Search results for: load resistant factor design

Authors: Seyed Hossein Hosseini, Seyed Majid Hashemzadeh

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Solar energy is one of the remarkable renewable energy sources that have particular characteristics such as unlimited, no environmental pollution, and free access. Generally, solar energy can be used in thermal and photovoltaic (PV) types. The cost of installation of the PV system is very high. Additionally, due to dependence on environmental situations such as solar radiation and ambient temperature, electrical power generation of this system is unpredictable and without power electronics devices, there is no guarantee to maximum power delivery at the output of this system. Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) should be used to achieve the maximum power of a PV string. MPPT is one of the essential parts of the PV system which without this section, it would be impossible to reach the maximum amount of the PV string power and high losses are caused in the PV system. One of the noticeable challenges in the problem of MPPT is the partial shading conditions (PSC). In PSC, the output photocurrent of the PV module under the shadow is less than the PV string current. The difference between the mentioned currents passes from the module's internal parallel resistance and creates a large negative voltage across shaded modules. This significant negative voltage damages the PV module under the shadow. This condition is called hot-spot phenomenon. An anti-paralleled diode is inserted across the PV module to prevent the happening of this phenomenon. This diode is known as the bypass diode. Due to the performance of the bypass diode under PSC, the P-V curve of the PV string has several peaks. One of the P-V curve peaks that makes the maximum available power is the global peak. Model-based Global MPPT (GMPPT) methods can estimate the optimal point with higher speed than other GMPPT approaches. Centralized, modular, and interleaved DC-DC converter topologies are the significant structures that can be used for GMPPT at a PV string. there are some problems in the centralized structure such as current mismatch losses at PV sting, loss of power of the shaded modules because of bypassing by bypass diodes under PSC, needing to series connection of many PV modules to reach the desired voltage level. In the modular structure, each PV module is connected to a DC-DC converter. In this structure, by increasing the amount of demanded power from the PV string, the number of DC-DC converters that are used at the PV system will increase. As a result, the cost of the modular structure is very high. We can implement the model-based GMPPT through the multi-input interleaved boost DC-DC converter to increase the power extraction from the PV string and reduce hot-spot and current mismatch error in a PV string under different environmental condition and variable load circumstances. The interleaved boost DC-DC converter has many privileges than other mentioned structures, such as high reliability and efficiency, better regulation of DC voltage at DC link, overcome the notable errors such as module's current mismatch and hot spot phenomenon, and power switches voltage stress reduction.

Keywords: solar energy, photovoltaic systems, interleaved boost converter, maximum power point tracking, model-based method, partial shading conditions

Procedia PDF Downloads 112

Authors: Shweta Sinha, Mukesh Doble, Manju S. L.

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Pyrazole scaffold is an important group of compound in heterocyclic chemistry and is found to possess numerous uses in chemistry. Pyrazole derivatives are also known to possess important biological activities including antitumor, antimicrobial, antiviral, antifungal, anticancer and anti-inflammatory. Inflammation is associated with pain, allergy and asthma. Leukotrienes are mediators of various inflammatory and allergic disorders. 5-Lipoxygenase (5-LOX) is an important enzyme involved in the biosynthesis of leukotrienes and metabolism of arachidonic acid (AA) and thus targeted for anti-inflammation. In vitro inhibitory activity of pyrazol-3-yl thiazole 4-carboxylic acid derivatives is tested against enzyme 5-LOX. Most of these compounds exhibit good inhibitory activity against this enzyme. Binding mode study of these compounds is determined by computational tool. Further experiments are being done to understand the mechanism of action of these compounds in inhibiting this enzyme. To conclude, these compounds appear to be a promising target in drug design against 5-LOX.

Keywords: inflammation, inhibition, 5-lipoxygenase, pyrazole

Procedia PDF Downloads 231

Authors: M. S. Jimah, A. C. Achuenu, M. Momodu

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Group communications over public infrastructure are prone to a lot of security issues. Existing network protocols like Protocol Independent Multicast Sparse Mode (PIM SM) and Protocol Independent Multicast Dense Mode (PIM DM) do not have inbuilt security features. Therefore, any user or node can easily access the group communication as long as the user can send join message to the source nodes, the source node then adds the user to the network group. In this research, a hybrid method of salting and hashing to encrypt information in the source and stub node was designed, and when stub nodes need to connect, they must have the appropriate key to join the group network. Object oriented analysis design (OOAD) was the methodology used, and the result shows that no extra controlled bandwidth overhead cost was added by encrypting and the hybrid model was more securing than the existing PIM SM, PIM DM and Zhang secure PIM SM.

Keywords: group communications, multicast, PIM SM, PIM DM, encryption

Procedia PDF Downloads 148

Authors: Rajashree Bothale, Venkateswara Rao

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Indian Himalayas also known as third pole with 0.9 Million SQ km area, contain the largest reserve of ice and snow outside poles and affect global climate and water availability in the perennial rivers. The variations in the extent of snow are indicative of climate change. The snow melt is sensitive to climate change (warming) and also an influencing factor to the climate change. A study of the spatio-temporal dynamics of snow cover and melt/freeze conditions is carried out using space based observations in visible and microwave bands. An analysis period of 2003 to 2015 is selected to identify and map the changes and trend in snow cover using Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) Advanced Wide Field Sensor (AWiFS) and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer(MODIS) data. For mapping of wet snow, microwave data is used, which is sensitive to the presence of liquid water in the snow. The present study uses Ku-band scatterometer data from QuikSCAT and Oceansat satellites. The enhanced resolution images at 2.25 km from the 13.6GHz sensor are used to analyze the backscatter response to dry and wet snow for the period of 2000-2013 using threshold method. The study area is divided into three major river basins namely Brahmaputra, Ganges and Indus which also represent the diversification in Himalayas as the Eastern Himalayas, Central Himalayas and Western Himalayas. Topographic variations across different zones show that a majority of the study area lies in 4000–5500 m elevation range and the maximum percent of high elevated areas (>5500 m) lies in Western Himalayas. The effect of climate change could be seen in the extent of snow cover and also on the melt/freeze status in different parts of Himalayas. Melt onset day increases from east (March11+11) to west (May12+15) with large variation in number of melt days. Western Himalayas has shorter melt duration (120+15) in comparison to Eastern Himalayas (150+16) providing lesser time for melt. Eastern Himalaya glaciers are prone for enhanced melt due to large melt duration. The extent of snow cover coupled with the status of melt/freeze indicating solar radiation can be used as precursor for monsoon prediction.

Keywords: Indian Himalaya, Scatterometer, Snow Melt/Freeze, AWiFS, Cryosphere

Procedia PDF Downloads 243

Authors: Sergey N. Sayapin, Anatoly P. Karpenko, Suan H. Dang

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Comparative analysis of robotic vehicles for pipe inspection is presented in this paper. The promising concept of self-propelled intelligent robotic vehicle (SPIRV) based on octahedral dodekapod for inspection and operation in active branched pipelines with variable cross-sections is reasoned. SPIRV is able to move in pipeline, regardless of its spatial orientation. SPIRV can also be used to move along the outside of the pipelines as well as in space between surfaces of annular tubes. Every one of faces of the octahedral dodekapod can clamp/unclamp a thing with a closed loop surface of various forms as well as put pressure on environmental surface of contact. These properties open new possibilities for its applications in SPIRV. We examine design principles of octahedral dodekapod as future intelligent building blocks for various robotic vehicles that can self-move and self-reconfigure.

Keywords: Modular robot, octahedral dodekapod, pipe inspection robot, spatial parallel structure

Procedia PDF Downloads 489

Authors: S. Kawther, C. Marshall

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Educational neuroscience has the intention of transforming research findings of the underpinning neural processes of learning to educational practices. A main criticism of the field, hitherto, is that less focus has been put on studying the in-progress practical application of these findings. Therefore, this study aims to gain a better understanding of teachers’ perceptions of the practical application and utilization of brain knowledge. This was approached by investigating the answer to 'What are the facilitators and barriers for bringing research from neuroscience to bear on education?'. Following a qualitative design, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 teachers who had a proficient course in educational neuroscience. Thematic analysis was performed on the transcribed data applying Braun & Clark’s steps. Findings emerged with four main themes: time, knowledge, teacher’s involvement, and system. These themes revealed that some effective brain-based practices are being engaged in by the teachers. However, the lack of guidance and challenges regarding this implementation were also found. This study discusses findings in light of the development of educational neuroscience implementation.

Keywords: brain-based, educational neuroscience, neuroeducation, neuroscience-informed

Procedia PDF Downloads 149

Authors: Aura Maria Lopera Echavarria, Angela Maria Lema Perez, Daniela Medrano David, Pedronel Araque Marin, Marta Elena Londoño Lopez

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Bone regeneration is the process by which the formation of new bone is stimulated. Bone fractures can originate at any time due to trauma, infections, tumors, congenital malformations or skeletal diseases. Currently there are different strategies to treat bone defects that in some cases, regeneration does not occur on its own. That is why they are treated with bone substitutes, which provide a necessary environment for the cells to synthesize new bone. The Demineralized Bone Matrix (DBM) is widely used as a bone implant due to its good properties, such as osteoinduction and bioactivity. However, the use of DBM is limited, because its presentation is powder, which is difficult to implant with precision and is susceptible to migrating to other sites through blood flow. That is why the DBM is commonly incorporated into a variety of vehicles or carriers. The objective of this project is to evaluate the bioactive and confinement properties of a bone substitute based on demineralized bone matrix (DBM). Also, structural and morphological properties were evaluated. Bone substitute was obtained from EIA Biomaterials Laboratory of EIA University and the DBM was facilitated by Tissue Bank Foundation. Morphological and structural properties were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (DRX) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy with total attenuated reflection (FTIR-ATR). Water absorption capacity and degradation were also evaluated during three months. The cytotoxicity was evaluated by the MTT test. The bioactivity of the bone substitute was evaluated through immersion of the samples in simulated body fluid during four weeks. Confinement tests were performed on tibial fragments of a human donor with bone defects of determined size, to ensure that the substitute remains in the defect despite the continuous flow of fluid. According of the knowledge of the authors, the methodology for evaluating samples in a confined environment has not been evaluated before in real human bones. The morphology of the samples showed irregular surface and presented some porosity. DRX confirmed a semi-crystalline structure. The FTIR-ATR determined the organic and inorganic phase of the sample. The degradation and absorption measurements stablished a loss of 3% and 150% in one month respectively. The MTT showed that the system is not cytotoxic. Apatite clusters formed from the first week were visualized by SEM and confirmed by EDS. These calcium phosphates are necessary to stimulate bone regeneration and thanks to the porosity of the developed material, osteinduction and osteoconduction are possible. The results of the in vitro evaluation of the confinement of the material showed that the migration of the bone filling to other sites is negligible, although the samples were subjected to the passage of simulated body fluid. The bone substitute, putty type, showed stability, is bioactive, non-cytotoxic and has handling properties for specialists at the time of implantation. The obtained system allows to maintain the osteoinductive properties of DBM and it can fill completely fractures in any way; however, it does not provide a structural support, that is, it should only be used to treat fractures without requiring a mechanical load.

Keywords: bone regeneration, cytotoxicity, demineralized bone matrix, hydrogel

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Authors: Chioma Ifeoma Agbasimelo, Stephen Afam Kenechukwu

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The study examined consumers’ responses to non-traditional marketing communication strategies in advertising herbal products. The study identified the following non-traditional marketing communication strategies: (a) trado-instrumental marketing strategy, (b) trado-demonstrative marketing strategy, and (c) trado-iconographic marketing strategy. Anchored on the Black Box Theory, it adopted the survey design of three metropolises (Awka, Onitsha, and Nnewi) in Anambra State, Nigeria. Major findings indicated that among the identified strategies, the trado-instrumental marketing strategy is the most dominant strategy. Other strategies: (b) trado-demonstrative marketing strategy and (c) trado-iconographic marketing strategy are sparingly used in semi-urban cities. It also found that consumers’ preferences and adoption of non-traditional marketing communication were minimal. Based on the findings, there is a need to create a unified system of integration of both traditional and non-traditional marketing communication strategies due to technology interfaces.

Keywords: advertising, consumers’ responses, herbal products, non-traditional marketing communication strategies

Procedia PDF Downloads 79

Authors: Nabil Mekaoui, Nacer Jabour, Abdelhamid Allaoui, Abderahim Oulidi

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The reliability of several insurance indexes of the seismic risk is evaluated and compared for an efficient seismic risk coverage of buildings in Morocco, thus, reducing the basic risk. A large database of earthquake ground motions is established from recent seismic events in Morocco and synthetic ground motions compatible with the design spectrum in order to conduct nonlinear time history analyses on three building models representative of the building stock in Morocco. The uninhabitability index is evaluated based on the simulated damage index, then correlated with preselected insurance indexes. Interestingly, the commonly used peak ground acceleration index showed poor correlation when compared with other indexes, such as spectral accelerations at low periods. Recommendations on the choice of suitable insurance indexes are formulated for efficient seismic risk coverage in Morocco.

Keywords: catastrophe modeling, damage, earthquake, reinsurance, seismic hazard, trigger index, vulnerability

Procedia PDF Downloads 58

Authors: Pei-Chun Lee, Sheng-Shih Wang, Pei-Hsuan Ku

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Many existing amusement parks have been operated with assistance of a variety of information and communications technologies to design friendly and efficient service systems for tourists. However, these systems leave various levels of decisions to tourists to make by themselves. This incurs pressure on tourists and thereby bringing negative experience in their tour. This paper proposes a smart amusement park system to offer each tourist the GPS-based customized plan without tourists making decisions by themselves. The proposed system consists of the mobile app subsystem, the central subsystem, and the detecting/counting subsystem. The mobile app subsystem interacts with the central subsystem. The central subsystem performs the necessary computing and database management of the proposed system. The detecting/counting subsystem aims to detect and compute the number of visitors to an attraction. Experimental results show that the proposed system can not only work well, but also provide an innovative business operating model for owners of amusement parks.

Keywords: amusement park, location-based service, LBS, mobile app, tourist service

Procedia PDF Downloads 498

Authors: Huseyin Canci

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Chlorophylls are green photosynthetic pigment in plants. Therefore, photosynthesis in plants occurs in the leaves. Roles of chlorophylls help plants to get energy from light. The aim of the present study is to compare of chlorophyll contents in some bean species including common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and runner bean (P. coccineous L.) and genotypes. This research was carried out in fields of Faculty of Agriculture, Akdeniz University in Antalya. Species and genotypes were grown in 2 m single row and 50 cm row spacing. A randomized blocks design was used with two replications. Totally, 124 beans species and genotypes which 122 common beans and 2 runner beans were sown on February, 17th 2014 by hand. Chlorophyll a + b (SPAD values) were determined seedling stage, days to flowering 50% and pod setting stage on bean genotypes. Results showed that there were significant differences for genotypes, stages and interaction of genotypes X stages. There was statistically significant relationships between yield and chlorophyll content of bean species and genotypes.

Keywords: bean, chlorophyll, Phaseolus, SPAD values

Procedia PDF Downloads 222

Authors: Chang Liu, John Nash, Stephen D. Prior

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This paper presents the design and implementation details of a complete unmanned aerial system (UAS) based on commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) components, focusing on safety, security, search and rescue scenarios in GPS-denied environments. In particular, the aerial platform is capable of semi-autonomously navigating through extremely low-light, GPS-denied indoor environments based on onboard sensors only, including a downward-facing optical flow camera. Besides, an additional low-cost payload camera system is developed to stream both infrared video and visible light video to a ground station in real-time, for the purpose of detecting sign of life and hidden humans. The total cost of the complete system is estimated to be $1150, and the effectiveness of the system has been tested and validated in practical scenarios.

Keywords: unmanned aerial system, commercial-off-the-shelf, extremely low-light, GPS-denied, optical flow, infrared video

Procedia PDF Downloads 310

Authors: Alev Yüksel Aydar, Tuncay Yılmaz, Melisa Özçeli̇k, Tuba Aydın, Elif Karabaş

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In this study, response surface methodology (RSM) was used to obtain the optimum conditions for the freeze-drying of Gemlik variety olive seeds of to achieve the desired quality characteristics. The Box Behnken Design (BBD) was applied with three-variable and three replications in the center point. The effects of the different drying parameters including initial temperature of olive seed, pressure and time for freezing on the DPPH activity, total phenolic contents, and oleuropein absorbance value of the samples were investigated. Temperature (50 – 82 °C), pressure (0.2-0.5 mbar), time (6-10 hours) were chosen as independent variables. The analysis revealed that, while the temperature of the product prior to lyophilization and the drying time had no statistically significant effect on DPPH activity (p>0.05), the pressure was more important than the other two variables , and the quadratic effect of pressure had a significant effect on DPPH activity (p<0.05). The R2 and Adj-R2 values of the DPPH activity model were calculated to be 0.8962 and 0.7045, respectively.

Keywords: olive seed, gemlik variety, DPPH, phenolics, optimization

Procedia PDF Downloads 72

Authors: Gavin Gengan, Hsein Kew

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Glass from varying recycling processes is considered a material that can be used as aggregate. Waste glass is available from different sources and has been used in the construction industry over the last decades. This current study aims to use recycled glass as a partial replacement for conventional aggregate materials. The experimental programme was designed to optimise the mechanical properties of structural concrete made with recycled glass aggregates (GA). NA (natural aggregates) was partially substituted by GA in a mix design of concrete of 30N/mm2 in proportions of 10%, 20%, and 25% 30%, 40%, and 50%. It was found that with an increasing proportion of GA, there is a decline in compressive strength. The optimum percentage replacement of NA by GA is 25%. The heat of hydration was also investigated with thermocouples placed in the concrete. This revealed an early acceleration of hydration heat in glass concrete, resulting from the thermal properties of glass. The gain in the heat of hydration and the better bonding of glass aggregates together with the pozzolanic activity of the finest glass particles caused the concrete to develop early age and long-term strength higher than that of control concrete

Keywords: concrete, compressive strength, glass aggregates, heat of hydration, pozzolanic

Procedia PDF Downloads 192

Authors: Eugueni Romantchik, Gilbero Lopez, Diego Terrazas

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The residual wind energy recovery from axial air extractors in greenhouses represents a constant source of clean energy production, which reduces production costs by reducing energy consumption costs. The objective of this work is to design, build and evaluate a residual wind energy recovery system. This system consists of a wind turbine placed at an optimal distance, a cone in the air discharge and a mechanism to vary the blades angle of the wind turbine. The system energy balance was analyzed, measuring the main energy parameters such as voltage, amperage, air velocities and angular speeds of the rotors. Tests were carried in a greenhouse with extractor Multifan 130 (1.2 kW, 550 rpm and 1.3 m of diameter) without cone and with cone, with the wind turbine (3 blades with 1.2 m in diameter). The implementation of the system allowed recovering up to 55% of the motor's energy. With the cone installed, the electric energy recovered was increased by 10%. Experimentally, it was shown that changing in 3 degrees the original angle of the wind turbine blades, the angular velocity increases 17.7%.

Keywords: air energy, exhaust fan, greenhouse, wind turbine

Procedia PDF Downloads 147

Authors: Elchin Hajiyev, Afet Memmedova Dadash, Sabina Hajiyeva, Aynur Karimova, Ramiz Aliyev

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Although potatoes have a wide distribution range, the yield potential of varieties varies greatly depending on the region. Our country is made up of agricultural regions with very different environmental characteristics.In this case, we cannot expect the introduced varieties to show the same adaptation to the different conditions of our country. For this reason, in our country, varieties with high general adaptability should be used, rather than varieties with special adaptability in certain areas. Soil salinization has become a global problem.Increased salinity has a serious impact on food security by reducing plant productivity. Plants have protective mechanisms of adaptation to salt stress, such as the synthesis of physiologically active substances, resistance to antioxidant stress and oxidation of membrane lipids. One of these substances is free proline. Our study revealed genetic variation in proline accumulation among samples exposed to stress factors.Changes in proline content under stress conditions were studied in 50 samples. There was wide variation across all treatments.The amount of proline varied between 7.2–37.7 μM/g under salinity conditions.The lowest rate was in the SF33 genotype (1.5 times more than the control (2.5 μM/g)).The highest level of proline under the influence of salt stress was in the SF45 genotype (7.25 times higher than the control (32.5 μM/g)). Our studies have found that the protective system reacts differently to the influence of stress factors. According to the results obtained on the amount of proline, adaptation mechanisms must be more actively activated to maintain metabolism and ensure viability in sensitive forms under the influence of stress factors. At high doses of the salt stressor, a tenfold increase in proline compared to the control indicates significant damage to the plant organism as a result of stress.To prevent damage to the body, the antioxidant system needs to quickly mobilize and work at full capacity in adverse conditions. An increase in the dose of the stress factor salt in our study caused a greater increase in the amount of free proline in plant tissues. Considering the functions of proline as an osmoprotector and antioxidant, it was found that increasing its amount is aimed at protecting the plant from the acute effects of stressors.

Keywords: genetic variability, potato, genotypes, proline, stress

Procedia PDF Downloads 21

Authors: Agata Tomaszewska, Timothy Kamps, Stephan R. Turnock, Nicola Symonds

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Bob skeleton is a highly competitive sport in which an athlete reaches speeds up to 40 m/s sliding, head first, down an ice track. It is believed that the friction between the runners and ice significantly contributes to the amount of the total energy loss during a bob skeleton descent. There is only limited available experimental data regarding the friction of bob skeleton runners or indeed steel on the ice at high sliding speeds ( > 20 m/s). Testing methods used to investigate the friction of steel on ice in winter sports have been outlined, and their accuracy and repeatability discussed. A system thinking approach was used to investigate the runner-ice interaction during sliding and create concept designs of three ice tribometers. The operational envelope of the bob skeleton system has been defined through mathematical modelling. Designs of a drum, linear and inertia pin-on-disk tribometers were developed specifically for bob skeleton runner testing with the requirement of reaching up to 40 m/s speed and facilitate fresh ice sliding. The design constraints have been outline and the proposed solutions compared based on the ease of operation, accuracy and the development cost.

Keywords: bob skeleton, ice friction, high-speed tribometers, sliding friction

Procedia PDF Downloads 247

Authors: Anita Yaghobi, Homayoun Ebrahimian

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One of the important tools that can help orthopedic doctors for diagnose diseases is imaging scan. Imaging techniques can help physicians in see different parts of the body, including the bones, muscles, tendons, nerves, and cartilage. During CT scan, a patient must be in the same position from the start to the end of radiation treatment. Patient movements are usually monitored by the technologists through the closed circuit television (CCTV) during scan. If the patient makes a small movement, it is difficult to be noticed by them. In the present work, a simple patient movement monitoring device is fabricated to monitor the patient movement. It uses an electronic sensing device. It continuously monitors the patient’s position while the CT scan is in process. The device has been retrospectively tested on 51 patients whose movement and distance were measured. The results show that 25 patients moved 1 cm to 2.5 cm from their initial position during the CT scan. Hence, the device can potentially be used to control and monitor patient movement during CT scan and Radiography. In addition, an audible alarm situated at the control panel of the control room is provided with this device to alert the technologists. It is an inexpensive, compact device which can be used in any CT scan machine.

Keywords: CT scan, radiology, X Ray, unwanted movement

Procedia PDF Downloads 447

Authors: Shengdan Yang

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The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 has made public health issues to be re-examined. The value of green space configuration is an important measure of community health quality. By combining quantitative and qualitative methods, the structure and function of community green space can be better evaluated. This study selects Wuhan Kunhou Community as the site and proposes to analyze the daily health service function of the community's green infrastructure. Through GIS-based spatial analysis, case study, and field investigation, this study evaluates the accessibility of green infrastructure and discusses the ideal green space form based on health indicators. The findings show that Kunhou Community lacks access to green infrastructure and public space for daily activities. The research findings provide a bridge between public health indicators and community space planning and propose design suggestions for green infrastructure planning.

Keywords: accessibility, community health, GIS, green infrastructure

Procedia PDF Downloads 92

Authors: E. A. Kiridi, A. O. Ogunlela

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Conventional wastewater treatment plants of activated carbon, electrodialysis, ion exchange, reverse osmosis etc. are expensive to install, operate and maintain especially in developing countries; therefore, the use of aquatic macrophytes for wastewater purification is a viable alternative. On the first day of experimentation, approximately 100g of water hyacinth was introduced into the hydroponic units in four replicates. The water quality parameters measured were total suspended solids (TSS), pH and electrical conductivity (EC). Others were concentration of ammonium–nitrogen (NH₄⁺-N), nitrite-nitrogen (NO₂^--N), nitrate-nitrogen (NO₃^--N), phosphate–phosphorus (PO₄^3--P), and biomass value. At phytoremediation intervals of 7, 14, 21 and 28 days, the biomass recorded were 438.2 g, 600.7 g, 688.2 g and 725.7 g. Water hyacinth was able to reduce the pollutant concentration of all the selected parameter. The percentage reduction of pH ranged from 1.9% to 14.7%, EC from 49.8% to 97.0%, TDS from 50.4% to 97.6%, TSS from 34.0% to 78.3%, NH₄⁺-N from 38.9% to 85.2%, NO₂^--N from 0% to 84.6%, NO₃^--N from 63.2% to 98.8% and PO₄^3--P from 10% to 88.0%. Paired sample t-test shows that at 95% confidence level, it can be concluded statistically that the inequality between the pre-treatment and post-treatment values are significant. This suggests that the use of water hyacinth is valuable in the design and operation of aquaculture effluent treatment and should therefore be adopted by environmental and wastewater managers.

Keywords: aquaculture effluent, phytoremediation, pollutant, water hyacinth

Procedia PDF Downloads 261

Authors: Inuusah Mahama

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The study focused on the importance of diversity and the use of evidence-based practices and strategies in teaching learners with ASD. The study employed a mixed-methods design, including surveys, interviews, and observations. A total of 500 K-12 practitioners participated in the study, including teachers, administrators, and support staff. The study sought to investigate the current understanding and knowledge level of K-12 practitioners regarding diversity, evidence-based practices, and strategies for teaching learners with ASD. The study also examined the challenges that K-12 practitioners face in preparing learners with ASD and the resources they require to improve their practice. The results indicated that K-12 practitioners in Ghana have limited knowledge and skills in teaching learners with ASD, particularly in using evidence-based practices and strategies. Therefore, there is a need for providing training and professional development opportunities for K-12 practitioners, developing and implementing evidence-based practices and strategies, and increasing awareness of ASD and the need for effective teaching strategies. This would go a long way to improve the quality of education for learners with ASD in Ghana and ultimately lead to better outcomes for these students.

Keywords: autism, practitioners, diversity, evidence-based practises

Procedia PDF Downloads 83

Authors: J. Al-Dmour, A. Sagahyroon, A. Al-Ali, S. Abusnana

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Radio Frequency Based Identification Systems have emerged as one of the possible valuable solutions that can be utilized in healthcare systems. Nowadays, RFID tags are available with built-in human vital signs sensors such as Body Temperature, Blood Pressure, Heart Rate, Blood Sugar level and Oxygen Saturation in Blood. This work proposes the design, implementation, and testing of an integrated mobile RFID-based health care system. The system consists of a wireless mobile vital signs data acquisition unit (RFID-DAQ) integrated with a fuzzy-logic–based software algorithm to monitor and assess patients conditions. The system is implemented and tested in ‘Rashid Center for Diabetes and Research’, Ajman, UAE. System testing results are compared with the Modified Early Warning System (MEWS) that is currently used in practice. We demonstrate that the proposed and implemented system exhibits an accuracy level that is comparable and sometimes better than the widely adopted MEWS system.

Keywords: healthcare, fuzzy logic, MEWS, RFID

Procedia PDF Downloads 331

Authors: K. Doi, T. Nishimura, M. Kawano, H. Fujimoto, Y. Tanaka, M. Sawada, S. Oouchi, T. Kaneko, K. Kanamori

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As part of reasonable accommodation for people with disabilities in Japan, which has ratified the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, tactile guide maps are necessary. Such maps can enable visually impaired children to attend schools of special needs education (visual impairments) to grasp the arrangement of classrooms on their school campuses. However, it takes many years to be able to use a tactile guide map without difficulty. Thus, information support, in which audio information is added in addition to tactile information, is required. In the present research, a method to prepare an in-school tactile guide map with an additional audio reading function was developed. This map can enable visually impaired school children attending schools of special needs education (visual impairments) to grasp the arrangement of classrooms on their school campuses.

Keywords: accessible design, visually impaired, braille, tactile map, in-school tactile guide map

Procedia PDF Downloads 348

Authors: Gheorghe Braniste

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Gender gap has always been in dispute when comparing records and has been a major factor influencing best performances in various sports. Consequently, our study registers the evolution of the difference between men's and women’s best performances within either cyclic or acyclic sports, considering the fact that the training sessions of high performance athletes prove both similarities and differences in long-term adaptation of their body to stress and effort in breaking limits and records. Firstly, for a correct interpretation of the data and tables included in this paper, we must point out that the intense muscular activity has a considerable impact on the structural organization of the organs and systems of the performer's body through the mechanism of motor-visceral reflexes, forming a high working capacity suitable for intense muscular activity. The opportunity to obtaine high sports results during the official competitions is due, on the one hand, to the genetic characteristics of the athlete's body, and on the other hand, to the fact that playing professional sports leaves its mark on the vital morphological and functional parameters. The aim of our research is to study the landmarking differences between male and female athletes and their physical development, together with their growing capacity to stand up to the functional training during the competitive period of their annual training cycle. In order to evaluate the physical development of the athletes, the data of the anthropometric screenings obtained at the Olympic Training Center of the selected teams of the Republic of Moldova were interpreted and rated. During the study of physical development in terms of body height and weight, vital capacity, thoracic excursion, maximum force (Fmax), dynamometry of the hand and back, a further evaluation of the physical development indices that allow an evaluation of complex physical development were registered. The interdependence of the results obtained in performance sports with the morphological and functional particularities of the athletes' body is firmly determined and cannot be disputed. Nevertheless, registered data proved that with the increase of the training capacity, the morphological and functional abilities of the female body increase and, in some respects, approach and even slightly surpass the men in certain sports.

Keywords: physical development, indices, parameters, active body weight, morphological maturity, physical performance

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Authors: Petra Hypšová, Martin Seitl

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One of the challenges of forensic psychology is to detect deception during a face-to-face interview. In addition to the classical approaches of monitoring the utterance and its components, detection is also sought by observing behavioral and physiological changes that occur as a result of the increased emotional and cognitive load caused by the production of distorted information. Typical are changes in facial temperature, eye movements and their fixation, pupil dilation, emotional micro-expression, heart rate and its variability. Expanding technological capabilities have opened the space to detect these psychophysiological changes and behavioral manifestations through non-contact technologies that do not interfere with face-to-face interaction. Non-contact deception detection methodology is still in development, and there is a lack of studies that combine multiple non-contact technologies to investigate their accuracy, as well as studies that show how different types of lies produced by different interviewers affect physiological and behavioral changes. The main objective of this study is to apply a specific non-contact technology for deception detection. The next objective is to investigate scenarios in which non-contact deception detection is possible. A series of psychophysiological experiments using infrared thermal imaging, eye tracking and behavioral analysis with FaceReader 9.0 software was used to achieve our goals. In the laboratory experiment, 16 adults (12 women, 4 men) between 18 and 35 years of age (SD = 4.42) were instructed to produce alternating prepared and spontaneous truths and lies. The baseline of each proband was also measured, and its results were compared to the experimental conditions. Because the personality of the examiner (particularly gender and facial appearance) to whom the subject is lying can influence physiological and behavioral changes, the experiment included four different interviewers. The interviewer was represented by a photograph of a face that met the required parameters in terms of gender and facial appearance (i.e., interviewer likability/antipathy) to follow standardized procedures. The subject provided all information to the simulated interviewer. During follow-up analyzes, facial temperature (main ROIs: forehead, cheeks, the tip of the nose, chin, and corners of the eyes), heart rate, emotional expression, intensity and fixation of eye movements and pupil dilation were observed. The results showed that the variables studied varied with respect to the production of prepared truths and lies versus the production of spontaneous truths and lies, as well as the variability of the simulated interviewer. The results also supported the assumption of variability in physiological and behavioural values during the subject's resting state, the so-called baseline, and the production of prepared and spontaneous truths and lies. A series of psychophysiological experiments provided evidence of variability in the areas of interest in the production of truths and lies to different interviewers. The combination of technologies used also led to a comprehensive assessment of the physiological and behavioral changes associated with false and true statements. The study presented here opens the space for further research in the field of lie detection with non-contact technologies.

Keywords: emotional expression decoding, eye-tracking, functional infrared thermal imaging, non-contact deception detection, psychophysiological experiment

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Authors: Simone Cinquemani, Lorenzo Mantovani, Aleksander Dabek

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New technologies in agriculture are opening new challenges and new opportunities. Among these, certainly, robotics, vision, and artificial intelligence are the ones that will make a significant leap, compared to traditional agricultural techniques, possible. In particular, the indoor farming sector will be the one that will benefit the most from these solutions. Vertical farming is a new field of research where mechanical engineering can bring knowledge and know-how to transform a highly labor-based business into a fully autonomous system. The aim of the research is to develop a multi-purpose, modular, and perfectly integrated platform for crop production in indoor vertical farming. Activities will be based both on hardware development such as automatic tools to perform different activities on soil and plants, as well as research to introduce an extensive use of monitoring techniques based on machine learning algorithms. This paper presents the preliminary results of a research project of a vertical farm living lab designed to (i) develop and test vertical farming cultivation practices, (ii) introduce a very high degree of mechanization and automation that makes all processes replicable, fully measurable, standardized and automated, (iii) develop a coordinated control and management environment for autonomous multiplatform or tele-operated robots in environments with the aim of carrying out complex tasks in the presence of environmental and cultivation constraints, (iv) integrate AI-based algorithms as decision support system to improve quality production. The coordinated management of multiplatform systems still presents innumerable challenges that require a strongly multidisciplinary approach right from the design, development, and implementation phases. The methodology is based on (i) the development of models capable of describing the dynamics of the various platforms and their interactions, (ii) the integrated design of mechatronic systems able to respond to the needs of the context and to exploit the strength characteristics highlighted by the models, (iii) implementation and experimental tests performed to test the real effectiveness of the systems created, evaluate any weaknesses so as to proceed with a targeted development. To these aims, a fully automated laboratory for growing plants in vertical farming has been developed and tested. The living lab makes extensive use of sensors to determine the overall state of the structure, crops, and systems used. The possibility of having specific measurements for each element involved in the cultivation process makes it possible to evaluate the effects of each variable of interest and allows for the creation of a robust model of the system as a whole. The automation of the laboratory is completed with the use of robots to carry out all the necessary operations, from sowing to handling to harvesting. These systems work synergistically thanks to the knowledge of detailed models developed based on the information collected, which allows for deepening the knowledge of these types of crops and guarantees the possibility of tracing every action performed on each single plant. To this end, artificial intelligence algorithms have been developed to allow synergistic operation of all systems.

Keywords: automation, vertical farming, robot, artificial intelligence, vision, control

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Authors: Regiane A. Oliveira, Carlos E. Vaz Rossell, Rubens Maciel Filho

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Lactic acid, besides a valuable chemical may be considered a platform for other chemicals. In fact, the feasibility of hemicellulosic sugars as feedstock for lactic acid production process, may represent the drop of some of the barriers for the second generation bioproducts, especially bearing in mind the 5-carbon sugars from the pre-treatment of sugarcane bagasse. Bearing this in mind, the purpose of this study was to use the hemicellulosic liquor from sugarcane bagasse as a substrate to produce lactic acid by fermentation. To release of sugars from hemicellulose it was made a pre-treatment with a diluted sulfuric acid in order to obtain a xylose's rich liquor with low concentration of inhibiting compounds for fermentation (≈ 67% of xylose, ≈ 21% of glucose, ≈ 10% of cellobiose and arabinose, and around 1% of inhibiting compounds as furfural, hydroxymethilfurfural and acetic acid). The hemicellulosic sugars associated with 20 g/L of yeast extract were used in a fermentation process with Lactobacillus plantarum to produce lactic acid. The fermentation process pH was controlled with automatic injection of Ca(OH)2 to keep pH at 6.00. The lactic acid concentration remained stable from the time when the glucose was depleted (48 hours of fermentation), with no further production. While lactic acid is produced occurs the concomitant consumption of xylose and glucose. The yield of fermentation was 0.933 g lactic acid /g sugars. Besides, it was not detected the presence of by-products, what allows considering that the microorganism uses a homolactic fermentation to produce its own energy using pentose-phosphate pathway. Through facultative heterofermentative metabolism the bacteria consume pentose, as is the case of L. plantarum, but the energy efficiency for the cell is lower than during the hexose consumption. This implies both in a slower cell growth, as in a reduction in lactic acid productivity compared with the use of hexose. Also, L. plantarum had shown to have a capacity for lactic acid production from hemicellulosic hydrolysate without detoxification, which is very attractive in terms of robustness for an industrial process. Xylose from hydrolyzed bagasse and without detoxification is consumed, although the hydrolyzed bagasse inhibitors (especially aromatic inhibitors) affect productivity and yield of lactic acid. The use of sugars and the lack of need for detoxification of the C5 liquor from sugarcane bagasse hydrolyzed is a crucial factor for the economic viability of second generation processes. Taking this information into account, the production of second generation lactic acid using sugars from hemicellulose appears to be a good alternative to the complete utilization of sugarcane plant, directing molasses and cellulosic carbohydrates to produce 2G-ethanol, and hemicellulosic carbohydrates to produce 2G-lactic acid.

Keywords: fermentation, lactic acid, hemicellulosic sugars, sugarcane

Procedia PDF Downloads 356

Authors: Walid Fantazi

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The development of sensor technology (such as microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), wireless communications, embedded systems, distributed processing and wireless sensor applications) has contributed to a broad range of WSN applications which are capable of collecting a large amount of spatiotemporal data in real time. These systems require real-time data processing to manage storage in real time and query the data they process. In order to cover these needs, we propose in this paper a Snapshot spatiotemporal data model based on object-oriented concepts. This model allows saving storing and reducing data redundancy which makes it easier to execute spatiotemporal queries and save analyzes time. Further, to ensure the robustness of the system as well as the elimination of congestion from the main access memory we propose a spatiotemporal indexing technique in RAM called Captree *. As a result, we offer an RIA (Rich Internet Application) -based SOA application architecture which allows the remote monitoring and control.

Keywords: WSN, indexing data, SOA, RIA, geographic information system

Procedia PDF Downloads 239

Authors: Rose Mini Agoes Salim, Shahnaz Safitri

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The aim of this study is to test the effectiveness of teaching kindness in preschool children by using several techniques. Kindness is a physical act or emotional support aimed to build or maintain relationships with others. Kindness is known to be essential in the development of moral reasoning to distinguish between the good and bad things. In this study, kindness is operationalized as several acts including helping friends, comforting sad friends, inviting friends to play, protecting others, sharing, saying hello, saying thank you, encouraging others, and apologizing. It is mentioned that kindness is crucial to be developed in preschool children because this is the time the children begin to interact with their social environment through play. Furthermore, preschool children's cognitive development makes them begin to represent the world with words, which then allows them to interact with others. On the other hand, preschool children egocentric thinking makes them still need to learn to consider another person's perspective. In relation to social interaction, preschool children need to be stimulated and assisted by adult to be able to pay attention to other and act with kindness toward them. On teaching kindness to children, the quality of interaction between children and their significant others is the key factor. It is known that preschool children learn about kindness by imitating adults on their two way interaction. Specifically, this study examines two types of teaching techniques that can be done by parents as a way to teach kindness, namely the picture-storybook reading and hand-puppet storytelling. These techniques were examined because both activities are easy to do and both also provide a model of behavior for the child based on the character in the story. To specifically examine those techniques effectiveness in teaching kindness, two studies were conducted. Study I involves 31 children aged 5-6 years old with picture-storybook reading technique, where the intervention is done by reading 8 picture books for 8 days. In study II, hand-puppet storytelling technique is examined to 32 children aged 3-5 years old. The treatments effectiveness are measured using an instrument in the form of nine colored cards that describe the behavior of kindness. Data analysis using Wilcoxon Signed-rank test shows a significant difference on the average score of kindness (p < 0.05) before and after the intervention has been held. For daily observation, a ‘kindness tree’ and observation sheets are used which are filled out by the teacher. Two weeks after interventions, an improvement on all kindness behaviors measured is intact. The same result is also gained from both ‘kindness tree’ and observational sheets.

Keywords: kindness, moral teaching, storytelling, hand puppet

Procedia PDF Downloads 239

Authors: Moustapha Bande, Hakima Ould-Slimane, Hanifa Boucheneb

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Software development for complex systems requires efficient and automatic tools that can be used to verify the satisfiability of some critical properties such as security ones. With the emergence of Aspect-Oriented Programming (AOP), considerable work has been done in order to better modularize the separation of concerns in the software design and implementation. The goal is to prevent the cross-cutting concerns to be scattered across the multiple modules of the program and tangled with other modules. One of the key challenges in the aspect-oriented programs is to be sure that all the pieces put together at the weaving time ensure the satisfiability of the overall system requirements. Our paper focuses on this problem and proposes a formal property verification approach for a given property from the woven program. The approach is based on the control flow graph (CFG) of the woven program, and the use of a satisfiability modulo theories (SMT) solver to check whether each property (represented par one aspect) is satisfied or not once the weaving is done.

Keywords: aspect-oriented programming, control flow graph, property verification, satisfiability modulo theories

Procedia PDF Downloads 160