Search results for: efficiency of quality assessment

Authors: Mehdi Nasr Esfahani, Abdal-Rasool Gholamalian, Abdelfattah A. Dababat

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Wheat, Triticum aestivum L. is one of the most important and strategic crops in the human diet. Several diseases threaten this particular crop. Common root rot disease of wheat by a fungal agent, Bipolaris sorokiniana is one of the important diseases, causing considerable losses worldwide. Resistant sources are the only feasible and effective method of control for managing diseases. In this study, the response of 33 domestic and exotic wheat genotypes, including cultivars and promising lines were screened to B. sorokiniana at greenhouse and field conditions, based on five scoring scale indexes of 0 to 100 severity percentage. The screening was continued on resistant wheat genotypes and repeated several times to confirm the greenhouse and field results. Statistical and cluster analysis of data was performed using SAS and SPSS software, respectively. The results showed that, the response of wheat genotypes to the disease in the greenhouse and field conditions was highly significant. The highest rate of common root rot disease infection, B. sorokiniana in the greenhouse and field, was of CVS. Karkheh and Beck Cross-Roshan with 60.83% and 59.16% disease severity respectively, and the lowest one were in cv. Alvand with 18.33%, followed by cv. Baharan with 19.16% disease severity, with a highly significant difference respectively. The remaining wheat genotypes were located in between these two highest and lowest infected groups to B. sorokiniana significantly. There was a high correlation coefficient between the related statistical groups and cluster analysis.

Keywords: wheat, rot, root, crown, fungus, genotype, resistance

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Authors: Masoumeh Pirhadi

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Air pollution is becoming a major health problem affecting millions. In support of this observation, the world health organization estimates that many people feel unhealthy due to pollution. This is a coupled fact that one of the main global sources of air pollution in cities is greenhouse gas emissions due heavy traffic. Green walls are developed as a sustainable strategy to reduce pollution by increasing vegetation in developed areas without occupying space in the city. This concept an offer advantageous environmental benefits and they can also be proposed for aesthetic purposes, and today they are used to preserve the urban environment. Green walls can also create environments that can promote a healthy lifestyle. Findings of multiple studies also indicate that Green infrastructure in cities is a strategy for improving air quality and increasing the sustainability of cities. Since these green solutions (green walls) act as porous materials that affect the diffusion of air pollution they can also act as a removing air vents that clean the air. Therefore, implementation of this strategy can be considered as a prominent factor in achieving a cleaner environment.

Keywords: green vegetation, air pollution, green wall, urban area

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Authors: Arpita Saha, Satish Chandra, Indrajit Ghosh

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Delay implicates the time loss of a traveler while crossing an intersection. Efficiency of traffic operation at signalized intersections is assessed in terms of delay caused to an individual vehicle. Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) method and Webster’s method are the most widely used in India for delay estimation purpose. However, in India, traffic is highly heterogeneous in nature with extremely poor lane discipline. Therefore, to explore best delay estimation technique for Indian condition, a comparison was made. In this study, seven signalized intersections from three different cities where chosen. Data was collected for both during morning and evening peak hours. Only under saturated cycles were considered for this study. Delay was estimated based on the field data. With the help of Simpson’s 1/3 rd rule, delay of under saturated cycles was estimated by measuring the area under the curve of queue length and cycle time. Moreover, the field observed delay was compared with the delay estimated using HCM, Webster, Probabilistic, Taylor’s expansion and Regression methods. The drawbacks of the existing delay estimation methods to be use in Indian heterogeneous traffic conditions were figured out, and best method was proposed. It was observed that direct estimation of delay using field measured data is more accurate than existing conventional and modified methods.

Keywords: delay estimation technique, field delay, heterogeneous traffic, signalised intersection

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Authors: ِAbdallah A. A. Shaheen

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Gaza Strip faces economic and political issues such as conflict, siege and urbanization; all these have led to an increase in the air pollution over Gaza Strip. In this study, Particulate matter 10 (PM10) concentration over Gaza Strip has been estimated by Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) and Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) data, based on a multispectral algorithm. Simultaneously, in-situ measurements for the corresponding particulate are acquired for selected time period. Landsat and ground data for eleven years are used to develop the algorithm while four years data (2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014) have been used to validate the results of algorithm. The developed algorithm gives highest regression, R coefficient value i.e. 0.86; RMSE value as 9.71 µg/m³; P values as 0. Average validation of algorithm show that calculated PM10 strongly correlates with measured PM10, indicating high efficiency of algorithm for the mapping of PM10 concentration during the years 2000 to 2014. Overall results show increase in minimum, maximum and average yearly PM10 concentrations, also presents similar trend over urban area. The rate of urbanization has been evaluated by supervised classification of the Landsat image. Urban sprawl from year 2000 to 2014 results in a high concentration of PM10 in the study area.

Keywords: PM10, landsat, atmospheric reflectance, Gaza strip, urbanization

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Authors: Tatiana Tunon, Gottfried Pestal

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Government agencies responsible for the management of fisheries resources publish many types of grey literature, and these materials are increasingly accessible to the public on agency websites. However, scope and quality vary considerably, and end-users need meta-data about the report series when deciding whether to use the information (e.g. apply the methods, include the results in a systematic review), or when prioritizing materials for archiving (e.g. library holdings, reference databases). A proposed taxonomy for these report series was developed based on a review of 41 report series from 6 government agencies in 4 countries (Canada, New Zealand, Scotland, and United States). Each report series was categorized according to multiple criteria describing peer-review process, content, and purpose. A robust classification tree was then fitted to these descriptions, and the resulting taxonomic groups were used to compare agency output from 4 countries using reports available in their online repositories.

Keywords: classification tree, fisheries, government, grey literature

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Authors: Ehsan Sadie

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Despite the experience of heavy losses and damages of recent earthquakes such as 8 km E of Pāhala, Hawaii, 11 km W of Salvaleón de Higüey, Dominican Republic and 49 km SSE of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic earthquakes, the possibility of large earthquakes in most populated areas of any country and the serious need for quality control in the design and implementation of buildings, not enough attention has been paid to the proper construction. Steel structures constitute a significant part of construction in any metropolitan area. This article gives a brief overview of the implementation status of these buildings in urban areas and considers the weaknesses of performance that typically occur due to negligence or insufficient mastery of the building supervisor in the principles of operation of earthquake-resistant buildings, and provides appropriate and possible solutions to improve the construction.

Keywords: bracing member, concentrated load, diaphragm system, earthquake engineering, load-bearing system, shear force, seismic retrofitting, steel building, strip foundation, supervising engineer, vulnerability of building

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Authors: Sachin Jain, Daniel Perez-Astudillo, Dunia A. Bachour, Antonio P. Sanfilippo

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The future of solar energy in Qatar is evolving steadily. Hence, high-quality spatial solar radiation data is of the uttermost requirement for any planning and commissioning of solar technology. Generally, two types of solar radiation data are available: satellite data and ground observations. Satellite solar radiation data is developed by the physical and statistical model. Ground data is collected by solar radiation measurement stations. The ground data is of high quality. However, they are limited to distributed point locations with the high cost of installation and maintenance for the ground stations. On the other hand, satellite solar radiation data is continuous and available throughout geographical locations, but they are relatively less accurate than ground data. To utilize the advantage of both data, a product has been developed here which provides spatial continuity and higher accuracy than any of the data alone. The popular satellite databases: National Solar radiation Data Base, NSRDB (PSM V3 model, spatial resolution: 4 km) is chosen here for merging with ground-measured solar radiation measurement in Qatar. The spatial distribution of ground solar radiation measurement stations is comprehensive in Qatar, with a network of 13 ground stations. The monthly average of the daily total Global Horizontal Irradiation (GHI) component from ground and satellite data is used for error analysis. The normalized root means square error (NRMSE) values of 3.31%, 6.53%, and 6.63% for October, November, and December 2019 were observed respectively when comparing in-situ and NSRDB data. The method is based on the Empirical Bayesian Kriging Regression Prediction model available in ArcGIS, ESRI. The workflow of the algorithm is based on the combination of regression and kriging methods. A regression model (OLS, ordinary least square) is fitted between the ground and NSBRD data points. A semi-variogram is fitted into the experimental semi-variogram obtained from the residuals. The kriging residuals obtained after fitting the semi-variogram model were added to NSRBD data predicted values obtained from the regression model to obtain the final predicted values. The NRMSE values obtained after merging are respectively 1.84%, 1.28%, and 1.81% for October, November, and December 2019. One more explanatory variable, that is the ground elevation, has been incorporated in the regression and kriging methods to reduce the error and to provide higher spatial resolution (30 m). The final GHI maps have been created after merging, and NRMSE values of 1.24%, 1.28%, and 1.28% have been observed for October, November, and December 2019, respectively. The proposed merging method has proven as a highly accurate method. An additional method is also proposed here to generate calibrated maps by using regression and kriging model and further to use the calibrated model to generate solar radiation maps from the explanatory variable only when not enough historical ground data is available for long-term analysis. The NRMSE values obtained after the comparison of the calibrated maps with ground data are 5.60% and 5.31% for November and December 2019 month respectively.

Keywords: global horizontal irradiation, GIS, empirical bayesian kriging regression prediction, NSRDB

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Authors: Stanley Ibuchukwu Onwukwe

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Most reservoir in mature oil fields are vulnerable to challenges of water and/or gas coning as the size of their oil column reduces due to long period of oil production. These often result to low oil production and excessive water and/or gas production. Since over 50 years of oil production in the Niger delta, it is apparent that most of the oil fields in the region have reached their mature stages, thereby susceptible to coning tendencies. As a result of these, a good number of wells have been shut-in and abandoned, with significant amount of oil left unproduced. Analysis of the movement of fluid contacts in the reservoir is a significant aspect of reservoir studies and can assist in the management of coning tendencies and production performance of reservoirs in a mature field. This study, therefore, seeks to evaluate the occurrence of coning through the movement of fluid contacts (GOC and OWC) and determine the critical rate for controlling coning tendencies in mature oil field. This study applies the principle of Nodal analysis to calibrate the thin oil column of a reservoir of a mature field, and was graphically evaluated using the Joshi’s equation of critical rate for gas-oil system and oil-water system respectively. A representative Proxy equation was developed and sensitivity analysis carried out to determine the trend of critical rate as the oil column is been depleted. The result shows the trend in the movement of the GOC and OWC, and the critical rate, beyond which will result in excessive water and gas production, resulting to decreasing oil production from the reservoir. This result of this study can be used as a first pass assessment in the development of mature oil field reservoirs anticipated to experience water and/or gas coning during production.

Keywords: coning, fluid contact movement, mature oil field, oil production

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Authors: Takashi Shimizu, Tomoaki Hashimoto

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Recently, crystal growth technologies have made progress by the requirement for the high quality of crystal materials. To control the crystal growth dynamics actively by external forces is useuful for reducing composition non-uniformity. In this study, a control method based on model predictive control using thermal inputs is proposed for crystal growth dynamics of semiconductor materials. The control system of crystal growth dynamics considered here is governed by the continuity, momentum, energy, and mass transport equations. To establish the control method for such thermal fluid systems, we adopt model predictive control known as a kind of optimal feedback control in which the control performance over a finite future is optimized with a performance index that has a moving initial time and terminal time. The objective of this study is to establish a model predictive control method for crystal growth dynamics of semiconductor materials.

Keywords: model predictive control, optimal control, process control, crystal growth

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Authors: Zama Mahmood

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The increasing demand of food management, monitoring of the crop growth and forecasting its yield well before harvest is very important. These days, yield assessment together with monitoring of crop development and its growth are being identified with the help of satellite and remote sensing images. Studies using remote sensing data along with field survey validation reported high correlation between vegetation indices and yield. With the development of remote sensing technique, the detection of crop and its mechanism using remote sensing data on regional or global scales have become popular topics in remote sensing applications. Punjab, specially the southern Punjab region is extremely favourable for wheat production. But measuring the exact amount of wheat production is a tedious job for the farmers and workers using traditional ground based measurements. However, remote sensing can provide the most real time information. In this study, using the Normalized Differentiate Vegetation Index (NDVI) indicator developed from Landsat satellite images, the yield of wheat has been estimated during the season of 2013-2014 for the agricultural area around Bahawalpur. The average yield of the wheat was found 35 kg/acre by analysing field survey data. The field survey data is in fair agreement with the NDVI values extracted from Landsat images. A correlation between wheat production (ton) and number of wheat pixels has also been calculated which is in proportional pattern with each other. Also a strong correlation between the NDVI and wheat area was found (R2=0.71) which represents the effectiveness of the remote sensing tools for crop monitoring and production estimation.

Keywords: landsat, NDVI, remote sensing, satellite images, yield

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Authors: Nabil A. Albaser

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Background: There is a serious problem with adverse drug reactions (ADRs) everywhere, including Yemen. Since it helps with the detection, assessment, reporting and prevention of ADRs, pharmacovigilance (PV) is an essential part of the healthcare system. The unbiased reporting of ADRs remains the foundation of PV. Students majoring in healthcare should acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to conduct PV in a range of clinical settings. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the understanding and attitudes of final-year Pharmacy, Nursing, and Midwifery students at Al-Razi University in Sana'a, Yemen, regarding PV and ADRs reporting. Methods: The study followed descriptive cross-sectional approach. A validated, self-administered questionnaire with three parts—demographic information, knowledge, and perceptions of Pharmacovigilance was online distributed to final-year Pharmacy, Nursing, and Midwifery students. The questionnaire was given to 175 students; 122 of them responded with a percentage (69.7%). Results: The majority of respondents were male (79.5%). More than the tow-third of the students, 68.9%, were beyond the age of 23. Although the majority of students, 80%, heard about the terms of ADRs and PV, but only 50% and 57.4% of the respondents, respectively, could define the both terms correctly. However, only 11.48 % of them, nevertheless, took a PV course. More than a half of them (56.6%) had a positive perceptions towards pharmacovigilance and ADR reporting and had a moderate degree of knowledge (68.9%). Conclusion: The study demonstrated that the participants lacked sufficient knowledge of pharmacovigilance and ADR reporting. They showed a moderate level of understanding of reporting ADRs as well as a favorable opinion of dealing with and reporting ADRs. Yemen's health care curriculum should include lessons on pharmacovigilance.

Keywords: adverse drug reaction reporting, pharmacovigilance, yemen, knowlegde

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Authors: Dejan Tanikić, Miodrag Manić, Jelena Đoković, Saša Kalinović

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This paper deals with the determination of the optimum machining parameters, according to the measured and modelled data of the cutting temperature and surface roughness, during the turning of the AISI 4140 steel. The high cutting temperatures are unwanted occurences in the metal cutting process. They impact negatively on the quality of the machined part. The machining experiments were performed using different cutting regimes (cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut), with different values of the workpiece hardness, which causes different values of the measured cutting temperature as well as the measured surface roughness. The temperature and surface roughness data were modelled after that using Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The obtained RSM models are used in the process of optimization of the cutting regimes using the Genetic Algorithms (GA) tool, which enables the metal cutting process in the optimum conditions.

Keywords: genetic algorithms, machining parameters, response surface methodology, turning process

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Authors: Nadia Samantha Zuñiga-Peña, Norberto Hernández-Romero, Omar Aguilar-Mejia, Salatiel García-Nava

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Using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for load transport has gained significant importance in various sectors due to their ability to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and access hard-to-reach areas. Although UAVs offer numerous advantages for load transport, several complications and challenges must be addressed to exploit their potential fully. Complexity relays on UAVs are underactuated, non-linear systems with a high degree of coupling between their variables and are subject to forces with uncertainty. One of the biggest challenges is modeling and controlling the system formed by UAVs carrying a load. In order to solve the controller problem, in this work, a hybridization of Neural Network and Hunger Games Search (HGS) metaheuristic algorithm is developed and implemented to find the parameters of the Super Twisting Sliding Mode Controller for the 8 degrees of freedom model of UAV with payload. The optimized controller successfully tracks the UAV through the three-dimensional desired path, demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed solution. A comparison of performance shows the superiority of the neural network HGS (NNHGS) over the HGS algorithm, minimizing the tracking error by 57.5 %.

Keywords: neural networks, hunger games search, super twisting sliding mode controller, UAVs.

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Authors: David X. Dong, Qingming Zhang, Meng Lu

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Nitrites enter waterways as runoff from croplands and are discharged from many industrial sites. Excessive nitrite inputs to water bodies lead to eutrophication. On-site rapid detection of nitrite is of increasing interest for managing fertilizer application and monitoring water source quality. Existing methods for detecting nitrites use spectrophotometry, ion chromatography, electrochemical sensors, ion-selective electrodes, chemiluminescence, and colorimetric methods. However, these methods either suffer from high cost or provide low measurement accuracy due to their poor selectivity to nitrites. Therefore, it is desired to develop an accurate and economical method to monitor nitrites in environments. We report a low-cost optical sensor, in conjunction with a machine learning (ML) approach to enable high-accuracy detection of nitrites in water sources. The sensor works under the principle of measuring molecular absorptions of nitrites at three narrowband wavelengths (295 nm, 310 nm, and 357 nm) in the ultraviolet (UV) region. These wavelengths are chosen because they have relatively high sensitivity to nitrites; low-cost light-emitting devices (LEDs) and photodetectors are also available at these wavelengths. A regression model is built, trained, and utilized to minimize cross-sensitivities of these wavelengths to the same analyte, thus achieving precise and reliable measurements with various interference ions. The measured absorbance data is input to the trained model that can provide nitrite concentration prediction for the sample. The sensor is built with i) a miniature quartz cuvette as the test cell that contains a liquid sample under test, ii) three low-cost UV LEDs placed on one side of the cell as light sources, with each LED providing a narrowband light, and iii) a photodetector with a built-in amplifier and an analog-to-digital converter placed on the other side of the test cell to measure the power of transmitted light. This simple optical design allows measuring the absorbance data of the sample at the three wavelengths. To train the regression model, absorbances of nitrite ions and their combination with various interference ions are first obtained at the three UV wavelengths using a conventional spectrophotometer. Then, the spectrophotometric data are inputs to different regression algorithm models for training and evaluating high-accuracy nitrite concentration prediction. Our experimental results show that the proposed approach enables instantaneous nitrite detection within several seconds. The sensor hardware costs about one hundred dollars, which is much cheaper than a commercial spectrophotometer. The ML algorithm helps to reduce the average relative errors to below 3.5% over a concentration range from 0.1 ppm to 100 ppm of nitrites. The sensor has been validated to measure nitrites at three sites in Ames, Iowa, USA. This work demonstrates an economical and effective approach to the rapid, reagent-free determination of nitrites with high accuracy. The integration of the low-cost optical sensor and ML data processing can find a wide range of applications in environmental monitoring and management.

Keywords: optical sensor, regression model, nitrites, water quality

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Authors: Ramez F. Saad, Ahmad Kobaissi, Bernard Amiaud, Julien Ruelle, Emile Benizri

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Agromining is a new technology that establishes agricultural systems on ultramafic soils in order to produce valuable metal compounds such as nickel (Ni), with the final aim of restoring a soil's agricultural functions. But ultramafic soils are characterized by low fertility levels and this can limit yields of hyperaccumulators and metal phytoextraction. The objectives of the present work were to test if the association of a hyperaccumulating plant (Alyssum murale) and a Fabaceae (Vicia sativa var. Prontivesa) could induce changes in physicochemical characteristics of a serpentine soil and in root architecture of a hyperaccumulating plant then lead to efficient agromining practices through soil quality improvement. Based on standard agricultural systems, consisting in the association of legumes and another crop such as wheat or rape, a three-month rhizobox experiment was carried out to study the effect of the co-cropping (Co) or rotation (Ro) of a hyperaccumulating plant (Alyssum murale) with a legume (Vicia sativa) and incorporating legume biomass to soil, in comparison with mineral fertilization (FMo), on the structure and physicochemical properties of an ultramafic soil and on root architecture. All parameters measured (biomass, C and N contents, and taken-up Ni) on Alyssum murale conducted in co-cropping system showed the highest values followed by the mineral fertilization and rotation (Co > FMo > Ro), except for root nickel yield for which rotation was better than the mineral fertilization (Ro > FMo). The rhizosphere soil of Alyssum murale in co-cropping had larger soil particles size and better aggregates stability than other treatments. Using geostatistics, co-cropped Alyssum murale showed a greater root surface area spatial distribution. Moreover, co-cropping and rotation-induced lower soil DTPA-extractable nickel concentrations than other treatments, but higher pH values. Alyssum murale co-cropped with a legume showed a higher biomass production, improved soil physical characteristics and enhanced nickel phytoextraction. This study showed that the introduction of a legume into Ni agromining systems could improve yields of dry biomass of the hyperaccumulating plant used and consequently, the yields of Ni. Our strategy can decrease the need to apply fertilizers and thus minimizes the risk of nitrogen leaching and underground water pollution. Co-cropping of Alyssum murale with the legume showed a clear tendency to increase nickel phytoextraction and plant biomass in comparison to rotation treatment and fertilized mono-culture. In addition, co-cropping improved soil physical characteristics and soil structure through larger and more stabilized aggregates. It is, therefore, reasonable to conclude that the use of legumes in Ni-agromining systems could be a good strategy to reduce chemical inputs and to restore soil agricultural functions. Improving the agromining system by the replacement of inorganic fertilizers could simultaneously be a safe way of rehabilitating degraded soils and a method to restore soil quality and functions leading to the recovery of ecosystem services.

Keywords: plant association, legumes, hyperaccumulating plants, ultramafic soil physicochemical properties

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Authors: Euphrasia Susy Suhendra, Lies Handrijaningsih

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The banking sector as an intermediary party or intermediaries occupies a very important position in bridging the needs of working capital investment in the real sector with funds owner. This will certainly make money more effectively to improve the economic value added. As an intermediary, Islamic banks raise funds from the public and then distribute in the form of financing. In practice, the distribution of funding that is run by Islamic Banking is not as easy as, in theory, because, in fact, there are many financing problems; some are caused by lacking the assessment and supervision of banks to customers. This study aims to analyze the influence of the Third Party Funds, Return on Assets (ROA), Non Performing Financing (NPF), and Financing Deposit Ratio (FDR) to Total Financing provided to the Community by Islamic Banks in Indonesia. The data used is monthly data released by Bank of Indonesia in Islamic Banking Statistics in the time period of January 2009 - December 2013. This study uses cointegration test to see the long-term relationship, and use error correction models to examine the relationship of short-term. The results of this study indicate that the Third Party Fund has a short-term effect on total funding, Return on Assets has a long term effect on the total financing, Non Performing Financing has long-term effects of total financing, and Financing deposit ratio has the effect of short-term and long-term of the total financing provided by Islamic Banks in Indonesia.

Keywords: Islamic banking, third party fund, return on asset, non-performing financing, financing deposit ratio

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Authors: Rhaptyalyani Herno Della, Nyimas Septi Rika Putri, Rika Nabila

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The growth of population and economic activities in urban areas needs support economic development, needs to be balanced with adequate environmental infrastructure development. Settlement can avoid from rundown condition and uninhabitable if the development of urban area accordance with healthy development. Identifying database of slum in this study reference to the Review of the Spatial Plan Development of Palembang City, Laws of Public Works Department about Technical Guidelines on the Quality Improvement Housing and Slum and Urban Spatial Global Report on Human Settlements 2003. A case study for identifying in Palembang riverbanks area are located in two districts; Ilir Timur I and Ilir Timur II. This study do the identification of slum areas based on several variables about physical and non physical aspect, then the result of identification are used to define a policy that can be used to improve the area.

Keywords: slum, riverbanks area, urban area, infrastructure

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Authors: Farzaneh Bayat

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Successful and effective presence in regional and global markets along with optimal use of available utilities and proper utilization of new sources for offering desirable services based on customer satisfaction is inevitable. Commitment has a significant role in offering optimal services. Offering high quality job and desirable services to the customers are personnel’s commitment. Thus, Shiraz Chamran Hospital which is affiliated with Shiraz Medical School and is one of the orthopedic poles in southern Iran was studied. This hospital has 750 personnel and physicians which a sample of 200 of them were chosen as the statistic society for a 5 month period from June to November 2009. Main variables in this decision are: responsibility and responsiveness, job security, team work, task autonomy, gradation opportunity, information sharing, payments and commitment. The study approach is descriptive-correlative. With applied and segmental nature of the tests and statistic analysis, the 7 hypotheses were approved with 95% of certainty.

Keywords: commitment, information sharing, responsibility and responsiveness, job security, task autonomy

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Authors: Anurag Kumar Pandey, Tapan Kumar Nath, Santanu Dhara

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Polluted water by industrial effluents or dyes has become a major global concern, particularly in developing countries. Such environmental contaminants constitute a serious threat to biodiversity, ecosystems, and human health worldwide; thus, their treatment is critical. The usage of nanoparticles has been discovered to be a potential water treatment method with high efficiency, cheap manufacturing costs, and green synthesis. Carbon dots have attracted the interest of researchers due to their unique properties, such as high water solubility, ease of production, great electron-donating ability, and low toxicity. In this context, we synthesized iodine-doped clove buds-derived carbon dots (I-CCDs) for the Fenton-like degradation of environmental contaminants in water (such as methylene blue (MB) and rhodamine-B (Rh-B) dye). The formation of I-CCDs has been confirmed using various spectroscopy techniques. I-CCDs have demonstrated remarkable optical, cytocompatibility, and antibacterial capabilities. The C-dots that were synthesized were found to be an effective catalyst for the reduction of MB and Rh-B utilizing NaBH4 as a reducing agent. UV-visible spectroscopy was used to construct a detailed pathway for dye reduction step by step. As-prepared I-CCDs have the potential to be a promising solution for wastewater purification and treatment systems.

Keywords: iodine-doped carbon dots, wastewater treatment and purification, environmental friendly, antibacterial

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Authors: Bundit Pungnirund

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This research aimed to investigate the relationship between attitude towards marketing mix, brand image and consumer behavior of the passengers of low-cost airlines service. This study employed by quantitative research and the questionnaire was used to collect the data from 400 sampled of the passengers who have ever used the low-cost airline services based in Bangkok, Thailand. The descriptive statistics and Pearson’s correlation analysis were used to analyze data. The research results revealed that the attitude of the marketing mix of the low-cost airline services including product, price, place, promotion and process had related to the consumer behavior on the aspects of duration of service and frequency of service. While, the brand image of the low cost airline including the characteristics of organization, service quality and company identity had related to the consumer behavior on duration of service, frequency of service and cost of service at the significant statistically acceptable levels.

Keywords: brand image, consumer behavior, low-cost airline, marketing mix

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Authors: Mahdi Akbari, Ali Torabi Haghighi

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Hamun Lakes, located in the Helmand Basin, consisting of four water bodies, were the greatest (>8500 km2) freshwater bodies in Iran plateau but have almost entirely desiccated over the last 20 years. The desiccation of the lakes caused dust storm in the region which has huge economic and health consequences on the inhabitants. The flow of the Hirmand (or Helmand) River, the most important feeding river, has decreased from 4 to 1.9 km3 downstream due to anthropogenic activities. In this basin, water is mainly consumed for farming. Due to the lack of in-situ data in the basin, this research utilizes remote-sensing data to show how croplands and consequently consumed water in the agricultural sector have changed. Based on Landsat NDVI, we suggest using a threshold of around 0.35-0.4 to detect croplands in the basin. Croplands of this basin has doubled since 1990, especially in the downstream of the Kajaki Dam (the biggest dam of the basin). Using PML V2 Actual Evapotranspiration (AET) data and considering irrigation efficiency (≈0.3), we estimate that the consumed water (CW) for farming. We found that CW has increased from 2.5 to over 7.5 km3 from 2002 to 2017 in this basin. Also, the annual average Potential Evapotranspiration (PET) of the basin has had a negative trend in the recent years, although the AET over croplands has an increasing trend. In this research, using remote sensing data, we covered lack of data in the studied area and highlighted anthropogenic activities in the upstream which led to the lakes desiccation in the downstream.

Keywords: Afghanistan-Iran transboundary Basin, Iran-Afghanistan water treaty, water use, lake desiccation

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Authors: Victor R. Thulari, John Akach, Haleden Chiririwa, Aoyi Ochieng

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Solar-light activated titanium dioxide photocatalysts were prepared by hydrolysis of titanium (IV) isopropoxide with thiourea, followed by calcinations at 450 °C. The experiments demonstrated that methyl orange in aqueous solutions were successfully degraded under solar light using doped TiO₂. The photocatalytic oxidation of a mono azo methyl-orange dye has been investigated in multi ion doped TiO₂ and solar light. Solutions were irradiated by solar-light until high removal was achieved. It was found that there was no degradation of methyl orange in the dark and in the absence of TiO₂. Varieties of laboratory prepared TiO₂ catalysts both un-doped and doped using titanium (IV) isopropoxide and thiourea as a dopant were tested in order to compare their photoreactivity. As a result, it was found that the efficiency of the process strongly depends on the working conditions. The highest degradation rate of methyl orange was obtained at optimum dosage using commercially produced TiO₂. Our work focused on laboratory synthesized catalyst and the maximum methyl orange removal was achieved at 81% with catalyst loading of 0.04 g/L, initial pH of 3 and methyl orange concentration of 0.005 g/L using multi-ion doped catalyst. The kinetics of photocatalytic methyl orange dye stuff degradation was found to follow a pseudo-first-order rate law. The presence of the multi-ion dopant (thiourea) enhanced the photoefficiency of the titanium dioxide catalyst.

Keywords: degradation, kinetics, methyl orange, photocatalysis

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Authors: Ghaleb Y. Abbasi, Satanay Alhiary

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This paper focused on software testing phase of activities, types, techniques, teams and methods under agile project management (APM) in the Jordanian software industry. The effect of using agile principles and practices on testing process in software development life cycle (SDLC) was analyzed in order to create full view of the agile testing aspects such as phases, levels, types, methods, team and customers. Qualitative and quantitative research methods were utilized to cover earlier literature and collect data via web survey and short interviews in Jordanian software companies. Results indicated that agile testing had positive influence on quality of product, team performance, and customer satisfaction with a rate above 80%. APM is a powerful practice of moving software project forward in current markets with a rate above 51% by early involvement of testing activities in development.

Keywords: agile project management, software development life cycle, agile methods, agile testing, software testing

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Authors: Desta Brhanu Gebrehiwot

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The purpose of this review was to analyze the overall or combined effect of scholarly studies conducted on the impacts of Food for work (FFW) and Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP) on farm households’ livelihood (agricultural investment on the adoption of fertilizer, food security, livestock holding, nutrition and its’ disincentive effect) in Ethiopia. In addition, to make a critical assessment of the internal and external validity of the existing studies, the review also indicates the possibility to redesign the program. The method of selecting eligible studies for review was PICOS (Participants, Intervention, Comparison, Outcomes, and Settings) framework. The method of analysis was the fixed effects model under Meta-Analysis. The findings of this systematic review confirm the overall or combined positive significant impact of PSNP on fertilizer adoption (combined point estimate=0.015, standard error=0.005, variance=0.000, lower limit 0.004 up to the upper limit=0.026, z-value=2.726, and p-value=0.006). And the program had a significant positive impact on the child nutrition of rural households and had no significant disincentive effect. However, the program had no significant impact on livestock holdings. Thus, PSNP is important for households whose livelihood depends on rain-fed agriculture and are exposed to rainfall shocks. Thus, better to integrate the program into the national agricultural policy. In addition, most of the studies suggested that PSNP needs more attention to the design and targeting issued in order to be effective and efficient in social protection.

Keywords: meta-analysis, fixed effect model, PSNP, rural-livelihood, Ethiopia

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Authors: Sujata Upgupta, Prasoon Kumar Singh

Abstract:

The expansion of large scale coal mining into forest areas is a potential hazard for the local biodiversity and wildlife. The objective of this study is to provide a picture of the threat that coal mining poses to the forests of the East Bokaro landscape. The vulnerable forest areas at risk have been assessed and the priority areas for conservation have been presented. The forested areas at risk in the current scenario have been assessed and compared with the past conditions using classification and buffer based overlay approach. Forest vulnerability has been assessed using an analytical framework based on systematic indicators and composite vulnerability index values. The results indicate that more than 4 km² of forests have been lost from 1973 to 2016. Large patches of forests have been diverted for coal mining projects. Forests in the northern part of the coal field within 1-3 km radius around the coal mines are at immediate risk. The original contiguous forests have been converted into fragmented and degraded forest patches. Most of the collieries are located within or very close to the forests thus threatening the biodiversity and hydrology of the surrounding regions. Based on the vulnerability values estimated, it was concluded that more than 90% of the forested grids in East Bokaro are highly vulnerable to mining. The forests in the sub-districts of Bermo and Chandrapura have been identified as the most vulnerable to coal mining activities. This case study would add to the capacity of the forest managers and mine managers to address the risk and vulnerability of forests at a small landscape level in order to achieve sustainable development.

Keywords: forest, coal mining, indicators, vulnerability

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Authors: Valeria Corinaldesi

Abstract:

In general, for self-compacting concrete production, a high volume of very fine materials is necessary in order to make the concrete more fluid and cohesive. For this purpose, either rubble powder (which is a powder obtained from suitable treatment of rubble from building demolition) or ash from municipal solid waste incineration was used as mineral addition in order to ensure adequate rheological properties of the self-compacting concrete in the absence of any viscosity modifying admixture. Recycled instead of natural aggregates were used by completely substituting the coarse aggregate fraction. The fresh concrete properties were evaluated through the slump flow, the V-funnel and the L-box test. Compressive strength and segregation resistance were also determined. The results obtained showed that self-compacting concrete could be successfully developed by incorporating both recycled aggregates and waste powders with an improved quality of the concrete surface finishing. This encouraging goal, beyond technical performance, matches with the more and more widely accepted sustainable development issues.

Keywords: sustainable concrete, self compacting concrete, municipal solid waste, recycled aggregate, sustainable building

Procedia PDF Downloads 67

Authors: Mosupi Ratshaa

Abstract:

Despite years of diligent study, sedimentation is still undoubtedly the most severe technical problem faced by the dam industry. The problem of sedimentation build-up and its removal should be the focus as an approach to remedy this. The world's reservoirs lose about 1% of their storage capacity yearly to sedimentation, what this means is that 1% of water that could be stored is lost the world-over. The increase in population means that the need for water also increases and, therefore, the loss due to sedimentation is of great concern especially to the conservation of water. When it comes to reservoir sedimentation, the thought of water conservation comes with soil conservation since this increasing sediment that takes the volume meant for water is being lost from dry land. For this reason, reservoir sediment control is focused on reducing sediment entering the reservoir and reducing sediment within the reservoir. There are many problems with sediment control such as the difficulty to predict settling patterns, inability to greatly reduce the sediment volume entering the river flow which increases the reservoirs trap efficiency just to mention a few. Notably reservoirs are habitats for flora and fauna, the process of removing sediment from these reservoirs damages this ecosystem so there is an ethical point to be considered in this section. This paper looks at the methods used to control the sedimentation of reservoirs and their effects to the ecosystem in the aim of reducing water losses due to sedimentation. Various control measures which reduce sediment entering the reservoir such as Sabo dams or Check dams along with measures which emphasize the reduction in built-up settled sediment such as flushing will be reviewed all with the prospect of conservation.

Keywords: sedimentation, conservation, ecosystem, flushing

Procedia PDF Downloads 327

Authors: Wang Jiankun

Abstract:

This paper analyses how different educational backgrounds affect the mathematics performance of middle and high school students in terms of three dimensions: parental involvement, school teaching ability, and demographic variables and personal attributes of the student. Based on the analysis of Beijing High School Mathematics Competition in 2022, it was found that students from high level schools won significantly more awards than those from low level schools. In addition, a significant positive correlation (p<0.05) was identified between school level and students' mathematics performance. This study also confirms that parents' education level and family environment show a significant impact on the next generation’s mathematics learning performance. The findings suggest that interest and student’s habits, the family environment and the quality of teaching and learning at school are the main factors affecting the mathematics performance of middle and high school students.

Keywords: educational background, academic performance, middle and high school education, teenager

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Authors: Zhaoyang Liu

Abstract:

Oil pollution is typically caused by oil and gas-related operations such as vessel accidents, which can pollute waterways as well as the environment and damage the ecosystem. Tanker ship cleaning contributes to oil spills, which have a negative impact on coastal countries due to protracted service disruption. It is critical for coastal countries to develop efficient oil taint cleanup technology. There are various oil/water separation technologies, such as gravity separation, hydrocyclone, air flotation, and membrane filtration, among others. Among these, membrane filtration has been shown to produce high-quality effluent. Commercial membranes, on the other hand, nevertheless face significant practical challenges, such as a high susceptibility for membrane fouling when dealing with greasy effluent. We developed a unique anti-fouling filtering membrane for oil/water separation in this work. The membrane was made of inorganic nanofibers, which possesses the advantages of low membrane fouling, high permeation flux and long-term durability. This results from this study could facilitate to pave a new way for membranes filtration’s practical applications in oil/gas industry.

Keywords: oil, contaminate, wastewater, removal

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Authors: Amir Lotfi, Seyed Hamid Hosseini

Abstract:

During the recent past, due to the increase of electrical energy demand and governmental resources constraints in creating additional capacity in the generation, transmission, and distribution, privatization, and restructuring in electrical industry have been considered. So, in most of the countries, different parts of electrical industry like generation, transmission, and distribution have been separated in order to create competition. Considering these changes, environmental issues, energy growth, investment of private equity in energy generation units and difficulties of transmission lines expansion, distributed generation (DG) units have been used in power systems. Moreover, reduction in the need for transmission and distribution, the increase of reliability, improvement of power quality, and reduction of power loss have caused DG to be placed in power systems. On the other hand, considering low liquidity need, private investors tend to spend their money for DGs. In this project, the main goal is to offer an algorithm for planning and placing DGs in order to reduce the need for transmission and distribution network.

Keywords: planning, transmission, distributed generation, power security, power systems

Procedia PDF Downloads 466