Search results for: free surface flow

Authors: Nazia Muhsin, Tofael Ahamed, Ryozo Noguchi, Tomohiro Takigawa

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One of the most challenging issues to achieve sustainable development on food security is land use changes. The crisis of lands for agricultural production mainly arises from the unplanned transformation of agricultural lands to infrastructure development i.e. urbanization and industrialization. Land use without sustainability assessment could have impact on the food security and environmental protections. Bangladesh, as the densely populated country with limited arable lands is now facing challenges to meet sustainable food security. Agricultural lands are using for economic growth by establishing industries. The industries are spreading from urban areas to the suburban areas and using the agricultural lands. To minimize the agricultural land losses for unplanned industrialization, compact economic zones should be find out in a scientific approach. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to find out suitable sites for industrial growth by land suitability analysis (LSA) by using Geographical Information System (GIS) and multi-criteria analysis (MCA). The goal of the study was to emphases both agricultural lands and industries for sustainable development in land use. The study also attempted to analysis the agricultural land use changes in a suburban area by statistical data of agricultural lands and primary data of the existing industries of the study place. The criteria were selected as proximity to major roads, and proximity to local roads, distant to rivers, waterbodies, settlements, flood-flow zones, agricultural lands for the LSA. The spatial dataset for the criteria were collected from the respective departments of Bangladesh. In addition, the elevation spatial dataset were used from the SRTM (Shuttle Radar Topography Mission) data source. The criteria were further analyzed with factors and constraints in ArcGIS®. Expert’s opinion were applied for weighting the criteria according to the analytical hierarchy process (AHP), a multi-criteria technique. The decision rule was set by using ‘weighted overlay’ tool to aggregate the factors and constraints with the weights of the criteria. The LSA found only 5% of land was most suitable for industrial sites and few compact lands for industrial zones. The developed LSA are expected to help policy makers of land use and urban developers to ensure the sustainability of land uses and agricultural production.

Keywords: AHP (analytical hierarchy process), GIS (geographic information system), LSA (land suitability analysis), MCA (multi-criteria analysis)

Procedia PDF Downloads 254

Authors: Sonia Bedhiaf-Romdhani

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The sheep (Ovis aries) was domesticated, approximately 11,000 years ago (YBP), in the Fertile Crescent from Asian Mouflon (Ovis Orientalis). The Northern African (NA) sheep is 7,000 years old, represents a remarkable diversity of sheep populations reared under traditional and low input farming systems (LIFS) over millennia. The majority of small ruminants in developing countries are encountered in low input production systems and the resilience of local communities in rural areas is often linked to the wellbeing of small ruminants. Regardless of the rich biodiversity encountered in sheep ecotypes there are four main sheep breeds in the country with 61,6 and 35.4 percents of Barbarine (fat tail breed) and Queue Fine de l’Ouest (thin tail breed), respectively. Phoenicians introduced the Barbarine sheep from the steppes of Central Asia in the Carthaginian period, 3000 years ago. The Queue Fine de l’Ouest is a thin-tailed meat breed heavily concentrated in the Western and the central semi-arid regions. The Noire de Thibar breed, involving mutton-fine wool producing animals, has been on the verge of extinction, it’s a composite black coated sheep breed found in the northern sub-humid region because of its higher nutritional requirements and non-tolerance of the prevailing harsher condition. The D'Man breed, originated from Morocco, is mainly located in the southern oases of the extreme arid ecosystem. A genetic investigation of Tunisian sheep breeds using a genome-wide scan of approximately 50,000 SNPs was performed. Genetic analysis of relationship between breeds highlighted the genetic differentiation of Noire de Thibar breed from the other local breeds, reflecting the effect of past events of introgression of European gene pool. The Queue Fine de l’Ouest breed showed a genetic heterogeneity and was close to Barbarine. The D'Man breed shared a considerable gene flow with the thin-tailed Queue Fine de l'Ouest breed. Native small ruminants breeds, are capable to be efficiently productive if essential ingredients and coherent breeding schemes are implemented and followed. Assessing the status of genetic variability of native sheep breeds could provide important clues for research and policy makers to devise better strategies for the conservation and management of genetic resources.

Keywords: sheep, farming systems, diversity, SNPs.

Procedia PDF Downloads 137

Authors: Faruk Ortes, Derya Karabulut, Yunus Ziya Arslan

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Myoelectric features gathering from musculature environment are considered on a preferential basis to perceive muscle activation and control human arm prostheses according to recent experimental researches. EMG (electromyography) signal based human arm prostheses have shown a promising performance in terms of providing basic functional requirements of motions for the amputated people in recent years. However, these assistive devices for neurorehabilitation still have important limitations in enabling amputated people to perform rather sophisticated or functional movements. Surface electromyogram (EMG) is used as the control signal to command such devices. This kind of control consists of activating a motion in prosthetic arm using muscle activation for the same particular motion. Extraction of clear and certain neural information from EMG signals plays a major role especially in fine control of hand prosthesis movements. Many signal processing methods have been utilized for feature extraction from EMG signals. The specific objective of this study was to compare widely used time domain features of EMG signal including integrated EMG(IEMG), root mean square (RMS) and waveform length(WL) for prediction of externally applied forces to human hands. Obtained features were classified using artificial neural networks (ANN) to predict the forces. EMG signals supplied to process were recorded during only type of muscle contraction which is isometric and isotonic one. Experiments were performed by three healthy subjects who are right-handed and in a range of 25-35 year-old aging. EMG signals were collected from muscles of the proximal part of the upper body consisting of: biceps brachii, triceps brachii, pectorialis major and trapezius. The force prediction results obtained from the ANN were statistically analyzed and merits and pitfalls of the extracted features were discussed with detail. The obtained results are anticipated to contribute classification process of EMG signal and motion control of powered human arm prosthetics control.

Keywords: assistive devices for neurorehabilitation, electromyography, feature extraction, force estimation, human arm prosthesis

Procedia PDF Downloads 355

Authors: Cheng-Chen Hsu

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Background: The ratio of the length of the second finger (index finger, 2D) to the fourth finger (ring finger, 4D) (2D:4D) is a putative marker of prenatal hormones. A low 2D:4D ratio is related to high prenatal testosterone (PT) levels. Physiological research has suggested that a low 2D:4D ratio is correlated with high sports ability. Aim: To examine the association between cardiorespiratory fitness and 2D:4D. Methods: Assessment of 2D:4D; Images of hands were collected from participants using a computer scanner. Hands were placed lightly on the surface of the plate. Image analysis was performed using Image-Pro Plus 5.0 software. Feature points were marked at the tip of the finger and at the center of the proximal crease on the second and fourth digits. Actual measurement was carried out automatically, 2D:4D was calculated by dividing 2nd by 4th digit length. YMCA 3-min Step Test; The test involves stepping up and down at a rate of 24 steps/min for 3 min; a tape recording of the correct cadence (96 beats/min) is played to assist the participant in keeping the correct pace. Following the step test, the participant immediately sits down and, within 5 s, the tester starts counting the pulse for 1 min. The score for the test, the total 1-min postexercise heart rate, reflects the heart’s ability to recover quickly. Statistical Analysis ; Pearson’s correlation (r) was used for assessing the relationship between age, physical measurements, one-minute heart rate after YMCA 3-minute step test (HR) and 2D:4D. An independent-sample t-test was used for determining possible differences in HR between subjects with low and high values of 2D:4D. All statistical analyses were carried out with SPSS 18 for Window. All P-values were two-tailed at P = 0.05, if not reported otherwise. Results: A median split by 2D:4D was applied, resulting in a high and a low group. One-minute heart rate after YMCA 3-minute step test was significantly difference between groups of male right-hand 2D:4D (p = 0.024). However, no difference in left-hand 2D:4D values between groups in male, and no digit ratio difference between groups in female. Conclusion: The results showed that cardiopulmonary fitness is related to right 2D:4D, only in men. We argue that prenatal testosterone may have an effect on cardiorespiratory fitness in male but not in female.

Keywords: college students, digit ratio, finger, step test, fitness

Procedia PDF Downloads 263

Authors: Radik D. Aglyamov, Alexander K. Naumov, Alexey A. Shavelev, Oleg A. Morozov, Arsenij D. Shishkin, Yury P.Brodnikovsky, Alexander A.Karabutov, Alexander A. Oraevsky, Vadim V. Semashko

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The development of medical optoacoustic tomography with the using human blood as endogenic contrast agent is constrained by the lack of reliable, easy-to-use and inexpensive sources of high-power pulsed laser radiation in the spectral region of 750-900 nm [1-2]. Currently used titanium-sapphire, alexandrite lasers or optical parametric light oscillators do not provide the required and stable output characteristics, they are structurally complex, and their cost is up to half the price of diagnostic optoacoustic systems. Here we are developing the lasers based on Cr:LiCaAlF6 crystals which are free of abovementioned disadvantages and provides intensive ten’s ns-range tunable laser radiation at specific absorption bands of oxy- (~840 nm) and -deoxyhemoglobin (~757 nm) in the blood. Cr:LiCAF (с=3 at.%) crystals were grown in Kazan Federal University by the vertical directional crystallization (Bridgman technique) in graphite crucibles in a fluorinating atmosphere at argon overpressure (P=1500 hPa) [3]. The laser elements have cylinder shape with the diameter of 8 mm and 90 mm in length. The direction of the optical axis of the crystal was normal to the cylinder generatrix, which provides the π-polarized laser action correspondent to maximal stimulated emission cross-section. The flat working surfaces of the active elements were polished and parallel to each other with an error less than 10”. No any antireflection coating was applied. The Q-switched master oscillator-power amplifiers laser system (MOPA) with the dual-Xenon flashlamp pumping scheme in diffuse-reflectivity close-coupled head were realized. A specially designed laser cavity, consisting of dielectric highly reflective reflectors with a 2 m-curvature radius, a flat output mirror, a polarizer and Q-switch sell, makes it possible to operate sequentially in a circle (50 ns - laser one pulse after another) at wavelengths of 757 and 840 nm. The programmable pumping system from Tomowave Laser LLC (Russia) provided independent to each pulses (up to 250 J at 180 μs) pumping to equalize the laser radiation intensity at these wavelengths. The MOPA laser operates at 10 Hz pulse repetition rate with the output energy up to 210 mJ. Taking into account the limitations associated with physiological movements and other characteristics of patient tissues, the duration of laser pulses and their energy allows molecular and functional high-contrast imaging to depths of 5-6 cm with a spatial resolution of at least 1 mm. Highly likely the further comprehensive design of laser allows improving the output properties and realizing better spatial resolution of medical multispectral optoacoustic tomography systems.

Keywords: medical optoacoustic, endogenic contrast agent, multiwavelength tunable pulse lasers, MOPA laser system

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Authors: Noureddine Henka, Sami Tazi, Mohamad Assaad

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The electrical grid is a highly intricate system designed to transfer electricity from production areas to consumption areas. The Transmission System Operator (TSO) is responsible for ensuring the efficient distribution of electricity and maintaining the grid's safety and quality. However, due to the increasing integration of intermittent renewable energy sources, there is a growing level of uncertainty, which requires a faster responsive approach. A potential solution involves the use of electrical segmentation, which involves creating coherence zones where electrical disturbances mainly remain within the zone. Indeed, by means of coherent electrical zones, it becomes possible to focus solely on the sub-zone, reducing the range of possibilities and aiding in managing uncertainty. It allows faster execution of operational processes and easier learning for supervised machine learning algorithms. Electrical segmentation can be applied to various applications, such as electrical control, minimizing electrical loss, and ensuring voltage stability. Since the electrical grid can be modeled as a graph, where the vertices represent electrical buses and the edges represent electrical lines, identifying coherent electrical zones can be seen as a clustering task on graphs, generally called community detection. Nevertheless, a critical criterion for the zones is their ability to remain resilient to the electrical evolution of the grid over time. This evolution is due to the constant changes in electricity generation and consumption, which are reflected in graph structure variations as well as line flow changes. One approach to creating a resilient segmentation is to design robust zones under various circumstances. This issue can be represented through a multiplex graph, where each layer represents a specific situation that may arise on the grid. Consequently, resilient segmentation can be achieved by conducting community detection on this multiplex graph. The multiplex graph is composed of multiple graphs, and all the layers share the same set of vertices. Our proposal involves a model that utilizes a unified representation to compute a flattening of all layers. This unified situation can be penalized to obtain (K) connected components representing the robust electrical segmentation clusters. We compare our robust segmentation to the segmentation based on a single reference situation. The robust segmentation proves its relevance by producing clusters with high intra-electrical perturbation and low variance of electrical perturbation. We saw through the experiences when robust electrical segmentation has a benefit and in which context.

Keywords: community detection, electrical segmentation, multiplex graph, power grid

Procedia PDF Downloads 62

Authors: Ana Nemsadze

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Contemporary era and society are called postindustrial era and postindustrial society and/or informational era and informational society. Today science intends to define concept of information and comprehend informations role and function in contemporary society. Organization of social environment and governance of public processes on the base of information and tools of communication are main characteristics of informational era. This was defined by technological changes which were accomplished in culture in the second half of twentieth century. Today Georgia as an independent state needs to create an informational discourse of the country and therefore it is very important to study political and social cases which accomplished in the country after collapse of the Soviet Union because they start to define the present and the future of the country. The purpose of this study is to analyze political cases of the latest history of Georgia in terms of culture and information, concretely to elucidate which political cases transformed social life of post Soviet Georgia most of all who accomplished these political cases which visual and verbal messages was each political case spread with. The research is conducted on the base of interview. Participants of the interview are people of various specializations. Their professional activity is related to reflections on culture and theme of visual communication. They are philosophers sociologists a journalist media researcher a politologist a painter. The participants of the interview enumerated political cases and characterized them separately. Every expert thinks that declaration of independence of Georgia is the most important fact among all facts which were implemented in Georgia after collapse of the Soviet Union. The research revealed important social and political cases. Most of the cases are related to independence and territorial integrity of the state. Presidents of Georgia Zviad Gamsakhurdia Eduard Shevardnadze Mikheil Saakashvili Catholocos-Patriarch of All Georgia, the Archbishop of Mtskheta Tbilisi and Metropolitan bishop of Bichvinta and Tskhum Abkhazia Ilia II, businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili assumed dominating roles in cases. Verbal narrative of the cases accomplished during Zviad Gamsakhurdia presidential term expresses national freedom and visual part of cases of the same period expresses ruin of social-political structure. Verbal narrative of the cases accomplished during Eduard Sevardnadze presidential term expresses Free State and stability and reestablishment of Georgias political function in international relations and visual part of cases of the same period describes the most important moment of his presidential term and Eduard Shevardnadzes face appears too. Verbal narrative of the cases accomplished during Mikheil Saakashvilis presidential term expresses social renewal and visual part of cases of the same period describes August war and Mikheil Saakashvilis face appears too. The results of the study also reveal other details of visual verbal narrative of political and social cases of post Soviet Georgia. This gives a chance to start further reflection.

Keywords: culture, narrative, post soviet, visual communication

Procedia PDF Downloads 294

Authors: Andrew Freiburger, Sergi Molins

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Freshwater is a vital resource; yet, the supply of clean freshwater is diminishing as the consequence of melting snow and ice from global warming, pollution from industry, and an increasing demand from human population growth. The unsustainable trajectory of diminishing water resources is projected to jeopardize water security for billions of people in the 21st century. Membrane desalination technologies may resolve the growing discrepancy between supply and demand by filtering arbitrary feed water into a fraction of renewable, clean water and a fraction of highly concentrated brine. The leading hindrance of membrane desalination is fouling, whereby the highly concentrated brine solution encourages micro-organismal colonization and/or the precipitation of occlusive minerals (i.e. scale) upon the membrane surface. Thus, an understanding of brine formation is necessary to mitigate membrane fouling and to develop efficacious desalination technologies that can bolster the supply of available freshwater. This study presents a reactive transport simulation of brine formation and scale deposition during reverse osmosis (RO) desalination. The simulation conceptually represents the RO module as a one-dimensional domain, where feed water directionally enters the domain with a prescribed fluid velocity and is iteratively concentrated in the immobile layer of a dual porosity model. Geochemical PHREEQC code numerically evaluated the conceptual model with parameters for the BW30-400 RO module and for real water feed sources – e.g. the Red and Mediterranean seas, and produced waters from American oil-wells, based upon peer-review data. The presented simulation is computationally simpler, and hence less resource intensive, than the existent and more rigorous simulations of desalination phenomena, like TOUGHREACT. The end-user may readily prepare input files and execute simulations on a personal computer with open source software. The graphical results of fouling-potential and brine characteristics may therefore be particularly useful as the initial tool for screening candidate feed water sources and/or informing the selection of an RO module.

Keywords: desalination, PHREEQC, reactive transport, scaling

Procedia PDF Downloads 123

Authors: Julia R. Beulig, Stefan Ohla, Detlev Belder

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In contrast to off-line analytical methods, lab-on-a-chip technology delivers direct information about the observed reaction. Therefore, microfluidic devices make an important scientific contribution, e.g. in the field of synthetic chemistry. Herein, the rapid generation of analytical data can be applied for the optimization of chemical reactions. These microfluidic devices enable a fast change of reaction conditions as well as a resource saving method of operation. In the presented work, we focus on the investigation of multiphase regimes, more specifically on a biphasic microfluidic droplet systems. Here, every single droplet is a reaction container with customized conditions. The biggest challenge is the rapid qualitative and quantitative readout of information as most detection techniques for droplet systems are non-specific, time-consuming or too slow. An exception is the electrospray mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). The combination of a reaction screening platform with a rapid and specific detection method is an important step in droplet-based microfluidics. In this work, we present a novel approach for synthesis optimization on the nanoliter scale with direct ESI-MS detection. The development of a droplet-based microfluidic device, which enables the modification of different parameters while simultaneously monitoring the effect on the reaction within a single run, is shown. By common soft- and photolithographic techniques a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microfluidic chip with different functionalities is developed. As an interface for the MS detection, we use a steel capillary for ESI and improve the spray stability with a Teflon siphon tubing, which is inserted underneath the steel capillary. By optimizing the flow rates, it is possible to screen parameters of various reactions, this is exemplarity shown by a Domino Knoevenagel Hetero-Diels-Alder reaction. Different starting materials, catalyst concentrations and solvent compositions are investigated. Due to the high repetition rate of the droplet production, each set of reaction condition is examined hundreds of times. As a result, of the investigation, we receive possible reagents, the ideal water-methanol ratio of the solvent and the most effective catalyst concentration. The developed system can help to determine important information about the optimal parameters of a reaction within a short time. With this novel tool, we make an important step on the field of combining droplet-based microfluidics with organic reaction screening.

Keywords: droplet, mass spectrometry, microfluidics, organic reaction, screening

Procedia PDF Downloads 287

Authors: L. Bidyalakshmi, R. Ananthan, T. Longvah

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Antioxidants are substances that can prevent or delay oxidative damage of lipids, proteins and nucleic acids by reactive oxygen species. These help in lowering incidence of degenerative diseases such as cancer, arthritis, atherosclerosis, heart disease, inflammation, brain dysfunction and acceleration of the ageing process. The north eastern part of India falls among the global hotspots of biodiversity. Over the years, the local communities in the region have developed ingenious uses of many wild plants within their environment as food sources. Many of these less familiar foods form an integral part of the diet of these communities, and some are traditionally valued for its therapeutic effects. So the study was carried to estimate the antioxidant activity of some of these indigenous foods. Twenty-eight indigenous plant foods were studied for their antioxidant activity. Antioxidant activities were determined by using DPPH (2, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) assay, FRAP (Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power) assay and SOSA (Super Oxide Scavenging Assay). Out of the twenty-eight plant foods, there were thirteen leafy vegetables, four fruits, five roots and tubers, four spices and two mushrooms. Water extract and methanol extract of the samples were used for the analysis. The leafy vegetable samples exhibited antioxidant capacity with IC50 ranging from 8-1414 mg/ml for lipid extract and 34-37878 mg/ml for aqueous extract in DPPH assay. Total FRAP value ranging from 58-1005 mmol FeSO4 Eq/100g of the sample, which is comparatively higher than the antioxidant capacity of some commonly consumed leafy vegetables. In SOSA, water extract of leafy vegetables show a range of 0.05-193.68 µmol ascorbic acid equivalent/g of the samples. While the methanol extract of the samples show 0.20-21.94 µmol Trolox equivalent/g of the samples. Polygonum barbatum, Wendlandia glabrata and Polygonum posumbu have higher antioxidant activity among the leafy vegetables analysed. Among the fruits, Rhus hookerii showed the highest antioxidant activities in both FRAP and SOSA methods while Spondias magnifera exhibited higher antioxidant activity in DPPH method. Alocasia cucullata exhibited higher antioxidant activity in DPPH and FRAP assays while Alpinia galanga showed higher antioxidant activity in SOSA assay when compared to the other samples of roots and tubers. Elsholtzia communis showed high antioxidant activity in all the three parameters among the spices. For the mushrooms, Pleurotus ostreatus exhibited higher antioxidant activity than Auricularia delicate in DPPH and SOSA. The samples analysed exhibited antioxidant activity at varying levels and some exhibited higher antioxidant activity than the commonly consumed foods. So consumption of these less familiar foods may play a role in preventing human disease in which free radicals are involved. Further studies on these food samples on phytonutrients and its contribution to the antioxidant activities are required.

Keywords: antioxidant activity, DPPH, FRAP, SOSA

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Authors: Alvyra Galkienė, Ona Monkevičienė

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The full participation of all pupils in the overall educational process is defined by the concept of inclusive education, which is gradually evolving in education policy and practice. It includes the full participation of all pupils in a shared learning experience and educational practices that address barriers to learning. Inclusive education applying the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which includes promoting students' involvement in learning processes, guaranteeing a deep understanding of the analysed phenomena, initiating self-directed learning, and using e-tools to create a barrier-free environment, is a prerequisite for the personal success of each pupil. However, the sustainability of quality education is affected by the transformation of education systems. This was particularly evident during the period of the forced transition from contact to distance education in the COVID-19 pandemic. Research Problem: The transformation of the educational environment from real to virtual one and the loss of traditional forms of educational support highlighted the need for new research, revealing the individual profiles of teachers using UDL-based learning and the pathways of sustainable transfer of successful practices to non-conventional learning environments. Research Methods: In order to identify individual latent teacher profiles that encompass the essential components of UDL-based inclusive teaching and direct leadership of students' learning, the quantitative analysis software Mplius was used for latent profile analysis (LPA). In order to reveal proven, i.e., sustainable, pathways for the transit of the components of UDL-based inclusive learning to distance learning, latent profile transit analysis (LPTA) via Mplius was used. An online self-reported questionnaire was used for data collection. It consisted of blocks of questions designed to reveal the experiences of subject teachers in contact and distance learning settings. 1432 Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian subject teachers took part in the survey. Research Results: The LPA analysis revealed eight latent teacher profiles with different characteristics of UDL-based inclusive education or traditional teaching in contact teaching conditions. Only 4.1% of the subject teachers had a profile characterised by a sustained UDL approach to teaching: promoting pupils' self-directed learning; empowering pupils' engagement, understanding, independent action, and expression; promoting pupils' e-inclusion; and reducing the teacher's direct supervision of the students. Other teacher profiles were characterised by limited UDL-based inclusive education either due to the lack of one or more of its components or to the predominance of direct teacher guidance. The LPTA analysis allowed us to highlight the following transit paths of teacher profiles in the extreme conditions of the transition from contact to distance education: teachers staying in the same profile of UDL-based inclusive education (sustainable transit) or jumping to other profiles (unsustainable transit in case of barriers), and teachers from other profiles moving to this profile (ongoing transit taking advantage of the changed new possibilities in the teaching process).

Keywords: distance education, latent teacher profiles, sustainable transit, UDL

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Authors: Gökçe Erdemir, İlhan Yaylım, Serap Erdem-Kuruca, Musa Mutlu Can

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It has been determined that the main reason for the death of cancer disease is caused by metastases rather than the primary tumor. The cells that leave the primary tumor and enter the circulation and cause metastasis in the secondary organs are called "circulating tumor cells" (CTCs). The presence and number of circulating tumor cells has been associated with poor prognosis in many major types of cancer, including breast, prostate, and colorectal cancer. It is thought that knowledge of circulating tumor cells, which are seen as the main cause of cancer-related deaths due to metastasis, plays a key role in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The fact that tissue biopsies used in cancer diagnosis and follow-up are an invasive method and are insufficient in understanding the risk of metastasis and the progression of the disease have led to new searches. Liquid biopsy tests performed with a small amount of blood sample taken from the patient for the detection of CTCs are easy and reliable, as well as allowing more than one sample to be taken over time to follow the prognosis. However, since these cells are found in very small amounts in the blood, it is very difficult to capture them and specially designed analytical techniques and devices are required. Methods based on the biological and physical properties of the cells are used to capture these cells in the blood. Early diagnosis is very important in following the prognosis of tumors of epithelial origin such as breast, lung, colon and prostate. Molecules such as EpCAM, vimentin, and cytokeratins are expressed on the surface of cells that pass into the circulation from very few primary tumors and reach secondary organs from the circulation, and are used in the diagnosis of cancer in the early stage. For example, increased EpCAM expression in breast and prostate cancer has been associated with prognosis. These molecules can be determined in some blood or body fluids to be taken from patients. However, more sensitive methods are required to be able to determine when they are at a low level according to the course of the disease. The aim is to detect these molecules found in very few cancer cells with the help of sensitive, fast-sensing biosensors, first in breast cancer cells reproduced in vitro and then in blood samples taken from breast cancer patients. In this way, cancer cells can be diagnosed early and easily and effectively treated.

Keywords: electrochemical biosensors, breast cancer, circulating tumor cells, EpCAM, Vimentin, Cytokeratins

Procedia PDF Downloads 249

Authors: Jasmin H. Kwon , Thomas M. Brinthaupt

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There is a general lack of consumer behavior research on seasonal shopping events. Studying these kinds of events is interesting and important for several reasons. First, global shopping opportunities have implications for cross-cultural shopping events and effects on seasonal events in other countries. Second, seasonal shopping events are subject to economic conditions and may wane in popularity, especially with e-commerce options. Third, retailers can expand the success of their seasonal shopping events by taking advantage of cross-cultural opportunities. Fourth, it is interesting to consider how consumers from other countries might take advantage of different countries’ seasonal shopping events. Many countries have seasonal shopping events such as Black Friday. Research on these kinds of events can lead to the identification of cross-cultural similarities and differences in consumer behavior. We compared shopping motivations of college students who did (n=36) and did not (n=81) shop on Cyber Monday. The results showed that the groups did not differ significantly on any of the shopping motivation subscales. The Cyber Monday shoppers reported being significantly more likely to agree than disagree that their online shopping experience was enjoyable and exciting. They were more likely to disagree than agree that their experience was overwhelming. In addition, they agreed that they shopped only for deals, purchased the exact items they wanted, and thought that their efforts were worth it. Finally, they intended to shop again at next year’s Cyber Monday. It appears that there are many positive aspects to online seasonal shopping, independent of one’s typical shopping motivations. Different countries have seasonal events similar to the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping holiday (e.g., Boxing Day, Fukubukuro, China’s Singles Day). In Korea, there is increasing interest in taking advantage of U.S. Black Friday and Cyber Monday opportunities. Government officials are interested in adapting the U.S. holiday to Korean retailers, essentially recreating the Black Friday/Cyber Monday holiday there. Similarly, the Japanese Fukubukuro ('Lucky Bag') holiday is being adapted by other countries such as Korea and the U.S. International shipping support companies are also emerging that help customers to identify and receive products from other countries. U.S. department stores also provide free shipping on international orders for certain items. As these structural changes are occurring and new options for global shopping emerge, the need to understand the role of shoppers’ motivations becomes even more important. For example, the Cyber Monday results are particularly relevant to the new landscape with e-commerce and cross-cultural opportunities, since many of these events involve e-commerce. Within today’s global market, physical location of a retail store is no longer a limitation to growing one’s market share. From a consumer perspective, it is important to investigate how shopping motivations are related to e-commerce seasonal events. From a retail perspective, understanding the shopping motivations of international customers would help retailers to expand and better tailor their seasonal shopping events beyond the boundaries of their own countries. From a collaborative perspective, research on this topic can include interdisciplinary researchers, including those from fashion merchandising, marketing, retailing, and psychology.

Keywords: Black Friday, cross-cultural research, Cyber Monday, seasonal shopping behavior

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Authors: L. Obeid, A. Bee, D. Talbot, S. Abramson, M. Welschbillig

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The adsorption process is one of the most efficient methods to remove pollutants from wastewater provided that suitable adsorbents are used. In order to produce environmentally safe adsorbents, natural polymers have received increasing attention in recent years. Thus, alginate and chitosane are extensively used as inexpensive, non-toxic and efficient biosorbents. Alginate is an anionic polysaccharide extracted from brown seaweeds. Chitosan is an amino-polysaccharide; this cationic polymer is obtained by deacetylation of chitin the major constituent of crustaceans. Furthermore, it has been shown that the encapsulation of magnetic materials in alginate and chitosan beads facilitates their recovery from wastewater after the adsorption step, by the use of an external magnetic field gradient, obtained with a magnet or an electromagnet. In the present work, we have studied the adsorption affinity of magnetic alginate beads and magnetic chitosan beads (called magsorbents) for methyl orange (MO) (an anionic dye), methylene blue (MB) (a cationic dye) and p-nitrophenol (PNP) (a hydrophobic pollutant). The effect of different parameters (pH solution, contact time, pollutant initial concentration…) on the adsorption of pollutant on the magnetic beads was investigated. The adsorption of anionic and cationic pollutants is mainly due to electrostatic interactions. Consequently methyl orange is highly adsorbed by chitosan beads in acidic medium and methylene blue by alginate beads in basic medium. In the case of a hydrophobic pollutant, which is weakly adsorbed, we have shown that the adsorption is enhanced by adding a surfactant. Cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), a cationic surfactant, was used to increase the adsorption of PNP by magnetic alginate beads. Adsorption of CPC by alginate beads occurs through two mechanisms: (i) electrostatic attractions between cationic head groups of CPC and negative carboxylate functions of alginate; (ii) interaction between the hydrocarbon chains of CPC. The hydrophobic pollutant is adsolubilized within the surface aggregated structures of surfactant. Figure c shows that PNP can reach up to 95% of adsorption in presence of CPC. At highest CPC concentrations, desorption occurs due to the formation of micelles in the solution. Our magsorbents appear to efficiently remove ionic and hydrophobic pollutants and we hope that this fundamental research will be helpful for the future development of magnetically assisted processes in water treatment plants.

Keywords: adsorption, alginate, chitosan, magsorbent, magnetic, organic pollutant

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Authors: Rima Zakzouk, Yasushi Shimada, Yasunori Sumi, Junji Tagami

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Background and purpose: The resin composite has become the main material for the restorations of caries in recent years due to aesthetic characteristics, especially with the development of the adhesive techniques. The quality of adhesion to tooth structures is depending on an exchange process between inorganic tooth material and synthetic resin and a micromechanical retention promoted by resin infiltration in partially demineralized dentin. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a noninvasive diagnostic method for obtaining cross-sectional images that produce high-resolution of the biological tissue at the micron scale. The aim of this study was to evaluate the gap formation at adhesive/tooth interface of two-step self-etch adhesives that are preceded with or without phosphoric acid pre-etching in different regions of teeth using SS-OCT. Materials and methods: Round tapered cavities (2×2 mm) were prepared in cervical part of bovine incisors teeth and divided into 2 groups (n=10): first group self-etch adhesive (Clearfil SE Bond) was applied for SE group and second group treated with acid etching before applying the self-etch adhesive for PA group. Subsequently, both groups were restored with Estelite Flow Quick Flowable Composite Resin and observed under OCT. Following 5000 thermal cycles, the same section was obtained again for each cavity using OCT at 1310-nm wavelength. Scanning was repeated after two months to monitor the gap progress. Then the gap length was measured using image analysis software, and the statistics analysis were done between both groups using SPSS software. After that, the cavities were sectioned and observed under Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope (CLSM) to confirm the result of OCT. Results: Gaps formed at the bottom of the cavity was longer than the gap formed at the margin and dento-enamel junction in both groups. On the other hand, pre-etching treatment led to damage the DEJ regions creating longer gap. After 2 months the results showed almost progress in the gap length significantly at the bottom regions in both groups. In conclusions, phosphoric acid etching treatment did not reduce the gap lrngth in most regions of the cavity. Significance: The bottom region of tooth was more exposed to gap formation than margin and DEJ regions, The DEJ damaged with phosphoric acid treatment.

Keywords: optical coherence tomography, self-etch adhesives, bottom, dento enamel junction

Procedia PDF Downloads 213

Authors: Debasish Das, Mainak Mitra, A.Chaudhuri

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For the purpose of producing moisture vapor permeable waterproof cotton fabric to be used for protective apparel against rain, cotton fabric was coated with the blend of natural rubber and chloroprene rubber containing ammonium acetate as the water-soluble salt, employing a calendar coating technique. Rubber formulations also contained filler, homogenizer, and a typical sulphur curing system. Natural rubber and chloroprene blend in the blend ratio of 30: 70, containing 25 parts of sodium acetate per hundred parts of rubber was coated on the fabric. The coated fabric was vulcanized thereafter at 140oC for 3 h. Coated and vulcanized fabric was subsequently dipped in water for 45 min, followed by drying in air. Such set of treatments produced optimum results. Coated, vulcanized, washed and dried cotton fabric showed optimum developments in the property profiles in respect of waterproofness, breathability as revealed by moisture vapor transmission rate, coating adhesion, tensile properties, abrasion resistance, flex endurance and fire retardancy. Incorporation of highly water-soluble ammonium acetate salt in the coating formulation and their subsequent removal from vulcanized coated layer affected by post washing in consequent to dipping in the water-bath produced holes of only a few microns in the coating matrix of the fabric. Such microporous membrane formed on the cotton fabric allowed only transportation of moisture vapor through them, giving a moisture vapor transmission rate of 3734 g/m2/24h, while acting as a barrier for large liquid water droplet resisting 120cm of the water column in the hydrostatic water-head tester, rendering the coated cotton fabric waterproof. Examination of surface morphology of vulcanized coating by scanning electron microscopy supported the mechanism proposed for development of breathable waterproof layer on cotton fabric by the process employed above. Such process provides an easy and cost-effective route for achieving moisture vapor permeable waterproof cotton.

Keywords: moisture vapour permeability, waterproofness, chloroprene, calendar coating, coating adhesion, fire retardancy

Procedia PDF Downloads 241

Authors: Mohammed Makha, Jakob Heier, Frank Nüesch, Roland Hany

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Organic solar cells (OSCs) have made rapid progress and currently achieve power conversion efficiencies (PCE) of over 10%. OSCs have several merits over other direct light-to-electricity generating cells and can be processed at low cost from solution on flexible substrates over large areas. Moreover, combining organic semiconductors with transparent and conductive electrodes allows for the fabrication of semitransparent OSCs (SM-OSCs). For SM-OSCs the challenge is to achieve a high average visible transmission (AVT) while maintaining a high short circuit current (Jsc). Typically, Jsc of SM-OSCs is smaller than when using an opaque metal top electrode. This is because the non-absorbed light during the first transit through the active layer and the transparent electrode is forward-transmitted out of the device. Recently, OSCs using a ternary blend of organic materials have received attention. This strategy was pursued to extend the light harvesting over the visible range. However, it is a general challenge to manipulate the performance of ternary OSCs in a predictable way, because many key factors affect the charge generation and extraction in ternary solar cells. Consequently, the device performance is affected by the compatibility between the blend components and the resulting film morphology, the energy levels and bandgaps, the concentration of the guest material and its location in the active layer. In this work, we report on a solvent-free lamination process for the fabrication of efficient and semitransparent ternary blend OSCs. The ternary blend was composed of PC70BM and the electron donors PBDTTT-C and an NIR cyanine absorbing dye (Cy7T). Using an opaque metal top electrode, a PCE of 6% was achieved for the optimized binary polymer: fullerene blend (AVT = 56%). However, the PCE dropped to ~2% when decreasing (to 30 nm) the active film thickness to increase the AVT value (75%). Therefore we resorted to the ternary blend and measured for non-transparent cells a PCE of 5.5% when using an active polymer: dye: fullerene (0.7: 0.3: 1.5 wt:wt:wt) film of 95 nm thickness (AVT = 65% when omitting the top electrode). In a second step, the optimized ternary blend was used of the fabrication of SM-OSCs. We used a plastic/metal substrate with a light transmission of over 90% as a transparent electrode that was applied via a lamination process. The interfacial layer between the active layer and the top electrode was optimized in order to improve the charge collection and the contact with the laminated top electrode. We demonstrated a PCE of 3% with AVT of 51%. The parameter space for ternary OSCs is large and it is difficult to find the best concentration ratios by trial and error. A rational approach for device optimization is the construction of a ternary blend phase diagram. We discuss our attempts to construct such a phase diagram for the PBDTTT-C: Cy7T: PC70BM system via a combination of using selective Cy7T selective solvents and atomic force microscopy. From the ternary diagram suitable morphologies for efficient light-to-current conversion can be identified. We compare experimental OSC data with these predictions.

Keywords: organic photovoltaics, ternary phase diagram, ternary organic solar cells, transparent solar cell, lamination

Procedia PDF Downloads 252

Authors: Frea Van Steenweghen, Lander Hollevoet, Johan A. Martens

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Compared to other hydrogen (H₂) carriers, ammonia (NH₃) is one of the most promising carriers as it contains 17.6 wt% hydrogen. It is easily liquefied at ≈ 9–10 bar pressure at ambient temperature. More importantly, NH₃ is a carbon-free hydrogen carrier with no CO₂ emission at final decomposition. Ammonia has a well-defined regulatory framework and a good track record regarding safety concerns. Furthermore, the industry already has an existing transport infrastructure consisting of pipelines, tank trucks and shipping technology, as ammonia has been manufactured and distributed around the world for over a century. While NH₃ synthesis and transportation technological solutions are at hand, a missing link in the hydrogen delivery scheme from ammonia is an energy-lean and efficient technology for cracking ammonia into H₂ and N₂. The most explored option for ammonia decomposition is thermo-catalytic cracking which is, by itself, the most energy-efficient approach compared to other technologies, such as plasma and electrolysis, as it is the most energy-lean and robust option. The decomposition reaction is favoured only at high temperatures (> 300°C) and low pressures (1 bar) as the thermocatalytic ammonia cracking process is faced with thermodynamic limitations. At 350°C, the thermodynamic equilibrium at 1 bar pressure limits the conversion to 99%. Gaining additional conversion up to e.g. 99.9% necessitates heating to ca. 530°C. However, reaching thermodynamic equilibrium is infeasible as a sufficient driving force is needed, requiring even higher temperatures. Limiting the conversion below the equilibrium composition is a more economical option. Thermocatalytic ammonia cracking is documented in scientific literature. Among the investigated metal catalysts (Ru, Co, Ni, Fe, …), ruthenium is known to be most active for ammonia decomposition with an onset of cracking activity around 350°C. For establishing > 99% conversion reaction, temperatures close to 600°C are required. Such high temperatures are likely to reduce the round-trip efficiency but also the catalyst lifetime because of the sintering of the supported metal phase. In this research, the first focus was on catalyst bed design, avoiding diffusion limitation. Experiments in our packed bed tubular reactor set-up showed that extragranular diffusion limitations occur at low concentrations of NH₃ when reaching high conversion, a phenomenon often overlooked in experimental work. A second focus was thermocatalyst development for ammonia cracking, avoiding the use of noble metals. To this aim, candidate metals and mixtures were deposited on a range of supports. Sintering resistance at high temperatures and the basicity of the support were found to be crucial catalyst properties. The catalytic activity was promoted by adding alkaline and alkaline earth metals. A third focus was studying the optimum process configuration by process simulations. A trade-off between conversion and favorable operational conditions (i.e. low pressure and high temperature) may lead to different process configurations, each with its own pros and cons. For example, high-pressure cracking would eliminate the need for post-compression but is detrimental for the thermodynamic equilibrium, leading to an optimum in cracking pressure in terms of energy cost.

Keywords: ammonia cracking, catalyst research, kinetics, process simulation, thermodynamic equilibrium

Procedia PDF Downloads 55

Authors: Alena O. Stepanova, Vera S. Chernonosova, Tatyana S. Godovikova, Konstantin A. Bulatov, Andrey Y. Patrushev, Pavel P. Laktionov

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Trauma and arthrosis, not to mention cartilage destruction in overweight and elders put hyaline cartilage lesion among the most frequent diseases of locomotor system. These problems combined with low regeneration potential of the cartilage make regeneration of articular cartilage a high-priority task of tissue engineering. Many types of matrices, the procedures of their installation and autologous chondrocyte implantation protocols were offered, but certain aspects including adhesion of the implant with surrounding cartilage/bone, prevention of the ossification and fibrosis were not resolved. Simplification and acceleration of the procedures resulting in restoration of normal cartilage are also required. We have demonstrated that human chondroblasts can be successfully cultivated at the surface of electrospun scaffolds and produce extracellular matrix components in contrast to chondroblasts grown in homogeneous hydrogels. To restore cartilage we offer to use stacks of electrospun scaffolds fixed with photopolymerized solution of prepared from gelatin and chondroitin-4-sulfate both modified by glycidyl methacrylate and non-toxic photoinitator Darocur 2959. Scaffolds were prepared from nylon 6, polylactide-co-glicolide and their mixtures with modified gelatin. Illumination of chondroblasts in photopolymerized solution using 365 nm LED light had no effect on cell viability at compressive strength of the gel less than0,12 MPa. Stacks of electrospun scaffolds provide good compressive strength and have the potential for substitution with cartilage when biodegradable scaffolds are used. Vascularization can be prevented by introduction of biostable scaffolds in the layers contacting the subchondral bone. Studies of two-component materials (2-3 sheets of electrospun scaffold) implanted in the knee-joints of rabbits and fixed by photopolymerization demonstrated good crush resistance, biocompatibility and good adhesion of the implant with surrounding cartilage. Histological examination of the implants 3 month after implantation demonstrates absence of any inflammation and signs of replacement of the biodegradable scaffolds with normal cartilage. The possibility of intraoperative population of the implants with autologous cells is being investigated.

Keywords: chondroblasts, electrospun scaffolds, hyaline cartilage, photopolymerized gel

Procedia PDF Downloads 270

Authors: Kuniaki Kudo, Raviraj Solanki, Kaushal Patel, Yash Virani

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This research mainly concerns optimizing UI test automation for large-scale web applications. The test target application is the HHAexchange homecare management WEB application that seamlessly connects providers, state Medicaid programs, managed care organizations (MCOs), and caregivers through one platform with large-scale functionalities. This study focuses on user interface automation testing for the WEB application. The quality assurance team must execute many manual users interface test cases in the development process to confirm no regression bugs. The team automated 346 test cases; the UI automation test execution time was over 17 hours. The business requirement was reducing the execution time to release high-quality products quickly, and the quality assurance automation team modernized the test automation framework to optimize the execution time. The base of the WEB UI automation test environment is Selenium, and the test code is written in Python. Adopting a compilation language to write test code leads to an inefficient flow when introducing scalability into a traditional test automation environment. In order to efficiently introduce scalability into Test Automation, a scripting language was adopted. The scalability implementation is mainly implemented with AWS's serverless technology, an elastic container service. The definition of scalability here is the ability to automatically set up computers to test automation and increase or decrease the number of computers running those tests. This means the scalable mechanism can help test cases run parallelly. Then test execution time is dramatically decreased. Also, introducing scalable test automation is for more than just reducing test execution time. There is a possibility that some challenging bugs are detected by introducing scalable test automation, such as race conditions, Etc. since test cases can be executed at same timing. If API and Unit tests are implemented, the test strategies can be adopted more efficiently for this scalability testing. However, in WEB applications, as a practical matter, API and Unit testing cannot cover 100% functional testing since they do not reach front-end codes. This study applied a scalable UI automation testing strategy to the large-scale homecare management system. It confirmed the optimization of the test case execution time and the detection of a challenging bug. This study first describes the detailed architecture of the scalable test automation environment, then describes the actual performance reduction time and an example of challenging issue detection.

Keywords: aws, elastic container service, scalability, serverless, ui automation test

Procedia PDF Downloads 87

Authors: Md. M. Hossain, Regan Roat, Jenica Christopherson, Colette Free, Zhiguang Guo

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Long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) mediated post-transcriptional gene regulation, and their epigenetic landscapes have been shown to be involved in many human diseases. However, their regulation in diabetes through governing islet’s β-cell function and survival needs to be elucidated. Due to the technical and ethical constraints, it is difficult to study their role in β-cell function and survival in human under in vivo condition. In this study, humanized mice have been developed through transplanting human pancreatic islet under the kidney capsule of NOD.SCID mice and induced β-cell death leading to diabetes condition to study lncRNA mediated regulation. For this, human islets from 3 donors (3000 IEQ, purity > 80%) were transplanted under the kidney capsule of STZ induced diabetic NOD.scid mice. After at least 2 weeks of normoglycecemia, lymphocytes from diabetic NOD mice were adoptively transferred and islet grafts were collected once blood glucose reached > 200 mg/dl. RNA from human donor islets, islet grafts from humanized mice with either adoptive lymphocyte transfer (ALT) or PBS control (CTL) were ribodepleted; barcoded fragment libraries were constructed and sequenced on the Ion Proton sequencer. lncRNA expression in isolated human islets, islet grafts from humanized mice with and without induced β-cell death and their regulation in human islets function in vitro under glucose challenge, cytokine mediated inflammation and induced apoptotic condition were investigated. Out of 3155 detected lncRNAs, 299 that highly expressed in islets were found to be significantly downregulated and 224 upregulated in ALT compared to CTL. Most of these are found to be collocated within 5 kb upstream and 1 kb downstream of 788 up- and 624 down-regulated mRNAs. Genomic Regions Enrichment of Annotations Analysis revealed deregulated and collocated genes are related to pancreas endocrine development; insulin synthesis, processing, and secretion; pancreatitis and diabetes. Many of them, that found to be located within enhancer domains for islet specific gene activity, are associated to the deregulation of known islet/βcell specific transcription factors and genes that are important for β-cell differentiation, identity, and function. RNA sequencing analysis revealed aberrant lncRNA expression which is associated to the deregulated mRNAs in β-cell function as well as in molecular pathways related to diabetes. A distinct set of candidate lncRNA isoforms were identified as highly enriched and specific to human islets, which are deregulated in human islets from donors with different BMIs and with type 2 diabetes. These RNAs show an interesting regulation in cultured human islets under glucose stimulation and with induced β-cell death by cytokines. Aberrant expression of these lncRNAs was detected in the exosomes from the media of islets cultured with cytokines. Results of this study suggest that the islet specific lncRNAs are deregulated in human islet with β-cell death, hence important in diabetes. These lncRNAs might be important for human β-cell function and survival thus could be used as biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets for diabetes.

Keywords: β-cell, humanized mouse, pancreatic islet, LncRNAs

Procedia PDF Downloads 154

Authors: P. Crosby, Shiva Krishna Pavuluri, S. Rajkumar

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Purpose: Occupied built-up space can be broadly classified as air-conditioned and naturally ventilated. Regardless of the building type, the objective of all occupied built-up space is to provide a thermally acceptable environment for human occupancy. Considering this aspect, air-conditioned spaces allow a greater degree of flexibility to control and modulate the comfort parameters during the operation phase. However, in the case of naturally ventilated space, a number of design features favoring indoor thermal comfort should be mandatorily conceptualized starting from the design phase. One such primary design feature that requires to be prioritized is, selection of building envelope material, as it decides the flow of energy from outside environment to occupied spaces. Research Methodology: In India and many countries across globe, the standardized material used for building envelope is re-enforced concrete (i.e. M-25 grade concrete). The comfort inside the RC built environment for warm & humid climate (i.e. mid-day temp of 30-35˚C, diurnal variation of 5-8˚C & RH of 70-90%) is unsatisfying to say the least. This study is mainly focused on reviewing the impact of mix design of conventional M25 grade concrete on inside thermal comfort. In this mix design, air entrainment in the range of 2000 to 2100 kg/m3 is introduced to reduce the density of M-25 grade concrete. Thermal performance parameters & indoor comfort indices are analyzed for the proposed mix and compared in relation to the conventional M-25 grade. There are diverse methodologies which govern indoor comfort calculation. In this study, three varied approaches specifically a) Indian Adaptive Thermal comfort model, b) Tropical Summer Index (TSI) c) Air temperature less than 33˚C & RH less than 70% to calculate comfort is adopted. The data required for the thermal comfort study is acquired by field measurement approach (i.e. for the new mix design) and simulation approach by using design builder (i.e. for the conventional concrete grade). Findings: The analysis points that the Tropical Summer Index has a higher degree of stringency in determining the occupant comfort band whereas also providing a leverage in thermally tolerable band over & above other methodologies in the context of the study. Another important finding is the new mix design ensures a 10% reduction in indoor air temperature (IAT) over the outdoor dry bulb temperature (ODBT) during the day. This translates to a significant temperature difference of 6 ˚C IAT and ODBT.

Keywords: Indian adaptive thermal comfort, indoor air temperature, thermal comfort, tropical summer index

Procedia PDF Downloads 314

Authors: Sajjad Hassanpour, Vicente A. González, Yang Zou, Jiamou Liu

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Earthquakes pose a significant threat to both structural and non-structural elements in buildings, putting human lives at risk. Effective post-earthquake evacuation is critical for ensuring the safety of building occupants. However, current design practices often neglect the integration of post-earthquake evacuation considerations into the early-stage architectural design process. To address this gap, this paper presents a novel automated internal architectural layout generation tool that optimizes post-earthquake evacuation performance. The tool takes an initial plain floor plan as input, along with specific requirements from the user/architect, such as minimum room dimensions, corridor width, and exit lengths. Based on these inputs, firstly, the tool randomly generates different architectural layouts. Secondly, the human post-earthquake evacuation behaviour will be thoroughly assessed for each generated layout using the advanced Agent-Based Building Earthquake Evacuation Simulation (AB2E2S) model. The AB2E2S prototype is a post-earthquake evacuation simulation tool that incorporates variables related to earthquake intensity, architectural layout, and human factors. It leverages a hierarchical agent-based simulation approach, incorporating reinforcement learning to mimic human behaviour during evacuation. The model evaluates different layout options and provides feedback on evacuation flow, time, and possible casualties due to earthquake non-structural damage. By integrating the AB2E2S model into the automated layout generation tool, architects and designers can obtain optimized architectural layouts that prioritize post-earthquake evacuation performance. Through the use of the tool, architects and designers can explore various design alternatives, considering different minimum room requirements, corridor widths, and exit lengths. This approach ensures that evacuation considerations are embedded in the early stages of the design process. In conclusion, this research presents an innovative automated internal architectural layout generation tool that integrates post-earthquake evacuation simulation. By incorporating evacuation considerations into the early-stage design process, architects and designers can optimize building layouts for improved post-earthquake evacuation performance. This tool empowers professionals to create resilient designs that prioritize the safety of building occupants in the face of seismic events.

Keywords: agent-based simulation, automation in design, architectural layout, post-earthquake evacuation behavior

Procedia PDF Downloads 87

Authors: Kirsi Korkealehto

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The purpose of this research was to investigate how the peer evaluation concept was perceived by language teachers developing online language courses. The online language courses in question were developed in language teacher teams within a nationwide KiVAKO-project funded by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture. The participants of the project were 86 language teachers of 26 higher education institutions in Finland. The KiVAKO-project aims to strengthen the language capital at higher education institutions by building a nationwide online language course offering on a shared platform. All higher education students can study the courses regardless of their home institutions. The project covers the following languages: Chinese, Estonian, Finnish Sign Language, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish on the levels CEFR A1-C1. The courses were piloted in the autumn term of 2019, and an online peer evaluation session was organised for all project participating teachers in spring 2020. The peer evaluation utilised the quality criteria for online implementation, which was developed earlier within the eAMK-project. The eAMK-project was also funded by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture with the aim to improve higher education institution teachers’ digital and pedagogical competences. In the online peer evaluation session, the teachers were divided into Zoom breakout rooms, in each of which two pilot courses were presented by their teachers dialogically. The other language teachers provided feedback on the course on the basis of the quality criteria. Thereafter good practices and ideas were gathered to an online document. The breakout rooms were facilitated by one teacher who was instructed and provided a slide-set prior to the online session. After the online peer evaluation sessions, the language teachers were asked to respond to an online questionnaire for feedback. The questionnaire included three multiple-choice questions using the Likert-scale rating and two open-ended questions. The online questionnaire was answered after the sessions immediately, the questionnaire link and the QR-code to it was on the last slide of the session, and it was responded at the site. The data comprise online questionnaire responses of the peer evaluation session and the researcher’s observations during the sessions. The data were analysed with a qualitative content analysis method with the help of Atlas.ti programme, and the Likert scale answers provided results per se. The observations were used as complementary data to support the primary data. The findings indicate that the working in the breakout rooms was successful, and the workshops proceeded smoothly. The workshops were perceived as beneficial in terms of improving the piloted courses and developing the participants’ own work as teachers. Further, the language teachers stated that the collegial discussions and sharing the ideas were fruitful. The aspects to improve the workshops were to give more time for free discussions and the opportunity to familiarize oneself with the quality criteria and the presented language courses beforehand. The quality criteria were considered to provide a suitable frame for self- and peer evaluations.

Keywords: higher education, language learning, online learning, peer-evaluation

Procedia PDF Downloads 118

Authors: Jamboor K. Vishwanatha

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Among the potent anti-cancer agents, curcumin has been found to be very efficacious against various cancer cells. Despite multiple medicinal benefits of curcumin, poor water solubility, poor physiochemical properties and low bioavailability continue to pose major challenges in developing a formulation for clinical efficacy. To improve its potential application in the clinical area, we formulated poly lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles. The PLGA nanoparticles were formulated using solid-oil/water emulsion solvent evaporation method and then characterized for percent yield, encapsulation efficiency, surface morphology, particle size, drug distribution within nanoparticles and drug polymer interaction. Our studies showed the successful formation of smooth and spherical curcumin loaded PLGA nanoparticles with a high percent yield of about 92.01±0.13% and an encapsulation efficiency of 90.88±0.14%. The mean particle size of the nanoparticles was found to be 145nm. The in vitro drug release profile showed 55-60% drug release from the nanoparticles over a period of 24 hours with continued sustained release over a period of 8 days. Exposure to curcumin loaded nanoparticles resulted in reduced cell viability of cancer cells compared to normal cells. We used a novel non-covalent insertion of a homo-bifunctional spacer for targeted delivery of curcumin to various cancer cells. Functionalized nanoparticles for antibody/targeting agent conjugation was prepared using a cross-linking ligand, bis(sulfosuccinimidyl) suberate (BS3), which has reactive carboxyl group to conjugate efficiently to the primary amino groups of the targeting agents. In our studies, we demonstrated successful conjugation of antibodies, Annexin A2 or prostate specific membrane antigen (PSMA), to curcumin loaded PLGA nanoparticles for targeting to prostate and breast cancer cells. The percent antibody attachment to PLGA nanoparticles was found to be 92.8%. Efficient intra-cellular uptake of the targeted nanoparticles was observed in the cancer cells. These results have emphasized the potential of our multifunctional curcumin nanoparticles to improve the clinical efficacy of curcumin therapy in patients with cancer.

Keywords: polymeric nanoparticles, cancer therapy, sustained release, curcumin

Procedia PDF Downloads 315

Authors: Bruna P. De Souza, Ricardo C. De Almeida

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In some cities in the State of Parana – Brazil and in other countries atmospheric bromeliads (Tillandsia spp - Bromeliaceae) are considered weeds in trees, electric power lines, satellite dishes and other artificial supports. In this study, a numerical model was developed to simulate the seed dispersal of the Tillandsia recurvata species by wind with the objective of evaluating seeds displacement in the city of Ponta Grossa – PR, Brazil, since it is considered that the region is already infested. The model simulates the dispersal of each individual seed integrating parameters from the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL) and the local wind, simulated by the Weather Research Forecasting (WRF) mesoscale atmospheric model for the 2012 to 2015 period. The dispersal model also incorporates the approximate number of bromeliads and source height data collected from most infested electric power lines. The seeds terminal velocity, which is an important input data but was not available in the literature, was measured by an experiment with fifty-one seeds of Tillandsia recurvata. Wind is the main dispersal agent acting on plumed seeds whereas atmospheric turbulence is a determinant factor to transport the seeds to distances beyond 200 meters as well as to introduce random variability in the seed dispersal process. Such variability was added to the model through the application of an Inverse Fast Fourier Transform to wind velocity components energy spectra based on boundary-layer meteorology theory and estimated from micrometeorological parameters produced by the WRF model. Seasonal and annual wind means were obtained from the surface wind data simulated by WRF for Ponta Grossa. The mean wind direction is assumed to be the most probable direction of bromeliad seed trajectory. Moreover, the atmospheric turbulence effect and dispersal distances were analyzed in order to identify likely regions of infestation around Ponta Grossa urban area. It is important to mention that this model could be applied to any species and local as long as seed’s biological data and meteorological data for the region of interest are available.

Keywords: atmospheric turbulence, bromeliad, numerical model, seed dispersal, terminal velocity, wind

Procedia PDF Downloads 129

Authors: Arturo S. Daag, Ira Karrel D. L. San Jose, Mike Gabriel G. Pedrosa, Ken Adrian C. Villarias, Rayfred P. Ingeniero, Cyrah Gale H. Rocamora, Margarita P. Dizon, Roland Joseph B. De Leon, Teresito C. Bacolcol

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The province of Leyte consists of various geomorphological landforms: These are: a) landforms of tectonic origin transect large part of the volcanic centers in upper Ormoc area; b) landforms of volcanic origin, several inactive volcanic centers located in Upper Ormoc are transected by Philippine Fault; c) landforms of volcano-denudational and denudational slopes dominates the area where most of the earthquake-induced landslide occurred; and d) Colluvium and alluvial deposits dominate the foot slope of Ormoc and Jaro-Pastrana plain. Earthquake ground acceleration and geotechnical properties of various landforms are crucial for landslide studies. To generate the landslide critical acceleration model of sliding block, various data were considered, these are: geotechnical data (i.e., soil and rock strength parameters), slope, topographic wetness index (TWI), landslide inventory, soil map, geologic maps for the calculation of the factor of safety. Horizontal-to-vertical spectral ratio (HVSR) surveying methods, refraction microtremor (ReMi), and three-component microtremor (3CMT) were conducted to measure site period and surface wave velocity as well as to create a soil thickness model. Critical acceleration model of various geomorphological unit using Remote Sensing, field geotechnical, geophysical, and geospatial data collected from the areas affected by the 06 July 2017 M6.5 Leyte earthquake. Spatial analysis of earthquake-induced landslide from the 06 July 2017, were then performed to assess the relationship between the calculated critical acceleration and peak ground acceleration. The observed trends proved helpful in establishing the role of critical acceleration as a determining factor in the distribution of co-seismic landslides.

Keywords: earthquake-induced landslide, remote sensing, geomorphology, seismic response

Procedia PDF Downloads 107

Authors: Asiya Rezzouq, Mehdi El Bouchti, Omar Cherkaoui, Sanaa Majid, Souad Zyade

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In recent years, there has been a steady increase in the exploration of new renewable and non-conventional sources for the production of biodegradable nanomaterials. Nature harbours valuable cellulose-rich materials that have so far been under-exploited and can be used to create cellulose derivatives such as cellulose microfibres (CMFs) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). These unconventional sources have considerable potential as alternatives to conventional sources such as wood and cotton. By using agricultural waste to produce these cellulose derivatives, we are responding to the global call for sustainable solutions to environmental and economic challenges. Responsible management of agricultural waste is increasingly crucial to reducing the environmental consequences of its disposal, including soil and water pollution, while making efficient use of these untapped resources. In this study, the main objective was to extract cellulose nanocrystals (CNC) from melon plant residues using methods that are both efficient and sustainable. To achieve this high-quality extraction, we followed a well-defined protocol involving several key steps: pre-treatment of the residues by grinding, filtration and chemical purification to obtain high-quality (CMF) with a yield of 52% relative to the initial mass of the melon plant residue. Acid hydrolysis was then carried out using phosphoric acid and sulphuric acid to convert (CMF) into cellulose nanocrystals. The extracted cellulose nanocrystals were subjected to in-depth characterization using advanced techniques such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction. The resulting cellulose nanocrystals have exceptional properties, including a large specific surface area, high thermal stability and high mechanical strength, making them suitable for a variety of applications, including as reinforcements for composite materials. In summary, the study highlights the potential for recovering agricultural melon waste to produce high-quality cellulose nanocrystals with promising applications in industry, nanotechnology, and biotechnology, thereby contributing to environmental and economic sustainability.

Keywords: cellulose, melon plant residues, cellulose nanocrystals, properties, applications, composite materials

Procedia PDF Downloads 44

Authors: Mahesh Mitra

Abstract:

Introduction and Purpose: Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome [PFPS] is characterized by pain or discomfort seemingly originating from the contact of posterior surface of Patella with Femur. Given the multifactorial causes and high prevalence there is a need of proper management technique. Also a more comprehensive and best possible Physiotherapy treatment approach has to be devised to enhance the performance of the individual with PFPS. Purpose of the study was to: - Prevalence of PFPS in various sports - To determine if there exists any relationship between the Body Mass Index[BMI] and Pain Intensity in the person playing a sport. - To evaluate the effect of conventional Physiotherapy program, Mobilization and Taping with Proprioceptive training on PFPS. Hypothesis 1. Prevalence is not the same with different sporting activities 2. There is a relationship between BMI and Pain intensity. 3. There is no significant difference in the improvement with the different treatment approaches. Methodology: A sample of 200 sports men were tested for the prevalence of PFPS and their anthropometric measurements were obtained to check for the correlation between BMI vs Pain intensity. Out of which 80 diagnosed cases of PFPS were allotted into three treatment groups and evaluated for Pain at rest and at activity and KUJALA scale. Group I were treated with conventional Physiotherapy that included TENS application and Exercises, Group II were treated with compression mobilization along with exercises, Group III were treated with Taping and Proprioceptive exercises. The variables Pain on rest, activity and KUJALA score were measured initially, at 1 week and at the end of 2 weeks after respective treatment. Data Analysis - Prevalence percentage of PFPS in each sport - Pearsons Correlation coefficient to find the relationship between BMI and Pain during activity. - Repeated measures analysis of variance [ANOVA] to find out the significance during Pre, Mid and Post-test difference among - Newman Kuel Post hoc Test - ANCOVA for the difference amongst group I, II and III. Results and conclusion It was concluded that PFPS was more prevalent in volley ball players [80%] followed by football and basketball [66%] players, then in hand ball and cricket players [46.6%] and 40% in tennis players. There was no relationship between BMI of the individual and Pain intensity. All the three treatment approaches were effective whereas mobilization and taping were more effective than Conventional Physiotherapy program.

Keywords: PFPS, KUJALA score, mobilization, proprioceptive training

Procedia PDF Downloads 304

Authors: Anju Vaidya

Abstract:

Sanitation is concerned with proper disposal of human excreta, waste water and promotion of hygiene. Lack of sanitation impacts our environment affecting our finance, schooling, health, and thus exacerbating poverty, discrimination and exclusion of the marginalized group. Sanitation can be a route and one of the most important factor to reach the goals of all Millennium Development goals. This study aims at exploring what are the rights to sanitation of the people, how it is enacted and what challenges are being faced while implementing the right to sanitation in South-Asian countries (India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Srilanka) at government, non-government and international level. This study also aims at finding how right sanitation is interlinked with children rights. The available reports submitted by government and civil society organizations working in South-Asian countries from the website of the Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights that were submitted under International covenant on economic, social and cultural rights and Convention on rights of the child have been selected and analyzed. The study uses Literature review to analyze these UN documents submitted from 2000 to 2015 in the context of South-Asian countries. Preliminary insight reveals that sanitation is recognized as one of the important factor to attain adequate standard of living. It has been found that inadequate sanitation has been a major factor that affects all aspects of life and one of its devastating impacts is increased child mortality. Many efforts have been made at national and international level in South-Asian countries to improve the state of sanitation and sanitation services. Various approaches such as Community led Total Sanitation, School led Total Sanitation, establishing Open Defecation free zone, water supply services and other sanitation and hygiene awareness programs are being launched. Despite different efforts and programs being implemented, sanitation and hygiene practices and behavior change remains to be a big challenge. Disparity in access and imbalance between urban and rural services and geographical regions, inadequate financing, clear policy framework and fragile functionality are some of the significant challenges faced while implementing these programs. Children are one of the most vulnerable group that are affected to a large extent. The study brings into light varied approaches that are being made and challenges that are being faced by government, non-government and civil society organizations while implementing the programs and strategies related to sanitation. It also highlights the relation of sanitation as a human right with child rights. This can help the stakeholders and policymakers better understand that improving sanitation situation is a process that requires learning, planning and behavior change and achieving sanitation coverage targets and motivating behavior change requires additional tools based on participation, non-discrimination and process approaches for planning and feedback.

Keywords: challenges, child rights, open defecation, sanitation as a human right

Procedia PDF Downloads 270