Search results for: sustainable supply chain performance

Authors: Said Ettaieb, Kamel Hamrouni, Su Ruan

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This paper presents a new method based both on Active Shape Model and a priori knowledge about the spatio-temporal shape variation for tracking deformable structures in medical imaging. The main idea is to exploit the a priori knowledge of shape that exists in ASM and introduce new knowledge about the shape variation over time. The aim is to define a new more stable method, allowing the reliable detection of structures whose shape changes considerably in time. This method can also be used for the three-dimensional segmentation by replacing the temporal component by the third spatial axis (z). The proposed method is applied for the functional and morphological study of the heart pump. The functional aspect was studied through temporal sequences of scintigraphic images and morphology was studied through MRI volumes. The obtained results are encouraging and show the performance of the proposed method.

Keywords: active shape model, a priori knowledge, spatiotemporal shape variation, deformable structures, medical images

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Authors: Sam Khozama, Ali M. Mayya

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Breast cancer is one of the most common types in women. Early prediction of breast cancer helps physicians detect cancer in its early stages. Big cancer data needs a very powerful tool to analyze and extract predictions. Machine learning and deep learning are two of the most efficient tools for predicting cancer based on textual data. In this study, we developed a fusion model of two machine learning and deep learning models. To obtain the final prediction, Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM) and ensemble learning with hyper parameters optimization are used, and score-level fusion is used. Experiments are done on the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium (BCSC) dataset after balancing and grouping the class categories. Five different training scenarios are used, and the tests show that the designed fusion model improved the performance by 3.3% compared to the individual models.

Keywords: machine learning, deep learning, cancer prediction, breast cancer, LSTM, fusion

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Authors: Deon de Jager, Yahya Zweiri, Dimitrios Makris

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The three most important components in the cognitive architecture for cognitive robotics is memory representation, memory recall, and action-selection performed by the executive. In this paper, action selection, performed by the executive, is defined as a memory quantification and optimization process. The methodology describes the real-time construction of episodic memory through semantic memory optimization. The optimization is performed by set-based particle swarm optimization, using an adaptive entropy memory quantification approach for fitness evaluation. The performance of the approach is experimentally evaluated by simulation, where a UAV is tasked with the collection and delivery of a medical package. The experiments show that the UAV dynamically uses the episodic memory to autonomously control its velocity, while successfully completing its mission.

Keywords: cognitive robotics, semantic memory, episodic memory, maximum entropy principle, particle swarm optimization

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Authors: S. Sivakumar, Ashwin Bala, S. Prithviraj, K. Panthala Rajakumaran, R. Pradeep, J. Udhayakumar

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Studies reveal that acetylene gas derived from hydrolysis of calcium carbide has similar properties to that of diesel. However, the self-ignition temperature of acetylene gas is higher than that of diesel. Early investigations reveal that acetylene gas could be used as alternative fuel mode. In the present work, acetylene gas of 31/min were inducted and diesel was injected into the combustion chamber of a single cylinder air cooled diesel engine. It was observed that the higher calorific value of acetylene gas improves the brake thermal efficiency at full load conditions. The CO and HC emissions were higher at part load conditions as compared to conventional diesel. The Nox emission level was higher and smoke emission was lower during dual fuel mode under all operating conditions. It is concluded that dual fuel mode of acetylene gas and diesel improves the brake thermal efficiency and reduces smoke in diesel engine.

Keywords: acetylene gas, diesel engine, Nox emission, CO emission, HC emission

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Authors: Rachel Gough

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In 2014, Skellig Michael, an island off Ireland’s western seaboard and UNESCO world heritage site became a major setting in Disney’s Star Wars franchise. The subsequent influx of tourists to the site has proven to be a point of contention nationally. The increased visitor numbers have uplifted certain areas of the local economy, the mainland, but have caused irreparable damage to historic monuments and to endangered bird populations who breed on the island. Recent research carried out by a state body suggests far-reaching and longterm negative impacts on the island’s culture and environment, should the association with the Star Wars franchise persist. In spite of this, the film has been widely endorsed by the Irish government as providing a vital economic boost to historically marginalised rural areas through film tourism. This paper argues quite plainly that what is taking place on Skellig is neocolonialism. Skellig Michael’s unique resources, its aesthetic qualities, its ecosystem, and its cultural currency have been sold by the state to a multinational corporation, who profit from their use. Meanwhile, locals are left to do their best to turn a market trend into sustainable business at the expense of culture ecology and community. This paper intends to be the first dedicated study into the psychogeographic and cultural impact of Skellig Michael’s deterioration as a result of film tourism. It will discuss the projected impact of this incident on Irish culture more broadly and finally will attempt to lay out a roadmap for more collaborative filmmaking and touristic approach, which allows local cultures and ecosystem’s to thrive without drastically inhibiting cultural production. This paper will ultimately find that the consequences of this representation call for a requirement to read tourism as a split concept — namely into what we might loosely call “eco-tourism” and more capital-based “profit-bottom-line tourism.”

Keywords: ecology, film tourism, neocolonialism, sustainability

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Authors: Nadia Chagtmi, Nejla Rejab, Noureddine Boulejfen

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This paper presents a calibration approach based on artificial neural networks (ANN) to determine the envelop signal (I+jQ) of a six-port based receiver (SPR). The memory effects called also dynamic behavior and the nonlinearity brought by diode based power detector have been taken into consideration by the ANN. Experimental set-up has been performed to validate the efficiency of this method. The efficiency of this approach has been confirmed by the obtained results in terms of waveforms. Moreover, the obtained error vector magnitude (EVM) and the mean absolute error (MAE) have been calculated in order to confirm and to test the ANN’s performance to achieve I/Q recovery using the output voltage detected by the power based detector. The baseband signal has been recovered using ANN with EVMs no higher than 1 % and an MAE no higher than 17, 26 for the SPR excited different type of signals such QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) and LTE (Long Term Evolution).

Keywords: six-port based receiver; calibration, nonlinearity, memory effect, artificial neural network

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Authors: M. Ramesh Kanthan, S. Naga Nandini Sujatha

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The goal of haze removal algorithms is to enhance and recover details of scene from foggy image. In enhancement the proposed method focus into two main categories: (i) image enhancement based on Adaptive contrast Histogram equalization, and (ii) image edge strengthened Gradient model. Many circumstances accurate haze removal algorithms are needed. The de-fog feature works through a complex algorithm which first determines the fog destiny of the scene, then analyses the obscured image before applying contrast and sharpness adjustments to the video in real-time to produce image the fusion strategy is driven by the intrinsic properties of the original image and is highly dependent on the choice of the inputs and the weights. Then the output haze free image has reconstructed using fusion methodology. In order to increase the accuracy, interpolation method has used in the output reconstruction. A promising retrieval performance is achieved especially in particular examples.

Keywords: single image, fusion, dehazing, multi-scale fusion, per-pixel, weight map

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Authors: Nanh Lovanh, John Loughrin, Kimberly Cook, Phil Silva, Byung-Taek Oh

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In the era of sustainability, utilization of livestock wastes as soil amendment to provide micronutrients for crops is very economical and sustainable. It is well understood that livestock wastes are comparable, if not better, nutrient sources for crops as chemical fertilizers. However, the large concentrated volumes of animal manure produced from livestock operations and the limited amount of available nearby agricultural land areas necessitated the need for volume reduction of these animal wastes. Composting of these animal manures is a viable option for biomass and pathogenic reduction in the environment. Nevertheless, composting also increases the potential loss of available nutrients for crop production as well as unwanted emission of anthropogenic air pollutants due to the loss of ammonia and other compounds via volatilization. In this study, we examine the emission of ammonia and nitrous oxide from swine manure windrows to evaluate the benefit of biomass reduction in conjunction with the potential loss of available nutrients. The feedstock for the windrows was obtained from swine farm in Kentucky where swine manure was mixed with wood shaving as absorbent material. Static flux chambers along with photoacoustic gas analyzer were used to monitor ammonia and nitrous oxide concentrations during the composting process. The results show that ammonia and nitrous oxide fluxes were quite high during the initial composting process and after the turning of each compost pile. Over the period of roughly three months of composting, the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) decreased by about 90%. Although composting of animal waste is quite beneficial for biomass reduction, composting may not be economically feasible from an agronomical point of view due to time, nutrient loss (N loss), and potential environmental pollution (ammonia and greenhouse gas emissions). Therefore, additional studies are needed to assess and validate the economics and environmental impact of animal (swine) manure composting (e.g., crop yield or impact on climate change).

Keywords: windrow, swine manure, ammonia, nitrous oxide, fluxes, management

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Authors: Daniel Pastor, Hyo-Sang Shin

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This paper presents a novel method to use optical flow navigation for long-term navigation. Unlike standard SLAM approaches for augmented reality, OFLAAM is designed for Micro Air Vehicles (MAV). It uses an optical flow camera pointing downwards, an IMU and a monocular camera pointing frontwards. That configuration avoids the expensive mapping and tracking of the 3D features. It only maps these features in a vocabulary list by a localization module to tackle the loss of the navigation estimation. That module, based on the well-established algorithm DBoW2, will be also used to close the loop and allow long-term navigation in confined areas. That combination of high-speed optical flow navigation with a low rate localization algorithm allows fully autonomous navigation for MAV, at the same time it reduces the overall computational load. This framework is implemented in ROS (Robot Operating System) and tested attached to a laptop. A representative scenarios is used to analyse the performance of the system.

Keywords: vision, UAV, navigation, SLAM

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Authors: Kujhin Jeong, Sungjoo Lee

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In the past, cross-licensing was made up of various application or commercial patents. Today, cross-licensing is restricted to essential patents, which has emphasized their importance significantly. Literature has shown that patent portfolio provides information for patent protection or strategy decision-making, but little empirical research has found strategic tool of essential patents. This paper will highlight four types of essential patent portfolio and analysis about each strategy in the field of LTE-A. Specifically we collected essential patents of mobile communication company through ETSI (European Telecommunication Standards Institute) and build-up portfolio activity, concentration, diversity, and quality. Using these portfolios, we can understand each company’s strategic character about the technology of LTE-A and comparison analysis of financial results. Essential patents portfolio displays a mobile communication company’s strategy and its strategy’s impact on the performance of a company.

Keywords: essential patent, portfolio, patent portfolio, essential patent portfolio

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Authors: William Sidharta, Chin-Tu Lu

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Fluorescent ultraviolet lamp generates ultraviolet light which is commonly used in industrial field with certain purposes especially for curing process. Due to the value of inefficiency, there are changes in energy from electrical energy to the heat energy and this would make a defect on the industrial product caused by high temperature of lamp tube during ultraviolet light emission. The condition of industrial scale is further worsening, since commonly using dozens of fluorescent ultraviolet lamps to support huge production process and then it will generates much more heat energy. The maximum temperature of fluorescent ultraviolet lamp will get affected by arranging the lamp tube reflector and this study presents CFX simulation results of the maximum lamp tube temperature with some different reflector arrangements on purely natural convection phenomena. There exists certain spaces value of the reflector and the lamp tube to obtaining lower maximum temperature of the fluorescent ultraviolet lamp.

Keywords: CFX simulation, fluorescent UV lamp, lamp tube reflector, UV light

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Authors: Qing Lyu, Hang Zhu

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Various flows in the network require to go through different types of middlebox. The improper placement of network middlebox and path assignment for flows could greatly increase the network latency and also decrease the performance of network. Minimizing the total end to end latency of all the ows requires to assign path for the incoming flows. In this paper, the flow path assignment problem in regard to the placement of various kinds of middlebox is studied. The flow path assignment problem is formulated to a linear programming problem, which is very time consuming. On the other hand, a naive greedy algorithm is studied. Which is very fast but causes much more latency than the linear programming algorithm. At last, the paper presents a heuristic algorithm named FPA, which takes bottleneck link information and estimated bandwidth occupancy into consideration, and achieves near optimal latency in much less time. Evaluation results validate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Keywords: flow path, latency, middlebox, network

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Authors: Mohammad Reza Ebrahimi

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In new restructured power systems, swift fault detection is very important. The parallel transmission-lines are vastly used in this kind of power systems because of high amount of energy transferring. In this paper, a method based on the comparison of two schemes, i.e., i) maximum magnitude of travelling-wave (TW) energy ii) the instants of maximum energy occurrence at the circuits of parallel transmission-line is proposed. Using the travelling-wave of fault in order to faulted line identification this method has noticeable operation time. Moreover, the algorithm can cover for identification of faults as external or internal faults. For an internal fault, the exact location of the fault can be estimated confidently. A lot of simulations have been done with PSCAD/EMTDC to verify the performance of the proposed algorithm.

Keywords: travelling-wave, maximum energy, parallel transmission-line, fault location

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Authors: Hassan Taimoor, Piotr Krajewski, Piotr Gabrielzcak

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Being responsible for the largest source of energy-related emissions, the transportation sector is driven by more than half of global oil demand and total energy consumption, making it a crucial factor in tackling climate change and environmental degradation. The present study empirically tests the effectives of the energy-related tax (TXEN) in curbing transport-related carbon emissions (CO2TRANSP) in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) economies over the period of 1990-2020. Moreover, Green Finance (GF), Technology (TECH), and Gross domestic product (GDP) have also been added as explanatory factors which might affect CO2TRANSP emissions. The study employs the Method of Moment Quantile Regression (MMQR), an advance econometric technique to observe the variations along each quantile. Based on the results of the preliminary test, we confirm the presence of cross-sectional dependence and slope heterogeneity. Whereas the result of the panel unit root test report mixed order of variables’ integration. The findings reveal that rise in income level activates CO2TRANSP, confirming the first stage of Environmental Kuznet Hypothesis. Surprisingly, the present TXEN policies of OECD member states are not mature enough to tackle the CO2TRANSP emissions. However, the findings confirm that GF and TECH are solely responsible for the reduction in the CO2TRANSP. The outcomes of Bootstrap Quantile Regression (BSQR) further validate and support the earlier findings of MMQR. Based on the findings of this study, it is revealed that the current TXEN policies are too moderate, and an incremental and progressive rise in TXEN may help in a transition toward a cleaner and sustainable transportation sector in the study region.

Keywords: transport-related CO2 emissions, energy-related tax, green finance, technological development, oecd member states

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Authors: Peter Burggräf, Moritz Krunke, Hanno Voet

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Due to shortening product and technology lifecycles, many companies use standardization approaches in product development and factory planning to reduce costs and time to market. Unlike large companies, where modular systems are already widely used, small and medium-sized companies often show a much lower degree of standardization due to lower scale effects and missing capacities for the development of these standards. To overcome these challenges, the development of industry sector specific standards in cooperations or by third parties is an interesting approach. This paper analyzes which branches that are mainly dominated by small or medium-sized companies might be especially interesting for the development of factory standards using the example of the German industry. For this, a key performance indicator based approach was developed that will be presented in detail with its specific results for the German industry structure.

Keywords: factory planning, factory standards, industry sector specific standardization, production planning

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Authors: Samain Sabrin, Joshua Pratt, Joshua Bryk, Maryam Karimi

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Globally, extreme heat events have led to a surge in the number of heat-related moralities. These incidents are further exacerbated in high-density population centers due to the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect. Varieties of anthropogenic activities such as unsupervised land surface modifications, expansion of impervious areas, and lack of use of vegetation are all contributors to an increase in the amount of heat flux trapped by an urban canopy which intensifies the UHI effect. This project aims to propose a systematic approach to measure the impact of air quality and increased temperature based on urban morphology in the selected metropolitan cities. This project will measure the impact of build environment for urban and regional planning using human biometeorological evaluations (mean radiant temperature, Tmrt). We utilized the Rayman model (capable of calculating short and long wave radiation fluxes affecting the human body) to estimate the Tmrt in an urban environment incorporating location and height of buildings and trees as a supplemental tool in urban planning, and street design. Our current results suggest a strong correlation between building height and increased surface temperature in megacities. This model will help with; 1. Quantify the impacts of the built environment and surface properties on surrounding temperature, 2. Identify priority urban neighborhoods by analyzing Tmrt and air quality data at pedestrian level, 3. Characterizing the need for urban green infrastructure or better urban planning- maximizing the cooling benefit from existing Urban Green Infrastructure (UGI), and 4. Developing a hierarchy of streets for new UGI integration and propose new UGI based on site characteristics and cooling potential.

Keywords: air quality, heat mitigation, human-biometeorological indices, increased temperature, mean radiant temperature, radiation flux, sustainable development, thermal comfort, urban canopy, urban planning

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Authors: H. Golchoobian, M. H. Taheri, S. Saedodin, A. Sarafraz

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This paper investigates the possibility of using three systems of organic Rankine auxiliary power generation, ejector refrigeration and absorption to recover energy from a diesel car. The analysis is done for both urban and suburban driving modes that vary from 60 to 120 km/h. Various refrigerants have also been used for organic Rankine and Ejector refrigeration cycles. The capacity was evaluated by Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) system in both urban and suburban conditions for cyclopentane and ammonia as refrigerants. Also, for these two driving plans, produced cooling by absorption refrigeration system under variable ambient temperature conditions and in ejector refrigeration system for R123, R134a and R141b refrigerants were investigated.

Keywords: absorption system, diesel engine, ejector refrigeration, energy recovery, organic Rankine cycle

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Authors: Eyasu Markos Woldesemayat, Paolo Vincenzo Genovese

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In recent years with an increase in the concentration of Green House Gases (GHG), Climate Change (CC) externalities are mounting, regardless of governments, are scrambling to implement mitigation and adaptation measures. With multiple social, economic and environmental benefits, Green Infrastructure (GI) has evolved as a highly valuable policy tool to promote sustainable development and smart growth by meeting multiple objectives towards quality of life. However, despite the wide range of benefits, it's uptake in African cities such as Addis Ababa is very low due to several constraining factors. This study, through content analysis and key informant interviews, examined barriers for the uptake of GI among spatial planners in Addis Ababa. Added to this, the study has revealed that the spatial planners had insufficient knowledge about GI planning principles such as multi-functionality, integration, and connectivity, and multiscale. The practice of implementing these holistic principles in urban spatial planning is phenomenally nonexistent. The findings also revealed 20 barriers categorized under four themes, i.e., institutional, socio-cultural, resource, and cognitive barriers. Similarly, it was identified that institutional barriers (0.756), socio-cultural barriers (0.730), cognitive barriers (0.700) and resource barriers (0.642), respectively, are the foremost impending factors for the promotion of GI in Addis Ababa. It was realized that resource barriers were the least constraining factor for enshrining the GI uptake in the city. Strategies to hasten the adoption of GI in the city mainly focus on improving political will, harmonization sectorial plans, improve spatial planning and implementation practice, prioritization of GI in all planning activities, enforcement of environmental laws, introducing collaborative GI governance, creating strong and stable institutions and raising awareness on the need to conserve environment and CC externalities through education and outreach mechanisms.

Keywords: Addis Ababa, climate change, green infrastructure, spatial planning, spatial planners

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Authors: Selvakuma Kumaresh, Man Young Kim

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Combustion phenomenon will be accomplished effectively by the development of low emission combustor. One of the significant factors influencing the entire Combustion process is the mixing between a swirling angular jet (Primary Air) and the non-swirling inner jet (fuel). To study this fundamental flow, the chamber had to be designed in such a manner that the combustion process to sustain itself in a continuous manner and the temperature of the products is sufficiently below the maximum working temperature in the turbine. This study is used to develop the effective combustion with low unburned combustion products by adopting the concept of high swirl flow and motility of holes in the secondary chamber. The proper selection of a swirler is needed to reduce emission which can be concluded from the emission of Nox and CO2. The capture of CO2 is necessary to mitigate CO2 emissions from natural gas. Thus the suppression of unburned gases is a meaningful objective for the development of high performance combustor without affecting turbine blade temperature.

Keywords: combustion, emission, can-type combustion chamber, CFD, motility of holes, swirl flow

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Authors: Simon Samwel Msanjila

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Networked environments which provides platforms and environments for business organizations are configured in different forms depending on many factors including life time, member characteristics, communication structure, and business objectives, among others. With continuing advances in digital technologies the distance has become a less barrier for business minded collaboration among organizations. With the need and ease to make business collaborate nowadays organizations are sometimes forced to co-work with others that are either unknown or less known to them in terms of history and performance. A promising approach for sustaining established collaboration has been establishment of trust relationship among organizations based on assessed trustworthiness for each participating organization. It has been stated in research that trust in organization is dynamic and thus assessment of trust level must address such dynamic nature. This paper assess relevant aspects of trust and applies the concepts to propose a semi-automated system for assessing the Sustainability and Evolution of trust in organizations participating in specific objective in a networked organizations environment.

Keywords: trust evolution, trust sustainability, networked organizations, dynamic trust

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Authors: Z. Hamed, K. Sa'deya, E. Abdelrasheed, I. Mahamid

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The construction industry is one of the main sectors that play basic role in the urban and rural development of a society. It provides important ingredients for the development of an economy. However, many construction projects experience extensive cost overrun. This study was conducted to identify the causes of cost overrun in building construction contracts in Al Madinah, Saudi Arabia and test the importance of these causes from contractors' perspective. To achieve the study objectives, a questionnaire survey was conducted to identify and rank cost overrun causes from the perspective of contractors. The findings found that the top five cost overrun causes are: lack of experience in the line of work, lack of labor productivity, delay in payments, rework and material waste. It is hoped that the findings will guide efforts to improve the performance of construction industry in Saudi Arabia and other developing countries.

Keywords: building, contractor, cost increase, cost overrun

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Authors: Ayoola T. Brimmo, Mohamed I. Hassan

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The push to mitigate the aluminum smelting industry’s enormous energy consumption and high emission releases is now even more persistent with the recent climate change happenings. Common approaches to achieve this have been focused on improving energy efficiency in the pot line and cast house sections of the smelter. However, the conventional energy efficiency analyses are based on the first law of thermodynamics, which do not shed proper light on the smelter’s degradation of energy. This just gives a general idea of the furnace’s performance with no reference to locations where improvement is a possibility based on the second law of thermodynamics. In this study, we apply exergy analyses on the pot line and cast house sections of the smelter to identify the locality and causes of energy degradation. The exergy analyses, which are based on a real life smelter conditions, highlight the possible locations for technology improvement in a typical smelter. With this established, methods of minimizing the smelter’s exergy losses are assessed.

Keywords: exergy analysis, electrolytic cell, furnace, heat transfer

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Authors: Jason Sheng-Hong Tsai, Faezeh Ebrahimzadeh, Min-Ching Chung, Shu-Mei Guo, Leang-San Shieh, Tzong-Jiy Tsai, Li Wang

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In this paper, we first construct a new state and disturbance estimator using discrete-time proportional plus integral observer to estimate the system state and the unknown external disturbance for the discrete-time system with an input-to-output direct-feedthrough term. Then, the generalized optimal linear quadratic digital tracker design is applied to construct a proportional plus integral observer-based tracker for the system with an unknown external disturbance to have a desired tracking performance. Finally, a numerical simulation is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the new application of our proposed approach.

Keywords: non-minimum phase system, optimal linear quadratic tracker, proportional plus integral observer, state and disturbance estimator

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Authors: S. C. Kattimani

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This article deals with the analysis of active constrained layer damping (ACLD) of smart multiferroic or magneto-electro-elastic doubly curved shells. The kinematics of deformations of the multiferroic doubly curved shell is described by a layer-wise shear deformation theory. A three-dimensional finite element model of multiferroic shells has been developed taking into account the electro-elastic and magneto-elastic couplings. A simple velocity feedback control law is employed to incorporate the active damping. Influence of layer stacking sequence and boundary conditions on the response of the multiferroic doubly curved shell has been studied. In addition, for the different orientation of the fibers of the constraining layer, the performance of the ACLD treatment has been studied.

Keywords: active constrained layer damping (ACLD), doubly curved shells, magneto-electro-elastic, multiferroic composite, smart structures

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Authors: Attaullah Khawaja, Amna Shabbir

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Channel inversion is one of the simplest techniques for multiuser downlink systems with single-antenna users. In this paper regularized channel inversion under equal power constraint in the multiuser multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO) broadcast channels has been considered. Sum capacity with plain channel inversion also known as Zero Forcing Beam Forming (ZFBF) and optimum sum capacity using Dirty Paper Coding (DPC) has also been investigated. Analysis and simulations show that regularization enhances the system performance and empower linear growth in Sum Capacity and specially work well at low signal to noise ratio (SNRs) regime.

Keywords: broadcast channel, channel inversion, multiple antenna multiple-user wireless, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), regularization, dirty paper coding (DPC), sum capacity

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Authors: Manan’Iarivo Rasolonjanahary, Chris Bingham, Nigel Schofield, Masoud Bazargan

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This paper presents the research and application of model predictive scheduled charging of electric vehicles (EV) subject to limited available power resource. To focus on algorithm and operational characteristics, the EV interface to the source is modelled as a battery state equation during the charging operation. The researched methods allow for the priority scheduling of EV charging in a multi-vehicle regime and when subject to limited source power availability. Priority attribution for each connected EV is described. The validity of the developed methodology is shown through the simulation of different scenarios of charging operation of multiple connected EVs including non-scheduled and scheduled operation with various numbers of vehicles. Performance of the developed algorithms is also reported with the recommendation of the choice of suitable parameters.

Keywords: model predictive control, non-scheduled, power limited sources, scheduled and stop-start battery charging

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Authors: Okafor Calistus Chibuzor

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Preserving African architectural heritage is a multifaceted endeavor that intersects with socio-cultural, economic, and environmental factors. Despite growing recognition of the importance of safeguarding these invaluable cultural assets, numerous challenges persist, hindering effective preservation efforts across the continent. This paper investigates the underlying factors impeding the preservation of African architectural heritage, aiming to provide insights for addressing this critical issue. The study begins with an exploration of the historical background and significance of African architectural heritage, highlighting its rich diversity and cultural significance. The study acknowledges that there is an urgent need to address the threats facing these heritage sites, including urbanization, rapid development, lack of funding, inadequate legal protection, and insufficient public awareness. The primary aim of this research is to identify and analyze the key factors contributing to the deterioration and loss of African architectural heritage, with the objective of formulating strategies to mitigate these challenges. A mixed-use research methodology combining archival research, field surveys, stakeholder interviews, and case studies is employed to gather comprehensive data and insights. The findings reveal a complex interplay of socio-economic, political, and institutional factors shaping the preservation landscape in Africa, including issues related to funding, governance, community engagement, and capacity building. The paper concludes by highlighting the urgent need for coordinated efforts among government agencies, heritage organizations, local communities, and international stakeholders to address the identified challenges and develop sustainable preservation strategies. Recommendations are provided for enhancing legal frameworks, promoting community involvement, fostering public awareness, and mobilizing resources to safeguard Africa's rich architectural heritage for future generations.

Keywords: African architectural heritage, preservation challenges, preservation strategies, factors

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Authors: Wanting Zeng, Hsunling Bai

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Silica was extracted from agriculture waste rice husk ash (RHA) and was used as the silica source for synthesis of RMCM-48 and RSBA-16. An alkali fusion process was utilized to separate silicate supernatant and the sediment effectively. The CTAB/Si and F127/Si molar ratio was employed to control the structure properties of the obtained RMCM-48 and RSBA-16 materials. The N2 adsorption-desorption results showed the micro-mesoporous RSBA-16 possessed high specific surface areas (662-1001 m2/g). All the obtained RSBA-16 materials were applied as the adsorbents for acetone adsorption. And the breakthrough tests clearly revealed that the RSBA-16(0.004) materials could achieve the highest acetone adsorption capacity of 186 mg/g under 1000 ppmv acetone vapor concentration at 25oC, which was also superior to ZSM-5 (71mg/g) and MCM-41 (157mg/g) under same test conditions. This can help to reduce the solid waste and the high adsorption performance of the obtained materials could consider as potential adsorbents for acetone adsorption.

Keywords: acetone, adsorption, micro-mesoporous material, rice husk ash (RHA), RSBA-16

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Authors: V. K. Stalin, V. Paneerselvam, M. Bharath, M. Kirithika

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In developing countries like India due to the rapid urbanization, large amount of waste materials are produced every year. These waste materials can be utilized in the improvement of problematic soils. Stone column is one of the best methods to improve soft clay deposits. In this study, load tests were conducted to ensure the suitability of waste as column materials. The variable parameters studied are material, number of column and encasement. The materials used for the study are stone aggregate, copper slag, construction waste, for one, two and three number of columns with geotextile and geogrid encasement. It was found that the performance of waste as column material are comparable to that of conventional stone column with and without encasement. Hence, it is concluded that the copper slag and construction waste may be used as a column material in place of conventional stone aggregate to improve the soft clay advantage being utilization of waste.

Keywords: stone column, geocomposite, construction waste, copper slag

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Authors: Hai L. Tran

Abstract:

In the digital age, evidence-based reporting is touted as a best practice for seeking the truth and keeping the public well-informed. Journalists are expected to rely on evidence to demonstrate the validity of a factual statement and lend credence to an individual account. Evidence can be obtained from various sources, and due to a rich supply of evidence types available, the definition of this important concept varies semantically. To promote clarity and understanding, it is necessary to break down the various types of evidence and categorize them in a more coherent, systematic way. There is a wide array of devices that digital journalists deploy as proof to back up or refute a truth claim. Evidence can take various formats, including verbal and visual materials. Verbal evidence encompasses quotes, soundbites, talking heads, testimonies, voice recordings, anecdotes, and statistics communicated through written or spoken language. There are instances where evidence is simply non-verbal, such as when natural sounds are provided without any verbalized words. On the other hand, other language-free items exhibited in photos, video footage, data visualizations, infographics, and illustrations can serve as visual evidence. Moreover, there are different sources from which evidence can be cited. Supporting materials, such as public or leaked records and documents, data, research studies, surveys, polls, or reports compiled by governments, organizations, and other entities, are frequently included as informational evidence. Proof can also come from human sources via interviews, recorded conversations, public and private gatherings, or press conferences. Expert opinions, eye-witness insights, insider observations, and official statements are some of the common examples of testimonial evidence. Digital journalism studies tend to make broad references when comparing qualitative versus quantitative forms of evidence. Meanwhile, limited efforts are being undertaken to distinguish between sister terms, such as “data,” “statistical,” and “base-rate” on one side of the spectrum and “narrative,” “anecdotal,” and “exemplar” on the other. The present study seeks to develop the evidence taxonomy, which classifies evidence through the quantitative-qualitative juxtaposition and in a hierarchical order from broad to specific. According to this scheme, data, statistics, and base rate belong to the quantitative evidence group, whereas narrative, anecdote, and exemplar fall into the qualitative evidence group. Subsequently, the taxonomical classification arranges data versus narrative at the top of the hierarchy of types of evidence, followed by statistics versus anecdote and base rate versus exemplar. This research reiterates the central role of evidence in how journalists describe and explain social phenomena and issues. By defining the various types of evidence and delineating their logical connections it helps remove a significant degree of conceptual inconsistency, ambiguity, and confusion in digital journalism studies.

Keywords: evidence, evidence forms, evidence types, taxonomy

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