Search results for: high performance concrete

Authors: Arjun S.

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This study examines the impact of corporate governance on financial performance of Indian banks during five years (from 2010 to 2015). Based on 218 observations, a quantitative method of data analysis was employed to investigate the relevance of corporate governance mechanisms. The first finding reveals a significant and negative impact of board size on the performance of Indian banks. The research also finds a significant and negative relationship between CEO duality and bank performance. Finally, the correlation results reveal that there is a significant and negative correlation of Bank size and bank performance.

Keywords: Indian banks, financial performance, corporate governance, banksize

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Authors: Yi-Hsiang Pan, Chen-Hui Huang, Wei-Ting Hsu

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The purposes of the study were to understand these topics as follows: 1. To explore the effect of merging teaching personal and social responsibility (TPSR) with sports education model on students' game performance and responsibility. 2. To explore the effect of sports education model on students' game performance and responsibility. 3. To compare the difference between "merging TPSR with sports education model" and "sports education model" on students' game performance and responsibility. The participants include three high school physical education teachers and six physical education classes. Every teacher teaches an experimental group and a control group. The participants had 121 students, including 65 students in the experimental group and 56 students in the control group. The research methods had game performance assessment, questionnaire investigation, interview, focus group meeting. The research instruments include personal and social responsibility questionnaire and game performance assessment instrument. Paired t-test test and MANCOVA were used to test the difference between "merging TPSR with sports education model" and "sports education model" on students' learning performance. 1) "Merging TPSR with sports education model" showed significant improvements in students' game performance, and responsibilities with self-direction, helping others, cooperation. 2) "Sports education model" also had significant improvements in students' game performance, and responsibilities with effort, self-direction, helping others. 3.) There was no significant difference in game performance and responsibilities between "merging TPSR with sports education model" and "sports education model". 4)."Merging TPSR with sports education model" significantly improve learning atmosphere and peer relationships, it may be developed in the physical education curriculum. The conclusions were as follows: Both "Merging TPSR with sports education model" and "sports education model" can help improve students' responsibility and game performance. However, "Merging TPSR with sports education model" can reduce the competitive atmosphere in highly intensive games between students. The curricular projects of hybrid TPSR-Sport Education model is a good approach for moral character education.

Keywords: curriculum and teaching model, sports self-efficacy, sport enthusiastic, character education

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Authors: Logaiswari Indiran, Noraindah Abdullah Fahim, Zainab Khalifah, Rohaizat Baharun, Kamariah Ismail

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Innovation capability is believed to give an important impact on organization’s sustainability and high performance. For instance, innovation capability able to transform technology into a specific organization’s operation, managerial, and transaction which increase organizational performance and economic growth of a country. In fact, research on high level of various antecedents has also shown positive impact on innovation capability. However, there are lacking studies explored on various kinds of antecedents which relate innovation capability’s role as mediator in the relationship. Thus, the purpose of this study is to specifically exhibit the mediation role of innovation capability between variety of antecedents and with different outcomes of an organization across industries. This study reviewed previous literature that has identified 'innovation capability' as mediator between the period of 2010 – 2016 and carries out a literature-based analysis of the findings in each article. From our review, innovation capability has been seen as a key role to mediate the relationship between independent variable and dependent variable in various industry. As the role of innovation capability as mediator is significant, new researchers should focus on varieties of independent variables. The review of this study will be useful for practitioners and researchers to understand and apply innovation capability as mediator to increase organizational success and innovativeness.

Keywords: innovation capability, mediator, organization performance, antecedents

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Authors: Ho Young Kim, Jae Hoon Lee, Do Kyu Hwang, Im Jong Kwahk, Tae Hoon Kim, Seung Hoon Lee

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Hollow section for bridge columns has some advantages. However, current seismic design codes do not provide design regulations for hollow bridge piers. There have been many experimental studied for hollow reinforced concrete piers in the world. But, Study for hollow section for bridge piers in Korea has been begun with approximately 2000s. There has been conducted experimental study for hollow piers of flexural controlled sections by Yeungnam University, Sung kyunkwan University, Korea Expressway Corporation in 2009. This study concluded that flexural controlled sections for hollow piers showed the similar behavior to solid sections. And there have been conducted experimental study for hollow piers of compression controlled sections by Yeungnam University, Korea Institute of Construction Technology in 2012. This study concluded that compression controlled sections for hollow piers showed compression fracture of concrete in inside wall face. Samsung C&T Engineering & Construction Group has been conducted study with Yeungnam University for reduce the quantity of reinforcement details about hollow piers. Reduce the quantity of reinforcement details are triangular cross tie. This study concluded that triangular reinforcement details showed the similar behavior as compared with existing reinforcement details.

Keywords: hollow pier, flexural controlled section, compression controlled section, reduce the quantity of reinforcement, details

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Authors: Annu Sheokand, Vinay Kumar

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Hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) detection is essential for environmental monitoring and industrial safety due to its high toxicity, even at low concentrations. This study explores the H₂S gas sensing properties of Cu-doped Fe₂O₃ materials derived from metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), which offer high surface area and controlled porosity for optimized gas sensing. The structural and morphological characteristics of the synthesized material were thoroughly analyzed using techniques such as X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM), and UV-Vis Spectroscopy. The resulting sensor exhibited remarkable sensitivity and selectivity, achieving a detection limit at the ppb level for H₂S. The study indicates that Cu doping significantly enhances the gas sensing performance of Fe₂O₃ by introducing abundant active sites within the material. These enhanced sensing properties emphasize the potential of MOF-derived Cu-doped Fe₂O₃ as a highly effective material for H₂S gas sensors in various applications.

Keywords: detection limit, doping, MOF, sensitivity, sensor

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Authors: Keyvan Ramin

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The geometric nonlinearity of Off-Diagonal Bracing System (ODBS) could be a complementary system to covering and extending the nonlinearity of reinforced concrete material. Finite element modeling is performed for flexural frame, x-braced frame and the ODBS braced frame system at the initial phase. Then the different models are investigated along various analyses. According to the experimental results of flexural and x-braced frame, the verification is done. Analytical assessments are performed in according to three-dimensional finite element modeling. Non-linear static analysis is considered to obtain performance level and seismic behavior, and then the response modification factors calculated from each model’s pushover curve. In the next phase, the evaluation of cracks observed in the finite element models, especially for RC members of all three systems is performed. The finite element assessment is performed on engendered cracks in ODBS braced frame for various time steps. The nonlinear dynamic time history analysis accomplished in different stories models for three records of Elcentro, Naghan, and Tabas earthquake accelerograms. Dynamic analysis is performed after scaling accelerogram on each type of flexural frame, x-braced frame and ODBS braced frame one by one. The base-point on RC frame is considered to investigate proportional displacement under each record. Hysteresis curves are assessed along continuing this study. The equivalent viscous damping for ODBS system is estimated in according to references. Results in each section show the ODBS system has an acceptable seismic behavior and their conclusions have been converged when the ODBS system is utilized in reinforced concrete frame.

Keywords: FEM, seismic behaviour, pushover analysis, geometric nonlinearity, time history analysis, equivalent viscous damping, passive control, crack investigation, hysteresis curve

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Authors: Ilias A. Makris

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In this work, we attempt to associate firm characteristics with innovative activity. We collect microdata from listed firms of selected Eurozone Country-members, after the beginning of 2007 financial crisis. The following literature, several indicators of growth and performance were selected and tested for their ability to interpret innovative activity. The main scope is to examine the possible differences in performance and growth between innovative and non-innovative firms, during a severe recession. Additionally to that, a special focus will be held on whether macroeconomic performance and national innovation system, determines the extent of innovators' performance. Preliminary findings, through correlation matrices and non-parametric tests, strongly indicate the positive relation between innovative activity and most of the measures used (profitability, size, employment), confirming that even during a recessionary period, innovative firms not only survive but also seem to succeed better economic results in almost all indexes relative to non-innovative. However, even though innovators seem to perform better in all economies examined, the extent of that performance seems to be strongly affected by the supportive mechanisms (financial and structural) that their country provides. Thus, it is clear, that the technologically intensive 'gap' between European South and North, during the economic crisis, became chaotic, due to the harsh austerity measures and reduced budgets in those countries, even in sectors with high potentials in economic activity and employment, impairing the effects of crisis and enhancing the vicious circle of recession.

Keywords: eurozone, innovative activity, development, firm performance, non-parametric tests

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Authors: Taehoon Kwon, Hyeongrae Cho, Dirk Henkensmeier, Youngjong Kang, Chong Min Koo

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Ionic polymer actuators have been of interest in the bio-inspired artificial muscle devices. However, the relatively slow response and low power density were the obstacles for practical applications. In this study, ionic polymer actuators are fabricated with ionic polymer composite membranes based on sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone) (SPAES) and copper(II) phthalocyanine tetrasulfonic acid (CuPCSA). CuPCSA is an organic filler with very high ion exchange capacity (IEC, 4.5 mmol H+/g) that can be homogeneously dispersed on the molecular scale into the SPAES membrane. SPAES/CuPCSA actuators show larger ionic conductivity, mechanical properties, bending deformation, exceptional faster response to electrical stimuli, and larger mechanical power density (3028 W m–3) than Nafion actuators. This outstanding actuation performance of SPAES/CuPCSA composite membrane actuators makes them attractive for next generation transducers with high power density, which are currently developed biomimetic devices such as endoscopic surgery.

Keywords: actuation performance, composite membranes, ionic polymer actuators, organic filler

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Authors: Junjie Wu, Hongjuan Hou, Eric Hu, Yongping Yang

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Solar aided power generation (SAPG) technology has been proven as an efficient way to make use of solar energy for power generation purpose. In an SAPG plant, a solar field consisting of parabolic solar collectors is normally used to supply the solar heat in order to displace the high pressure/temperature extraction steam. To understand the performance of such a SAPG plant, a new simulation model was developed by the authors recently, in which the boiler was treated, as a series of heat exchangers unlike other previous models. Through the simulations using the new model, it was found the outlet properties of reheated steam, e.g. temperature, would decrease due to the introduction of the solar heat. The changes make the (lower stage) turbines work under off-design condition. As a result, the whole plant’s performance may not be optimal. In this paper, the second solar filed was proposed to increase the inlet temperature of steam to be reheated, in order to bring the outlet temperature of reheated steam back to the designed condition. A 600MW SAPG plant was simulated as a case study using the new model to understand the impact of the second solar field on the plant performance. It was found in the study, the 2nd solar field would improve the plant’s performance in terms of cycle efficiency and solar-to-electricity efficiency by 1.91% and 6.01%. The solar-generated electricity produced by per aperture area under the design condition was 187.96W/m2, which was 26.14% higher than the previous design.

Keywords: solar-aided power generation system, off-design performance, coal-saving performance, boiler modelling, integration schemes

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Authors: Zhihong Luo, Guangbin Zhu, Lulu Guo, Zhujun Lyu, Kun Luo

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Cycling life has become the threshold for the prospective application of Li-O₂ batteries, and the protection of Li anode has recently regarded as the key factor to the performance. Herein, a simple low rate pre-activation (20 cycles at 0.5 Ag⁻¹ and a capacity of 200 mAh g⁻¹) was employed to effectively improve the performance and cyclability of Li-O₂ batteries. The charge/discharge cycles at 1 A g⁻¹ with a capacity of 1000 mAh g⁻¹ were maintained for up to 290 times versus 55 times for the cell without pre-activation. The ultimate battery capacity and high rate discharge property were also largely enhanced. Morphology, XRD and XPS analyses reveal that the performance improvement is in close association with the formation of the smooth and compact surface layer formed on the Li anode after low rate pre-activation, which apparently alleviated the corrosion of Li anode and the passivation of cathode during battery cycling, and the corresponding mechanism was also discussed.

Keywords: lithium oxygen battery, pre-activation, cyclability, capacity

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Authors: A. Bahadoran, M. Zomorodian

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The synthesizer of cobalt oxide nanoballs (length 3−4 μm, width 250−400 nm) was achieved by a simple high-temperature supercritical solution method. Multiwalled carbon aerogels are a step towards high-density nanometer-scale nanostructures. Cobalt oxide nanoballs were prepared by supercritical solution method. Synthesis in an aqueous solution containing cobalt hydroxide at ∼80 °C without any further heat treatment at high temperature. The formation of cobalt oxide nanoballs on carbon aerogel was confirmed by X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy. The FE-SEM images showed the presence of cobalt oxide nanoballs. The reaction mechanism of the ultrasound-assisted synthesis of cobalt oxide nanostructures was proposed on the basis of the XRD, X-ray absorption spectroscopy analysis and FE-SEM observation of the reaction products taken during the course of the synthesis.

Keywords: cobalt oxide nano balls, carbon aerogel, synthesize, nanostructure

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Authors: Nicole M. Martino

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Reinforced concrete bridge deck condition assessments primarily use visual inspection methods, where an inspector looks for and records locations of cracks, potholes, efflorescence and other signs of probable deterioration. Sounding is another technique used to diagnose the condition of a bridge deck, however this method listens for damage within the subsurface as the surface is struck with a hammer or chain. Even though extensive procedures are in place for using these inspection techniques, neither one provides the inspector with a comprehensive understanding of the internal condition of a bridge deck – the location where damage originates from.  In order to make accurate estimates of repair locations and quantities, in addition to allocating the necessary funding, a total understanding of the deck’s deteriorated state is key. The research presented in this paper collected infrared thermography and ground penetrating radar data from reinforced concrete bridge decks without an asphalt overlay. These decks were of various ages and their condition varied from brand new, to in need of replacement. The goals of this work were to first verify that these nondestructive evaluation methods could identify similar areas of healthy and damaged concrete, and then to see if combining the results of both methods would provide a higher confidence than if the condition assessment was completed using only one method. The results from each method were presented as plan view color contour plots. The results from one of the decks assessed as a part of this research, including these plan view plots, are presented in this paper. Furthermore, in order to answer the interest of transportation agencies throughout the United States, this research developed a step-by-step guide which demonstrates how to collect and assess a bridge deck using these nondestructive evaluation methods. This guide addresses setup procedures on the deck during the day of data collection, system setups and settings for different bridge decks, data post-processing for each method, and data visualization and quantification.

Keywords: bridge deck deterioration, ground penetrating radar, infrared thermography, NDT of bridge decks

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Authors: Mayada Al Meghari

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Recently, grid middlewares have provided large integrated use of network resources as the shared data and the CPU to become a virtual supercomputer. In this work, we present the design and implementation of the middleware for Data Warehouse Signature, DWS Framework. The aim of using the middleware in our DWS framework is to achieve the high performance by the parallel computing. This middleware is developed on Alchemi.Net framework to increase the security among the network nodes through the authentication and group-key distribution model. This model achieves the key security and prevents any intermediate attacks in the middleware. This paper presents the flow process structures of the middleware design. In addition, the paper ensures the implementation of security for DWS middleware enhancement with the authentication and group-key distribution model. Finally, from the analysis of other middleware approaches, the developed middleware of DWS framework is the optimal solution of a complete covering of security issues.

Keywords: middleware, parallel computing, data warehouse, security, group-key, high performance

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Authors: Arawati Agus, Rahmah Ismail

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An effective training has been increasingly recognized as critical factors in enhancing the skills and knowledge of employee or personnel in the organization. More and more manufacturing companies in Malaysia are increasingly incorporating training as an important element in supply chain management (SCM) to improve their employee skills and knowledge and ultimately organizational performances. In order to understand the connection of training in SCM and the performance of an organization, this paper considers of many arguments from various research papers. This paper presents the findings of a research which examines the relationship between training in SCM, personnel differentiation and business performance of manufacturing companies in Malaysia. The study measures perception of senior management regarding the incorporation of training in SCM and the level of personnel differentiation and business performance measurements in their companies. The associations between training in SCM, personnel differentiation and business performance dimensions are analyzed through methods such as Pearson’s correlations and Smart partial least squares (smart PLS) using 126 respondents’ data. The correlation results demonstrate that training in SCM has significant correlations with personnel differentiation determinants (comprises of variables namely employee differentiation and service differentiation). The findings also suggest that training in SCM has significant correlations with business performance determinants (comprises of indicators, namely market share, profitability, ROA and ROS). Specifically, both personnel differentiation and business performance have high correlations with training in SCM, namely ‘Employee training on production skills’, ‘On the job production employee training’ and ‘Management training on supply chain effectiveness’ and ‘Employee training on supply chain technologies’. The smart PLS result also reveals that training in SCM exhibits significant impact on both personnel differentiation (directly) and business performance (indirectly mediated by personnel differentiation). The findings of the study provide a demonstration of the importance of training in SCM in enhancing competitive performances in Malaysian manufacturing companies.

Keywords: training in SCM, personnel differentiation, business performance, Pearson’s correlation, Smart PLS

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Authors: Mayandi Ramanathan

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Gas turbine blades see the most aggressive thermal stress conditions within the engine, due to high Turbine Entry Temperatures in the range of 1500 to 1600°C. The blades rotate at very high rotation rates and remove a significant amount of thermal power from the gas stream. At high temperatures, the major component failure mechanism is a creep. During its service over time under high thermal loads, the blade will deform, lengthen and rupture. High strength and stiffness in the longitudinal direction up to elevated service temperatures are certainly the most needed properties of turbine blades and gas turbine components. The proposed advanced Ti alloy material needs a process that provides a strategic orientation of metallic ordering, uniformity in composition and high metallic strength. The chemical composition of the proposed Ti alloy material (25% Ta/(Al+Ta) ratio), unlike Ti-47Al-2Cr-2Nb, has less excess Al that could limit the service life of turbine blades. Properties and performance of Ti-47Al-2Cr-2Nb and Ti-6Al-4V materials will be compared with that of the proposed Ti alloy material to generalize the performance metrics of various gas turbine components. This paper will involve the summary of the effects of additive manufacturing and heat treatment process conditions on the changes in the phase composition, grain structure, lattice structure of the material, tensile strength, creep strain rate, thermal expansion coefficient and fracture toughness at different temperatures. Based on these results, additive manufacturing and heat treatment process conditions will be optimized to fabricate turbine blade with Ti-43Al matrix alloyed with an optimized amount of refractory Ta metal. Improvement in service temperature of the turbine blades and corrosion resistance dependence on the coercivity of the alloy material will be reported. A correlation of phase composition and creep strain rate will also be discussed.

Keywords: high temperature materials, aerospace, specific strength, creep strain, phase composition

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Authors: Helan Gethse J., Dhanya K., Muthuselvi G., Diana Hyden N., Samuel Pakianathan P.

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Transformer oil is mostly used to keep the transformer cool. It functions as a cooling agent. Mineral oil has long been used in transformers. Mineral oil has a high dielectric strength, which allows it to withstand high temperatures. Mineral oil's main disadvantage is that it is not environmentally friendly and can be dangerous to the environment. The features of breakdown voltage (BDV), viscosity, flash point, and fire point are measured and reported in this study, and the characteristics of olive oil are compared to the characteristics of mineral oil.

Keywords: antioxidants, transformer oil, mineral oil, olive oil

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Authors: Mohamed Hassan, Rahul Gajbhiye

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The high mobility and gravity override of CO₂ gas can be minimized by generating the CO₂ foam with the aid of surfactant. However, CO₂ is unable to generate the foam/stable foam above its supercritical point (1100 psi, 31°C). These difficulties with CO₂ foam is overcome by adding N₂ in small fraction to enhance the foam generation of CO₂ at supercritical conditions. This study shows how the addition of small quantity of N₂ helps in generating the CO₂ foam and performance of the CO₂/N₂ mixture foam in enhanced oil recovery. To investigate the performance of CO₂/N₂ foam, core-flooding experiments were conducted at elevated pressure and temperature condition (higher than supercritical CO₂ - 50°C and 1500 psi) in sandstone cores. Fluorosurfactant (FS-51) was used as a foaming agent, and n-decane was used as model oil in all the experiments. The selection of foam quality and N₂ fraction was optimized based on foam generation and stability tests. Every gas or foam flooding was preceded by seawater injection to simulate the behavior in the reservoir. The results from the core-flood experiments showed that the CO₂ and CO₂/N₂ foam flooding recovered an additional 34-40% of Original Initial Oil in Place (OIIP) indicating that foam flooding succeeded in producing more oil than pure CO₂ gas injection processes. Additionally, the performance CO₂/N₂ foam injection was better than CO₂ foam injection.

Keywords: CO₂/N₂ foam, enhanced oil recovery (EOR), supercritical CO₂, sweep efficiency

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Authors: Khlif Hamadi

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The principal aim of our research is to analyze the impact of the adoption of e-management approach on the performance of Tunisian firms. The method of structural equation was adopted to conduct our exploratory and confirmatory analysis. The results arising from the questionnaire sent to 155 E-managers affirm that the adoption of e-management approach influences the performance of Tunisian firms. The results of the questionnaire show that e-management favors the deployment of ICT usage and contributes enormously to the performance of the modern enterprise. The theoretical and practical implications of the study, as well as directions for future research, are discussed.

Keywords: e-management, ICT Deployment, organizational performance, e-manager

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Authors: Huanru Wang, Jianzhun Jiang

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At present, the preparation of the catalyst by carbon carrier is one of the improvement directions of the C₂ pre-hydrogenation catalyst. Carbon materials can be prepared from coal direct liquefaction residues, coconut shells, biomass, etc., and the pore structure of carbon carrier materials can be adjusted through the preparation process; at high temperatures, the carbon carrier itself also shows certain catalytic activity. Therefore, this paper mainly selected typical activated carbon and coconut shell carbon as carbon carrier materials, studied their microstructure and surface properties, prepared a series of carbon-based catalysts loaded with Pd, and investigated the effects of the content of promoter Ag and the concentration of reductant on the structure and performance of the catalyst and its catalytic performance for the pre hydrogenation of C₂. In this paper, the carbon supports from two sources and the catalysts prepared by them were characterized in detail. The results showed that the morphology and structure of different supports and the performance of the catalysts prepared were also obviously different. The catalyst supported on coconut shell carbon has a small specific surface area and large pore diameter. The catalyst supported on activated carbon has a large specific surface area and rich pore structure. The active carbon support is mainly a mixture of amorphous graphite and microcrystalline graphite. For the catalyst prepared with coconut shell carbon as the carrier, the sample is very uneven, and its specific surface area and pore volume are irregular. Compared with coconut shell carbon, activated carbon is more suitable as the carrier of the C₂ hydrogenation catalyst. The conversion of acetylene, methyl acetylene, and butadiene decreased, and the ethylene selectivity increased after Ag was added to the supported Pd catalyst. When the amount of promoter Ag is 0.01-0.015%, the catalyst has relatively good catalytic performance. Ag and Pd form an alloying effect, thus reducing the effective demand for Ag. The Pd Ag ratio is the key factor affecting the catalytic performance. When the addition amount of Ag is 0.01-0.015%, the dispersion of Pd on the carbon support surface can be significantly improved, and the size of active particles can be reduced. The Pd Ag ratio is the main factor in improving the selectivity of the catalyst. When the additional amount of sodium formate is 1%, the catalyst prepared has both high acetylene conversion and high ethylene selectivity.

Keywords: C₂ hydrogenation, activated carbon, Ag promoter, Pd catalysts

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Authors: Yehjune Heo

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As biometric systems become widely deployed, the security of identification systems can be easily attacked by various spoof materials. This paper contributes to finding a reliable and practical anti-spoofing method using Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) based on the types of loss functions and optimizers. The types of CNNs used in this paper include AlexNet, VGGNet, and ResNet. By using various loss functions including Cross-Entropy, Center Loss, Cosine Proximity, and Hinge Loss, and various loss optimizers which include Adam, SGD, RMSProp, Adadelta, Adagrad, and Nadam, we obtained significant performance changes. We realize that choosing the correct loss function for each model is crucial since different loss functions lead to different errors on the same evaluation. By using a subset of the Livdet 2017 database, we validate our approach to compare the generalization power. It is important to note that we use a subset of LiveDet and the database is the same across all training and testing for each model. This way, we can compare the performance, in terms of generalization, for the unseen data across all different models. The best CNN (AlexNet) with the appropriate loss function and optimizers result in more than 3% of performance gain over the other CNN models with the default loss function and optimizer. In addition to the highest generalization performance, this paper also contains the models with high accuracy associated with parameters and mean average error rates to find the model that consumes the least memory and computation time for training and testing. Although AlexNet has less complexity over other CNN models, it is proven to be very efficient. For practical anti-spoofing systems, the deployed version should use a small amount of memory and should run very fast with high anti-spoofing performance. For our deployed version on smartphones, additional processing steps, such as quantization and pruning algorithms, have been applied in our final model.

Keywords: anti-spoofing, CNN, fingerprint recognition, loss function, optimizer

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Authors: Rafia Rafique, Arifa Khadim

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This research investigates the moderating role of job satisfaction between organizational learning and work performance among nurses. Correlation research design was used. Non-probability purposive sampling technique was utilized to recruit a sample of 110 nurses from public hospitals situated in the city of Lahore. The construct of organizational learning was measured using subscale of Integrated Scale for Measuring Organizational Learning. Job satisfaction was measured with the help of Job Satisfaction Survey. Performance of employees (task performance, contextual performance and counterproductive work behavior) was assessed by Individual Work Performance Questionnaire. Job satisfaction negatively moderates the relationship between organizational learning and counterproductive work behavior. Education has a significant positive relationship with organizational learning. Age, current hospital experience, marital satisfaction and salary of the nurses have positive relationship while number of children has significant negative relationship with counterproductive work behavior. These outcomes can be insightful in understanding the dynamics involved in work performance. Based on the result of this study relevant solutions can be proposed to improve the work performance of nurses.

Keywords: counterproductive work behavior, nurses, organizational learning, work performance

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Authors: My Ali El Khakani

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Single-wall Carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) possess an unprecedented combination of unique properties that make them highly promising for suitable for a new generation of photovoltaic (PV) devices. Prior to discussing the integration of SWCNTs films into effective PV devices, we will briefly highlight our work on the synthesis of SWCNTs by means of the KrF pulsed laser deposition technique, their purification and transfer onto n-silicon substrates to form p-n junctions. Some of the structural and optoelectronic properties of SWCNTs relevant to PV applications will be emphasized. By varying the SWCNTs film density (µg/cm2), we were able to point out the existence of an optimum value that yields the highest photoconversion efficiency (PCE) of ~10%. Further control of the doping of the p-SWCNTs films, through their exposure to nitric acid vapors, along with the insertion of an optimized hole-extraction-layer in the p-SWCNTs/n-Si hybrid devices permitted to achieve a PCE value as high as 14.2%. Such a high PCE value demonstrates the full potential of these p-SWCNTs/n-Si devices for sunlight photoconversion. On the other hand, by examining both the optical transmission and electrical conductance of the SWCNTs’ films, we established a figure of merit (FOM) that was shown to correlate well with the PCE performance. Such a direct relationship between the FOM and the PCE can be used as a guide for further PCE enhancement of these novel p-SWCNTs/n-Si PV devices.

Keywords: carbon nanotubes (CNTs), CNTs-silicon hybrid devices, photoconversion, photovoltaic devices, pulsed laser deposition

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Authors: Eko Adhi Setiawan, Duli Asih Siregar, Aiman Setiawan

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Solar energy is abundant in nature, particularly in the tropics which have peak sun hour that can reach 8 hours per day. In the fabrication process, Photovoltaic’s (PV) performance are tested in standard test conditions (STC). It specifies a module temperature of 25°C, an irradiance of 1000 W/ m² with an air mass 1.5 (AM1.5) spectrum and zero wind speed. Thus, the results of the performance testing of PV at STC conditions cannot fully represent the performance of PV in the tropics. For example Indonesia, which has a temperature of 20-40°C. In this paper, the effect of temperature on the choice of the 5 kW AC inverter topology on the PV system such as the Central Inverter, String Inverter and AC-Module specifically for the tropics will be discussed. The proper inverter topology can be determined by analysis of the effect of temperature and irradiation on the PV panel. The effect of temperature and irradiation will be represented in the characteristics of I-V and P-V curves. PV’s characteristics on high temperature would be analyzed using Solar panel modeling through MATLAB Simulink based on mathematical equations that form Solar panel’s characteristic curve. Based on PV simulation, it is known then that temperature coefficients of short circuit current (ISC), open circuit voltage (VOC), and maximum output power (PMAX) consecutively as high as 0.56%/oC, -0.31%/oC and -0.4%/oC. Those coefficients can be used to calculate PV’s electrical parameters such as ISC, VOC, and PMAX in certain earth’s surface’s certain point. Then, from the parameters, the utility of the 5 kW AC inverter system can be determined. As the result, for tropical area, string inverter topology has the highest utility rates with 98, 80 %. On the other hand, central inverter and AC-Module Topology has utility rates of 92.69 % and 87.7 % eventually.

Keywords: Photovoltaic, PV-Inverter Configuration, PV Modeling, Solar Panel Characteristics.

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Authors: Sira Suren, Soorathep Kheawhom

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This work investigates the development of a high energy density zinc-air battery. Printed and flexible thin film zinc-air battery with an overall thickness of about 350 μm was fabricated by an inexpensive screen-printing technique. Commercial nano-silver ink was used as both current collectors and catalyst layer. Carbon black ink was used to fabricate cathode electrode. Polypropylene membrane was used as the cathode substrate and separator. 9 M KOH was used as the electrolyte. A mixture of Zn powder, ZnO, and Bi2O3 was used to prepare the anode electrode. The suitable concentration of Bi2O3 and types of binders (styrene-butadiene and sodium silicate) were investigated. Results showed that battery using 20% Bi2O3 and sodium silicate binder provided the best performance. The open-circuit voltage and energy density observed were 1.59 V and 690 Wh/kg, respectively. When the battery was discharged at 20 mA/cm2, the potential voltage observed was 1.3 V. Furthermore, the battery was tested for its flexibility. Upon bending, no significant loss in performance was observed.

Keywords: flexible, printed battery, screen printing, Zn-air

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Authors: Kim Nolte, Ben J. M. Steyn, Pieter E. Krüger, Lizelle Fletcher

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Objective: The primary aim of this research was to determine the attitudes, beliefs and knowledge of talented young South African athletes regarding prohibited performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) and anti-doping rules and regulations. Methods: This was a survey study and a quantitative research approach was used. South African TuksSport academy athletes at the High Performance Centre, University of Pretoria and competitive high school athletes at four private high schools in Gauteng completed the survey. A self-determined structured questionnaire was used to establish the attitudes, beliefs and knowledge of the athletes. Results: A total of 346 (208 males, 138 females) athletes, age (mean ± SD) 16.9 ±1.41 years participated in the survey. According to this survey, 3.9% of the athletes in this survey admitted to be using a prohibited PED and more than 14% of the athletes said they would consider using a prohibited PED if they knew they would not get caught out. Ambition (46%) and emotional pressure (22.5%) was the primary reasons why the athletes would consider using prohibited PEDs. Even though coaches appear to be the main source of information (PEDs and anti-doping rules), only 42.1% of the athletes felt they were well informed. Conclusion: Controlling doping by means of testing is important. However, it is not sufficient and interventions should include psychosocial programmes planned and developed focusing on changing attitudes towards doping and doping culture, as well as the appropriate education specifically on the health risks of using PEDs.

Keywords: doping, anti-doping, attitudes, athletes and sport

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Authors: Javed Mohammed

Abstract:

Right now, bio-medical infrastructure lags well behind the curve. Our healthcare system is dispersed and disjointed; medical records are a bit of a mess; and we do not yet have the capacity to store and process the crazy amounts of data coming our way from widespread whole-genome sequencing. And then there are privacy issues. Despite these infrastructure challenges, some researchers are plunging into bio medical Big Data now, in hopes of extracting new and actionable knowledge. They are doing delving into molecular-level data to discover bio markers that help classify patients based on their response to existing treatments; and pushing their results out to physicians in novel and creative ways. Computer scientists and bio medical researchers are able to transform data into models and simulations that will enable scientists for the first time to gain a profound under-standing of the deepest biological functions. Solving biological problems may require High-Performance Computing HPC due either to the massive parallel computation required to solve a particular problem or to algorithmic complexity that may range from difficult to intractable. Many problems involve seemingly well-behaved polynomial time algorithms (such as all-to-all comparisons) but have massive computational requirements due to the large data sets that must be analyzed. High-throughput techniques for DNA sequencing and analysis of gene expression have led to exponential growth in the amount of publicly available genomic data. With the increased availability of genomic data traditional database approaches are no longer sufficient for rapidly performing life science queries involving the fusion of data types. Computing systems are now so powerful it is possible for researchers to consider modeling the folding of a protein or even the simulation of an entire human body. This research paper emphasizes the computational biology's growing need for high-performance computing and Big Data. It illustrates this article’s indispensability in meeting the scientific and engineering challenges of the twenty-first century, and how Protein Folding (the structure and function of proteins) and Phylogeny Reconstruction (evolutionary history of a group of genes) can use HPC that provides sufficient capability for evaluating or solving more limited but meaningful instances. This article also indicates solutions to optimization problems, and benefits Big Data and Computational Biology. The article illustrates the Current State-of-the-Art and Future-Generation Biology of HPC Computing with Big Data.

Keywords: high performance, big data, parallel computation, molecular data, computational biology

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Authors: Md. Arifur Rahman, Ummya Salma, Nazrul Islam

Abstract:

Private sector banking business is one of the leading businesses of Bangladesh as it is profitable and directly attached with the economic development of the country. Training has got very high importance in this sector for increasing the performance of the banks. It has a long term impact on a number of aspects of the bank employees and their performances. It is an investment of the organization that is permanent in nature. Study shows that there are positive relationships between training and the employee commitment, job retention, job satisfaction and company performance. Training is also concerned with promotion, compensation, work-life policies, career development, task and contextual performance of the employees. As such, this paper aims at identifying the impact of training on employee commitment, job retention, job satisfaction and the performance of the private sector banks in Bangladesh. Both primary and secondary data were used to conduct the study. Data were collected from the bank officers who were trained in their banks. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the present situation of the banks and their employees. Inferential statistics were used to identify the factors and their significance concerned with training. Results show that there is a significant relationship between the performance and the training of the employees. It also shows that the training can motivate employees and encourage them to work hard. However, this study did not find any relationship between the commitment of the employees and the training. This study suggests that for increasing the performance of the banks, training is a must which is to be given deliberately for improving the specific skills of the bank employees.

Keywords: training, promotion, compensation, work-life policies

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Authors: Syed Hassan Amjad

Abstract:

In today’s competitive environment, in order for a company to exist, it must continually improve its Performance by reducing cost, improving quality and productivity, and easy access to market.The purpose of this thesis is to check the firm financial growth and performance and which type of factors affect the firm financial performance. This paper examines the key determinants of firm financial performance. We will differentiate between financial and non financial drivers of the firm financial performance. For the measurement of the firm financial performance there are many ways but all the measure had been taken in aggregation, such as debt, tax rate, operating expenses, earning per share and economic conditions. This study has also been done in developed countries but these researches show that foreign companies face many difficulties inimproving the firm financial performance. In findings we found that marketing expenditures and international diversification had a positive impact on firm valuation. In research also found that a firm's ownership composition, particularly the level of equity ownership by Domestic Financial Institutions and Dispersed Public Shareholders, and the leverage of the firm, tax rate and economic conditions were important factors affecting its financial performance.

Keywords: debt, tax rate, firm financial performance, operating expenses, dividend per share, economic conditions

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Authors: Mingwei Yi, Liujie Guo, Zongjun Pan, Xiang Lin, Xiaoming Yi

Abstract:

With the rapid expansion of road construction mileage in China, the scale of road maintenance needs has concurrently escalated. As the service life of roads extends, the design of pavement repair and maintenance emerges as a crucial component in preserving the excellent performance of the pavement. The remaining service life of asphalt pavement structure is a vital parameter in the lifecycle maintenance design of asphalt pavements. Based on an analysis of pavement structural integrity, this study introduces a characterization and assessment of the remaining life of existing asphalt pavement structures. It proposes indicators such as the transverse crack spacing and the length of longitudinal cracks. The transverse crack spacing decreases with an increase in maintenance intervals and with the extended use of semi-rigid base layer structures, although this trend becomes less pronounced after maintenance intervals exceed 4 years. The length of longitudinal cracks increases with longer maintenance intervals, but this trend weakens after five years. This system can support the enhancement of standardization and scientific design in highway maintenance decision-making processes.

Keywords: structural integrity, highways, pavement evaluation, asphalt concrete pavement

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Authors: Yong-Jun Kim, Jae-Hyun Ro, Chang-Bin Ha, Hyoung-Kyu Song

Abstract:

This paper proposes the cooperative transmission scheme with pre-coding because the cellular communication requires high reliability. The cooperative transmission scheme uses pre-coding method with limited feedback information among small cells. Particularly, the proposed scheme has adaptive mode according to the position of mobile station. Thus, demand of recent wireless communication is resolved by this scheme. From the simulation results, the proposed scheme has better performance compared to the conventional scheme in the cellular network.

Keywords: CDD, cellular network, pre-coding, SPC

Procedia PDF Downloads 569