Search results for: one degree of freedom vibration
3062 The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Vigilance, Fatigue, and Performance during Simulated Train Driving
Authors: Clara Theresia, Hardianto Iridiastadi
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Drowsiness is one of the main factors that contribute to the occurrence of accidents, particularly in the transportation sector. While the effects of sleep deprivation on cognitive functions have been reported, the exact relationships remain a critical issue. This study aimed at quantifying the effects of extreme sleep deprivation on vigilance, fatigue, and performance during simulated train driving. A total of 12 participants were asked to drive a train simulator continuously for 4 hours, either in a sleep deprived condition (2-hr of sleep) or normal (8-hr of sleep) condition. Dependent variables obtained during the task included Psychomotor Vigilance Task (PVT) parameters, degree of fatigue (assessed via Visual Analogue Scale/VAS) and sleepiness (reported using Karolinska Sleepiness Scale/KSS), and driving performance (the number of speed limit violations). Findings from this study demonstrated substantial decrements in vigilance in the sleep-deprived condition. This condition also resulted in 75% increase in speed violation and a two-fold increase in the degree of fatigue and sleepiness. Extreme sleep deprivation was clearly associated with substantially poorer response. The exact effects, however, were dependent upon the types of responses.Keywords: cognitive function, psychomotor vigilance task, sleep deprivation, train simulator
Procedia PDF Downloads 1863061 Vibroacoustic Modulation of Wideband Vibrations and its Possible Application for Windmill Blade Diagnostics
Authors: Abdullah Alnutayfat, Alexander Sutin, Dong Liu
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Wind turbine has become one of the most popular energy productions. However, failure of blades and maintenance costs evolve into significant issues in the wind power industry, so it is essential to detect the initial blade defects to avoid the collapse of the blades and structure. This paper aims to apply modulation of high-frequency blade vibrations by low-frequency blade rotation, which is close to the known Vibro-Acoustic Modulation (VAM) method. The high-frequency wideband blade vibration is produced by the interaction of the surface blades with the environment air turbulence, and the low-frequency modulation is produced by alternating bending stress due to gravity. The low-frequency load of rotational wind turbine blades ranges between 0.2-0.4 Hz and can reach up to 2 Hz for strong wind. The main difference between this study and previous ones on VAM methods is the use of a wideband vibration signal from the blade's natural vibrations. Different features of the vibroacoustic modulation are considered using a simple model of breathing crack. This model considers the simple mechanical oscillator, where the parameters of the oscillator are varied due to low-frequency blade rotation. During the blade's operation, the internal stress caused by the weight of the blade modifies the crack's elasticity and damping. The laboratory experiment using steel samples demonstrates the possibility of VAM using a probe wideband noise signal. A cycle load with a small amplitude was used as a pump wave to damage the tested sample, and a small transducer generated a wideband probe wave. The received signal demodulation was conducted using the Detecting of Envelope Modulation on Noise (DEMON) approach. In addition, the experimental results were compared with the modulation index (MI) technique regarding the harmonic pump wave. The wideband and traditional VAM methods demonstrated similar sensitivity for earlier detection of invisible cracks. Importantly, employing a wideband probe signal with the DEMON approach speeds up and simplifies testing since it eliminates the need to conduct tests repeatedly for various harmonic probe frequencies and to adjust the probe frequency.Keywords: vibro-acoustic modulation, detecting of envelope modulation on noise, damage, turbine blades
Procedia PDF Downloads 1003060 Path-Spin to Spin-Spin Hybrid Quantum Entanglement: A Conversion Protocol
Authors: Indranil Bayal, Pradipta Panchadhyayee
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Path-spin hybrid entanglement generated and confined in a single spin-1/2 particle is converted to spin-spin hybrid interparticle entanglement, which finds its important applications in quantum information processing. This protocol uses beam splitter, spin flipper, spin measurement, classical channel, unitary transformations, etc., and requires no collective operation on the pair of particles whose spin variables share complete entanglement after the accomplishment of the protocol. The specialty of the protocol lies in the fact that the path-spin entanglement is transferred between spin degrees of freedom of two separate particles initially possessed by a single party.Keywords: entanglement, path-spin entanglement, spin-spin entanglement, CNOT operation
Procedia PDF Downloads 1993059 Modified Evaluation of the Hydro-Mechanical Dependency of the Water Coefficient of Permeability of a Clayey Sand with a Novel Permeameter for Unsaturated Soils
Authors: G. Adelian, A. Mirzaii, S. S. Yasrobi
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This paper represents data of an extensive experimental laboratory testing program for the measurement of the water coefficient of permeability of clayey sand in different hydraulic and mechanical boundary conditions. A novel permeameter was designed and constructed for the experimental testing program, suitable for the study of flow in unsaturated soils in different hydraulic and mechanical loading conditions. In this work, the effect of hydraulic hysteresis, net isotropic confining stress, water flow condition, and sample dimensions are evaluated on the water coefficient of permeability of understudying soil. The experimental results showed a hysteretic variation for the water coefficient of permeability versus matrix suction and degree of saturation, with higher values in drying portions of the SWCC. The measurement of the water permeability in different applied net isotropic stress also signified that the water coefficient of permeability increased within the increment of net isotropic consolidation stress. The water coefficient of permeability also appeared to be independent of different applied flow heads, water flow condition, and sample dimensions.Keywords: water permeability, unsaturated soils, hydraulic hysteresis, void ratio, matrix suction, degree of saturation
Procedia PDF Downloads 5273058 Experimental Research on the Elastic Modulus of Bones at the Lamellar Level under Fatigue Loading
Authors: Xianjia Meng, Chuanyong Qu
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Compact bone produces fatigue damage under the inevitable physiological load. The accumulation of fatigue damage can change the bone’s micro-structure at different scales and cause the catastrophic failure eventually. However, most tests were limited to the macroscopic modulus of bone and there is a need to assess the microscopic modulus during fatigue progress. In this paper, nano-identation was used to investigate the bone specimen subjected to four point bending. The microscopic modulus of the same area were measured at different degrees of damage including fracture. So microscopic damage can be divided into three stages: first, the modulus decreased rapidly and then They fell slowly, before fracture the decline became fast again. After fracture, the average modulus decreased by 20%. The results of inner and outer planes explained the influence of compressive and tensile loads on modulus. Both the compressive and tensile moduli decreased with the accumulation of damage. They reached the minimum at ending and increased after fracture. The modulus evolution under different strains were revealed by the side. They all fell slowly and then fast with the accumulation of damage. The fractured results indicated that the elastic modulus decreased obviously at the high strain while decreased less at the low strain. During the fatigue progress, there was a significant difference in modulus at low degree of damage. However, the dispersed modulus tended to be similar at high degree of damage, but they became different again after the failure.Keywords: fatigue damage, fracture, microscopic modulus, bone, nano-identation
Procedia PDF Downloads 1663057 Semi-Autonomous Surgical Robot for Pedicle Screw Insertion on ex vivo Bovine Bone: Improved Workflow and Real-Time Process Monitoring
Authors: Robnier Reyes, Andrew J. P. Marques, Joel Ramjist, Chris R. Pasarikovski, Victor X. D. Yang
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Over the past three decades, surgical robotic systems have demonstrated their ability to improve surgical outcomes. The LBR Med is a collaborative robotic arm that is meant to work with a surgeon to streamline surgical workflow. It has 7 degrees of freedom and thus can be easily oriented. Position and torque sensors at each joint allow it to maintain a position accuracy of 150 µm with real-time force and torque feedback, making it ideal for complex surgical procedures. Spinal fusion procedures involve the placement of as many as 20 pedicle screws, requiring a great deal of accuracy due to proximity to the spinal canal and surrounding vessels. Any deviation from intended path can lead to major surgical complications. Assistive surgical robotic systems are meant to serve as collaborative devices easing the workload of the surgeon, thereby improving pedicle screw placement by mitigating fatigue related inaccuracies. Moreover, robotic spinal systems have shown marked improvements over conventional freehanded techniques in both screw placement accuracy and fusion quality and have greatly reduced the need for screw revision, intraoperatively and post-operatively. However, current assistive spinal fusion robots, such as the ROSA Spine, are limited in functionality to positioning surgical instruments. While they offer a small degree of improvement in pedicle screw placement accuracy, they do not alleviate surgeon fatigue, nor do they provide real-time force and torque feedback during screw insertion. We propose a semi-autonomous surgical robot workflow for spinal fusion where the surgeon guides the robot to its initial position and orientation, and the robot drives the pedicle screw accurately into the vertebra. Here, we demonstrate feasibility by inserting pedicle screws into ex-vivo bovine rib bone. The robot monitors position, force and torque with respect to predefined values selected by the surgeon to ensure the highest possible spinal fusion quality. The workflow alleviates the strain on the surgeon by having the robot perform the screw placement while the ability to monitor the process in real-time keeps the surgeon in the system loop. The approach we have taken in terms of level autonomy for the robot reflects its ability to safely collaborate with the surgeon in the operating room without external navigation systems.Keywords: ex vivo bovine bone, pedicle screw, surgical robot, surgical workflow
Procedia PDF Downloads 1703056 Structural Behavior of Laterally Loaded Precast Foamed Concrete Sandwich Panel
Authors: Y. H. Mugahed Amran, Raizal S. M. Rashid, Farzad Hejazi, Nor Azizi Safiee, A. A. Abang Ali
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Experimental and analytical studies were carried out to investigate the structural behavior of precast foamed concrete sandwich panels (PFCSP) of total number (6) as one-way action slab tested under lateral load. The details of the test setup and procedures were illustrated. The results obtained from the experimental tests were discussed which include the observation of cracking patterns and influence of aspect ratio (L/b). Analytical study of finite element analysis was implemented and degree of composite action of the test panels was also examined in both experimental and analytical studies. Result shows that crack patterns appeared in only one-direction, similar to reports on solid slabs, particularly when both concrete wythes act in a composite manner. Foamed concrete was briefly reviewed and experimental results were compared with the finite element analyses data which gives a reasonable degree of accuracy. Therefore, based on the results obtained, PFCSP slab can be used as an alternative to conventional flooring system.Keywords: aspect ratio (L/b), finite element analyses (FEA), foamed concrete (FC), precast foamed concrete sandwich panel (PFCSP), ultimate flexural strength capacity
Procedia PDF Downloads 3163055 Influence of the Test Environment on the Dynamic Response of a Composite Beam
Authors: B. Moueddene, B. Labbaci, L. Missoum, R. Abdeldjebar
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Quality estimation of the experimental simulation of boundary conditions is one of the problems encountered while performing an experimental program. In fact, it is not easy to estimate directly the effective influence of these simulations on the results of experimental investigation. The aim of this is article to evaluate the effect of boundary conditions uncertainties on structure response, using the change of the dynamics characteristics. The experimental models used and the correlation by the Frequency Domain Assurance Criterion (FDAC) allowed an interpretation of the change in the dynamic characteristics. The application of this strategy to stratified composite structures (glass/ polyester) has given satisfactory results.Keywords: vibration, composite, endommagement, correlation
Procedia PDF Downloads 3663054 Students’ Level of Knowledge Construction and Pattern of Social Interaction in an Online Forum
Authors: K. Durairaj, I. N. Umar
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The asynchronous discussion forum is one of the most widely used activities in learning management system environment. Online forum allows participants to interact, construct knowledge, and can be used to complement face to face sessions in blended learning courses. However, to what extent do the students perceive the benefits or advantages of forum remain to be seen. Through content and social network analyses, instructors will be able to gauge the students’ engagement and knowledge construction level. Thus, this study aims to analyze the students’ level of knowledge construction and their participation level that occur through online discussion. It also attempts to investigate the relationship between the level of knowledge construction and their social interaction patterns. The sample involves 23 students undertaking a master course in one public university in Malaysia. The asynchronous discussion forum was conducted for three weeks as part of the course requirement. The finding indicates that the level of knowledge construction is quite low. Also, the density value of 0.11 indicating that the overall communication among the participants in the forum is low. This study reveals that strong and significant correlations between SNA measures (in-degree centrality, out-degree centrality) and level of knowledge construction. Thus, allocating these active students in a different groups aids the interactive discussion takes place. Finally, based upon the findings, some recommendations to increase students’ level of knowledge construction and also for further research are proposed.Keywords: asynchronous discussion forums, content analysis, knowledge construction, social network analysis
Procedia PDF Downloads 3753053 Impact of Natural Degradation of Low Density Polyethylene on Its Morphology
Authors: Meryem Imane Babaghayou, Asma Abdelhafidi, Salem Fouad Chabira, Mohammed Sebaa
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A challenge of plastics industries is the realization of materials that resist the degradation in its application environment, and that to guarantee a longer life time therefore an optimal time of use. Blown extruded films of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) supplied by SABIC SAUDI ARABIA blown and extruded in SOFIPLAST company in Setif ALGERIA , have been subjected to climatic ageing in a sub-Saharan facility at Laghouat (Algeria) with direct exposure to sun. Samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) techniques after prescribed amounts of time up to 8 months. It has been shown via these two techniques the impact of UV irradiation on the morphological development of a plastic material, especially the crystallinity degree which increases with exposure time. The reason of these morphological changes is related to photooxidative reactions leading to cross linking in the beginning and to chain scissions for an advanced stage of ageing this last ones are the first responsible. The crystallinity degree change is essentially controlled by the secondary crystallization of the amorphous chains whose mobility is enhanced by the chain scission processes. The diffusion of these short segments integrates the surface of the lamellae increasing in this way their thicknesses. The results presented highlight the complexity of the involved phenomena.Keywords: Low Density poly (Ethylene), crystallinity, ageing, XRD, DSC
Procedia PDF Downloads 4083052 Nonuniformity of the Piston Motion in a Radial Aircraft Engine
Authors: K. Pietrykowski, M. Bialy, M. Duk
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One of the main disadvantages of radial engines is non-uniformity of operating cycles of each cylinder. This paper discusses the results of the kinematic analysis of pistons motion of the ASz-62IR radial engine. The ASz-62IR engine is produced in Poland and mounted in the M-18 Dromader and the An-2. The results are shown as the courses of the motion of the pistons. The discrepancies in the courses for individual pistons can result in different masses of the charge to fill the cylinders. Besides, pistons acceleration of individual cylinders is different, which triggers an additional vibration in the engine.Keywords: nonuniformity, kinematic analysis, piston motion, radial engine
Procedia PDF Downloads 3853051 Cyclic Plastic Deformation of 20MN-MO-NI 55 Steel in Dynamic Strain Ageing Regime
Authors: Ashok Kumar, Sarita Sahu, H. N. Bar
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Low cycle fatigue behavior of a ferritic, martensitic pressure vessel steel at dynamic strain ageing regime of 250°C to 280°C has been investigated. Dynamic strain ageing is a mechanism that has attracted interests of researchers due to its fascinating inexplicable repetitive nature for quite a long time. The interaction of dynamic strain ageing and cyclic plasticity has been studied from the mechanistic point of view. Dynamic strain ageing gives rise to identical serrated flow behavior in tensile and compressive halves of hysteresis loops and this has been found to gives rise to initial cyclic hardening followed by softening behavior, where as in non-DSA regime continuous cyclic softening has been found to be the dominant mechanism. An appreciable sensitivity towards nature of serrations has been observed due to degree of hardening of stable loop. The increase in degree of hardening with strain amplitude in the regime where only A type serrations are present and it decreases with strain amplitude where A+B type of serrations are present. Masing type of locus has been found in the behavior of metal at 280°C. Cyclic Stress Strain curve and Master curve has been constructed to decipher among the fatigue strength and ductility coefficients. Fractographic examinations have also shown a competition between progression of striations and secondary cracking.Keywords: dynamic strain ageing, hardening, low cycle fatigue, softening
Procedia PDF Downloads 3033050 The Effect of Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety and Tolerance of Ambiguity on EFL Learners’ Listening Proficiency
Authors: Mohammad Hadi Mahmoodi, Azam Ghonchepoor, Sheilan Sohrabi
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The present study was conducted to investigate the effect of foreign language classroom anxiety and ambiguity tolerance on EFL Learners’ listening proficiency. In so doing, 442 EFL learners were randomly selected form Azad University and some accredited language institutions in Hamaden, and were given the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) (1983), and Second Language Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale (SLTAS) (1995). Participants’ listening proficiency level was determined through listening scores gained in standardized exams given by university professors or institutes in which they studied English. The results of two-way ANOVA revealed that listening proficiency was significantly affected by the interaction of anxiety and AT level of the participants. Each of the two variables were categorized in three levels of High, Mid, and Low. The highest mean score of listening belonged to the group with low degree of anxiety and high degree of ambiguity tolerance, and the lowest listening mean score was gained by the group with high level of anxiety and low level of tolerance of ambiguity. Also, the findings of multiple regressions confirmed that anxiety was the stronger predictor of listening comprehension in contrast with tolerance of ambiguity. Furthermore, the result of Pearson correlation coefficient showed that there was a significant negative relationship between the participants’ foreign language classroom anxiety and their ambiguity tolerance level.Keywords: Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety, Second language tolerance of ambiguity, Listening proficiency
Procedia PDF Downloads 5103049 Investigation on Correlation of Earthquake Intensity Parameters with Seismic Response of Reinforced Concrete Structures
Authors: Semra Sirin Kiris
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Nonlinear dynamic analysis is permitted to be used for structures without any restrictions. The important issue is the selection of the design earthquake to conduct the analyses since quite different response may be obtained using ground motion records at the same general area even resulting from the same earthquake. In seismic design codes, the method requires scaling earthquake records based on site response spectrum to a specified hazard level. Many researches have indicated that this limitation about selection can cause a large scatter in response and other charecteristics of ground motion obtained in different manner may demonstrate better correlation with peak seismic response. For this reason influence of eleven different ground motion parameters on the peak displacement of reinforced concrete systems is examined in this paper. From conducting 7020 nonlinear time history analyses for single degree of freedom systems, the most effective earthquake parameters are given for the range of the initial periods and strength ratios of the structures. In this study, a hysteresis model for reinforced concrete called Q-hyst is used not taken into account strength and stiffness degradation. The post-yielding to elastic stiffness ratio is considered as 0.15. The range of initial period, T is from 0.1s to 0.9s with 0.1s time interval and three different strength ratios for structures are used. The magnitude of 260 earthquake records selected is higher than earthquake magnitude, M=6. The earthquake parameters related to the energy content, duration or peak values of ground motion records are PGA(Peak Ground Acceleration), PGV (Peak Ground Velocity), PGD (Peak Ground Displacement), MIV (Maximum Increamental Velocity), EPA(Effective Peak Acceleration), EPV (Effective Peak Velocity), teff (Effective Duration), A95 (Arias Intensity-based Parameter), SPGA (Significant Peak Ground Acceleration), ID (Damage Factor) and Sa (Spectral Response Spectrum).Observing the correlation coefficients between the ground motion parameters and the peak displacement of structures, different earthquake parameters play role in peak displacement demand related to the ranges formed by the different periods and the strength ratio of a reinforced concrete systems. The influence of the Sa tends to decrease for the high values of strength ratio and T=0.3s-0.6s. The ID and PGD is not evaluated as a measure of earthquake effect since high correlation with displacement demand is not observed. The influence of the A95 is high for T=0.1 but low related to the higher values of T and strength ratio. The correlation of PGA, EPA and SPGA shows the highest correlation for T=0.1s but their effectiveness decreases with high T. Considering all range of structural parameters, the MIV is the most effective parameter.Keywords: earthquake parameters, earthquake resistant design, nonlinear analysis, reinforced concrete
Procedia PDF Downloads 1533048 Investigation of the Heavy Metal Pollution of the River Ecosystems in the Lake Sevan Basin, Armenia
Authors: G. Gevorgyan, S. Khudaverdyan, A. Vaseashta
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The Lake Sevan basin is situated in the eastern part of the Republic of Armenia (Gegharquniq marz/district). The heavy metal pollution of the some tributaries of Lake Sevan was investigated. Water sampling was performed in August and December, 2014 from the 4 observation sites: 1) Sotq river upstream (about 600 meters upstream from the Sotq gold mine); 2) Sotq river mouth; 3) Masrik river mouth; 4) Dzknaget river mouth. Heavy metal (V, Fe, Ni, Cu, As, Mo, Pb) concentrations in the water samples were determined by the standard methods using an atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The results of the study showed that heavy metal content mainly increased from the upstream of the Sotq river to the mouth of the Masrik river which may have been conditioned by the influence of gold mining activity as the Masrik and its tributary-Sotq rivers passing through the gold mining area were exposed to heavy metal pollution. The observation sites can be ranked by pollution degree as follows: №3> №2> №1> №4. The highest heavy metal pollution degree was observed in the Masrik river mouth which may have been conditioned by the direct impact of gold mining activity and the pressure of its tributary–the Sotq river which flows through the gold mining area. The lowest heavy metal pollution degree was registered in the Dzknaget river mouth which flowing through rural areas wasn’t subject to significant heavy metal pollution. According to the observation sites of the Sotq and Masrik rivers, high positive correlation was mainly observed between the concentrations of the investigated heavy metals (except nickel) which indicated that all the heavy metals except the nickel had the same anthropogenic pollution source which was the activity of the Sotq gold mine. In general, it is possible to state that the activity of the Sotq gold mine in the Lake Sevan basin caused the heavy metal pollution of the Sotq and Masrik rivers which may have posed environmental hazards. Heavy metals are nondegradable substances, and heavy metal pollution of freshwater systems may pose risks to the environment and human health through accumulation in the tissues of aquatic organisms, water-food chain as well as oral ingestion and dermal contact.Keywords: Armenia, Lake Sevan basin, gold mining activity, river ecosystems, heavy metal pollution
Procedia PDF Downloads 5853047 Comparison of Visual Field Tests in Glaucoma Patients with a Central Visual Field Defect
Authors: Hye-Young Shin, Hae-Young Lopilly Park, Chan Kee Park
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We compared the 24-2 and 10-2 visual fields (VFs) and investigate the degree of discrepancy between the two tests in glaucomatous eyes with central VF defects. In all, 99 eyes of 99 glaucoma patients who underwent both the 24-2 VF and 10-2 VF tests within 6 months were enrolled retrospectively. Glaucomatous eyes involving a central VF defect were divided into three groups based on the average total deviation (TD) of 12 central points in the 24-2 VF test (N = 33, in each group): group 1 (tercile with the highest TD), group 2 (intermediate TD), and group 3 (lowest TD). The TD difference was calculated by subtracting the average TD of the 10-2 VF test from the average TD of 12 central points in the 24-2 VF test. The absolute central TD difference in each quadrant was defined as the absolute value of the TD value obtained by subtracting the average TD of four central points in the 10-2 VF test from the innermost TD in the 24-2 VF test in each quadrant. The TD differences differed significantly between group 3 and groups 1 and 2 (P < 0.001). In the superonasal quadrant, the absolute central TD difference was significantly greater in group 2 than in group 1 (P < 0.05). In the superotemporal quadrant, the absolute central TD difference was significantly greater in group 3 than in groups 1 and 2 (P < 0.001). Our results indicate that the results of VF tests for different VFs can be inconsistent, depending on the degree of central defects and the VF quadrant.Keywords: central visual field defect, glaucoma, 10-2 visual field, 24-2 visual field
Procedia PDF Downloads 1763046 Natural Forest Ecosystem Services Provided to Local Populations
Authors: Mohammed Sghir Taleb
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Located at the northwest corner of the African continent between 21 ° and 36 ° north latitude and between the 1st and the 17th degree of west longitude, Morocco, with a total area of 715,000 km2, enjoys a privileged position with a coastline of 3 446 km long opening to the Mediterranean and the Atlantic Ocean. Its privileged location with a double coastline and its diverse mountain with four major mountain ranges: the Rif, Middle Atlas, High Atlas and Anti Atlas, with altitudes exceeding 2000 m in the Rif, 3000 m in the Middle Atlas and 4000 m in the High Atlas. Morocco is characterized by an important forest genetic diversity represented by a rich and varied flora and many ecosystems: forest, preforest, presteppe, steppe, Sahara that spans a range of bioclimatic zones: arid, semiarid, subhumid, and humid. The vascular flora of Morocco is rich and highly diversified, with a very significant degree of endemism. Natural flora and ecosystems provide important services to populations represented by grazing, timber harvest, harvesting of medicinal and aromatic plants. This work will be focused on the Moroccan biodiversity and natural ecosystem services and on the interaction between local populations and ecosystems and on the strategies developed by Morocco for restoring and conserving biodiversity and ecosystem services.Keywords: morocco, biodiversity, forest ecosystems, local population
Procedia PDF Downloads 853045 Effect of the Binary and Ternary Exchanges on Crystallinity and Textural Properties of X Zeolites
Authors: H. Hammoudi, S. Bendenia, K. Marouf-Khelifa, R. Marouf, J. Schott, A. Khelifa
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The ionic exchange of the NaX zeolite by Cu2+ and/or Zn2+ cations is progressively driven while following the development of some of its characteristic: crystallinity by XR diffraction, profile of isotherms, RI criterion, isosteric adsorption heat and microporous volume using both the Dubinin–Radushkevich (DR) equation and the t-plot through the Lippens–de Boer method which also makes it possible to determine the external surface area. Results show that the cationic exchange process, in the case of Cu2+ introduced at higher degree, is accompanied by crystalline degradation for Cu(x)X, in contrast to Zn2+-exchanged zeolite X. This degradation occurs without significant presence of mesopores, because the RI criterion values were found to be much lower than 2.2. A comparison between the binary and ternary exchanges shows that the curves of CuZn(x)X are clearly below those of Zn(x)X and Cu(x)X, whatever the examined parameter. On the other hand, the curves relating to CuZn(x)X tend towards those of Cu(x)X. This would again confirm the sensitivity of the crystalline structure of CuZn(x)X with respect to the introduction of Cu2+ cations. An original result is the distortion of the zeolitic framework of X zeolites at middle exchange degree, when Cu2+ competes with another divalent cation, such as Zn2+, for the occupancy of sites distributed within zeolitic cavities. In other words, the ternary exchange accentuates the crystalline degradation of X zeolites. An unexpected result also is the no correlation between crystal damage and the external surface area.Keywords: adsorption, crystallinity, ion exchange, zeolite
Procedia PDF Downloads 2603044 A 3D Eight Nodes Brick Finite Element Based on the Strain Approach
Authors: L. Belounar, K. Gerraiche, C. Rebiai, S. Benmebarek
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This paper presents the development of a new three dimensional brick finite element by the use of the strain based approach for the linear analysis of plate bending behavior. The developed element has the three essential external degrees of freedom (U, V and W) at each of the eight corner nodes. The displacements field of the developed element is based on assumed functions for the various strains satisfying the compatibility and the equilibrium equations. The performance of this element is evaluated on several problems related to thick and thin plate bending in linear analysis. The obtained results show the good performances and accuracy of the present element.Keywords: brick element, strain approach, plate bending, civil engineering
Procedia PDF Downloads 4963043 Three-Dimensional Fluid-Structure-Thermal Coupling Dynamics Simulation Model of a Gas-Filled Fluid-Resistance Damper and Experimental Verification
Authors: Wenxue Xu
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Fluid resistance damper is an important damping element to attenuate vehicle vibration. It converts vibration energy into thermal energy dissipation through oil throttling. It is a typical fluid-solid-heat coupling problem. A complete three-dimensional flow-structure-thermal coupling dynamics simulation model of a gas-filled fluid-resistance damper was established. The flow-condition-based interpolation (FCBI) method and direct coupling calculation method, the unit's FCBI-C fluid numerical analysis method and iterative coupling calculation method are used to achieve the damper dynamic response of the piston rod under sinusoidal excitation; the air chamber inflation pressure, spring compression characteristics, constant flow passage cross-sectional area and oil parameters, etc. The system parameters, excitation frequency, and amplitude and other excitation parameters are analyzed and compared in detail for the effects of differential pressure characteristics, velocity characteristics, flow characteristics and dynamic response of valve opening, floating piston response and piston rod output force characteristics. Experiments were carried out on some simulation analysis conditions. The results show that the node-based FCBI (flow-condition-based interpolation) fluid numerical analysis method and direct coupling calculation method can better guarantee the conservation of flow field calculation, and the calculation step is larger, but the memory is also larger; if the chamber inflation pressure is too low, the damper will become cavitation. The inflation pressure will cause the speed characteristic hysteresis to increase, and the sealing requirements are too strict. The spring compression characteristics have a great influence on the damping characteristics of the damper, and reasonable damping characteristic needs to properly design the spring compression characteristics; the larger the cross-sectional area of the constant flow channel, the smaller the maximum output force, but the more stable when the valve plate is opening.Keywords: damper, fluid-structure-thermal coupling, heat generation, heat transfer
Procedia PDF Downloads 1443042 Learning-Teaching Experience about the Design of Care Applications for Nursing Professionals
Authors: A. Gonzalez Aguna, J. M. Santamaria Garcia, J. L. Gomez Gonzalez, R. Barchino Plata, M. Fernandez Batalla, S. Herrero Jaen
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Background: Computer Science is a field that transcends other disciplines of knowledge because it allows to support all kinds of physical and mental tasks. Health centres have a greater number and complexity of technological devices and the population consume and demand services derived from technology. Also, nursing education plans have included competencies related to and, even, courses about new technologies are offered to health professionals. However, nurses still limit their performance to the use and evaluation of products previously built. Objective: Develop a teaching-learning methodology for acquiring skills on designing applications for care. Methodology: Blended learning teaching with a group of graduate nurses through official training within a Master's Degree. The study sample was selected by intentional sampling without exclusion criteria. The study covers from 2015 to 2017. The teaching sessions included a four-hour face-to-face class and between one and three tutorials. The assessment was carried out by written test consisting of the preparation of an IEEE 830 Standard Specification document where the subject chosen by the student had to be a problem in the area of care. Results: The sample is made up of 30 students: 10 men and 20 women. Nine students had a degree in nursing, 20 diploma in nursing and one had a degree in Computer Engineering. Two students had a degree in nursing specialty through residence and two in equivalent recognition by exceptional way. Except for the engineer, no subject had previously received training in this regard. All the sample enrolled in the course received the classroom teaching session, had access to the teaching material through a virtual area and maintained at least one tutoring. The maximum of tutorials were three with an hour in total. Among the material available for consultation was an example of a document drawn up based on the IEEE Standard with an issue not related to care. The test to measure competence was completed by the whole group and evaluated by a multidisciplinary teaching team of two computer engineers and two nurses. Engineers evaluated the correctness of the characteristics of the document and the degree of comprehension in the elaboration of the problem and solution elaborated nurses assessed the relevance of the chosen problem statement, the foundation, originality and correctness of the proposed solution and the validity of the application for clinical practice in care. The results were of an average grade of 8.1 over 10 points, a range between 6 and 10. The selected topic barely coincided among the students. Examples of care areas selected are care plans, family and community health, delivery care, administration and even robotics for care. Conclusion: The applied methodology of learning-teaching for the design of technologies demonstrates the success in the training of nursing professionals. The role of expert is essential to create applications that satisfy the needs of end users. Nursing has the possibility, the competence and the duty to participate in the process of construction of technological tools that are going to impact in care of people, family and community.Keywords: care, learning, nursing, technology
Procedia PDF Downloads 1373041 Application of Complete Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition with Adaptive Noise and Multipoint Optimal Minimum Entropy Deconvolution in Railway Bearings Fault Diagnosis
Authors: Yao Cheng, Weihua Zhang
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Although the measured vibration signal contains rich information on machine health conditions, the white noise interferences and the discrete harmonic coming from blade, shaft and mash make the fault diagnosis of rolling element bearings difficult. In order to overcome the interferences of useless signals, a new fault diagnosis method combining Complete Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition with adaptive noise (CEEMDAN) and Multipoint Optimal Minimum Entropy Deconvolution (MOMED) is proposed for the fault diagnosis of high-speed train bearings. Firstly, the CEEMDAN technique is applied to adaptively decompose the raw vibration signal into a series of finite intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) and a residue. Compared with Ensemble Empirical Mode Decomposition (EEMD), the CEEMDAN can provide an exact reconstruction of the original signal and a better spectral separation of the modes, which improves the accuracy of fault diagnosis. An effective sensitivity index based on the Pearson's correlation coefficients between IMFs and raw signal is adopted to select sensitive IMFs that contain bearing fault information. The composite signal of the sensitive IMFs is applied to further analysis of fault identification. Next, for propose of identifying the fault information precisely, the MOMED is utilized to enhance the periodic impulses in composite signal. As a non-iterative method, the MOMED has better deconvolution performance than the classical deconvolution methods such Minimum Entropy Deconvolution (MED) and Maximum Correlated Kurtosis Deconvolution (MCKD). Third, the envelope spectrum analysis is applied to detect the existence of bearing fault. The simulated bearing fault signals with white noise and discrete harmonic interferences are used to validate the effectiveness of the proposed method. Finally, the superiorities of the proposed method are further demonstrated by high-speed train bearing fault datasets measured from test rig. The analysis results indicate that the proposed method has strong practicability.Keywords: bearing, complete ensemble empirical mode decomposition with adaptive noise, fault diagnosis, multipoint optimal minimum entropy deconvolution
Procedia PDF Downloads 3753040 The Epistemology of Human Rights Cherished in Islamic Law and Its Compatibility with International Law
Authors: Malik Imtiaz Ahmad
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Human beings are the super organism granted the gift of consciousness of life by the Almighty God and endowed with an intrinsic legal value to their humanity that shall be guarded and protected respecting dignity regardless of your cultural, religious, race, or physical background; you want to be treated equally for a reason for being human. Islam graces the essential integrity of humanity and confirms the freedom and accountability impact on individuality and the open societal sphere, including the moral, economic, and political aspects. Human Rights allow people to live with dignity, equality, justice, freedom, and peace. The Kantian approach to morality expresses that ethical actions follow universal moral laws. Hence, human rights are based upon the normative approaches setting the international standards to promote, guard, and protect the fundamental rights of the people. Islam is a divine religion commanding human rights based upon the principles of social justice and regulates all facets of the moral and spiritual ethics of Muslims besides bringing balance abreast in the non-Muslims to respect their lives with safety and security and property. The Canon law manifests the faith and equality amongst Christianity, regulating the communal dignity to build and promote the sanctity of Holy life (can. 208 to 223). This concept of the community is developed after the insight of the Islamic 'canon law', which is the code of revelation itself and inseparable from the natural part of the salvation of mankind. The etymology and history of human rights is a polemical debate in a preview of Islamic and Western culture. On the other hand, international law is meticulous about the fundamental part of Conon law that focuses on the communal political, social and economic relationship. The evolving process of human rights is considered to be an exclusive universal thought regarding an open society that forms a legal base for the constituent of international instruments of the protection of Human Rights, viz. UDHR. On the other side, Muslim scholars emphasize that human rights are devolving around Islamic law. Both traditions need a dire explanation of contemporary openness for bringing the harmonious universal law acceptable and applicable to the international communities concerning the anthropology of political, economic, and social aspects of a human being.Keywords: human rights-based approach (HRBA), human rights in Islam, evolution of universal human rights, conflict in western, Islamic human rights
Procedia PDF Downloads 893039 Discrete Tracking Control of Nonholonomic Mobile Robots: Backstepping Design Approach
Authors: Alexander S. Andreev, Olga A. Peregudova
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In this paper, we propose a discrete tracking control of nonholonomic mobile robots with two degrees of freedom. The electro-mechanical model of a mobile robot moving on a horizontal surface without slipping, with two rear wheels controlled by two independent DC electric, and one front roal wheel is considered. We present back-stepping design based on the Euler approximate discrete-time model of a continuous-time plant. Theoretical considerations are verified by numerical simulation. The work was supported by RFFI (15-01-08482).Keywords: actuator dynamics, back stepping, discrete-time controller, Lyapunov function, wheeled mobile robot
Procedia PDF Downloads 4163038 Defining the Customers' Color Preference for the Apparel Industry in Terms of Chromaticity Coordinates
Authors: Banu Hatice Gürcüm, Pınar Arslan, Mahmut Yalçın
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Fashion designers create lots of dresses, suits, shoes, and other clothing and accessories, which are purchased every year by consumers. Fashion trends, sketches of designs, accessories affect the apparel goods, but colors make the finishing touches to an outfit. In all fields of apparel men's, women's, and children's wear, including casual wear, suits, sportswear, formal wear, outerwear, maternity, and intimate apparel, color sells. Thus, specialization in color in apparel is a basic concern each season. The perception of color is the key to sales for every sector in textile business. Mechanism of color perception, cognition in brain and color emotion are unique subjects, which scientists have been investigating for many years. The parameters of color may not be corresponding to visual scales since human emotions induced by color are completely subjective. However, with a very few exception each manufacturer concern their top selling colors for each season through seasonal sales reports of apparel companies. This paper examines sensory and instrumental methods for quantifying color of fabrics and investigates the relationship between fabric color and sale numbers. 5 top selling colors for each season from 10 leading apparel companies in the same segment are taken. The compilation is based according to the sales of the companies for 5 to 10 years. The research’s main concern is the corelation with the magnitude of seasonal color selling figures and the CIE chromaticity coordinates. The colors are chosen from the globally accepted Pantone Textile Color System and the three-dimentional measurement system CIE L*a*b* (CIELAB) is used, L* representing the degree of lightness of color, a* the degree of color ranging from magenta to green, and b* the degree of color ranging from blue to yellow. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the feasibility of relating color perceptance to a laboratory instrument yielding measurements in the CIELAB system. Our approach is to obtain a total of a hundred reference fabrics to be measured on a laboratory spectrophotometer calibrated to the CIELAB color system. Relationships between the CIE tristimulus (X, Y, Z) and CIELAB (L*, a*, b*) are examined and are reported herein.Keywords: CIELAB, CIE tristimulus, color preference, fashion
Procedia PDF Downloads 3363037 Leveraging Hyperledger Iroha for the Issuance and Verification of Higher-Education Certificates
Authors: Vasiliki Vlachou, Christos Kontzinos, Ourania Markaki, Panagiotis Kokkinakos, Vagelis Karakolis, John Psarras
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Higher Education is resisting the pull of technology, especially as this concerns the issuance and verification of degrees and certificates. It is widely known that education certificates are largely produced in paper form making them vulnerable to damage while holders of such certificates are dependent on the universities and other issuing organisations. QualiChain is an EU Horizon 2020 (H2020) research project aiming to transform and revolutionise the domain of public education and its ties with the job market by leveraging blockchain, analytics and decision support to develop a platform for the verification and sharing of education certificates. Blockchain plays an integral part in the QualiChain solution in providing a trustworthy environment to store, share and manage such accreditations. Under the context of this paper, three prominent blockchain platforms (Ethereum, Hyperledger Fabric, Hyperledger Iroha) were considered as a means of experimentation for creating a system with the basic functionalities that will be needed for trustworthy degree verification. The methodology and respective system developed and presented in this paper used Hyperledger Iroha and proved that this specific platform can be used to easily develop decentralize applications. Future papers will attempt to further experiment with other blockchain platforms and assess which has the best potential.Keywords: blockchain, degree verification, higher education certificates, Hyperledger Iroha
Procedia PDF Downloads 1423036 Copyright Clearance for Artificial Intelligence Training Data: Challenges and Solutions
Authors: Erva Akin
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– The use of copyrighted material for machine learning purposes is a challenging issue in the field of artificial intelligence (AI). While machine learning algorithms require large amounts of data to train and improve their accuracy and creativity, the use of copyrighted material without permission from the authors may infringe on their intellectual property rights. In order to overcome copyright legal hurdle against the data sharing, access and re-use of data, the use of copyrighted material for machine learning purposes may be considered permissible under certain circumstances. For example, if the copyright holder has given permission to use the data through a licensing agreement, then the use for machine learning purposes may be lawful. It is also argued that copying for non-expressive purposes that do not involve conveying expressive elements to the public, such as automated data extraction, should not be seen as infringing. The focus of such ‘copy-reliant technologies’ is on understanding language rules, styles, and syntax and no creative ideas are being used. However, the non-expressive use defense is within the framework of the fair use doctrine, which allows the use of copyrighted material for research or educational purposes. The questions arise because the fair use doctrine is not available in EU law, instead, the InfoSoc Directive provides for a rigid system of exclusive rights with a list of exceptions and limitations. One could only argue that non-expressive uses of copyrighted material for machine learning purposes do not constitute a ‘reproduction’ in the first place. Nevertheless, the use of machine learning with copyrighted material is difficult because EU copyright law applies to the mere use of the works. Two solutions can be proposed to address the problem of copyright clearance for AI training data. The first is to introduce a broad exception for text and data mining, either mandatorily or for commercial and scientific purposes, or to permit the reproduction of works for non-expressive purposes. The second is that copyright laws should permit the reproduction of works for non-expressive purposes, which opens the door to discussions regarding the transposition of the fair use principle from the US into EU law. Both solutions aim to provide more space for AI developers to operate and encourage greater freedom, which could lead to more rapid innovation in the field. The Data Governance Act presents a significant opportunity to advance these debates. Finally, issues concerning the balance of general public interests and legitimate private interests in machine learning training data must be addressed. In my opinion, it is crucial that robot-creation output should fall into the public domain. Machines depend on human creativity, innovation, and expression. To encourage technological advancement and innovation, freedom of expression and business operation must be prioritised.Keywords: artificial intelligence, copyright, data governance, machine learning
Procedia PDF Downloads 853035 Cognitive Stereotype Behaviors and Their Imprinting on the Individuals with Autism
Authors: Li-Ju Chen, Hsiang-Lin Chan, Hsin-Yi Kathy Cheng, Hui-Ju Chen
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Stereotype behavior is one of the maladaptive syndromes of the individuals with autism. Most of the previous researches focused on the stereotype behavior with stimulating type, while less on the stereotype behavior about cognition (This research names it cognitive stereotype behavior; CSB). This research explored CSB and the rationality to explain CSB with imprinting phenomenon. After excluding the samples without CSB described, the data that came from 271 individuals with autism were recruited and analyzed with quantitative and qualitative analyses. This research discovers that : (1) Most of the individuals with autism originally came out CSB at 3 years old and more than a half of them appeared before 4 years old; The average age which firstly came out CSB was 6.10 years old, the average time insisting or ossifying CSB was 31.71 minutes each time and the average longest time which they last was 358.35 minutes (5.97 hours). (2) CSB demonstrates various aspects, this research classified them into 4 fields with 26 categories. They were categorized into sudden CSB or habitual CSB by imprinting performance. (3) Most of the autism commented that their CSBs were not necessary but they could not control them well. One-third of them appeared CSB suddenly and the first occurrence accompanied a strong emotional or behavioral response. (4) Whether respondent is the person with autism himself/herself or not was the critical element: on the awareness of the severity degree, disturbance degree, and the emotional /behavioral intensity at the first-time CSB happened. This study concludes imprinting could reasonably explain the phenomenon CSB forms. There are implications leading the individuals with autism and their family to develop coping strategies to promote individuals with autism having a better learning accomplishment and life quality in their future.Keywords: autism, cognitive stereotype behavior, constructivism, imprinting, stereotype
Procedia PDF Downloads 1313034 Finite Element Molecular Modeling: A Structural Method for Large Deformations
Authors: A. Rezaei, M. Huisman, W. Van Paepegem
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Atomic interactions in molecular systems are mainly studied by particle mechanics. Nevertheless, researches have also put on considerable effort to simulate them using continuum methods. In early 2000, simple equivalent finite element models have been developed to study the mechanical properties of carbon nanotubes and graphene in composite materials. Afterward, many researchers have employed similar structural simulation approaches to obtain mechanical properties of nanostructured materials, to simplify interface behavior of fiber-reinforced composites, and to simulate defects in carbon nanotubes or graphene sheets, etc. These structural approaches, however, are limited to small deformations due to complicated local rotational coordinates. This article proposes a method for the finite element simulation of molecular mechanics. For ease in addressing the approach, here it is called Structural Finite Element Molecular Modeling (SFEMM). SFEMM method improves the available structural approaches for large deformations, without using any rotational degrees of freedom. Moreover, the method simulates molecular conformation, which is a big advantage over the previous approaches. Technically, this method uses nonlinear multipoint constraints to simulate kinematics of the atomic multibody interactions. Only truss elements are employed, and the bond potentials are implemented through constitutive material models. Because the equilibrium bond- length, bond angles, and bond-torsion potential energies are intrinsic material parameters, the model is independent of initial strains or stresses. In this paper, the SFEMM method has been implemented in ABAQUS finite element software. The constraints and material behaviors are modeled through two Fortran subroutines. The method is verified for the bond-stretch, bond-angle and bond-torsion of carbon atoms. Furthermore, the capability of the method in the conformation simulation of molecular structures is demonstrated via a case study of a graphene sheet. Briefly, SFEMM builds up a framework that offers more flexible features over the conventional molecular finite element models, serving the structural relaxation modeling and large deformations without incorporating local rotational degrees of freedom. Potentially, the method is a big step towards comprehensive molecular modeling with finite element technique, and thereby concurrently coupling an atomistic domain to a solid continuum domain within a single finite element platform.Keywords: finite element, large deformation, molecular mechanics, structural method
Procedia PDF Downloads 1533033 Ultrasonic Micro Injection Molding: Manufacturing of Micro Plates of Biomaterials
Authors: Ariadna Manresa, Ines Ferrer
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Introduction: Ultrasonic moulding process (USM) is a recent injection technology used to manufacture micro components. It is able to melt small amounts of material so the waste of material is certainly reduced comparing to microinjection molding. This is an important advantage when the materials are expensive like medical biopolymers. Micro-scaled components are involved in a variety of uses, such as biomedical applications. It is required replication fidelity so it is important to stabilize the process and minimize the variability of the responses. The aim of this research is to investigate the influence of the main process parameters on the filling behaviour, the dimensional accuracy and the cavity pressure when a micro-plate is manufactured by biomaterials such as PLA and PCL. Methodology or Experimental Procedure: The specimens are manufactured using a Sonorus 1G Ultrasound Micro Molding Machine. The used geometry is a rectangular micro-plate of 15x5mm and 1mm of thickness. The materials used for the investigation are PLA and PCL due to biocompatible and degradation properties. The experimentation is divided into two phases. Firstly, the influence of process parameters (vibration amplitude, sonotrodo velocity, ultrasound time and compaction force) on filling behavior is analysed, in Phase 1. Next, when filling cavity is assured, the influence of both cooling time and force compaction on the cavity pressure, part temperature and dimensional accuracy is instigated, which is done in Phase. Results and Discussion: Filling behavior depends on sonotrodo velocity and vibration amplitude. When the ultrasonic time is higher, more ultrasonic energy is applied and the polymer temperature increases. Depending on the cooling time, it is possible that when mold is opened, the micro-plate temperature is too warm. Consequently, the polymer relieve its stored internal energy (ultrasonic and thermal) expanding through the easier direction. This fact is reflected on dimensional accuracy, causing micro-plates thicker than the mold. It has also been observed the most important fact that affects cavity pressure is the compaction configuration during the manufacturing cycle. Conclusions: This research demonstrated the influence of process parameters on the final micro-plated manufactured. Future works will be focused in manufacturing other geometries and analysing the mechanical properties of the specimens.Keywords: biomaterial, biopolymer, micro injection molding, ultrasound
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