Search results for: sulphur recovery unit

Authors: Ibrahim S. Seddiek, Nader R. Ammar

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One of the most important equipment that affects the performance of passenger ships is the air conditioning system, which in turn consumes considerable electric loads. In this paper, the waste heat energies of exhaust gases and jacket cooling water of marine diesel engines for these ships are analyzed to be used as heat sources for absorption refrigeration unit (ARU). Economic and environmental analysis of the absorption refrigeration cycle operated with the two heat sources that use lithium bromide as absorbent is carried out. In addition, environmental and economic analysis for the absorption cycle is performed. As a case study, high-speed passenger vessel operating in the Red Sea area has been investigated. The results show that a considerable specific economic benefit could be achieved in case of applying absorption air condition that operates by water cooling system over that operates by main engine exhaust gases. Environmentally, applying ARU machine during cruise will reduce total ship’s fuel consumption by about 104 ton per year. This will result in reducing NOₓ, SOₓ, and CO₂ emissions with cost-effectiveness of 6.99 $/kg, 18.44 $/kg, and 0.117 $/kg, respectively.

Keywords: ship emissions, IMO, lithium bromide-water ARU, analysis, thermodynamic, economic and environmental analysis

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Authors: Carolina Morales, Ricardo Castro-Huerta, Enrique A. Mundaca

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The edaphic fauna is the main factor involved in the transformation of nutrients and soil decomposition processes. Edaphic organisms are highly sensitive to soil disturbances, which normally causes changes in the composition and abundance of such organisms. Fire is known to be a disturbing factor since it affects the physical, chemical and biological properties of the soil and the whole ecosystem. During the summer (December-March) of 2017, Chile suffered the major fire events recorded in its modern history, which affected a vast area and a number of ecosystem types. The objective of this study was first to use remote sensing satellite images and GIS (Geographic Information Systems) to assess and identify levels of fire severity in disturbed areas and to compare the responses of the soil mesofauna diversity among such areas. We identified four areas (treatments) with an ascending level of severity, namely: mild, medium, high severity, and free of fire. A non-affected patch of forest was established as a control. Three samples from each treatment were collected in the form of a soil cube (10x10x10 cm). Edaphic mesofauna was obtained from each sample through the Berlese-Tullgren funnel method. Collected specimens were quantified and identified, using the RTU (Recognisable Taxonomic Unit) criterion. Diversity was analysed using inferential statistics to compare Simpson and Shannon-Wiener indexes across treatments. As predicted, the unburned forest patch (control) exhibited higher diversity values than the treatments. Significantly higher diversity values were recorded in those treatments subjected to lower fire severity. We conclude that remote sensing zoning is an adequate tool to identify different levels of fire severity and that an edaphic mesofauna is a group of organisms that qualify as good bioindicators for monitoring soil recovery after fire events.

Keywords: bioindicator, Chile, fire severity level, soil

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Authors: Fang Lian, Zefang Chenli, Laijun Ma, Lei Mao

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Up to now, electrolytic process is a popular way to prepare Mn and MnO2 (EMD) with high purity. However, the conventional preparation process of manganese oxide such as Mn3O4 with high purity from electrolytic manganese metal is characterized by long production-cycle, high-pollution discharge and high energy consumption especially initially from low-grade rhodochrosite, the main resources for exploitation and applications in China. Moreover, Mn3O4 prepared from electrolytic manganese shows large particles, single morphology beyond the control and weak chemical activity. On the other hand, hydrometallurgical method combined with thermal decomposition, hydrothermal synthesis and sol-gel processes has been widely studied because of its high efficiency, low consumption and low cost. But the key problem in direct preparation of manganese oxide series from low-grade rhodochrosite is to remove completely the multiple impurities such as iron, silicon, calcium and magnesium. It is urgent to develop a sustainable approach to high pure manganese oxide series with character of short process, high efficiency, environmentally friendly and economical benefit. In our work, the preparation technique of high pure Mn3O4 directly from low-grade rhodochrosite ore (13.86%) was studied and improved intensively, including the effective leaching process and the short purifying process. Based on the same ion effect, the repeated leaching of rhodochrosite with sulfuric acid is proposed to improve the solubility of Mn2+ and inhibit the dissolution of the impurities Ca2+ and Mg2+. Moreover, the repeated leaching process could make full use of sulfuric acid and lower the cost of the raw material. With the aid of theoretical calculation, Ba(OH)2 was chosen to adjust the pH value of manganese sulfate solution and BaF2 to remove Ca2+ and Mg2+ completely in the process of purifying. Herein, the recovery ratio of manganese and removal ratio of the impurity were evaluated via chemical titration and ICP analysis, respectively. Comparison between conventional preparation technique from electrolytic manganese and a sustainable approach directly from low-grade rhodochrosite have also been done herein. The results demonstrate that the extraction ratio and the recovery ratio of manganese reached 94.3% and 92.7%, respectively. The heavy metal impurities has been decreased to less than 1ppm, and the content of calcium, magnesium and sodium has been decreased to less than 20ppm, which meet standards of high pure reagent for energy and electronic materials. In compare with conventional technique from electrolytic manganese, the power consumption has been reduced to ≤2000 kWh/t(product) in our short-process approach. Moreover, comprehensive recovery rate of manganese increases significantly, and the wastewater generated from our short-process approach contains low content of ammonia/ nitrogen about 500 mg/t(product) and no toxic emissions. Our study contributes to the sustainable application of low-grade manganese ore. Acknowledgements: The authors are grateful to the National Science and Technology Support Program of China (No.2015BAB01B02) for financial support to the work.

Keywords: leaching, high purity, low-grade rhodochrosite, manganese oxide, purifying process, recovery ratio

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Authors: Isomar Lima da Silva, Alcilene Batalha Pontes, Aristeu Jonatas Leite de Oliveira, Roberto Maia Augusto

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Context: Mechanical ventilators are medical devices that help provide oxygen and ventilation to patients with respiratory difficulties. This equipment consists of a manual breathing unit that can be operated by a doctor or nurse and a mechanical ventilator that controls the airflow and pressure in the patient's respiratory system. This type of ventilator is commonly used in emergencies and intensive care units where it is necessary to provide breathing support to critically ill or injured patients. Objective: In this context, this work aims to develop a reliable and low-cost mechanical ventilator to meet the demand of hospitals in treating people affected by Covid-19 and other severe respiratory diseases, offering a chance of treatment as an alternative to mechanical ventilators currently available in the market. Method: The project presents the development of a low-cost auxiliary ventilator with a controlled ventilatory system assisted by integrated hardware and firmware for respiratory cycle control in non-invasive mechanical ventilation treatments using a manual artificial respiration unit. The hardware includes pressure sensors capable of identifying positive expiratory pressure, peak inspiratory flow, and injected air volume. The embedded system controls the data sent by the sensors. It ensures efficient patient breathing through the operation of the sensors, microcontroller, and actuator, providing patient data information to the healthcare professional (system operator) through the graphical interface and enabling clinical parameter adjustments as needed. Results: The test data of the developed mechanical ventilator presented satisfactory results in terms of performance and reliability, showing that the equipment developed can be a viable alternative to commercial mechanical ventilators currently available, offering a low-cost solution to meet the increasing demand for respiratory support equipment.

Keywords: mechanical fans, breathing, medical equipment, COVID-19, intensive care units

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Authors: Srinivasa Reddy Mallampati, Min Hee Park, Soo Mim Cho, Sung Hyeon Yoon

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One of the issues of End of Life Vehicles (ELVs) recycling promotion is technology for the appropriate treatment of automotive shredder residue (ASR). Owing to its high heterogeneity and variable composition (plastic (23–41%), rubber/elastomers (9–21%), metals (6–13%), glass (10–20%) and dust (soil/sand) etc.), ASR can be classified as ‘hazardous waste’, on the basis of the presence of heavy metals (HMs), PCBs, BFRs, mineral oils, etc. Considering their relevant concentrations, these metals and plastics should be properly recovered for recycling purposes before ASR residues are disposed of. Brominated flame retardant additives in ABS/HIPS and PVC may generate dioxins and furans at elevated temperatures. Moreover, these BFRs additives present in plastic materials may leach into the environment during landfilling operations. ASR thermal process removes some of the organic material but concentrates, the heavy metals and POPs present in the ASR residues. In the present study, Fe/Ca/CaO nanoparticle assisted ozone treatment has been found to selectively hydrophilize the surface of ABS/HIPS and PVC plastics, enhancing its wettability and thereby promoting its separation from ASR plastics by means of froth flotation. The water contact angles, of ABS/HIPS and PVC decreased, about 18.7°, 18.3°, and 17.9° in ASR respectively. Under froth flotation conditions at 50 rpm, about 99.5% and 99.5% of HIPS in ASR samples sank, resulting in a purity of 98% and 99%. Furthermore, at 150 rpm a 100% PVC separation in the settled fraction, with 98% of purity in ASR, respectively. Total recovery of non-ABS/HIPS and PVC plastics reached nearly 100% in the floating fraction. This process improved the quality of recycled ASR plastics by removing surface contaminants or impurities. Further, a hybrid ball-milling and with Fe/Ca/CaO nanoparticle froth flotation process was established for the recovery of HMs from ASR. After ball-milling with Fe/Ca/CaO nanoparticle additives, the flotation efficiency increased to about 55 wt% and the HMs recovery were also increased about 90% for the 0.25 mm size fractions of ASR. Coating with Fe/Ca/CaO nanoparticles associated with subsequent microbubble froth flotation allowed the air bubbles to attach firmly on the HMs. SEM–EDS maps showed that the amounts of HMs were significant on the surface of the floating ASR fraction. This result, along with the low HM concentration in the settled fraction, was confirmed by elemental spectra and semi-quantitative SEM–EDS analysis. Developed hybrid preferential hazardous plastics and metals separation process from ASR is a simple, highly efficient, and sustainable procedure.

Keywords: end of life vehicles shredder residue, hazardous plastics, nanoparticle froth flotation, separation process

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Authors: Hady Hamidyan

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As the global population continues to grow, the demand for clean water and effective wastewater treatment becomes increasingly critical. By 2030, global water demand is projected to exceed supply by 40%, driven by population growth, increased water usage, and climate change. Currently, about 4.2 billion people lack access to safely managed sanitation services. The wastewater treatment sector faces numerous challenges, including the need for energy-efficient solutions, cost-effectiveness, ease of use, and low maintenance requirements. This abstract presents a groundbreaking wastewater treatment technology that addresses these challenges by offering an energy-saving approach, wastewater recovery capabilities, and a ready-made, affordable, and user-friendly package with minimal maintenance costs. The unique design of this ready-made package made it possible to eliminate the need for pumps, filters, airlift, and other common equipment. Consequently, it enables sustainable wastewater treatment management with exceptionally low energy and cost requirements, minimizing investment and maintenance expenses. The operation of these packages is based on continuous aeration, which involves injecting oxygen gas or air into the aeration chamber through a tubular diffuser with very small openings. This process supplies the necessary oxygen for aerobic bacteria. The recovered water, which amounts to almost 95% of the input, can be treated to meet specific quality standards, allowing safe reuse for irrigation, industrial processes, or even potable purposes. This not only reduces the strain on freshwater resources but also provides economic benefits by offsetting the costs associated with freshwater acquisition and wastewater discharge. The ready-made, affordable, and user-friendly nature of this technology makes it accessible to a wide range of users, including small communities, industries, and decentralized wastewater treatment systems. The system incorporates user-friendly interfaces, simplified operational procedures, and integrated automation, facilitating easy implementation and operation. Additionally, the use of durable materials, efficient equipment, and advanced monitoring systems significantly reduces maintenance requirements, resulting in low overall life-cycle costs and alleviating the burden on operators and maintenance personnel. In conclusion, the presented wastewater treatment technology offers a comprehensive solution to the challenges faced by the industry. Its energy-saving approach, combined with wastewater recovery capabilities, ensures sustainable resource management and enhances environmental stewardship. This affordable, ready-made, and low-maintenance package promotes broad adoption across various sectors and communities, contributing to a more sustainable future for water and wastewater management.

Keywords: wastewater treatment, energy saving, wastewater recovery, affordable package, low maintenance costs, sustainable resource management, environmental stewardship

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Authors: Tomas Makaras, Julija Razumienė, Vidutė Gurevičienė, Gintarė Sauliutė, Milda Stankevičiūtė

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Stress responses represent animal’s natural reactions to various challenging conditions and could be used as a welfare indicator. Regardless of the wide use of glucose measurements in stress evaluation, there are some inconsistencies in its acceptance as a stress marker, especially when it comes to comparison with non-invasive cortisol measurements in the fish challenging stress. To meet the challenge and to test the reliability and applicability of glucose measurement in practice, in this study, different environmental/anthropogenic exposure scenarios were simulated to provoke chemical-induced stress in fish (14-days exposure to landfill leachate) followed by a 14-days stress recovery period and under the cumulative effect of leachate fish subsequently exposed to pathogenic oomycetes (Saprolegnia parasitica) to represent a possible infection in fish. It is endemic to all freshwater habitats worldwide and is partly responsible for the decline of natural freshwater fish populations. Brown trout (Salmo trutta fario) and sea trout (Salmo trutta trutta) juveniles were chosen because of a large amount of literature on physiological stress responses in these species was known. Glucose content in fish by applying invasive and non-invasive glucose measurement procedures in different test mediums such as fish blood, gill tissues and fish-holding water were analysed. The results indicated that the quantity of glucose released in the holding water of stressed fish increased considerably (approx. 3.5- to 8-fold) and remained substantially higher (approx. 2- to 4-fold) throughout the stress recovery period than the control level suggesting that fish did not recover from chemical-induced stress. The circulating levels of glucose in blood and gills decreased over time in fish exposed to different stressors. However, the gill glucose level in fish showed a decrease similar to the control levels measured at the same time points, which was found to be insignificant. The data analysis showed that concentrations of β-D glucose measured in gills of fish treated with S. parasitica differed significantly from the control recovery, but did not differ from the leachate recovery group showing that S. parasitica presence in water had no additive effects. In contrast, a positive correlation between blood and gills glucose were determined. Parallel trends in blood and water glucose changes suggest that water glucose measurement has much potency in predicting stress. This study demonstrated that measuring β-D-glucose in fish-holding water is not stressful as it involves no handling and manipulation of an organism and has critical technical advantages concerning current (invasive) methods, mainly using blood samples or specific tissues. The quantification of glucose could be essential for studies examining the stress physiology/aquaculture studies interested in the assessment or long-term monitoring of fish health.

Keywords: brown trout, landfill leachate, sea trout, pathogenic oomycetes, β-D-glucose

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Authors: Badino Manuel, Farias María Alejandra

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Anxiety and depression are considered the main mental health issues found in people with substance-related disorders. Furthermore, substance-related disorders, anxiety-related and depressive disorders are among the leading causes of disability and are associated with increased mortality. The co-occurrence of substance-related disorders and these mental health conditions affect the accuracy in diagnosis, treatment plan, and recovery process. The aim is to describe the prevalence of anxiety and depression in patients with substance-related disorders in a mental health service in Córdoba, Argentina. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among patients with substance-related disorders (N=305). Anxiety and depression were assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) during the period from December 2021 to March 2022. For a total of 305 participants, 71,8% were male, 25,6% female and 2,6% non-binary. As regards marital status, 51,5% were single, 21,6% as a couple, 5,9% married, 15,4% separated and 5,6% divorced. In relation to education status, 26,2% finished university, 56,1% high school, 16,4% only primary school and 1,3% no formal schooling. Regarding age, 10,8% were young, 84,3% were adults, and 4,9% were elderly. In-person treatment represented 64,6% of service users, and 35,4% were conducted through teleconsultation. 15,7% of service users scored 3 or higher for anxiety, and 32,1% scored 3 or higher for depression in the PHQ-4. 13,1% obtained a score of 3 or higher for both anxiety and depression. It is recommended to identify anxiety and depression among patients with substance-related disorders to improve the quality of diagnosis, treatment, and recovery. It is suggested to apply PHQ-4, PHQ-9 within the protocol of care for these patients.

Keywords: addiction, anxiety, depression, mental health

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Authors: Meng-Fei Cheng, Wei Fneg

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New Taiwan high school standards emphasize employing scientific models and modeling practices in physics learning. However, to our knowledge. Few studies address how scientific models and modeling are approached in current science teaching, and they do not examine the views of scientific models portrayed in the textbooks. To explore the views of scientific models and modeling in textbooks, this study investigated the atomic unit in different textbook versions as an example and provided suggestions for modeling curriculum. This study adopted a quantitative analysis of qualitative data in the atomic units of four mainstream version of Taiwan high school physics textbooks. The models were further analyzed using five dimensions of the views of scientific models (nature of models, multiple models, purpose of the models, testing models, and changing models); each dimension had three levels (low, medium, high). Descriptive statistics were employed to compare the frequency of describing the five dimensions of the views of scientific models in the atomic unit to understand the emphasis of the views and to compare the frequency of the eight scientific models’ use to investigate the atomic model that was used most often in the textbooks. Descriptive statistics were further utilized to investigate the average levels of the five dimensions of the views of scientific models to examine whether the textbooks views were close to the scientific view. The average level of the five dimensions of the eight atomic models were also compared to examine whether the views of the eight atomic models were close to the scientific views. The results revealed the following three major findings from the atomic unit. (1) Among the five dimensions of the views of scientific models, the most portrayed dimension was the 'purpose of models,' and the least portrayed dimension was 'multiple models.' The most diverse view was the 'purpose of models,' and the most sophisticated scientific view was the 'nature of models.' The least sophisticated scientific view was 'multiple models.' (2) Among the eight atomic models, the most mentioned model was the atomic nucleus model, and the least mentioned model was the three states of matter. (3) Among the correlations between the five dimensions, the dimension of 'testing models' was highly related to the dimension of 'changing models.' In short, this study examined the views of scientific models based on the atomic units of physics textbooks to identify the emphasized and disregarded views in the textbooks. The findings suggest how future textbooks and curriculum can provide a thorough view of scientific models to enhance students' model-based learning.

Keywords: atomic models, textbooks, science education, scientific model

Procedia PDF Downloads 148

Authors: Yaser Al-Anii, Abdulmajeed Almaneea, Jonathan L. Summers, Harvey M. Thompson, Nikil Kapur

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The natural convection cooling system of a fully immersed server in a dielectric liquid is studied numerically. In the present case study, the dielectric liquid represents working fluid and it is in contact with server inside capsule. The capsule includes electronic component and fluid which can be modeled as saturated porous media. This medium follow Darcy flow regime and assumed to be in balance between its components. The study focus is on role of spatial parameters on thermal behavior of convective heat transfer. Based on server known unit, which is 1U, two parameters Ly and S are changed to test their effect. Meanwhile, wide-range of modified Rayleigh number, which is 0.5 to 300, are covered to better understand thermal performance. Navier-Stokes equations are used to model physical domain. Furthermore, successive over-relaxation and time marching techniques are used to solve momentum and energy equation. From obtained correlation, the in-between distance S is more effective on Nusselt number than distance to edge Ly by approximately 14%. In addition, as S increases, the average Nusselt number of the upper unit increases sharply, whereas the lower one keeps on the same level.

Keywords: convective cooling of server, Darcy flow, liquid-immersed server, porous media

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Authors: Binoy Chandra Sarma, S. K. Deb

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Over 85% of industrial dryers are of the convective type with hot air or direct flue gases as the drying medium. Over 99% of the applications involve removal of water. In this study, the performance of a solar air heater with the recovery of the absorbed heat by the metallic concentrator sheet itself besides the normal heat accumulated by the receiver at the focus of the concentrator for generating drying air by convection at a low to medium temperature range is discussed. The system performance through thermal analysis & the performance of a model achieving the required temperature range is also investigate in this study. Over 85% of industrial dryers are of the convective type with hot air or direct flue gases as the drying medium. Over 99% of the applications involve removal of water. In this study, the performance of a solar air heater with the recovery of the absorbed heat by the metallic concentrator sheet itself besides the normal heat accumulated by the receiver at the focus of the concentrator for generating drying air by convection at a low to medium temperature range is discussed. The system performance through thermal analysis & the performance of a model achieving the required temperature range is also investigate in this study.

Keywords: dryer, polygeneration, moisture, equilibrium, humidity

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Authors: Ayoub Bouazza, Ali Faddouli, Said Amal, Rachid Benhida, Khaoula Khaless

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Brine waste generated from reverse osmosis (RO) desalination plants contains various valuable compounds, mainly salts, trace elements, and organic matter. These wastes are up to two times saltier than standard seawater. Therefore, there is a strong economic interest in recovering these salts. The current practice in desalination plants is to reject the brine back to the sea, which affects the marine ecosystem and the environment. Our study aims to bring forth a reliable management solution for the valorisation of waste brines. Natural evaporation, isothermal evaporation at 25°C and 50°C, and evaporation using continuous heating were used to crystallize valuable salts from a reverse osmosis desalination plant brine located on the Moroccan Atlantic coast. The crystallization sequence of the brine was studied in comparison with standard seawater. The X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) of the precipitated solid phases showed similar results, where halite was the main solid phase precipitated from both the brine and seawater. However, Jänecke diagram prediction, along with FREZCHEM simulations, showed that Kainite should crystallize before Epsomite and Carnallite. As the absence of kainite formation in many experiments in the literature has been related to the metastability of kainite and the critical relative humidity conditions, and the precipitation of K–Mg salts is very sensitive to climatic conditions. An evaporation process is proposed as a solution to achieve the predicted crystallization path and to affirm the recovery of Kainite.

Keywords: salts crystallization, reverse osmosis, solar evaporation, frezchem, ZLD

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Authors: T. Mokhele, O. Mutanga, F. Ahmed

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South Africa is one of the few countries that have stopped using the same Enumeration Areas (EAs) for census enumeration and dissemination. The advantage of this change is that confidentiality issue could be addressed for census dissemination as the design of geographic unit for collection is mainly to ensure that this unit is covered by one enumerator. The objective of this paper was to evaluate the performance of automated zone design output areas against non-zone design developed geographies using the 2001 census data, and 2011 census to some extent, as the main input. The comparison of the Automated Zone-design Tool (AZTool) census output areas with the Small Area Layers (SALs) and SubPlaces based on confidentiality limit, population distribution, and degree of homogeneity, as well as shape compactness, was undertaken. Further, SPSS was employed for validation of the AZTool output results. The results showed that AZTool developed output areas out-perform the existing official SAL and SubPlaces with regard to minimum population threshold, population distribution and to some extent to homogeneity. Therefore, it was concluded that AZTool program provides a new alternative to the creation of optimised census output areas for dissemination of population census data in South Africa.

Keywords: AZTool, enumeration areas, small areal layers, South Africa

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Authors: Zheng Wang, Zhenhong Li, Jon Mills

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Ground-based synthetic aperture radar (GBSAR) represents a powerful remote sensing tool for deformation monitoring towards various geohazards, e.g. landslides, mudflows, avalanches, infrastructure failures, and the subsidence of residential areas. Unlike spaceborne SAR with a fixed revisit period, GBSAR data can be acquired with an adjustable temporal resolution through either continuous or discontinuous operation. However, challenges arise from processing high temporal-resolution continuous GBSAR data, including the extreme cost of computational random-access-memory (RAM), the delay of displacement maps, and the loss of temporal evolution. Moreover, repositioning errors between discontinuous campaigns impede the accurate measurement of surface displacements. Therefore, a versatile package with two complete chains is developed in this study in order to process both continuous and discontinuous GBSAR data and address the aforementioned issues. The first chain is based on a small-baseline subset concept and it processes continuous GBSAR images unit by unit. Images within a window form a basic unit. By taking this strategy, the RAM requirement is reduced to only one unit of images and the chain can theoretically process an infinite number of images. The evolution of surface displacements can be detected as it keeps temporarily-coherent pixels which are present only in some certain units but not in the whole observation period. The chain supports real-time processing of the continuous data and the delay of creating displacement maps can be shortened without waiting for the entire dataset. The other chain aims to measure deformation between discontinuous campaigns. Temporal averaging is carried out on a stack of images in a single campaign in order to improve the signal-to-noise ratio of discontinuous data and minimise the loss of coherence. The temporal-averaged images are then processed by a particular interferometry procedure integrated with advanced interferometric SAR algorithms such as robust coherence estimation, non-local filtering, and selection of partially-coherent pixels. Experiments are conducted using both synthetic and real-world GBSAR data. Displacement time series at the level of a few sub-millimetres are achieved in several applications (e.g. a coastal cliff, a sand dune, a bridge, and a residential area), indicating the feasibility of the developed GBSAR data processing package for deformation monitoring of a wide range of scientific and practical applications.

Keywords: ground-based synthetic aperture radar, interferometry, small baseline subset algorithm, deformation monitoring

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Authors: Eugene Y. C. Wong, Daniel Y. W. Mo, Cosmo T. Y. Ng, Jessica K. Y. Chan, Leith K. Y. Chan, Henry Y. K. Lau

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The real-time planning visualisation, precise allocation and loading optimisation in air cargo load planning operations are increasingly important as more considerations are needed on dangerous cargo loading, locations of lithium batteries, weight declaration and limited aircraft capacity. The planning of the unit load devices (ULD) can often be carried out only in a limited number of hours before flight departure. A dynamic air cargo load planning system is proposed with the optimisation of cargo load plan and visualisation of planning results in virtual reality systems. The system aims to optimise the cargo load planning and visualise the simulated loading planning decision on air cargo terminal operations. Adopting simulation tools, Cave Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) and virtual reality technologies, the results of planning with reference to weight and balance, Unit Load Device (ULD) dimensions, gateway, cargo nature and aircraft capacity are optimised and presented. The virtual reality system facilities planning, operations, education and training. Staff in terminals are usually trained in a traditional push-approach demonstration with enormous manual paperwork. With the support of newly customized immersive visualization environment, users can master the complex air cargo load planning techniques in a problem based training with the instant result being immersively visualised. The virtual reality system is developed with three-dimensional (3D) projectors, screens, workstations, truss system, 3D glasses, and demonstration platform and software. The content will be focused on the cargo planning and loading operations in an air cargo terminal. The system can assist decision-making process during cargo load planning in the complex operations of air cargo terminal operations. The processes of cargo loading, cargo build-up, security screening, and system monitoring can be further visualised. Scenarios are designed to support and demonstrate the daily operations of the air cargo terminal, including dangerous goods, pets and animals, and some special cargos.

Keywords: air cargo load planning, optimisation, virtual reality, weight and balance, unit load device

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Authors: Fatma Ahmed, Heba Mostafa, Bassem Ramdan, Azza El-Soussi

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Background: World Health Organization stated that by 2020 cardiac disease will be the number one cause of death worldwide and estimates that 25 million people per year will suffer from heart disease. Cardiac surgery is considered an effective treatment for severe forms of cardiovascular diseases that cannot be treated by medical treatment or cardiac interventions. In spite of the benefits of cardiac surgery, it is considered a major stressful experience for patients who are candidate for surgery. Prehabilitation can decrease incidences of postoperative complications as it prepares patients for surgical stress through enhancing their defenses to meet the demands of surgery. When patients anticipate the postoperative sequence of events, they will prepare themselves to act certain behaviors, identify their roles and actively participate in their own recovery, therefore, anxiety levels are decreased and functional capacity is enhanced. Prehabilitation programs can comprise interventions that include physical exercise, psychological prehabilitation, nutritional optimization and risk factor modification. Physical exercises are associated with improvements in the functioning of the various physiological systems, reflected in increased functional capacity, improved cardiac and respiratory functions and make patients fit for surgical intervention. Prehabilitation programs should also prepare patients psychologically in order to cope with stress, anxiety and depression associated with postoperative pain, fatigue, limited ability to perform the usual activities of daily living through acting in a healthy manner. Notwithstanding the benefits of psychological preparations, there are limited studies which investigated the effect of psychological prehabilitation to confirm its effect on psychological, quality of life and physiological outcomes of patients who had undergone cardiac surgery. Aim of the study: The study aims to determine the effect of prehabilitation interventions on outcomes of patients undergoing cardiac surgeries. Methods: Quasi experimental study design was used to conduct this study. Sixty eligible and consenting patients were recruited and divided into two groups: control and intervention group (30 participants in each). One tool namely emotional, physiological, clinical, cognitive and functional capacity outcomes of prehabilitation intervention assessment tool was utilized to collect the data of this study. Results: Data analysis showed significant improvement in patients' emotional state, physiological and clinical outcomes (P < 0.000) with the use of prehabilitation interventions. Conclusions: Cardiac prehabilitation in the form of providing information about surgery, circulation exercise, deep breathing exercise, incentive spirometer training and nutritional education implemented daily by patients scheduled for elective open heart surgery one week before surgery have been shown to improve patients' emotional state, physiological and clinical outcomes.

Keywords: emotional recovery, clinical recovery, coronary artery bypass grafting patients, prehabilitation

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Authors: Nuri Balta, Ali Eryilmaz

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High-quality teachers are the key to improve student learning. Without a professional development of the teachers, the improvement of student success is difficult and incomplete. This study offers an in-service training course model for professional development of teachers (PD) entitled "teachers teaching teachers" (TTT). The basic premise of the PD program, designed for this study, was primarily aimed to increase the subject matter knowledge of high school physics teachers. The TTT course (the three hour long workshops), organized for this study, lasted for seven weeks with seventeen teachers took part in the TTT program at different amounts. In this study, the effect of the TTT program on teachers’ knowledge improvement was searched through the modern physics unit (MPU). The participating teachers taught the unit to one of their grade ten classes earlier, and they taught another equivalent class two months later. They were observed in their classes both before and after TTT program. The teachers were divided into placebo and the treatment groups. The aim of Solomon four-group design is an attempt to eliminate the possible effect of pre-test. However, in this study the similar design was used to eliminate the effect of pre teaching. The placebo group teachers taught their both classes as regular and the treatment group teachers had TTT program between the two teachings. The class observation results showed that the TTT program increased teachers’ knowledge and skills in teaching MPU. Further, participating in the TTT program caused teachers to teach the MPU in accordance with the requirements of the curriculum. In order to see any change in participating teachers’ success, an achievement test was applied to them. A large effect size (dCohen=.93) was calculated for the effect of TTT program on treatment group teachers’ achievement. The results suggest that staff developers should consider including topics, attractive to teachers, in-service training programs (a) to help teachers’ practice teaching the new topics (b) to increase the participation rate. During the conduction of the TTT courses, it was observed that teachers could not end some discussions and explain some concepts. It is now clear that teachers need support, especially when discussing counterintuitive concepts such as modern physics concepts. For this reason it is recommended that content focused PD programs be conducted at the helm of a scholarly coach.

Keywords: high school physics, in-service training course, modern physics unit, teacher professional development

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Authors: Mehwish Jawaad

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Purpose: The concept of GrSCM (Green Supply Chain Management) in the academic and research field is still thought to be in the development stage especially in Asian Emerging Economies. The purpose of this paper is to contribute significantly to the first wave of empirical investigation on GrSCM Practices and Firm Performance measures in Pakistan. The aim of this research is to develop a more holistic approach towards investigating the impact of Green Supply Chain Management Practices (Ecodesign, Internal Environmental Management systems, Green Distribution, Green Purchasing and Cooperation with Customers) on multiple dimensions of Firm Performance Measures (Economic Performance, Environmental Performance and Operational Performance) with a mediating role of Investment Recovery and Competitiveness. This paper also serves as an initiative to identify if the relationship between Investment Recovery and Firm Performance Measures is mediated by Competitiveness. Design/ Methodology/Approach: This study is based on survey Data collected from 272, ISO (14001) Certified Textile Firms Based in Lahore, Faisalabad, and Karachi which are involved in Spinning, Dyeing, Printing or Bleaching. A Theoretical model was developed incorporating the constructs representing Green Activities and Firm Performance Measures of a firm. The data was analyzed using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling. Senior and Mid-level managers provided the data reflecting the degree to which their organizations deal with both internal and external stakeholders to improve the environmental sustainability of their supply chain. Findings: Of the 36 proposed Hypothesis, 20 are considered valid and significant. The statistics result reveal that GrSCM practices positively impact Environmental Performance followed by Economic and Operational Performance. Investment Recovery acts as a strong mediator between Intra organizational Green activities and performance outcomes. The relationship of Reverse Logistics influencing outcomes is significantly mediated by Competitiveness. The pressure originating from customers exert significant positive influence on the firm to adopt Green Practices consequently leading to higher outcomes. Research Contribution/Originality: Underpinning the Resource dependence theory and as a first wave of investigating the impact of Green Supply chain on performance outcomes in Pakistan, this study intends to make a prominent mark in the field of research. Investment and Competitiveness together are tested as a mediator for the first time in this arena. Managerial implications: Practitioner is provided with a framework for assessing the synergistic impact of GrSCM practices on performance. Upgradation of Accreditations and Audit Programs on regular basis are the need of the hour. Making the processes leaner with the sale of excess inventories and scrap helps the firm to work more efficiently and productively.

Keywords: economic performance, environmental performance, green supply chain management practices, operational performance, sustainability, a textile sector of Pakistan

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Authors: M. Saifudin Ahmed Atique, Santosh Paudyal, Caixia Yang

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In an aircraft, a great portion of energy is wasted due to its inflight structural vibration. Structural components vibrate due to aeroelastic instabilities, gust perturbations and engine rotation at very high rpm. Energy losses due to mechanical vibration can be utilized by harvesting energy from aircraft structure as electrical energy. This harvested energy can be stored in battery panels built into aircraft fuselage and can be used to power inflight auxiliary accessories i.e., lighting and entertainment systems. Moreover, this power can be used for wireless Structural Health Monitoring System (SHM) for aircraft and as an excellent replacement of aircraft Ground Power Unit (GPU)/Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) during passenger onboard time to power aircraft cabin accessories to reduce aircraft ground operation cost significantly. In this paper, we propose the design of a noble aircraft wing in which Piezoelectric panels placed under the composite skin of aircraft wing will generate electrical charges from any inflight aerodynamics or mechanical vibration and store it into battery to power auxiliary inflight systems/accessories as per requirement. Experimental results show that a well-engineered piezoelectric energy harvester based aircraft wing can produce adequate energy to support in-flight lighting and auxiliary cabin accessories.

Keywords: vibration energy, aircraft wing, piezoelectric material, inflight accessories

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Authors: E. A. Krasikov

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Dependence of the materials properties on neutron irradiation intensity (flux) is a key problem while usage data of the accelerated materials irradiation in test reactors for forecasting of their capacity for work in realistic (practical) circumstances of operation. Investigations of the reactor pressure vessel steel radiation degradation dependence on fast neutron fluence (embrittlement kinetics) at low flux reveal the instability in the form of the scatter of the experimental data and wave-like sections of embrittlement kinetics appearance. Disclosure of the steel degradation oscillating is a sign of the steel structure cyclic self-recovery transformation as it take place in self-organization processes. This assumption has received support through the discovery of the similar ‘anomalous’ data in scientific publications and by means of own additional experiments. Data obtained stimulate looking-for ways to management of the structural steel radiation stability (for example, by means of nano - structure modification for radiation defects annihilation intensification) for creation of the intelligent self-recovering material. Expected results: - radiation degradation theory and mechanisms development, - more adequate models of the radiation embrittlement elaboration, - surveillance specimen programs improvement, - methods and facility development for usage data of the accelerated materials irradiation for forecasting of their capacity for work in realistic (practical) circumstances of operation, - search of the ways for creating of the radiation stable self-recovery intelligent materials.

Keywords: degradation, radiation, steel, wave-like kinetics

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Authors: Asnakech Zekiwos

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Background: Stress in nursing refers to the reactions nurses experience when faced with work demands that exceed their knowledge, skills, or ability to cope. Nursing, as a profession, is particularly susceptible to work-related stress. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 405 randomly selected nurses working in Hadiya Zone Public Hospitals from March 1 to 30, 2023. Data were collected using a pre-tested self-administered questionnaire. The data were entered using Epi-data version 3.1 and analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with the level of work stress. Variables with a p-value <0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: In this study, 56% (95% CI 50.9-61.2) of the participants reported being stressed in their work. Several factors were found to be associated with work stress, including being female (AOR=1.94, 95% CI 1.19-3.16), rotating shifts (AOR=2.06, 95% CI 1.31-3.25), working in the intensive care unit (AOR=3.42, 95% CI 1.20-9.73), and having post-basic training (AOR=0.55, 95% CI 0.34-0.92). Conclusion: The study revealed a high level of work stress among nurses in the study area. The zonal health unit takes measures to address work stress by providing job orientation during the hiring process, rotation, and on-the-job training to help nurses cope with and manage stressful events. Stress in public hospitals and among nurses is an important issue that needs attention.

Keywords: stress, nurses, public hospitals, expanded stress scale

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Authors: Rakiya Abba

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This paper investigates the effect of the money supply, exchange and interest rate on economic growth in Nigeria through the application of Augmented Dickey-Fuller technique in testing the unit root property of the series and Granger causality test of causation between GDP, money supply, the exchange, and interest rate. The results of unit root suggest that all the variables in the model are stationary at 1, 5 and 10 percent level of significance, and the results of Causality suggest that money supply and exchange granger cause IR, the result further reveals two – way causation existed between M2 and EXR while IR granger cause GDP the null hypothesis is rejected and GDP does not granger cause IR as indicated by their probability values of 0.4805 and confirmed by F-statistics values of 0.75483. The results revealed that M2 and EXR do not granger causes GDP, the null hypothesis is accepted at 75percent 18percent respectively as indicated by their probability values of 0.7472 and 0.1830 respectively; also, GDP does not granger cause M2 and EXR. The Johansen cointegration result indicates that despite GDP does not granger cause M2, IR, and EXR, but there existed 1 cointegrating equation, implying the existence of long-run relationship between GDP, M2 IR, and EXR. A major policy implication of this result is that economic growth is function of and money supply and exchange rate, effective monetary policies should direct on manipulating instruments and importance should be placed on justification for adopting a particular policy be rationalized in order to increase growth in economy

Keywords: economic growth, money supply, interest rate, exchange rate, causality

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Authors: Sadia Rafiq, Md. Ashab Siddique Zaki, Ananya Roy

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Mountain cycling is a type of off-road bicycle racing that typically takes place on rocky, arid, or other challenging terrains on specially-made mountain cycles. Professional cyclists race while attempting to stay on their bikes in a variety of locales across the world. For safety measures in mountain cycling, as there we have a high chance of injury in case of tire puncture, it’s a preferable way to use an airless tire instead of a pneumatic tire. As airless tire does not tend to go flat, it needs to be replaced less frequently. The airless tire replaces the pneumatic tire, wheel, and tire system with a single unit. It consists of a stiff hub connected to a shear band by flexible, pliable spokes, which is made of poly-composite and a tread band, all of which work together as a single unit to replace all of the components of a normal radial tire. In this paper, an analysis of airless tires in the mountain cycle is shown along with structure and material study. We will be taking the Honeycomb and Diamond Structure of spokes to compare the deformation in both cases and choose our preferable structure. As we know, the tread and spokes deform with the surface roughness and impact. So, the tire tread thickness and the design of spokes can control how much the tire can distort. Through the simulation, we can come to the conclusion that the diamond structure deforms less than the honeycomb structure. So, the diamond structure is more preferable.

Keywords: airless tire, diamond structure, honeycomb structure, deformation

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Authors: L. José, S. Vieira, E. Melo, A. R. Pinheiro

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Objectives: This study aims to characterize the stroke profile and the health care provided for people with a stroke in Luanda, Angola. Methods: A prospective longitudinal study was conducted at two Health centers, from March to November 2023, enrolling stroke patients. Data was gathered using a survey created by the researchers and validated by a health panel of experts from Angola. The analysis focused on demographic and stroke characteristics, as well as the care provided. Ethical approval and informed consent were obtained. Results: Preliminary results of a total of 186 patients are described, 122 from a Central Acute Care Hospital, with a mean age of 51.3±14.35 years old, a BMI of 26.7±4.15 kg/m2, 41% male, and 64 patients from a Rehabilitation Center, with 55.6±11.55 years old, a BMI of 27.0±3.8 kg/m2, 53% male. Ischemic stroke was reported as the most representative type in both centers (71.3% and 70.3%, respectively), though 100% of patients had no imaging diagnosis confirmation, neither data about the subtype was given. For patients admitted to the Hospital, discharge occurred before rehabilitation, and no follow-up was possible. No rehabilitation care was delivered in the first 7 days after the stroke. In the Rehabilitation Center, patient’s rehabilitation started in the late subacute phase, after a mean of 171.8±11.5 days. Conclusions: Stroke diagnosis lacks imaging confirmation, which is decisive for proper treatment, and rehabilitation starts during the late subacute phase, which is too late considering the international guidelines and the best window of opportunity for neuroplasticity and recovery. These results highlight the urgent need for the definition of Stroke-directed Health Care Policies in Angola.

Keywords: stroke, personalized health care, functional recovery, quality of life, health policies

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Authors: Rabitah Zakaria, Chan M. Luan, Nor Hakimah Ramly

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The extraction of vegetable oil using aqueous extraction process assisted by ionic extended surfactant has been investigated as an alternative to hexane extraction. However, the ionic extended surfactant has not been commercialised and its safety with respect to food processing is uncertain. Hence, food-grade non-ionic surfactants (Tween 20, Span 20, and Span 80) were proposed for the extraction of residual oil from palm-pressed mesocarp fibre. Palm-pressed mesocarp fibre contains a significant amount of residual oil ( 5-10 wt %) and its recovery is beneficial as the oil contains much higher content of vitamin E, carotenoids, and sterols compared to crude palm oil. In this study, the formulation of food-grade surfactants using a combination of high hydrophilic-lipophilic balance (HLB) surfactants and low HLB surfactants to produce micro-emulsion with very low interfacial tension (IFT) was investigated. The suitable surfactant formulation was used in the oil extraction process and the efficiency of the extraction was correlated with the IFT, droplet size and viscosity. It was found that a ternary surfactant mixture with a HLB value of 15 (82% Tween 20, 12% Span 20 and 6% Span 80) was able to produce micro-emulsion with very low IFT compared to other HLB combinations. Results suggested that the IFT and droplet size highly affect the oil recovery efficiency. Finally, optimization of the operating parameters shows that the highest extraction efficiency of 78% was achieved at 1:31 solid to liquid ratio, 2 wt % surfactant solution, temperature of 50˚C, and 50 minutes contact time.

Keywords: food-grade surfactants, aqueous extraction of residual oil, palm-pressed mesocarp fibre, interfacial tension

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Authors: Moustafa Osman Mohammed

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The photocurrent generations are influencing ultra-high efficiency solar cells based on self-assembled quantum dot (QD) nanostructures. Nanocrystal quantum dots (QD) provide a great enhancement toward solar cell efficiencies through the use of quantum confinement to tune absorbance across the solar spectrum enabled multi-exciton generation. Based on theoretical predictions, QDs have potential to improve systems efficiency in approximate regular electrons excitation intensity greater than 50%. In solar cell devices, an intermediate band formed by the electron levels in quantum dot systems. The spatial architecture is exploring how can solar cell integrate and produce not only high open circuit voltage (> 1.7 eV) but also large short-circuit currents due to the efficient absorption of sub-bandgap photons. In the proposed QD system, the structure allows barrier material to absorb wavelengths below 700 nm while multi-photon processes in the used quantum dots to absorb wavelengths up to 2 µm. The assembly of the electronic model is flexible to demonstrate the atoms and molecules structure and material properties to tune control energy bandgap of the barrier quantum dot to their respective optimum values. In terms of energy virtual conversion, the efficiency and cost of the electronic structure are unified outperform a pair of multi-junction solar cell that obtained in the rigorous test to quantify the errors. The milestone toward achieving the claimed high-efficiency solar cell device is controlling the edge causes of energy bandgap between the barrier material and quantum dot systems according to the media design limits. Despite this remarkable potential for high photocurrent generation, the achievable open-circuit voltage (Voc) is fundamentally limited due to non-radiative recombination processes in QD solar cells. The orientation of voltage recovery system is compared theoretically with experimental Voc variation in mediation upper–limit obtained one diode modeling form at the cells with different bandgap (Eg) as classified in the proposed spatial architecture. The opportunity for improvement Voc is valued approximately greater than 1V by using smaller QDs through QD solar cell recovery systems as confined to other micro and nano operations states.

Keywords: nanotechnology, photovoltaic solar cell, quantum systems, renewable energy, environmental modeling

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Authors: H. M. Imam, H. M. Rezk, A. F. Tohamy

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Background: Human umbilical cord blood (HUCB) is considered as a unique source for stem cells. HUCB contain different types of progenitor cells which could differentiate into hepatocytes. Aims: To investigate the potential of rat's liver damage repair using human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUCMSCs). We investigated the feasibility for hUCMSCs in recovery from liver damage. Moreover, investigating fibrotic liver repair and using the CCl4-induced model for liver damage in the rat. Methods: Rats were injected with 0.5 ml/kg CCl4 to induce liver damage and progressive liver fibrosis. hUCMSCs were injected into the rats through the tail vein; Stem cells were transplanted at a dose of 1×106 cells/rat after 72 hours of CCl4 injection without receiving any immunosuppressant. After (6 and 8 weeks) of transplantation, blood samples were collected to assess liver functions (ALT, AST, GGT and ALB) and level of Procollagen III as a liver fibrosis marker. In addition, hepatic tissue regeneration was assessed histopathologically and immunohistochemically using antihuman monoclonal antibodies against CD34, CK19 and albumin. Results: Biochemical and histopathological analysis showed significantly increased recovery from liver damage in the transplanted group. In addition, HUCB stem cells transdifferentiated into functional hepatocytes in rats with hepatic injury which results in improving liver structure and function. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that transplantation of hUCMSCs may be a novel therapeutic approach for treating liver fibrosis. Therefore, hUCMSCs are a potential option for treatment of liver cirrhosis.

Keywords: carbon tetra chloride, liver fibrosis, mesenchymal stem cells, rat

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Authors: Surya Chandra Tiwari, Kamal Kishore Pant, Sreedevi Upadhyayula

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CO2 capture using benign cost-effective solvents is an essential unit operation not only in the process industry for CO2 separation and recovery from industrial off-gas streams but also for direct capture from air to clean the environment. Several solvents are identified, by researchers, with high CO2 capture efficiency due to their favorable chemical and physical properties, interaction mechanism with CO2, and low regeneration energy cost. However, N-Methyldiethanolamine (MDEA) is the most frequently used solvent for CO2 capture with promoters such as piperazine (Pz) and monoethanolamine (MEA). These promoters have several issues such as low thermal stability, heat-stable salt formation, and being highly degradable. Therefore, new class promoters need to be used to overcome these issues. Functionalized ionic liquids (FILs) have the potential to overcome these limitations. Hence, in this work, four different new class functionalized ionic liquids (FILs) were used as promoters and determined their effectivity toward enhancement of the CO2 absorption performance. The CO2 absorption is performed at different pressure (2 bar, 4.4 bar, and 7 bar) and different temperature (303, 313, and 323K). The results confirmed that CO2 loading increases around 18 to 22% after 5wt% FILs blended in the MDEA. It was noticed that the CO2 loading increases with increasing pressure and decreases with increasing temperature for all absorbents systems. Further, the absorption kinetics was determined, and results showed that all the FILs provide an excellent absorption rate enhancement. Additionally, for the interaction mechanism study, 13C NMR analysis was performed for the blend aqueous MDEA-CO2 system. The results suggested that the FILs blend MDEA system produced a high amount of carbamates and bicarbonates during CO2 absorption, which further decreases with increasing temperature. Eventually, regeneration energy was calculated, and results confirmed that the energy heat duty penalty was lower in the [TETAH][Im] blend MDEA system. Overall, [TETAH][Pz], [TETAH][Im], [DETAH][Im] and [DETAH][Tz] showed the promising ability as promoters to enhance CO2 capturing performance of MDEA.

Keywords: CO2 capture, interaction mechanism, kinetics, Ionic liquids

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Authors: Martyn Queen, Diane Crone, Andrew Parker, Saul Bloxham

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Rationale: There is a growing body of evidence that supports the use of physical activity during and after cancer treatment. However, activity levels for patients remain low. As more cancer patients are treated successfully, and treatment costs continue to escalate, physical activity may be a promising adjunct to a person-centred healthcare approach to recovery. Aim: The aim was to further understand how physical activity may enhance the recovery process for a group of mixed-site cancer patients. Objectives: The research investigated longitudinal changes in physical activity and perceived the quality of life between two and six month’s post-exercise interventions. It also investigated support systems that enabled patients to sustain these perceived changes. Method: The respondent cohort comprised 14 mixed-site cancer patients aged 43-70 (11 women, 3 men), who participated in a two-phase physical activity intervention that took place at a university in the South West of England. Phase 1 consisted of an eight-week structured physical activity programme; Phase 2 consisted of four months of non-supervised physical activity. Semi-structured interviews took place three times over six months with each participant. Grounded theory informed the data collection and analysis which, in turn, facilitated theoretical development. Findings: Our findings propose three theories on the impact of physical activity for recovering cancer patients: 1) Knowledge gained through a structured exercise programme can enable recovering cancer patients to independently sustain physical activity to four-month follow-up. 2) Sustaining physical activity for six months promotes positive changes in the quality of life indicators of chronic fatigue, self-efficacy, the ability to self-manage and energy levels. 3) Peer support from patients facilitates adherence to a structured exercise programme and support from a spouse, or life partner facilitates independently sustained physical activity to four-month follow-up. Conclusions: This study demonstrates that qualitative research can provide an evidence base that could be used to support future care plans for cancer patients. Findings also demonstrate that a physical activity intervention can be effective at helping cancer patients recover from the side effects of their treatment, and recommends that physical activity should become an adjunct therapy alongside traditional cancer treatments.

Keywords: physical activity, health, cancer recovery, quality of life, support systems, qualitative, grounded theory, person-centred healthcare

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Authors: Sevil Inal, Leman Yantiri, Meral Kelleci

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Aim: In this study, it was aimed to qualitatively analyze the feelings, thoughts and meanings of the nurses who had experience in child hematology in the past. Method: In this qualitative study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 15 nurses between 29 and 53 years of age who had previously worked in child hematology-oncology unit. Interviews were conducted with a semi-structured interview form. Each interview lasted 20-30 minute. Some of the questions are: ‘What kind of experiences do you experience when you think about the periods you are working in hematology-oncology service?’ ‘Do you explain the reason for living these feelings?’ The data were analyzed with QSR NVivo 7 software. Results: From the perspective of the nurses who had experience working in the pediatric hematology-oncology service in the past, five main themes and sub-themes related to emotions and thoughts towards this experiment were identified in the study. 1) Positive and negative emotions: (a) fear and anxiety, (b) desperation, pity, guilt, (c) burnout, (d) longing; 2) Being coping 3) Professional implications 4) Meaning of life 5) Unmet needs and suggestions. Conclusions: Working in hematology should be viewed as a multidimensional situation that affects the way nurses view their profession and life, leading to a wide range of emotional lives. Data obtained from this study can be used to strengthen hematologic nurses.

Keywords: cancer, child, care, hematology, nursing

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