construction and foundations within the Himalayan Region.

Keywords: anisotropic rocks, foliation angle, Physico-mechanical properties, phyllite, Himalayan region

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Authors: Roza Dzierzak, Waldemar Wojcik, Piotr Kacejko

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Analysis of the texture of medical images consists of determining the parameters and characteristics of the examined tissue. The main goal is to assign the analyzed area to one of two basic groups: as a healthy tissue or a tissue with pathological changes. The CT images of the thoracic lumbar spine from 15 healthy patients and 15 with confirmed osteoporosis were used for the analysis. As a result, 120 samples with dimensions of 50x50 pixels were obtained. The set of features has been obtained based on the histogram, gradient, run-length matrix, co-occurrence matrix, autoregressive model, and Haar wavelet. As a result of the image analysis, 290 descriptors of textural features were obtained. The dimension of the space of features was reduced by the use of three selection methods: Fisher coefficient (FC), mutual information (MI), minimization of the classification error probability and average correlation coefficients between the chosen features minimization of classification error probability (POE) and average correlation coefficients (ACC). Each of them returned ten features occupying the initial place in the ranking devised according to its own coefficient. As a result of the Fisher coefficient and mutual information selections, the same features arranged in a different order were obtained. In both rankings, the 50% percentile (Perc.50%) was found in the first place. The next selected features come from the co-occurrence matrix. The sets of features selected in the selection process were evaluated using six classification tree methods. These were: decision stump (DS), Hoeffding tree (HT), logistic model trees (LMT), random forest (RF), random tree (RT) and reduced error pruning tree (REPT). In order to assess the accuracy of classifiers, the following parameters were used: overall classification accuracy (ACC), true positive rate (TPR, classification sensitivity), true negative rate (TNR, classification specificity), positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV). Taking into account the classification results, it should be stated that the best results were obtained for the Hoeffding tree and logistic model trees classifiers, using the set of features selected by the POE + ACC method. In the case of the Hoeffding tree classifier, the highest values of three parameters were obtained: ACC = 90%, TPR = 93.3% and PPV = 93.3%. Additionally, the values of the other two parameters, i.e., TNR = 86.7% and NPV = 86.6% were close to the maximum values obtained for the LMT classifier. In the case of logistic model trees classifier, the same ACC value was obtained ACC=90% and the highest values for TNR=88.3% and NPV= 88.3%. The values of the other two parameters remained at a level close to the highest TPR = 91.7% and PPV = 91.6%. The results obtained in the experiment show that the use of classification trees is an effective method of classification of texture features. This allows identifying the conditions of the spongy tissue for healthy cases and those with the porosis.

Keywords: classification, feature selection, texture analysis, tree algorithms

Procedia PDF Downloads 178

Authors: Bill Wang, Paul Childerhouse, Yuanfei Kang

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Purpose: The research is to extend resource orchestration theory (ROT) into supply chain management (SCM) area to investigate the dyadic relationships at both individual and organizational levels in supply chain integration (SCI). Also, we try to explore the interaction mechanism between inter-personal relationships (IPRs) and inter-organizational (IORs) during the whole SCI process. Methodology/approach: The research employed an exploratory multiple case study approach of four New Zealand companies. The data was collected via semi-structured interviews with top, middle, and lower level managers and operators from different departments of both suppliers and customers triangulated with company archival data. Findings: The research highlights the important role of both IPRs and IORs in the whole SCI process. Both IPRs and IORs are valuable, inimitable resources but IORs are formal and exterior while IPRs are informal and subordinated. In the initial stage of SCI process, IPRs are seen as key resources antecedents to IOR building while three IPRs dimensions work differently: personal credibility acts as an icebreaker to strengthen the confidence forming IORs, and personal affection acts as a gatekeeper, whilst personal communication expedites the IORs process. In the maintenance and development stage, IORs and IPRs interact each other continuously: good interaction between IPRs and IORs can facilitate SCI process while the bad interaction between IPRs can damage the SCI process. On the other hand, during the life-cycle of SCI process, IPRs can facilitate the formation, development of IORs while IORs development can cultivate the ties of IPRs. Out of the three dimensions of IPRs, Personal communication plays a more important role to develop IORs than personal credibility and personal affection. Originality/value: This research contributes to ROT in supply chain management literature by highlighting the interaction of IPRs and IORs in SCI. The intangible resources and capabilities of three dimensions of IPRs need to be orchestrated and nurtured to achieve efficient and effective IORs in SCI. Also, IPRs and IORs need to be orchestrated in terms of breadth, depth, and life-cycle of whole SCI process. Our study provides further insight into the rarely explored inter-personal level of SCI. Managerial implications: Our research provides top management with further evidence of the significance roles of IPRs at different levels when working with trading partners. This highlights the need to actively manage and develop these soft IPRs skills as an intangible competitive resource. Further, the research identifies when staff with specific skills and connections should be utilized during the different stages of building and maintaining inter-organizational ties. More importantly, top management needs to orchestrate and balance the resources of IPRs and IORs.

Keywords: case study, inter-organizational relationships, inter-personal relationships, resource orchestration, supply chain integration

Procedia PDF Downloads 233

Authors: Peter Smolianov, Steven Dion, Christopher Schoen, Jaclyn Norberg, Nicholas Stone, Soufiane Rafi

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This study assessed the micro-level elements of track and field development in the US against a model for integrating high-performance sport with mass participation. This investigation is important for the country’s international sport performance, which declined relative to other countries and wellbeing, which in its turn deteriorated as over half of the US population became overweight. A questionnaire was designed for the following elements of the model: talent identification and development as well as advanced athlete support. Survey questions were validated by 12 experts, including academics, executives from sport governing bodies, coaches, and administrators. To determine the areas for improvement, the questionnaires were completed by 102 US track and field coaches representing the country’s regions and coaching levels. Possible advancements were further identified through semi-structured discussions with 10 US track and field administrators. The study found that talent search and development is a critically important area for improvement: 49 percent of respondents had overall negative perceptions, and only 16 percent were positive regarding these US track and field practices. Both quantitative survey results and open responses revealed that the key reason for the inadequate athlete development was a shortage of well-educated and properly paid coaches: 77 percent of respondents indicated that coach expertise is never or rarely high across all participant ages and levels. More than 40 percent of the respondents were uncertain of or not familiar with world’s best talent identification and development practices, particularly methods of introducing children to track and field from outside the sport’s participation base. Millions more could be attracted to the sport by adopting best international practices. First, physical education should be offered a minimum three times a week in all school grades, and track and field together with other healthy sports, should be taught at school to all children. Second, multi-sport events, including track and field disciplines, should be organized for everyone within and among all schools, cities and regions. Three, Australian and Eastern European methods of talent search at schools should be utilized and tailored to the US conditions. Four, comprehensive long term athlete development guidelines should be used for the advancement of the American Development Model, particularly track and field tests and guidelines as part of both school education and high-performance athlete development for every age group from six to over 70 years old. These world’s best practices are to improve the country’s international performance while increasing national sport participation and positively influencing public health.

Keywords: high performance, mass participation, sport development, track and field, USA

Procedia PDF Downloads 144

Authors: V. Nikolov, I. Koseva, R. Sole, F. Diaz

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Cr4+ doped oxide compounds are particularly preferred active media for solid-state lasers with a wide emission region from 1.1 to 1.6 µm. However, obtaining of single crystals of these compounds is often problematic. An alternative solution of this problem is replacing the single crystals with a transparent glassceramics containing the desired crystalline phase. Germanate compounds, especially Li2MgGeO4, Li2ZnGeO4 and Li2CaGeO4, are suitable for Cr4+ doped glass-ceramics because of their relatively low melting temperature and tetrahedral coordination of all ions. The latter ensures the presence of chromium in the 4+ valence. Cr doped Li2CaGeO4 g lass-ceramic was synthesized by thermal treating using glasses from the Li2O-CaO-GeO2-B2O3 system. Special investigations were carried out for optimizing the initial glasscomposition, as well as the thermal treated conditions. The synthesis of the glass ceramics was accompanied by appropriate characterization methods such as: XRD, TEM, EPR, UVVIS-NIR, emission spectra and time decay as main characteristic for the laser emission. From the systematic studies carried out in the four-component system Li2O-CaO-GeO2-B2O3 for establishing the Li2CaGeO4 crystallization area and suitable thermal treatment conditions, several main conclusions can be drawn: 1. The crystallization region of Li2CaGeO4 is relatively narrow, localized around the stoichiometric composition of the Li2CaGeO4 compound. 2. The presence of the glass former B2O3 strongly supports the obtaining of homogeneous glasses at relatively low temperatures, but it is also the reason for the crystallization of borate phases. 3. The crystallization of glasses during thermal treatment is related to the production of more than one phase and it is correct to speak for crystallization of a main phase and accompanying crystallization of other phases. The crystallization of a given phase is related to changing the composition of the residual glass and creating conditions for the crystallization of other phases. 4. The separate studies show that glass-ceramics with different crystallized phases in different quantitative ratios can be obtained from the same composition of glass playing by the thermal treatment conditions. In other words, the choice of temperature and time of thermal treatment of the glass is an extremely important condition, along with the optimization of the starting glass composition. As a result of the conducted research, an optimal composition of the starting glass and an optimal mode of thermal treatment were selected. Glass-ceramic with a main phase Li2CaGeO4 doped by Cr4+ was obtained. The obtained glass-ceramic possess very good properties containing up to 60 mass% of Li2CaGeO4, with an average size of nanoparticles of 20 nm and with transparency about 70 % relative to the transparency of the parent glass. The emission of the obtained glass-ceramics is in a wide range between 1050 and 1500 nm. The obtained results are the basis for further optimization of the glass-ceramic characteristics to obtain an effective laser-active medium with radiation in the 1.1-1.6 nm range.

Keywords: glass, glass-ceramics, multicomponent systems, NIR emission

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Authors: Itissam Abuiziah

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This work presents a case study of water-hammer analysis and control for the Oum Azza pumping station project in the coastal area of Rabat to Casablanca from the dam Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah (SMBA). This is a typical pumping system with a long penstock and is currently at design and executions stages. Since there is no ideal location for construction of protection devices, the protection devices were provisionally designed to protect the whole conveying pipeline. The simulation results for the transient conditions caused by a sudden pumping stopping without including any protection devices, show that there is a negative beyond 1300m to the station 5725m near the arrival of the reservoir, therefore; there is a need for the protection devices to protect the conveying pipeline. To achieve the goal behind the transient flow analysis which is to protect the conveying pipeline system, four scenarios had been investigated in this case study with two types of protecting devices (pressure relief valve and desurging tank with automatic air control). The four scenarios are conceders as with pressure relief valve, with pressure relief valve and a desurging tank with automatic air control, with pressure relief valve and tow desurging tanks with automatic air control and with pressure relief valve and three desurging tanks with automatic air control. The simulation result for the first scenario shows that overpressure corresponding to an instant pumping stopping is reduced from 263m to 240m, and the minimum hydraulic grad line for the length approximately from station 1300m to station 5725m is still below the pipeline profile which means that the pipe must be equipped with another a protective devices for smoothing depressions. The simulation results for the second scenario show that the minimum and maximum pressures envelopes are decreases especially in the depression phase but not effectively protects the conduct in this case study. The minimum pressure increased from -77.7m for the previous scenario to -65.9m for the current scenario. Therefore the pipeline is still requiring additional protective devices; another desurging tank with automatic air control is installed at station2575.84m. The simulation results for the third scenario show that the minimum and maximum pressures envelopes are decreases but not effectively protects the conduct in this case study since the depression is still exist and varies from -0.6m to– 12m. Therefore the pipeline is still requiring additional protective devices; another desurging tank with automatic air control is installed at station 5670.32 m. Examination of the envelope curves of the minimum pressuresresults for the fourth scenario, we noticed that the piezometric pressure along the pipe remains positive over the entire length of the pipe. We can, therefore, conclude that such scenario can provide effective protection for the pipeline.

Keywords: analysis methods, protection devices, transient flow, water hammer

Procedia PDF Downloads 188

Authors: Cao Bin, Yuan Yi, Wang Qiang, Amor Abdelkader, Ali Reza Kamali, Diogo Montalvão

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The study of the electrodynamic behavior of non-ferrous particles in time-varying magnetic fields is a promising area of research with wide applications, including recycling of non-ferrous metals, mechanical transmission, and space debris. The key technology for recovering non-ferrous metals is eddy current separation (ECS), which utilizes the eddy current force and torque to separate non-ferrous metals. ECS has several advantages, such as low energy consumption, large processing capacity, and no secondary pollution, making it suitable for processing various mixtures like electronic scrap, auto shredder residue, aluminum scrap, and incineration bottom ash. Improving the separation efficiency of mixtures with different particle sizes in ECS can create significant social and economic benefits. Our previous study investigated the influence of particle size on separation efficiency by combining numerical simulations and separation experiments. Pearson correlation analysis found a strong correlation between the eddy current force in simulations and the repulsion distance in experiments, which confirmed the effectiveness of our simulation model. The interaction effects between particle size and material type, rotational speed, and magnetic pole arrangement were examined. It offer valuable insights for the design and optimization of eddy current separators. The underlying mechanism behind the effect of particle size on separation efficiency was discovered by analyzing eddy current and field gradient. The results showed that the magnitude and distribution heterogeneity of eddy current and magnetic field gradient increased with particle size in eddy current separation. Based on this, we further found that increasing the curvature of magnetic field lines within particles could also increase the eddy current force, providing a optimized method to improving the separation efficiency of fine particles. By combining the results of the studies, a more systematic and comprehensive set of optimization guidelines can be proposed for mixtures with different particle size ranges. The separation efficiency of fine particles could be improved by increasing the rotational speed, curvature of magnetic field lines, and electrical conductivity/density of materials, as well as utilizing the eddy current torque. When designing an ECS, the particle size range of the target mixture should be investigated in advance, and the suitable parameters for separating the mixture can be fixed accordingly. In summary, these results can guide the design and optimization of ECS, and also expand the application areas for ECS.

Keywords: eddy current separation, particle size, numerical simulation, metal recovery

Procedia PDF Downloads 89

Authors: Kamaran Fathulla

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Human creativity knows no bounds. More than a millennia ago humans have expressed their knowledge on cave walls and on clay artefacts. Using visuals such as diagrams and paintings have always provided us with a natural and intuitive medium for expressing such creativity. Making sense of human generated visualisation has been influenced by western scientific philosophies which are often reductionist in their nature. Theoretical frameworks such as those delivered by Peirce dominated our views of how to make sense of visualisation where a visual is seen as an emergent property of our thoughts. Others have reduced the richness of human-generated visuals to mere shapes drawn on a piece of paper or on a screen. This paper introduces an alternate framework where the centrality of human functioning is given explicit and richer consideration through the multi aspectual philosophical works of Herman Dooyeweerd. Dooyeweerd's framework of understanding reality was based on fifteen aspects of reality, each having a distinct core meaning. The totality of the aspects formed a ‘rainbow’ like spectrum of meaning. The thesis of this approach is that meaningful human functioning in most cases involves the diversity of all aspects working in synergy and harmony. Illustration of the foundations and applicability of this approach is underpinned in the case of humans use of diagramming for creative purposes, particularly within an educational context. Diagrams play an important role in education. Students and lecturers use diagrams as a powerful tool to aid their thinking. However, research into the role of diagrams used in education continues to reveal difficulties students encounter during both processes of interpretation and construction of diagrams. Their main problems shape up students difficulties with diagrams. The ever-increasing diversity of diagrams' types coupled with the fact that most real-world diagrams often contain a mix of these different types of diagrams such as boxes and lines, bar charts, surfaces, routes, shapes dotted around the drawing area, and so on with each type having its own distinct set of static and dynamic semantics. We argue that the persistence of these problems is grounded in our existing ways of understanding diagrams that are often reductionist in their underpinnings driven by a single perspective or formalism. In this paper, we demonstrate the limitations of these approaches in dealing with the three problems. Consequently, we propose, discuss, and demonstrate the potential of a nonreductionist framework for understanding diagrams based on Symbolic and Spatial Mappings (SySpM) underpinned by Dooyeweerd philosophy. The potential of the framework to account for the meaning of diagrams is demonstrated by applying it to a real-world case study physics diagram.

Keywords: SySpM, drawing style, mapping

Procedia PDF Downloads 238

Authors: M. François, L. Sigot, C. Vallières

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Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are a real health issue, particularly in domestic indoor environments. Among these VOCs, acetaldehyde is frequently monitored in dwellings ‘air, especially due to smoking and spontaneous emissions from the new wall and soil coverings. It is responsible for respiratory complaints and is classified as possibly carcinogenic to humans. Adsorption processes are commonly used to remove VOCs from the air. Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOFs) are a promising type of material for high adsorption performance. These hybrid porous materials composed of metal inorganic clusters and organic ligands are interesting thanks to their high porosity and surface area. The HKUST-1 (also referred to as MOF-199) is a copper-based MOF with the formula [Cu₃(BTC)₂(H₂O)₃]n (BTC = benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylate) and exhibits unsaturated metal sites that can be attractive sites for adsorption. The objective of this study is to investigate the impact of HKUST-1 pretreatment on acetaldehyde adsorption. Thus, dynamic adsorption experiments were conducted in 1 cm diameter glass column packed with 2 cm MOF bed height. MOF were sieved to 630 µm - 1 mm. The feed gas (Co = 460 ppmv ± 5 ppmv) was obtained by diluting a 1000 ppmv acetaldehyde gas cylinder in air. The gas flow rate was set to 0.7 L/min (to guarantee a suitable linear velocity). Acetaldehyde concentration was monitored online by gas chromatography coupled with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID). Breakthrough curves must allow to understand the interactions between the MOF and the pollutant as well as the impact of the HKUST-1 humidity in the adsorption process. Consequently, different MOF water content conditions were tested, from a dry material with 7 % water content (dark blue color) to water saturated state with approximately 35 % water content (turquoise color). The rough material – without any pretreatment – containing 30 % water serves as a reference. First, conclusions can be drawn from the comparison of the evolution of the ratio of the column outlet concentration (C) on the inlet concentration (Co) as a function of time for different HKUST-1 pretreatments. The shape of the breakthrough curves is significantly different. The saturation of the rough material is slower (20 h to reach saturation) than that of the dried material (2 h). However, the breakthrough time defined for C/Co = 10 % appears earlier in the case of the rough material (0.75 h) compared to the dried HKUST-1 (1.4 h). Another notable difference is the shape of the curve before the breakthrough at 10 %. An abrupt increase of the outlet concentration is observed for the material with the lower humidity in comparison to a smooth increase for the rough material. Thus, the water content plays a significant role on the breakthrough kinetics. This study aims to understand what can explain the shape of the breakthrough curves associated to the pretreatments of HKUST-1 and which mechanisms take place in the adsorption process between the MOF, the pollutant, and the water.

Keywords: acetaldehyde, dynamic adsorption, HKUST-1, pretreatment influence

Procedia PDF Downloads 237

Authors: Richard Sogah

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The significance of transport infrastructure investments for economic growth and development has been central to the World Bank’s strategy for poverty reduction. Among the conventional surface transport infrastructures, road infrastructure is significant in facilitating the movement of human capital goods and services. When transport projects (i.e., roads, super-highways) are implemented, they come along with some negative social values (costs), such as increased noise and air pollution for local residents living near these facilities, displaced individuals, etc. However, these projects also facilitate better utilization of existing capital stock and generate other observable benefits that can be easily quantified. For example, the improvement or construction of roads creates employment, stimulates revenue generation (toll), reduces vehicle operating costs and accidents, increases accessibility, trade expansion, safety improvement, etc. Aside from these benefits, travel time savings (TTSs) which are the major economic benefits of urban and inter-urban transport projects and therefore integral in the economic assessment of transport projects, are often overlooked and omitted when estimating the benefits of transport projects, especially in developing countries. The absence of current and reliable domestic travel data and the inability of replicated models from the developed world to capture the actual value of travel time savings due to the large unemployment, underemployment, and other labor-induced distortions has contributed to the failure to assign value to travel time savings when estimating the benefits of transport schemes in developing countries. This omission of the value of travel time savings from the benefits of transport projects in developing countries poses problems for investors and stakeholders to either accept or dismiss projects based on schemes that favor reduced vehicular operating costs and other parameters rather than those that ease congestion, increase average speed, facilitate walking and handloading, and thus save travel time. Given the complex reality in the estimation of the value of travel time savings and the presence of widespread informal labour activities in Sub-Saharan Africa, we construct a “nationally ranked distribution of time values” and estimate the value of travel time savings based on the area beneath the distribution. Compared with other approaches, our method captures both formal sector workers and individuals/people who work outside the formal sector and hence changes in their time allocation occur in the informal economy and household production activities. The dataset for the estimations is sourced from the World Bank, the International Labour Organization, etc.

Keywords: road infrastructure, transport projects, travel time savings, congestion, Sub-Sahara Africa

Procedia PDF Downloads 109

Authors: Abejide Dorcas Ropo, , Falusi Olamide Ahmed, Daudu Oladipupo Abdulazeez Yusuf, Salihu Bolaji Zuluquri Neen, Muhammad Liman Muhammad, Gado Aishatu Adamu

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Water stress is a major factor limiting the productivity of crops in the world today. This study evaluated the morpho-agronomic response of twenty-four (24) Nigerian Bambara groundnut landraces to water stress and genetic diversity of some selected accessions using SSR markers. The studies was carried out in the Botanical garden of the Department of Plant Biology, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State, Nigeria in a randomized complete block design using three replicates. Molecular analysis using SSR primers was carried out at the Centre for Bio- Science, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Ibadan, Nigeria in order to characterize ten selected accessions comprising of the seven most drought tolerant and the three most susceptible accessions detected from the morpho-agronomic studies. Results revealed that water stress decreased morpho-agronomic traits such as plant height, leaf area, number of leaves per plant and seed yield etc. A total of 22 alleles were detected by the SSR markers used with a mean number of 4 allelles. Simple Sequence Repeat (SSR) markers MBamCO33, Primer 65 and G358B2-D15 each detected 4 allelles while Primer 3FR and 4FR detected 5 allelles each. The study revealed significantly high polymorphisms in 10 Loci. The mean value of Polymorpic information content was 0.6997 implying the usefulness of the primers used in identifying genetic similarities and differences among the Bambara groundnut genotypes. The SSR analysis revealed a comparable pattern between genetic diversity and drought tolerance of the genotypes. The Unweighted Paired Group Method with Arithmethic Mean (UPGMA) dendrogram showed that at a genetic distance of 0.1, the accessions were grouped into three groups according to their level of tolerance to drought. The two most drought tolerant accessions were grouped together and the 5th and 6th most drought tolerant accession were also grouped together. This suggests that the genotypes grouped together may be genetically close, may possess similar genes or have a common origin. The degree of genetic variants obtained could be useful in bambara groundnut breeding for drought tolerance. The identified drought tolerant bambara groundnut landraces are important genetic resources for drought stress tolerance breeding programme of bambara groundnut. The genotypes are also useful for germplasm conservation and global implications.

Keywords: bambara groundnut, genetic diversity, germplasm, SSR markers, water stress

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Authors: Karolina Ordon, Sandrine Coste, Malgorzata Makowska-Janusik, Abdelhadi Kassiba

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Photocatalytic processes play key role in the production of a new source of energy (as hydrogen), design of self-cleaning surfaces or for the environment preservation. The most challenging task deals with the purification of water distinguished by high efficiency. In the mentioned process, organic pollutants in solutions are decomposed to the simple, non-toxic compounds as H2O and CO2. The most known photocatalytic materials are ZnO, CdS and TiO2 semiconductors with a particular involvement of TiO2 as an efficient photocatalysts even with a high band gap equal to 3.2 eV which exploit only UV radiation from solar emitted spectrum. However, promising material with visible light induced photoactivity was searched through the monoclinic polytype of BiVO4 which has energy gap about 2.4 eV. As required in heterogeneous photocatalysis, the high contact surface is required. Also, BiVO4 as photocatalyst can be optimized by increasing its surface area by achieving the mesoporous structure synthesize. The main goal of the present work consists in the synthesis and characterization of BiVO4 mesoporous thin film. The synthesis method based on sol-gel was carried out using a standard surfactants such as P123 and F127. The thin film was deposited by spin and dip coating method. Then, the structural analysis of the obtained material was performed thanks to X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Raman spectroscopy. The surface of resulting structure was investigated using a scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The computer simulations based on modeling the optical and electronic properties of bulk BiVO4 by using DFT (density functional theory) methodology were carried out. The semiempirical parameterized method PM6 was used to compute the physical properties of BiVO4 nanostructures. The Raman and IR absorption spectra were also measured for synthesized mesoporous material, and the results were compared with the theoretical predictions. The simulations of nanostructured BiVO4 have pointed out the occurrence of quantum confinement for nanosized clusters leading to widening of the band gap. This result overcame the relevance of nanosized objects to harvest wide part of the solar spectrum. Also, a balance was searched experimentally through the mesoporous nature of the films devoted to enhancing the contact surface as required for heterogeneous catalysis without to lower the nanocrystallite size under some critical sizes inducing an increased band gap. The present contribution will discuss the relevant features of the mesoporous films with respect to their photocatalytic responses.

Keywords: bismuth vanadate, photocatalysis, thin film, quantum-chemical calculations

Procedia PDF Downloads 324

Authors: Zhihua Cao, Hongfei Zhao, Zhongneng Wu

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The development of polar-based agroforestry was necessary due to the influence of the timber market environment in China, which can promote the coordinated development of forestry and agriculture, and gain remarkable ecological, economic and social benefits. The main agroforestry models of the main poplar planting area in Huaibei plain and along the Yangtze River plain were carried out. 11 typical management models of poplar were selected to sum up: pure poplar forest, poplar-rape-soybean, poplar-wheat-soybean, poplar-rape-cotton, poplar-wheat, poplar-chicken, poplar-duck, poplar-sheep, poplar-Agaricus blazei, poplar-oil peony, poplar-fish, represented by M0-M10, respectively. 12 indexes related with economic, ecological and social benefits (annual average cost, net income, ratio of output to investment, payback period of investment, land utilization ratio, utilization ratio of light energy, improvement and system stability of ecological and production environment, product richness, labor capacity, cultural quality of labor force, sustainability) were screened out to carry on the comprehensive evaluation and analysis to 11 kinds of typical agroforestry models based on analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The results showed that the economic benefit of each agroforestry model was in the order of: M8 > M6 > M9 > M7 > M5 > M10 > M4 > M1 > M2 > M3 > M0. The economic benefit of poplar-A. blazei model was the highest (332, 800 RMB / hm²), followed by poplar-duck and poplar-oil peony model (109, 820RMB /hm², 5, 7226 RMB /hm²). The order of comprehensive benefit was: M8 > M4 > M9 > M6 > M1 > M2 > M3 > M7 > M5 > M10 > M0. The economic benefit and comprehensive benefit of each agroforestry model were higher than that of pure poplar forest. The comprehensive benefit of poplar-A. blazei model was the highest, and that of poplar-wheat model ranked second, while its economic benefit was not high. Next were poplar-oil peony and poplar-duck models. It was suggested that the model of poplar-wheat should be adopted in the plain along the Yangtze River, and the whole cycle mode of poplar-grain, popalr-A. blazei, or poplar-oil peony should be adopted in Huaibei plain, northern Anhui. Furthermore, wheat, rape, and soybean are the main crops before the stand was closed; the agroforestry model of edible fungus or Chinese herbal medicine can be carried out when the stand was closed in order to maximize the comprehensive benefit. The purpose of this paper is to provide a reference for forest farmers in the selection of poplar agroforestry model in the future and to provide the basic data for the sustainable and efficient study of poplar agroforestry in Anhui province, eastern China.

Keywords: agroforestry, analytic hierarchy process (AHP), comprehensive benefit, model, poplar

Procedia PDF Downloads 165

Authors: Catariny C. Aleman, Flavio B. Campos, Matheus A. Caliman, Everardo C. Mantovani

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The seedling production stage is a critical point in the vegetable production system. Obtaining high-quality seedlings is a prerequisite for subsequent cropping to occur well and productivity optimization is required. The water management is an important step in agriculture production. The adequate water requirement in horticulture seedlings can provide higher quality and increase field production. The practice of irrigation is indispensable and requires a duly adjusted quality irrigation system, together with a specific water management plan to meet the water demand of the crop. Irrigation management in seedling management requires a great deal of specific information, especially when it involves the use of inputs such as hydrorentering polymers and automation technologies of the data acquisition and irrigation system. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse at the Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa - MG. Tomato seedlings (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill) were produced in plastic trays of 128 cells, suspended at 1.25 m from the ground. The seedlings were irrigated by 4 micro sprinklers of fixed jet 360º per tray, duly isolated by sideboards, following the methodology developed for this work. During Phase 1, in January / February 2017 (duration of 24 days), the cultivation coefficient (Kc) of seedlings cultured in the presence and absence of hydrogel was evaluated by weighing lysimeter. In Phase 2, September 2017 (duration of 25 days), the seedlings were submitted to 4 irrigation managements (Kc, timer, 0.50 ETo, and 1.00 ETo), in the presence and absence of hydrogel and then evaluated in relation to quality parameters. The microclimate inside the greenhouse was monitored with the use of air temperature, relative humidity and global radiation sensors connected to a microcontroller that performed hourly calculations of reference evapotranspiration by Penman-Monteith standard method FAO56 modified for the balance of long waves according to Walker, Aldrich, Short (1983), and conducted water balance and irrigation decision making for each experimental treatment. Kc of seedlings cultured on a substrate with hydrogel (1.55) was higher than Kc on a pure substrate (1.39). The use of the hydrogel was a differential for the production of earlier tomato seedlings, with higher final height, the larger diameter of the colon, greater accumulation of a dry mass of shoot, a larger area of crown projection and greater the rate of relative growth. The handling 1.00 ETo promoted higher relative growth rate.

Keywords: automatic system; efficiency of water use; precision irrigation, micro sprinkler.

Procedia PDF Downloads 116

Authors: D. Augutis, M. Balalaikins, D. Bastyte, R. Ferenca, A. Gintaras, R. Karpuska, G. Svitra, U. Valainis

Abstract:

Osmoderma species complex (consisting of Osmoderma eremita, O. barnabita, O. lassallei and O. cristinae) is a scarab beetle serving as indicator species in nature conservation. Osmoderma inhabits cavities containing sufficient volume of wood mould usually caused by brown rot in veteran deciduous trees. As the species, having high demands for the habitat quality, they indicate the suitability of the habitat for a number of other specialized saproxylic species. Since typical habitat needed for Osmoderma and other species associated with hollow veteran trees is rapidly declining, the species complex is protected under various legislation, such as Bern Convention, EU Habitats Directive and the Red Lists of many European states. Natura 2000 sites are the main tool for conservation of O. barnabita in Lithuania, currently 17 Natura 2000 sites are designated for the species, where monitoring is implemented once in 3 years according to the approved methodologies. Despite these monitoring efforts in species reports, provided to EU according to the Article 17 of the Habitats Directive, it is defined on the national level, that overall assessment of O. barnabita is inadequate and future prospects are poor. Therefore, research on the distribution and habitat status of O. barnabita was launched on the national level in 2016, which was complemented by preparatory actions of LIFE OSMODERMA project. The research was implemented in the areas equally distributed in the whole area of Lithuania, where O. barnabita was previously not observed, or not observed in the last 10 years. 90 areas, such as Habitats of European importance (9070 Fennoscandian wooded pastures, 9180 Tilio-Acerion forests of slopes, screes, and ravines), Woodland key habitats (B1 broad-leaved forest, K1 single giant tree) and old manor parks, were chosen for the research after review of habitat data from the existing national databases. The first part of field inventory of the habitats was carried out in 2016 and 2017 autumn and winter seasons, when relative abundance of O. barnabita was estimated according to larval faecal pellets in the tree cavities or around the trees. The state of habitats was evaluated according to the density of suitable and potential trees, percentage of not overshadowed trees and amount of undergrowth. The second part of the field inventory was carried out in the summer with pheromone traps baited with (R)-(+)-γ –decalactone. Results of the research show not only occurrence and habitat status of O. barnabita, but also help to clarify O. barnabita habitat requirements in Lithuania, define habitat size, its structure and distribution. Also, it compares habitat needs between the regions in Lithuania and inside and outside Natura 2000 areas designated for the species.

Keywords: habitat status, insect conservation, Osmoderma barnabita, veteran trees

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Authors: Jose R. Garcia, Lexi Frankel, Amalia Ardeljan, Sergio Medina, Ali Yasback, Omar Rashid

Abstract:

Background: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a gram-negative, spiral-shaped bacterium that affects nearly half of the population worldwide and humans serve as the principal reservoir. Infection rates usually follow an inverse relationship with hygiene practices and are higher in developing countries than developed countries. Incidence varies significantly by geographic area, race, ethnicity, age, and socioeconomic status. H. pylori is primarily associated with conditions of the gastrointestinal tract such as atrophic gastritis and duodenal peptic ulcers. Infection is also associated with an increased risk of carcinogenesis as there is evidence to show that H. pylori infection may lead to gastric adenocarcinoma and mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma. It is suggested that H. pylori infection may be considered as a systemic condition, leading to various novel associations with several different neoplasms such as colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer, and lung cancer, although further research is needed. Emerging evidence suggests that H. pylori infection may offer protective effects against Mycobacterium tuberculosis as a result of non-specific induction of interferon- γ (IFN- γ). Similar methods of enhanced immunity may affect the development of bronchogenic carcinoma due to the antiproliferative, pro-apoptotic and cytostatic functions of IFN- γ. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the correlation between Helicobacter pylori infection and the incidence of bronchogenic carcinoma. Methods: The data was provided by a Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) compliant national database to evaluate the patients infected versus patients not infected with H. pylori using ICD-10 and ICD-9 codes. Access to the database was granted by the Holy Cross Health, Fort Lauderdale for the purpose of academic research. Standard statistical methods were used. Results:-Between January 2010 and December 2019, the query was analyzed and resulted in 163,224 in both the infected and control group, respectively. The two groups were matched by age range and CCI score. The incidence of bronchogenic carcinoma was 1.853% with 3,024 patients in the H. pylori group compared to 4.785% with 7,810 patients in the control group. The difference was statistically significant (p < 2.22x10-16) with an odds ratio of 0.367 (0.353 - 0.383) with a confidence interval of 95%. The two groups were matched by treatment and incidence of cancer, which resulted in a total of 101,739 patients analyzed after this match. The incidence of bronchogenic carcinoma was 1.929% with 1,962 patients in the H. pylori and treatment group compared to 4.618% with 4,698 patients in the control group with treatment. The difference was statistically significant (p < 2.22x10-16) with an odds ratio of 0.403 (0.383 - 0.425) with a confidence interval of 95%.

Keywords: bronchogenic carcinoma, helicobacter pylori, lung cancer, pathogen-associated molecular patterns

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Authors: Carolina Schencke, Cristian Sandoval, Belgica Vasquez, Mariano Del Sol

Abstract:

Introduction: In a burn injury, the successful repair requires not only the participation of various cells, such as granulocytes and fibroblasts, but also of collagen, which plays a crucial role as a structural and regulatory molecule of scar tissue. Since honey and ascorbic acid have presented a great therapeutic potential to cellular and structural level, experimental studies have proposed its combination in the treatment of wounds. Aim: To evaluate stereological and morphometric parameters of healing wounds, caused by burns, treated with honey Ulmo (Eucryphia cordifolia) unsupplemented, comparing its effect with Ulmo honey supplemented with ascorbic acid. Materials and Methods: Fifteen healthy adult guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) were used, of both sexes, average weight 450 g from the Centro de Excelencia en Estudios Morfológicos y Quirúrgicos (CEMyQ) at the Universidad de La Frontera, Chile. The animals were divided at random into three groups: positive control (C+), honey only (H) and supplemented honey (SH) and were fed on pellets supplemented with ascorbic acid and water ad libitum, under ambient conditions controlled for temperature, ambient noise and a cycle of 12h light–darkness. The protocol for the experiment was approved by the Scientific Ethics Committee of the Universidad de La Frontera, Chile. The parameters measured were number density per area (NA), volume density (VV), and surface density (SV) of fibroblast; NA and VV of polymorphonuclear cells (PMN) and, evaluation of the content of collagen fibers in the scar dermis. One-way ANOVA was used for statistics analysis and its respective Post hoc tests. Results: The ANOVA analysis for NA, VV and SV of fibroblasts, NA and VV of PMN, and evaluation of collagen content, type I and III, showed that at least one group differs from other (P≤ 0.001). There were differences (P= 0.000) in NA of fibroblast between the groups [C+= 3599.560 mm-2 (SD= 764.461), H= 3355.336 mm-2 (SD= 699.443) and SH= 4253.025 mm-2 (SD= 1041.751)]. The VV and SV of fibroblast increased (P= 0.000) in the SH group [20.400% (SD= 5.897) and 100.876 mm2/mm3 (SD= 29.431), respectively], compared to the C+ [16.324% (SD= 7.719) and 81.676 mm2/mm3 (SD= 28.884), respectively). The mean values of NA and VV of PMN were higher (P= 0.000) in the H [756.875 mm-2 (SD= 516.489) and 2.686% (SD= 2.380), respectively) group. Regarding to the evaluation of the content of collagen fibers, type I and III, the one-way analysis of ANOVA showed a statistically significant difference (P< 0.05). The content of collagen fibers type I was higher in C+ (1988.292 μm2; SD= 1312.379), while the content of collagen fibers type III was higher in SH (1967.163 μm2; SD= 1047.944 μm2) group. Conclusions: The stereological results were correlated with the stage of healing observed for each group. These results suggest that the combination of honey with ascorbic acid potentiate the healing effect, where both participated synergistically.

Keywords: ascorbic acid, morphometry, stereology, Ulmo honey

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Authors: Domingos Viegas, Miguel Almeida, Carmen Rocha, Ilda Novo, Yolanda Luna

Abstract:

Forest fires along the more than 1200km of the Spanish-Portuguese border are more and more frequent, currently achieving around 2000 fire events per year. Some of these events develop to large international wildfire requiring concerted operations based on shared information between the two countries. The fire event of Valencia de Alcantara (2003) causing several fatalities and more than 13000ha burnt, is a reference example of these international events. Currently, Portugal and Spain have a specific cross-border cooperation protocol on wildfires response for a strip of about 30km (15 km for each side). It is recognized by public authorities the successfulness of this collaboration however it is also assumed that this cooperation should include more functionalities such as the development of a common risk information system for transboundary fire events. Since Portuguese and Spanish authorities use different approaches to determine the fire risk indexes inputs and different methodologies to assess the fire risk, sometimes the conjoint firefighting operations are jeopardized since the information is not harmonized and the understanding of the situation by the civil protection agents from both countries is not unique. Thus, a methodology aiming the harmonization of the fire risk calculation and perception by Portuguese and Spanish Civil protection authorities is hereby presented. The final results are presented as well. The fire risk index used in this work is the Canadian Fire Weather Index (FWI), which is based on meteorological data. The FWI is limited on its application as it does not take into account other important factors with great effect on the fire appearance and development. The combination of these factors is very complex since, besides the meteorology, it addresses several parameters of different topics, namely: sociology, topography, vegetation and soil cover. Therefore, the meaning of FWI values is different from region to region, according the specific characteristics of each region. In this work, a methodology for FWI calibration based on the number of fire occurrences and on the burnt area in the transboundary regions of Portugal and Spain, in order to assess the fire risk based on calibrated FWI values, is proposed. As previously mentioned, the cooperative firefighting operations require a common perception of the information shared. Therefore, a common classification of the fire risk for the fire events occurred in the transboundary strip is proposed with the objective of harmonizing this type of information. This work is integrated in the ECHO project SpitFire - Spanish-Portuguese Meteorological Information System for Transboundary Operations in Forest Fires, which aims the development of a web platform for the sharing of information and supporting decision tools to be used in international fire events involving Portugal and Spain.

Keywords: data harmonization, FWI, international collaboration, transboundary wildfires

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