Search results for: congestive heart failure

Authors: Onur Ozveri, Korkut Karabag, Cagri Keles

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It is an important issue that the occurring of production downtime and repair costs when machines fail in the machine intensive production industries. In the case of failure of more than one machine at the same time, which machines will have the priority to repair, how to determine the optimal repair time should be allotted for this machines and how to plan the resources needed to repair are the key issues. In recent years, Business Process Management (BPM) technique, bring effective solutions to different problems in business. The main feature of this technique is that it can improve the way the job done by examining in detail the works of interest. In the industries, maintenance and repair works are operating as a process and when a breakdown occurs, it is known that the repair work is carried out in a series of process. Maintenance main-process and repair sub-process are evaluated with process management technique, so it is thought that structure could bring a solution. For this reason, in an international manufacturing company, this issue discussed and has tried to develop a proposal for a solution. The purpose of this study is the implementation of maintenance and repair works which is integrated with process management technique and at the end of implementation, analyzing the maintenance related parameters like quality, cost, time, safety and spare part. The international firm that carried out the application operates in a free region in Turkey and its core business area is producing original equipment technologies, vehicle electrical construction, electronics, safety and thermal systems for the world's leading light and heavy vehicle manufacturers. In the firm primarily, a project team has been established. The team dealt with the current maintenance process again, and it has been revised again by the process management techniques. Repair process which is sub-process of maintenance process has been discussed again. In the improved processes, the ABC equipment classification technique was used to decide which machine or machines will be given priority in case of failure. This technique is a prioritization method of malfunctioned machine based on the effect of the production, product quality, maintenance costs and job security. Improved maintenance and repair processes have been implemented in the company for three months, and the obtained data were compared with the previous year data. In conclusion, breakdown maintenance was found to occur in a shorter time, with lower cost and lower spare parts inventory.

Keywords: ABC equipment classification, business process management (BPM), maintenance, repair performance

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Authors: Gunnar Oskarsson, Gudjon Helgi Egilsson

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Due to globalization, small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) increasingly offer their products and services in foreign markets. The main reasons are either to compensate for a decreased market share in their home market or to exploit opportunities in foreign markets, which are becoming less distant and better accessible than before. International markets are particularly important for companies located in a small economy and offering specialized products. Although more accessible, entering international markets is both expensive and difficult. In order to select the most appropriate markets, it is, therefore, important to gain an insight into the factors that have an impact on success, or potential failure. Although there has been a reasonable volume of research into the theory of internationalization, there is still a need to gain further understanding of the decision-making process of SMEs in small economies and the most important characteristics that distinguish between success and failure. The main objective of this research is to enhance knowledge on the internationalization of SMEs, including the drivers for the decision to internationalize, and the most important factors contributing to success in their internationalization activities. A qualitative approach was found to be most appropriate for this kind of research, with the objective of gaining a deeper understanding and discovering factors which impact a company’s decision-making and potential success. In-depth interviews were conducted with 14 companies in different industries located in Iceland, a country extensively dependent on export revenues. The interviews revealed several factors as drivers of internationalization and, not surprisingly, the most frequently mentioned source of motivation was that the local market is inadequate to maintain a sustainable operation. Good networking relationships were seen as a particular priority for potential success, searching for new markets was mainly carried out through the internet, although sales exhibitions and sales trips were also considered important. When it comes to the final decision as to whether a market should be considered for further analysis, economy, labor cost, legal environment, and cultural barriers were the most common factors to be weighted. The ultimate answer to successful internationalization, however, is largely dependent on a coordinated and experienced management team. The main contribution of this research is offering an insight into factors affecting decision-making in the internationalization process of SMEs, based on the opinion and experience of managers of SMEs in a small economy.

Keywords: internationalization, success factors, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), drivers, decision making

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Authors: Ezekiel Mwangi, Stephen Kimani, Agnes Mindila

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Usability is one of the key factors that determine the success or failure of any WebGIS (technology normally applied on the internet to analyze and present spatial data on the Internet). However, not all the usability attributes have the same impact on usability. It is, therefore, necessary to prioritize WebGIS usability elements and determine the ones that are more crucial to the success of the WebGIS. This research aims to identify the main elements of WebGIS usability, investigate the order of importance and priority of the usability elements of WebGIS, and propose a WebGIS development framework that incorporates the prioritization of the usability elements. This will be achieved through a literature review. The outcome of this research will help usability specialists and WebGIS developers in determining specific usability elements that should be accorded more emphasis during the design and development of WebGIS.

Keywords: framework, prioritization, usability, WebGIS

Procedia PDF Downloads 139

Authors: Naif Mohsen Alharbi

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This paper present failure occurred on flexible coupling installed at oil anf gas operation. Also it presents maintenance ideas implemented on the flexible coupling installed to transmit high torque from gearbox to pump. Basically, the machine train is including steam turbine which drives the pump and there is gearbox located in between for speed reduction. investigation are identifying the root causes, solving and developing the technology designs or bad actor. This report provides the study intentionally for continues operation optimization, utilize the advanced opportunity and implement a improvement. Objective: The main objectives of the investigation are identifying the root causes, solving and developing the technology designs or bad actor. Ultimately, fulfilling the operation productivity, also ensuring better technology, quality and design by solutions. This report provides the study intentionally for continues operation optimization, utilize the advanced opportunity and implemet improvement. Method: The method used in this project was a very focused root cause analysis procedure that incorporated engineering analysis and measurements. The analysis method extensively covers the measuring of the complete coupling dimensions. Including the membranes thickness, hubs, bore diameter and total length, dismantle flexible coupling to diagnose how deep the coupling has been affected. Also, defining failure modes, so that the causes could be identified and verified. Moreover, Vibration analysis and metallurgy test. Lastly applying several solutions by advanced tools (will be mentioned in detail). Results and observation: Design capacity: Coupling capacity is an inadequate to fulfil 100% of operating conditions. Therefore, design modification of service factor to be at least 2.07 is crucial to address this issue and prevent recurrence of similar scenario, especially for the new upgrading project. Discharge fluctuation: High torque flexible coupling encountered during the operation. Therefore, discharge valve behaviour, tuning, set point and general conditions revaluated and modified subsequently, it can be used as baseline for upcoming Coupling design project. Metallurgy test: Material of flexible coupling membrane (discs) tested at the lab, for a detailed metallurgical investigation, better material grade has been selected for our operating conditions,

Keywords: high speed machine, reliabilty, flexible coupling, rotating equipment

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Authors: Amin Tarzi

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The government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was expected to keep the Taliban insurgents at bay after the departure of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-led forces in 2021, especially given the two decades of effort to establish security forces to safeguard Western-backed governing institutions. This articles reviews the reasons for the failure of the much larger and better-equipped Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) to stop the Taliban from taking over the Afghan capital of Kabul in a few days and analyzes the often-forgotten dimension of strategic calculations in this dialogue—namely the societal dimension. In this article, the author argues that this is one of the primary reasons that the ANSF and the Afghan government collapsed.

Keywords: societal warfare, Afghanistan, NATO, Taliban, military strategy

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Authors: Priya Jaswal, Vivek, S. K. Sinha

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One of the most important and complicated factors influencing the functional performance of unpaved roads is traffic loading. The complexity of traffic loading is caused by the variable magnitude and frequency of load, which causes unpaved roads to fail prematurely. Unpaved roads are low-volume roads, and as peri-urbanization increases, unpaved roads act as a means to boost the rural economy. This has also increased traffic on unpaved roads, intensifying the issue of settlement, rutting, and fatigue failure. This is a major concern for unpaved roads built on poor subgrade soil, as excessive rutting caused by heavy loads can cause driver discomfort, vehicle damage, and an increase in maintenance costs. Some researchers discovered that when a consistent static load is exerted as opposed to a rapidly changing load, the rate of deformation of unpaved roads increases. Previously, some of the most common methods for overcoming the problem of rutting and fatigue failure included chemical stabilisation, fibre reinforcement, and so on. However, due to their high cost, engineers' attention has shifted to geotextiles which are used as reinforcement in unpaved roads. Geotextiles perform the function of filtration, lateral confinement of base material, vertical restraint of subgrade soil, and the tension membrane effect. The use of geotextiles in unpaved roads increases the strength of unpaved roads and is an economically viable method because it reduces the required aggregate thickness, which would need less earthwork, and is thus recommended for unpaved road applications. The majority of geotextiles used previously were polymeric, but with a growing awareness of sustainable development to preserve the environment, researchers' focus has shifted to natural fibres. Coir is one such natural fibre that possesses the advantage of having a higher tensile strength than other bast fibres, being eco-friendly, low in cost, and biodegradable. However, various researchers have discovered that the surface of coir fibre is covered with various impurities, voids, and cracks, which act as a plane of weakness and limit the potential application of coir geotextiles. To overcome this limitation, chemical surface modification of coir geotextiles is widely accepted by researchers because it improves the mechanical properties of coir geotextiles. The current paper reviews the effect of using treated coir geotextiles as reinforcement on the load-deformation behaviour of a two-layered unpaved road model.

Keywords: coir, geotextile, treated, unpaved

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Authors: K. Vandenboer, L. Dolphen, A. Bezuijen

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Backward erosion piping is an important failure mechanism for water-retaining structures, a phenomenon that results in the formation of shallow pipes at the interface of a sandy or silty foundation and a cohesive cover layer. This paper studies the effect of two soil types on backward erosion piping; both in case of a homogeneous sand layer, and in a vertically layered sand sample, where the pipe is forced to subsequently grow through the different layers. Two configurations with vertical sand layers are tested; they both result in wider pipes and higher critical gradients, thereby making this an interesting topic in research on measures to prevent backward erosion piping failures.

Keywords: backward erosion piping, embankments, physical modeling, sand

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Authors: Ana Luísa Mouro

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When the financial crisis exploded in 2008 in the United States, unleashed by the collapse of Lehman Brothers, and contaminated the economies of the European periphery, Germany appeared as the anchor of the stability of all European institutions and countries in difficulty. The solutions provided by the German government have triggered a deep political debate about the key position Germany has conquered at the heart of Europe - a new “German question” has been created. Some say Germany has achieved by peaceful means what was not able to get through military conquest - the domination of Europe – and many fear Germany’s economic power. This debate about the new role of Germany in Europe has received special attention in the European media and Portugal has not been the exception. The present study has been based on the survey, selection and critical analysis of news reporting, opinion articles, interviews and editorials, published in the weekly Expresso and in the daily Público, between 2008 and 2015 (year of the 25th anniversary of Germany’s unification). The findings of this study will show the paradox of German power and its relevance for Europe’s future.

Keywords: Euro crises, German Europe, intercultural hermeneutics, Portuguese quality press

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Authors: J. Byimana, I. A. Muhire, J. E. Nzabahimana, A. Nyombayire

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Introduction: A successful cardiopulmonary resuscitation during a sudden cardiac arrest can be delayed by different components including new hospital setting, lack of adequate training, lack of pre-established resuscitation team and ineffective communication and lead to an unexpected outcome which is death. The main objective of the study was to assess the readiness of resuscitation teams during cardiac arrest and the organizational approaches that would best support their functioning in a new hospital facility, and to detect any factor that may have contributed to responses. This study analyses the readiness of Resuscitation Team (RT) during cardiac arrest. —Material and methods: A prospective Analytic design was carried out at a newly established United Nations level 2 hospital facility, on four RTM (resuscitation team member). A semi structured questionnaire was used to collect data. —Results: This study highlights indicate that the response time during cardiac arrest simulation meet both American heart association (AHA) and European resuscitation council guidelines. The study offers useful evidence about the impact of a new facility on RTM performance and provides an exposure of staff to emergency events within the Work setting.

Keywords: cardiac arrest, code blue, simulation, resuscitation team member

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Authors: Qian Zhao, Shi-Qi Liu, Bo Guo, Zhi-Jun Cheng, Xiao-Yue Wu

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Cold standby redundancy is considered to be an effective mechanism for improving system reliability and is widely used in industrial engineering. However, because of the complexity of the reliability structure, there is little literature studying on the residual life of cold standby system consisting of complex components. In this paper, a simulation method is presented to predict the residual life of k-out-of-n cold standby system. In practical cases, failure information of a system is either unknown, partly unknown or completely known. Our proposed method is designed to deal with the three scenarios, respectively. Differences between the procedures are analyzed. Finally, numerical examples are used to validate the proposed simulation method.

Keywords: cold standby system, k-out-of-n, residual life, simulation sampling

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Authors: Rebeca V. Tholen, Elaine Bundy

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Background: Liver transplantation (LT) is considered the only curative treatment for end-stage liver disease Background: Liver transplantation (LT) is considered the only curative treatment for end-stage liver disease (ESLD). The effects of alcoholism can cause irreversible liver damage, cirrhosis and subsequent liver failure. Alcohol relapse after transplant occurs in 20-50% of patients and increases the risk for recurrent cirrhosis, organ rejection, and graft failure. Alcohol relapse after transplant has been identified as a problem among liver transplant recipients at a large urban academic transplant center in the United States. Transplantation will reverse the complications of ESLD, but it does not treat underlying alcoholism or reduce the risk of relapse after transplant. The purpose of this quality improvement project is to implement and evaluate the effectiveness of a High-Risk Alcoholism Relapse (HRAR) Scale to screen and identify patients at high-risk for alcohol relapse after receiving an LT. Methods: The HRAR Scale is a predictive tool designed to determine the severity of alcoholism and risk of relapse after transplant. The scale consists of three variables identified as having the highest predictive power for early relapse including, daily number of drinks, history of previous inpatient treatment for alcoholism, and the number of years of heavy drinking. All adult liver transplant recipients at a large urban transplant center were screened with the HRAR Scale prior to hospital discharge. A zero to two ordinal score is ranked for each variable, and the total score ranges from zero to six. High-risk scores are between three to six. Results: Descriptive statistics revealed 25 patients were newly transplanted and discharged from the hospital during an 8-week period. 40% of patients (n=10) were identified as being high-risk for relapse and 60% low-risk (n=15). The daily number of drinks were determined by alcohol content (1 drink = 15g of ethanol) and number of drinks per day. 60% of patients reported drinking 9-17 drinks per day, and 40% reported ≤ 9 drinks. 50% of high-risk patients reported drinking ≥ 25 years, 40% for 11-25 years, and 10% ≤ 11 years. For number of inpatient treatments for alcoholism, 50% received inpatient treatment one time, 20% ≥ 1, and 30% reported never receiving inpatient treatment. Findings reveal the importance and value of a validated screening tool as a more efficient method than other screening methods alone. Integration of a structured clinical tool will help guide the drinking history portion of the psychosocial assessment. Targeted interventions can be implemented for all high-risk patients. Conclusions: Our findings validate the effectiveness of utilizing the HRAR scale to screen and identify patients who are a high-risk for alcohol relapse post-LT. Recommendations to help maintain post-transplant sobriety include starting a transplant support group within the organization for all high-risk patients. (ESLD). The effects of alcoholism can cause irreversible liver damage, cirrhosis and subsequent liver failure. Alcohol relapse after transplant occurs in 20-50% of patients, and increases the risk for recurrent cirrhosis, organ rejection, and graft failure. Alcohol relapse after transplant has been identified as a problem among liver transplant recipients at a large urban academic transplant center in the United States. Transplantation will reverse the complications of ESLD, but it does not treat underlying alcoholism or reduce the risk of relapse after transplant. The purpose of this quality improvement project is to implement and evaluate the effectiveness of a High-Risk Alcoholism Relapse (HRAR) Scale to screen and identify patients at high-risk for alcohol relapse after receiving a LT. Methods: The HRAR Scale is a predictive tool designed to determine severity of alcoholism and risk of relapse after transplant. The scale consists of three variables identified as having the highest predictive power for early relapse including, daily number of drinks, history of previous inpatient treatment for alcoholism, and the number of years of heavy drinking. All adult liver transplant recipients at a large urban transplant center were screened with the HRAR Scale prior to hospital discharge. A zero to two ordinal score is ranked for each variable, and the total score ranges from zero to six. High-risk scores are between three to six. Results: Descriptive statistics revealed 25 patients were newly transplanted and discharged from the hospital during an 8-week period. 40% of patients (n=10) were identified as being high-risk for relapse and 60% low-risk (n=15). The daily number of drinks were determined by alcohol content (1 drink = 15g of ethanol) and number of drinks per day. 60% of patients reported drinking 9-17 drinks per day, and 40% reported ≤ 9 drinks. 50% of high-risk patients reported drinking ≥ 25 years, 40% for 11-25 years, and 10% ≤ 11 years. For number of inpatient treatments for alcoholism, 50% received inpatient treatment one time, 20% ≥ 1, and 30% reported never receiving inpatient treatment. Findings reveal the importance and value of a validated screening tool as a more efficient method than other screening methods alone. Integration of a structured clinical tool will help guide the drinking history portion of the psychosocial assessment. Targeted interventions can be implemented for all high-risk patients. Conclusions: Our findings validate the effectiveness of utilizing the HRAR scale to screen and identify patients who are a high-risk for alcohol relapse post-LT. Recommendations to help maintain post-transplant sobriety include starting a transplant support group within the organization for all high-risk patients.

Keywords: alcoholism, liver transplant, quality improvement, substance abuse

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Authors: Jesús Ulloa

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The creation, rise, and consolidation of far right-wing, ultranationalist, and eurosceptic parties in Europe after the Second World War pose a real threat towards the disintegration of the European Union. Starting more than thirty years ago with Jean-Marie Le Pen's FN and Margaret Thatcher's policies, to Marine Le Pen's current FN and anti-immigration proposals along with Nigel Farage's UKIP and their intentions to leave the European Union, the progress of right-wing parties should be noted, taking into account that they may have very important differences within their postures but that they also reach common ground in certain areas. The actual disintegration of the EU would represent an enormous failure of the new liberal world order. Through this essay, the roots of this political parties will be analyzed and the conclusion of whether the disintegration may become a reality or if the principles of cooperation and unity will prevail will be answered.

Keywords: eurosceptic, ultarnationalist, right-wing, European Union

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Authors: A. Tamimi, S. Greatrex-White, A. Narayanasamy

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Background: Spirituality has been increasingly acknowledged in the nursing literature as an important element of holistic patient care. To date there have been numerous studies investigating the meaning of spirituality in Western cultures. Spirituality in Middle Eastern countries however remains under-researched. We will present a study which aimed to address this gap. Aim: The study aimed to explore how spirituality manifests in the lives of Jordanian End Stage Renal Failure (ESRF) patients. Methodology and Method: A hermeneutic phenomenological approach was adopted informed by the philosophy of Martin Heidegger. Participants (n=27) were recruited from four different dialysis units: in a public hospital, a private hospital, an educational hospital and a refugee’s hospital in Jordan. Data was collected through in-depth unstructured interviews. Data Analysis: Analysis was guided by the tenets of hermeneutic phenomenology namely: gaining immediate sense of what was said both during and after each interview, transcribing data verbatim, translating interviews into the English language, intensive reading and re-reading, seeking meaning units by line to line coding, developing situated structures (how spirituality was manifest in each text), developing a general structure from the individual situated structures (how the phenomenon ‘spirituality’ comes into being). Findings: Three major themes emerged from analysis: Religion, Relationships and Desperation. We will argue that a ‘secular’ concept of spirituality had no meaning for the participants in the study. Spirituality is fundamentally part of religion and vice versa. Discussion: The findings may have consequences for the use of spirituality in multi-cultural settings in Western countries. Additionally, findings highlighted an important emphasis on the practice of spirituality, often underestimated in previous literature for Arab-Muslim Jordanian patients. Conclusion: The study findings contribute to the existing gap in knowledge regarding how Arab-Muslim Jordanian ESRF patients experience spirituality during their illness. It provides valuable insights into the importance of spirituality for this patient group and suggests how nurses, educators and policy makers might help address ESRF patients’ spiritual needs and provide appropriate spiritual care. We suggest the findings may have relevance beyond the Jordanian context in educating nurses’ on the importance of appreciating the religious dimension of spirituality.

Keywords: spirituality, nursing, muslim, Jordan

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Authors: Reta

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Coffee is widely consumed not only because of its typical taste, but coffee has antioxidant properties because of its polyphenols, and it stimulates brain's performance. The main problem with the consumption of coffee is its content of caffeine. Caffeine, when consumed in excess, can increase muscle tension, stimulate the heart, and increase the secretion of gastric acid. In this research, we applied ohmic-based fermentation technology, which is specially designed to mimic the stomach. We used Arabica coffee, which although cheaper than Luwak coffee, has high acidity, which needs to be reduced. Hence, we applied the ohmic technology, varied the time and temperature of the process and measured the total acidity of the coffee to determine optimum fermentation conditions. Results revealed total acidity of the coffee varied with fermentation conditions; 0.32% at 400C and 12 hr, and 0.52% at 400C and 6 hr. The longer the fermentation, the lower was the acidity. The acidity of the mongoose-fermented (natural fermentation) beans was 2.34%, which is substantially higher than the acidity of the ohmic samples. Ohmic-based fermentation technology, therefore, offers improvements in coffee quality, and this is discussed to highlight the potential of ohmic technology in coffee processing.

Keywords: ohmic technology, fermentation, coffee quality, Arabica coffee

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Authors: Dong Jiang

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Turnout is the essential equipment on the railway, which also belongs to one of the strongest demanded infrastructural facilities of railway on account of the more seriously frog rail failures. In cooperation with Germany Company (DB Systemtechnik AG), our research team focuses on the quantitative analysis about the frog rails to predict their lifetimes. Moreover, the suggestions for the timely and effective maintenances are made to improve the economy of the frog rails. The lifetime of the frog rail depends strongly on the internal damage of the running surface until the breakages occur. On the basis of Hertzian theory of the contact mechanics, the dynamic loads of the running surface are calculated in form of the contact pressures on the running surface and the equivalent tensile stress inside the running surface. According to material mechanics, the strength of the frog rail is determined quantitatively in form of the Stress-cycle (S-N) curve. Under the interaction between the dynamic loads and the strength, the internal damage of the running surface is calculated by means of the linear damage hypothesis of the Miner’s rule. The emergence of the first Breakage on the running surface is to be defined as the failure criterion that the damage degree equals 1.0. From the microscopic perspective, the running surface of the frog rail is divided into numerous segments for the detailed analysis. The internal damage of the segment grows slowly in the beginning and disproportionately quickly in the end until the emergence of the breakage. From the macroscopic perspective, the internal damage of the running surface develops simply always linear along the lifetime. With this linear growth of the internal damages, the lifetime of the frog rail could be predicted simply through the immediate introduction of the slope of the linearity. However, the superficial abrasion plays an essential role in the results of the internal damages from the both perspectives. The influences of the superficial abrasion on the lifetime are described in form of the abrasion rate. It has two contradictory effects. On the one hand, the insufficient abrasion rate causes the concentration of the damage accumulation on the same position below the running surface to accelerate the rail failure. On the other hand, the excessive abrasion rate advances the disappearance of the head hardened surface of the frog rail to result in the untimely breakage on the surface. Thus, the relationship between the abrasion rate and the lifetime is subdivided into an initial phase of the increased lifetime and a subsequent phase of the more rapid decreasing lifetime with the continuous growth of the abrasion rate. Through the compensation of these two effects, the critical abrasion rate is discussed to reach the optimal lifetime.

Keywords: breakage, critical abrasion rate, frog rail, internal damage, optimal lifetime

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Authors: Andreas Rudisch, Ralf Lampert, Andreas Kolbitsch

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It is a well-known fact among the engineering community that earthquakes with comparatively low magnitudes can cause serious damage to nonstructural components (NSCs) of buildings, even when the supporting structure performs relatively well. Past research works focused mainly on NSCs of nuclear power plants and industrial plants. Particular attention should also be given to architectural façade elements of old masonry buildings (e.g. ornamental figures, balustrades, vases), which are very vulnerable under seismic excitation. Large numbers of these historical nonstructural components (HiNSCs) can be found in highly frequented historical city centers and in the event of failure, they pose a significant danger to persons. In order to estimate the vulnerability of acceleration sensitive HiNSCs, the peak horizontal floor acceleration (PHFA) is used. The PHFA depends on the dynamic characteristics of the building, the ground excitation, and induced nonlinearities. Consequently, the PHFA can not be generalized as a simple function of height. In the present research work, an extensive case study was conducted to investigate the influence of induced nonlinearity on the PHFA for old masonry buildings. Probabilistic nonlinear FE time-history analyses considering three different hazard levels were performed. A set of eighteen synthetically generated ground motions was used as input to the structure models. An elastoplastic macro-model (multiPlas) for nonlinear homogenized continuum FE-calculation was calibrated to multiple scales and applied, taking specific failure mechanisms of masonry into account. The macro-model was calibrated according to the results of specific laboratory and cyclic in situ shear tests. The nonlinear macro-model is based on the concept of multi-surface rate-independent plasticity. Material damage or crack formation are detected by reducing the initial strength after failure due to shear or tensile stress. As a result, shear forces can only be transmitted to a limited extent by friction when the cracking begins. The tensile strength is reduced to zero. The first goal of the calibration was the consistency of the load-displacement curves between experiment and simulation. The calibrated macro-model matches well with regard to the initial stiffness and the maximum horizontal load. Another goal was the correct reproduction of the observed crack image and the plastic strain activities. Again the macro-model proved to work well in this case and shows very good correlation. The results of the case study show that there is significant scatter in the absolute distribution of the PHFA between the applied ground excitations. An absolute distribution along the normalized building height was determined in the framework of probability theory. It can be observed that the extent of nonlinear behavior varies for the three hazard levels. Due to the detailed scope of the present research work, a robust comparison with code-recommendations and simplified PHFA distributions are possible. The chosen methodology offers a chance to determine the distribution of PHFA along the building height of old masonry structures. This permits a proper hazard assessment of HiNSCs under seismic loads.

Keywords: nonlinear macro-model, nonstructural components, time-history analysis, unreinforced masonry

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Authors: Lisandro Blas, Héctor Tamanini

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From earliest 90 to now, no many companies or organization can “really” implement a knowledge management (KM) system that works (no only viewed from a measurement model, but in this continuity). Which are the reasons of that? Some of the reason maybe could be embedded in how KM is demanded (usefulness, priority, experts, a definition of KM) vs the importance and resources that the organizations afford (budget, responsible of a specific area of KM, intangibility). Many organizations “claim” the importance of Knowledge Management but thhese demands are not reflecting these claims in their future actions. With another’s tools or managements ideas the organizations put the economics and human resources to work. Why it´s not occur in KM? This paper tray to explain some of this reasons and tray to deal with this situations through a survey done in 2011 for a IAPG (Argentinean Institute from Oil & Gas) Congress.

Keywords: knowledge management into organizations, new perspectives, failure in implementation, claim

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Authors: Samuel A. Muyiwa

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Religious chauvinism has attained an alarming status in Contemporary Nigerian society. Arguably, Nigeria is the largest economy and most populous nation in Africa with over 182 million people, the advantages offer by vibrant economy and high population have been sacrificed on the altar of religion. Tolerance, sacrifice, humility, compassion, love, justice, trustworthiness, dedication to the well-being of others, and unity are the universal spiritual principles that lie at the heart of any religion either Christianity or Islam even traditional. Whereas traditional religious practices foreground the beliefs, norms and ritual that are related to the sacred being God because of its quick and immediate consequence of its effect, the new-found religious sentiments have deviated from the norms, thus undermining cosmic harmony in Nigeria because of its long-time consequence of its effect. Religion, which is expected to accelerate growth and motivate people to develop spiritual nuances for the betterment of their communities, has, however occasioned conflict and violence in Nigeria socio-political cosmo. Therefore, this study examines the content of religion in the promotion of peace and unity and its contextual missing link in the promotion of conflict and violence in Nigeria.

Keywords: religion chauvinism, Nigeria, conflict, conflict resolution

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Authors: Cherifi Mehdi, Lahdir Mourad, Ameur Soltane

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Image compression is the heart of several multimedia techniques. It is used to reduce the number of bits required to represent an image. Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellite allows the acquisition of 12 image files every 15 minutes and that results in a large databases sizes. In this paper, a novel image compression method based on the arithmetic coding with the sorted Run Length Coding (SRLC) for MSG images is proposed. The SRLC allows us to find the occurrence of the consecutive pixels of the original image to create a sorted run. The arithmetic coding allows the encoding of the sorted data of the previous stage to retrieve a unique code word that represents a binary code stream in the sorted order to boost the compression ratio. Through this article, we show that our method can perform the best results concerning compression ratio and bit rate unlike the method based on the Run Length Coding (RLC) and the arithmetic coding. Evaluation criteria like the compression ratio and the bit rate allow the confirmation of the efficiency of our method of image compression.

Keywords: image compression, arithmetic coding, Run Length Coding, RLC, Sorted Run Length Coding, SRLC, Meteosat Second Generation, MSG

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Authors: Mohamed Mamdouh Al-Banna, Warda Youssef Mohamed Morsy, Hanaa Ali El-Feky, Ashraf Hussein Abdelmohsen

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Background: The mechanically ventilated patients need a special nursing care with continuous closed observation. The patients’ body mass index may affect their prognosis or outcomes. Aim of the study: to investigate the relationship between BMI and selected outcomes of critically ill mechanically ventilated patients. Research Design: A descriptive correlational research design was utilized Research questions: a) what is the BMI profile of mechanically ventilated patients admitted to critical care units over a period of six months? b) What is the relationship between body mass index and frequency of organ dysfunction, length of ICU stay, weaning from mechanical ventilation, and the mortality rate among adult critically ill mechanically ventilated patients? Setting: different intensive care units of Cairo University Hospitals. Sample: A convenience sample of 30 mechanically ventilated patients for at least 72 hours. Tools of data collection: Three tools were utilized to collect data pertinent to the current study: tool 1: patients’ sociodemographic and medical data sheet, tool 2: BURNS Wean Assessment Program (BWAP) checklist, tool 3: Sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA score) sheet. Results: The majority of the studied sample (77%) was males, and (26.7 %) of the studied sample were in the age group of 18-28 years old, and (26.7 %) were in the age group of 40-50 years old. Moreover, two thirds (66.7%) of the studied sample were within normal BMI. No significant statistical relationship between BMI category and ICU length of stay or the mortality rate among the studied sample, (X² = 11.31, P value = 0.79), (X² = 0.15, P value = 0.928) respectively. No significant statistical relationship between BMI category and the weaning trials from mechanical ventilation among the studied sample, (X² = 0.15, P value = 0.928). No significant statistical relationship was found between BMI category and the occurrence of organ dysfunction among the studied sample, (X² = 2.54, P value = 0.637). Conclusion: No relationship between the BMI categories and the selected patients’ outcomes (weaning from MV, length of ICU stay, occurrence of organ dysfunction, mortality rate). Recommendations: Replication of this study on a larger sample from different geographical locations in Arab Republic of Egypt, conducting farther studies to assess the effect of the quality of nursing care on the mechanically ventilated patients’ outcomes.

Keywords: mechanical ventilation, body mass index, outcomes of mechanically ventilated patient, organ failure

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Authors: Sudip Mondal, Biswanath Mondal, Sudit S. Mukhopadhyay, Apurba Dey

Abstract:

Bioactive materials improve devices for a long lifespan but have mechanical limitations. Mechanical characterization is one of the very important characteristics to evaluate the life span and functionality of the scaffold material. After implantation of scaffold material the primary stage rejection of scaffold occurs due to non biocompatible effect of host body system. The second major problems occur due to the effect of mechanical failure. The mechanical and biocompatibility failure of the scaffold materials can be overcome by the prior evaluation of the scaffold materials. In this study chemically treated Labeo rohita scale is used for synthesizing hydroxyapatite (HAp) biomaterial. Thermo-gravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA) is carried out to ensure thermal stability. The chemical composition and bond structures of wet ball-milled calcined HAp powder is characterized by Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis. Fish scale derived apatite materials consists of nano-sized particles with Ca/P ratio of 1.71. The biocompatibility through cytotoxicity evaluation and MTT assay are carried out in MG63 osteoblast cell lines. In the cell attachment study, the cells are tightly attached with HAp scaffolds developed in the laboratory. The result clearly suggests that HAp material synthesized in this study do not have any cytotoxic effect, as well as it has a natural binding affinity for mammalian cell lines. The synthesized HAp powder further successfully used to develop porous scaffold material with suitable mechanical property of ~0.8GPa compressive stress, ~1.10 GPa a hardness and ~ 30-35% porosity which is acceptable for implantation in trauma region for animal model. The histological analysis also supports the bio-affinity of processed HAp biomaterials in Wistar rat model for investigating the contact reaction and stability at the artificial or natural prosthesis interface for biomedical function. This study suggests the natural sourced fish scale-derived HAp material could be used as a suitable alternative biomaterial for tissue engineering application in near future.

Keywords: biomaterials, hydroxyapatite, scaffold, mechanical property, tissue engineering

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Authors: Yutae Lee

Abstract:

In this paper, we consider the performance and availability of a redundancy model. The redundancy model is a form of resilience that ensures service availability in the event of component failure. This paper considers a 2N redundancy model. In the model there are at most one active service unit and at most one standby service unit. The active one is providing the service while the standby is prepared to take over the active role when the active fails. We design our analysis model using Stochastic Reward Nets, and then evaluate the performance and availability of 2N redundancy model using Stochastic Petri Net Package (SPNP).

Keywords: availability, performance, stochastic reward net, 2N redundancy

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Authors: Enyia James Diwa, Dodeye Ina Igbong, Archibong Eso Archibong

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The creep life of an industrial gas turbine is determined through a physics-based model used to investigate the high pressure temperature (HPT) of the blade in use. A performance model was carried out via the Cranfield University TURBOMATCH simulation software to size the blade and to determine the corresponding stress. Various effects such as radial temperature distortion factor, turbine entry temperature, ambient temperature, blade metal temperature, and compressor degradation on the blade creep life were investigated. The output results show the difference in creep life and the location of failure along the span of the blade enabling better-informed advice for the gas turbine operator.

Keywords: creep, living, performance, degradation

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Authors: Akshay Satishrao Kawtikwar

Abstract:

The effect of blast masses on structures is an essential aspect that need to be considered. This type of assault could be very horrifying, who where we take it into consideration in the course of the design system. While designing a building, now not only the wind and seismic masses however also the consequences of the blast have to be take into consideration. Blast load is the burden implemented to a structure form a blast wave that comes straight away after an explosion. A blast in or close to a constructing can reason catastrophic harm to the interior and exterior of the building, inner structural framework, wall collapsing, and so on. The most important feature of blast resistant construction is the ability to absorb blast energy without causing catastrophic failure of the structure as a whole. Construction materials in blastprotective structures must have ductility as well as strength.

Keywords: blast resistant design, blast load, explosion, ETABS

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Authors: Shreyansh Adesara, Sneha Pandiya

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The mobile ad-hoc network (MANET) is an important and open area research for the examination and determination of the performance evolution. Temporary ordered routing algorithm (TORA) is adaptable and distributed MANET routing algorithm which is totally dependent on internet MANET Encapsulation protocol (IMEP) for the detection of the link and sensing of the link. If IMEP detect the wrong link failure then the network suffer from congestion and unnecessary route maintenance. Thus, the improvement in link detection method of TORA is introduced by various methods on IMEP by different perspective from different person. There are also different reactive routing protocols like AODV, TORA and DSR has been compared for the knowledge of the routing scenario for different parameter and using different model.

Keywords: IMEP, mobile ad-hoc network, protocol, TORA

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Authors: Ekaterina Zvorykina

Abstract:

Nowadays, Arctic and Antarctic regions are distinguished to be one of the most important strategic resources for global development. Nonetheless, living conditions in Arctic regions still demand certain improvements. As soon as the region is rarely populated, one of the main points of interest is health accommodation of the people, who migrate to Arctic region for permanent and shift work. At Arctic and Antarctic latitudes, personnel face polar day and polar night conditions during the time of the year. It means that they are deprived of natural sunlight in winter season and have continuous daylight in summer. Firstly, the change in light intensity during 24-hours period due to migration affects circadian rhythms. Moreover, the controlled artificial light in winter is also an issue. The results of the recent studies on night shift medical professionals, who were exposed to permanent artificial light, have already demonstrated higher risks in cancer, depression, Alzheimer disease. Moreover, people exposed to frequent time zones change are also subjected to higher risks of heart attack and cancer. Thus, our main goals are to understand how high latitude work and living conditions can affect human health and how it can be prevented. In our study, we analyze molecular and cellular factors, which play important role in circadian rhythm change and distinguish main risk groups in people, migrating to high latitudes. The main well-studied index of circadian timing is melatonin or its metabolite 6-sulfatoxymelatonin. In low light intensity melatonin synthesis is disturbed and as a result human organism requires more time for sleep, which is still disregarded when it comes to working time organization. Lack of melatonin also causes shortage in serotonin production, which leads to higher depression risk. Melatonin is also known to inhibit oncogenes and increase apoptosis level in cells, the main factors for tumor growth, as well as circadian clock genes (for example Per2). Thus, people who work in high latitudes can be distinguished as a risk group for cancer diseases and demand more attention. Clock/Clock genes, known to be one of the main circadian clock regulators, decrease sensitivity of hypothalamus to estrogen and decrease glucose sensibility, which leads to premature aging and oestrous cycle disruption. Permanent light exposure also leads to accumulation superoxide dismutase and oxidative stress, which is one of the main factors for early dementia and Alzheimer disease. We propose a new screening system adjusted for people, migrating from middle to high latitudes and accommodation therapy. Screening is focused on melatonin and estrogen levels, sleep deprivation and neural disorders, depression level, cancer risks and heart and vascular disorders. Accommodation therapy includes different types artificial light exposure, additional melatonin and neuroprotectors. Preventive procedures can lead to increase of migration intensity to high latitudes and, as a result, the prosperity of Arctic region.

Keywords: circadian rhythm, high latitudes, melatonin, neuroprotectors

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Authors: Michel Berthiaume, Daniel Chamberland-Tremblay, Elaine Paiva Mosconi, Jérôme Blanchet-Brisson

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This presentation documents the overall failure of North-American universities to build an effective IT Policies communication with their primary users: the students. A sample of 12 universities was selected. A set of indicators based on usability principles to assess the content of IT Policies vas devised. Then, IT Policies were rated according to the indicators and the results analyzed to build an overall picture of the potential of communication problems in policy communication. The initial finding is that network security professionals in Universities have to reach a delicate balance between asset protection, asset valorization and user security awareness.

Keywords: computer security, IT policy, security awareness, network user rules

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Authors: Abu Harera Nadeem, Kingsley Donkor

Abstract:

Tea is a popular beverage due to its flavour, aroma and antioxidant properties—with the most consumed varieties being green and black tea. Antioxidants in tea can lower the risk of Alzheimer’s and heart disease and obesity. However, these teas contain heavy metals such as Hg, Cd, or Pb, which can cause autoimmune diseases like Graves disease. In this study, 11 heavy metals in various commercial green, black, and oolong tea samples were determined using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Two methods of sample preparation were compared for accuracy and precision, which were microwave-assisted digestion and ultrasonic-assisted extraction. The developed method was further validated by detection limit, precision, and accuracy. Results showed that the proposed method was highly sensitive with detection limits within parts-per-billion levels. Reasonable method accuracy was obtained by spiked experiments. The findings of this study can be used to delve into the link between tea consumption and disease and to provide information for future studies on metal determination in tea.

Keywords: ICP-MS, green tea, black tea, microwave-assisted acid digestion, ultrasound-assisted extraction

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Authors: Yaser Riki

Abstract:

There are plenty of considerations about the Third World and developing countries, but one of the main issues regarding these areas is how we can study them. This article makes attention to a fundamental way of approaching this subject through the convergence of history, philosophy, and sociology in order to understand the complexity of the Third World countries. These three disciplines are naturally connected and integrated, but they have gradually separated. While sociology has originated from philosophy, this work is an attempt to generate a sociology that incorporates philosophy as well as history at its heart. This is descriptive-analytical research that searches the history of sociology to find works and theories that provide ideas for this purpose, including the sociology of knowledge and science, The German Ideology (Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels), The Protestant Ethic (Max Weber), Ideology and Utopia (Karl Mannheim) and Dialectic of Enlightenment (Horkheimer and Adorno) provide ideas needed for this purpose. The paper offers a methodological and theoretical vision (historical-philosophical sociology) to identify a few factors, such as the system of thought, that are usually invisible and cause problems in societies, especially third-world counties. This is similar to what some of the founders of sociology did in the first world.

Keywords: the third world, methodology, sociology, philosophy, history, social change, development, social movements

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Authors: Abhishek Kumar

Abstract:

X70 pipeline steel was electrochemically charged with hydrogen for different durations in order to find crack nucleation and propagation sites. After 3 hours charging, suitable regions for crack initiation and propagation were found. These regions were studied by OM, SEM, EDS and later Vicker hardness test was done. The results brought out that HIC cracks nucleated from regions rich of inclusions and further propagated through the segregation area of some elements, such as manganese, carbon, silicon and sulfur. It is worth-mentioning that all these potential sites for crack nucleation and propagation appeared at the centre of cross section of the specimens. Additionally, cracked area has harder phase than the non-cracked area which was confirmed by hardness test.

Keywords: X70 steel, morphology of inclusions, SEM/EDS/OM, simulation, statistical data

Procedia PDF Downloads 303