Search results for: transport equity

Authors: Amira Mabrouk, Chokri Abdennadher

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The reduction of road congestion which is inherent to the use of vehicles is an obvious priority to public authority. Therefore, assessing the willingness to pay of an individual in order to save trip-time is akin to estimating the change in price which was the result of setting up a new transport policy to increase the networks fluidity and improving the level of social welfare. This study holds an innovative perspective. In fact, it initiates an economic calculation that has the objective of giving an estimation of the monetized time value during the trips made in Sfax. This research is founded on a double-objective approach. The aim of this study is to i) give an estimation of the monetized value of time; an hour dedicated to trips, ii) determine whether or not the consumer considers the environmental variables to be significant, iii) analyze the impact of applying a public management of the congestion via imposing taxation of city tolls on urban dwellers. This article is built upon a rich field survey led in the city of Sfax. With the use of the contingent valuation method, we analyze the “declared time preferences” of 450 drivers during rush hours. Based on the fond consideration of attributed bias of the applied method, we bring to light the delicacy of this approach with regards to the revelation mode and the interrogative techniques by following the NOAA panel recommendations bearing the exception of the valorization point and other similar studies about the estimation of transportation externality.

Keywords: willingness to pay, contingent valuation, time value, city toll

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Authors: Xiuguo Zhao, He Li, Alireza Yazdani, Xiaoning Zheng, Xinxi Xu

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Wound infected poses a serious threat to the surgery on the patient during the process of surgery. Understanding the bacteria-carrying particles (BCPs) transportation and deposition in the open surgical wound model play essential role in protecting wound against being infected. Therefore BCPs transportation and deposition in the surgical wound model were investigated using force-coupling method (FCM) based computational fluid dynamics. The BCPs deposition in the wound was strongly associated with BCPs diameter and concentration. The results showed that the rise on the BCPs deposition was increasing not only with the increase of BCPs diameters but also with the increase of the BCPs concentration. BCPs deposition morphology was impacted by the combination of size distribution, airflow patterns and model geometry. The deposition morphology exhibited the characteristic with BCPs deposition on the sidewall in wound model and no BCPs deposition on the bottom of the wound model mainly because the airflow movement in one direction from up to down and then side created by laminar system constructing airflow patterns and then made BCPs hard deposit in the bottom of the wound model due to wound geometry limit. It was also observed that inertial impact becomes a main mechanism of the BCPs deposition. This work may contribute to next study in BCPs deposition limit, as well as wound infected estimation in surgical-site infections.

Keywords: BCPs deposition, computational fluid dynamics, force-coupling method (FCM), numerical simulation, open surgical wound model

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Authors: Zia Ullah, Muhammad Asim, Shi Sujuan, Rayyan Khan, Aaqib Shaheen, LIU Haobao

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The plant-specific auxin efflux proteins PIN-FORMED (PIN) have been well depicted in many plant species for their essential roles in regulating the transport of auxins in several phases of plant growth. Little is known about the various functions of the PIN family genes in the Nicotiana tabacum (N. tabacum) species during plant growth. To define the expression pattern of the NtPIN1a gene under abiotic stresses and hormone treatment, transgenic tobacco with promoterNtPIN1a::GUS construct was employed. Comprehensive computational analyses of the NtPIN1a promoter confirmed the existence of common core promoter elements including CAAT-box, TATA-box, hormone, and abiotic stress-responsive elements such as ABRE, P-box, MYC, MYB, ARE, and GC-motifs. The transgenic plants with the promoter of NtPIN1a displayed a promising expression of β-glucuronidase (GUS) in germinating seeds, root tips, shoot-apex, and developing leaves under optimal conditions. While the differential expression of GUS in moderate salt, drought, low potassium stresses, and externally high auxin level at two different time points, suggested NtPIN1a played a key role in growth processes and the plants’ response to abiotic stresses. This analysis provides a foundation for more in-depth discoveries of the biological functions of NtPIN1a in Nicotiana species and this promoter may be employed in genetic engineering of other crops for enhanced stress tolerance.

Keywords: tobacco, nicotiana tabacum, pin, promoter, GUS, abiotic stresses, auxin

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Authors: Laxuman Thakuri

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Despite the large number of in-depth case studies focused on policy analysis, institutional arrangement, and collective action of common property resource management; how the local institutions take the pricing decision of forest products in community forest management and what kinds of effects produce it, the answers of these questions are largely silent among the policy-makers and researchers alike. The study examined how the local institutions take the pricing decision of forest products in the lowland community forestry of Nepal and how the decisions affect to equitable distribution of benefits and livelihood improvement which are also objectives of Nepalese community forestry. The study assumes that forest products pricing decisions have multiple effects on equitable distribution and livelihood improvement in the areas having heterogeneous socio-economic conditions. The dissertation was carried out at four community forests of lowland, Nepal that has characteristics of high value species, matured-experience of community forest management and better record-keeping system of forest products production, pricing and distribution. The questionnaire survey, individual to group discussions and direct field observation were applied for data collection from the field, and Lorenz curve, gini-coefficient, χ²-text, and SWOT (Strong, Weak, Opportunity, and Threat) analysis were performed for data analysis and results interpretation. The dissertation demonstrates that the low pricing strategy of high-value forest products was supposed crucial to increase the access of socio-economically weak households, and to and control over the important forest products such as timber, but found counter productive as the strategy increased the access of socio-economically better-off households at higher rate. In addition, the strategy contradicts to collect a large-scale community fund and carry out livelihood improvement activities as per the community forestry objectives. The crucial part of the study is despite the fact of low pricing strategy; the timber alone contributed large part of community fund collection. The results revealed close relation between pricing decisions and livelihood objectives. The action research result shows that positive price discrimination can slightly reduce the prevailing inequality and increase the fund. However, it lacks to harness the full price of forest products and collects a large-scale community fund. For broader outcomes of common property resource management in terms of resource sustainability, equity, and livelihood opportunity, the study suggests local institutions to harness the full price of resource products with respect to the local market.

Keywords: community, equitable, forest, livelihood, socioeconomic, Nepal

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Authors: Sarwat Jahan, Asker Rajin Rahman

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Management of offtake of any fluvial river is very sensitive in terms of long-term sustainability where the variation of water flow and sediment transport range are wide enough throughout a hydrological year. The Gorai River is a major distributary of the Ganges River in Bangladesh and is termed as a primary source of fresh water for the South-West part of the country. Every year, significant siltation of the Gorai offtake disconnects it from the Ganges during the dry season. As a result, the socio-economic and environmental condition of the downstream areas has been deteriorating for a few decades. To improve the overall situation of the Gorai offtake and its dependent areas, a study has been conducted by the Institute of Water Modelling, Bangladesh, in 2022. Using the mathematical morphological modeling tool MIKE 21C of DHI Water & Environment, Denmark, simulated results revealed the need for dredging/river training structures for offtake management at the Gorai offtake to ensure significant dry season flow towards the downstream. The dry season flow is found to increase significantly with the proposed river interventions, which also improves the environmental conditions in terms of salinity of the South-West zone of the country. This paper summarizes the primary findings of the analyzed results of the developed mathematical model for improving the existing condition of the Gorai River.

Keywords: Gorai river, mathematical modelling, offtake, siltation, salinity

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Authors: G. Bruno, A. Ciavarella, N. Linciano

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The proportion of women in boardroom has traditionally been low around the world. Over the last decades, several jurisdictions opted for active intervention, which triggered a tangible progress in female representation. In Europe, many countries have implemented boardroom diversity policies in the form of legal quotas (Norway, Italy, France, Germany) or governance code amendments (United Kingdom, Finland). Policy actions rest, among other things, on the assumption that gender balanced boards result in improved corporate governance and performance. The investigation of the relationship between female boardroom representation and firm value is therefore key on policy grounds. The evidence gathered so far, however, has not produced conclusive results also because empirical studies on the impact of voluntary female board representation had to tackle with endogeneity, due to either differences in unobservable characteristics across firms that may affect their gender policies and governance choices, or potential reverse causality. In this paper, we study the relationship between the presence of female directors and corporate performance in Italy, where the Law 120/2011 envisaging mandatory quotas has introduced an exogenous shock in board composition which may enable to overcome reverse causality. Our sample comprises Italian firms listed on the Italian Stock Exchange and the members of their board of directors over the period 2008-2016. The study relies on two different databases, both drawn from CONSOB, referring respectively to directors and companies’ characteristics. On methodological grounds, information on directors is treated at the individual level, by matching each company with its directors every year. This allows identifying all time-invariant, possibly correlated, elements of latent heterogeneity that vary across firms and board members, such as the firm immaterial assets and the directors’ skills and commitment. Moreover, we estimate dynamic panel data specifications, so accommodating non-instantaneous adjustments of firm performance and gender diversity to institutional and economic changes. In all cases, robust inference is carried out taking into account the bidimensional clustering of observations over companies and over directors. The study shows the existence of a U-shaped impact of the percentage of women in the boardroom on profitability, as measured by Return On Equity (ROE) and Return On Assets. Female representation yields a positive impact when it exceeds a certain threshold, ranging between about 18% and 21% of the board members, depending on the specification. Given the average board size, i.e., around ten members over the time period considered, this would imply that a significant effect of gender diversity on corporate performance starts to emerge when at least two women hold a seat. This evidence supports the idea underpinning the critical mass theory, i.e., the hypothesis that women may influence.

Keywords: gender diversity, quotas, firms performance, corporate governance

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Authors: Kalbende Krunal Ramesh

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The Carbon Capture and Storage Technology (CCS) provides a veritable platform to bridge the gap between the seemingly irreconcilable twin global challenges of ensuring a secure, reliable and diversified energy supply and mitigating climate change by reducing atmospheric emissions of carbon dioxide. Making its proper regulatory policy and making it flexible for the government and private company by law to regulate, also exploring the opportunity in this sector is the main aim of this paper. India's total annual emissions was 1725 Mt CO2 in 2011, which comprises of 6% of total global emission. It is very important to control the greenhouse gas emission for the environment protection. This paper discusses the various regulatory policy and technology adopted by some of the countries for successful using CCS technology. The brief geology of sedimentary basins in India is studied, ranging from the category I to category IV and deep water and potential for mature technology in CCS is reviewed. Areas not suitable for CO2 storage using presently mature technologies were over viewed. CSS and Clean development mechanism was developed for India, considering the various aspects from research and development, project appraisal, approval and validation, implementation, monitoring and verification, carbon credit issued, cap and trade system and its storage potential. The opportunities in oil and gas operations, power sector, transport sector is discussed briefly.

Keywords: carbon credit issued, cap and trade system, carbon capture and storage technology, greenhouse gas

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Authors: Sebastian Del Corral Winder, Kiriana Sanchez, Mixalis Poulakis, Samantha Gray

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This paper seeks to explore White privilege and Whiteness. Being White in the U.S. is often perceived as the norm and it brings significant social, economic, educational, and health privileges that often are hidden in social interactions. One quality of Whiteness has been its invisibility given its intrinsic impact on the system, which becomes only visible when paying close attention to White identity and culture and during cross-cultural interactions. The cross-cultural interaction provides an emphasis on differences between the participants and people of color are often viewed as “the other.” These interactions may promote an increased opportunity for discrimination and negative stereotypes against a person of color. Given the recent increase of violence against culturally diverse groups, there has been an increased sense of otherness and division in the country. Furthermore, the accent prestige theory has found that individuals who speak English with a foreign accent are perceived as less educated, competent, friendly, and trustworthy by White individuals in the United States. Using the consensual qualitative research (CQR) methodology, this study explored the cross-cultural dyad from the White individual’s perspective focusing on the psychotherapeutic relationship. The participants were presented with an audio recording of a conversation between a psychotherapist with a Hispanic accent and a patient with an American English accent. Then, the participants completed an interview regarding their perceptions of race, culture, and cross-cultural interactions. The preliminary results suggested that the Hispanic accent alone was enough for the participants to assign stereotypical ethnic and cultural characteristics to the individual with the Hispanic accent. Given the quality of the responses, the authors completed a secondary analysis to explore Whiteness and White privilege in more depth. Participants were found to be on a continuum in their understanding and acknowledgment of systemic racism; while some participants listed examples of inequality, other participants noted: “all people are treated equally.” Most participants noted their feelings of discomfort in discussing topics of cultural diversity and systemic racism by fearing to “say the ‘wrong thing.” Most participants placed the responsibility of discussing cultural differences with the person of color, which has been observed to create further alienation and otherness for culturally diverse individuals. The results indicate the importance of examining racial and cultural biases from White individuals to promote an anti-racist stance. The results emphasize the need for greater systemic changes in education, policies, and individual awareness regarding cultural identity. The results suggest the importance for White individuals to take ownership of their own cultural biases in order to promote equity and engage in cultural humility in a multicultural world. Future research should continue exploring the role of White ethnic identity and education as they appear to moderate White individuals’ attitudes and beliefs regarding other races and cultures.

Keywords: culture, qualitative research, whiteness, white privilege

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Authors: Geanderson Eduardo Ambrósio, Dênis Antônio Da Cunha, Marcel Viana Pires

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Historically, human development has been based on economic gains associated with intensive energy activities, which often are exhaustive in the emission of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs). It requires the establishment of targets for mitigation of GHGs in order to disassociate the human development from emissions and prevent further climate change. Brazil presents itself as one of the most GHGs emitters and it is of critical importance to discuss such reductions in intra-national framework with the objective of distributional equity to explore its full mitigation potential without compromising the development of less developed societies. This research displays some incipient considerations about which Brazil’s micro-regions should reduce, when the reductions should be initiated and what its magnitude should be. We started with the methodological assumption that human development and GHGs emissions arise in the future as their behavior was observed in the past. Furthermore, we assume that once a micro-region became developed, it is able to maintain gains in human development without the need of keep growing GHGs emissions rates. The human development index and the carbon dioxide equivalent emissions (CO2e) were extrapolated to the year 2050, which allowed us to calculate when the micro-regions will become developed and the mass of GHG’s emitted. The results indicate that Brazil must throw 300 GT CO2e in the atmosphere between 2011 and 2050, of which only 50 GT will be issued by micro-regions before it’s develop and 250 GT will be released after development. We also determined national mitigation targets and structured reduction schemes where only the developed micro-regions would be required to reduce. The micro-region of São Paulo, the most developed of the country, should be also the one that reduces emissions at most, emitting, in 2050, 90% less than the value observed in 2010. On the other hand, less developed micro-regions will be responsible for less impactful reductions, i.e. Vale do Ipanema will issue in 2050 only 10% below the value observed in 2010. Such methodological assumption would lead the country to issue, in 2050, 56.5% lower than that observed in 2010, so that the cumulative emissions between 2011 and 2050 would reduce by 130 GT CO2e over the initial projection. The fact of associating the magnitude of the reductions to the level of human development of the micro-regions encourages the adoption of policies that favor both variables as the governmental planner will have to deal with both the increasing demand for higher standards of living and with the increasing magnitude of reducing emissions. However, if economic agents do not act proactively in local and national level, the country is closer to the scenario in which emits more than the one in which mitigates emissions. The research highlighted the importance of considering the heterogeneity in determining individual mitigation targets and also ratified the theoretical and methodological feasibility to allocate larger share of contribution for those who historically emitted more. It is understood that the proposals and discussions presented should be considered in mitigation policy formulation in Brazil regardless of the adopted reduction target.

Keywords: greenhouse gases, human development, mitigation, intensive energy activities

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Authors: Abdul Malik Dawlatzai, Shafiqullah Rahmani

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Plant cultivars of the same species differ in their Fe efficiency. This paper studied the Fe influx and root-shoot relations of Fe at different growth stages in wheat. The four wheat cultivars (HD 2967, PDW 233, PBW 550 and PDW 291) were grown in pots in Badam Bagh agricultural researching farm, Kabul under two Fe treatments: (i) 0 mg Fe kg⁻¹ soil (soil with 2.7 mg kg⁻¹ of DTPA-extractable Fe) and (ii) 50 mg Fe kg⁻¹ soil. Root length (RL), shoot dry matter (SDM), Fe uptake, and soil parameters were measured at tillering and anthesis. Application of Fe significantly increased RL, root surface area, SDM, and Fe uptake in all wheat cultivars. Under Fe deficiency, wheat cv. HD 2967 produced 90% of its maximum RL and 75% of its maximum SDM. However, PDW 233 produced only 69% and 60%, respectively. Wheat cultivars HD 2967, and PDW 233 exhibited the highest and lowest value of root surface area and Fe uptake, respectively. The concentration difference in soil solution Fe between bulk soil and root surface (ΔCL) was maximum in wheat cultivar HD 2967, followed by PBW 550, PDW 291, and PDW 233. More depletion at the root surface causes steeper concentration gradients, which result in a high influx and transport of Fe towards root. Fe influx in all the wheat cultivars increased with the Fe application, but the increase was maximum, i.e., 4 times in HD 2967 and minimum, i.e., 2.8 times in PDW 233. It can be concluded that wheat cultivars HD 2967 and PBW 550 efficiently utilized Fe as compared to other cultivars. Additionally, iron efficiency of wheat cultivars depends upon uptake of each root segment, i.e., the influx, which in turn depends on depletion of Fe in the rhizosphere during vegetative phase and higher utilization efficiency of acquired Fe during reproductive phase that governs the ultimate grain yield.

Keywords: Fe efficiency, Fe influx, Fe uptake, Rhizosphere

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Authors: Maria Reznakova, Michala Strnadova, Lukas Reznak

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Successful achievement of strategic goals requires an effective performance management system, i.e. determining the appropriate indicators measuring the rate of goal achievement. Assuming that the goal of the owners is to grow the assets they invested in, it is vital to identify the key performance indicators, which contribute to value creation. These indicators are known as value drivers. Based on the undertaken literature search, a value driver is defined as any factor that affects the value of an enterprise. The important factors are then monitored by both financial and non-financial indicators. Financial performance indicators are most useful in strategic management, since they indicate whether a company's strategy implementation and execution are contributing to bottom line improvement. Non-financial indicators are mainly used for short-term decisions. The identification of value drivers, however, is problematic for companies which are not publicly traded. Therefore financial ratios continue to be used to measure the performance of companies, despite their considerable criticism. The main drawback of such indicators is the fact that they are calculated based on accounting data, while accounting rules may differ considerably across different environments. For successful enterprise performance management it is vital to avoid factors that may reduce (or even destroy) its value. Among the known factors reducing the enterprise value are the lack of capital, lack of strategic management system and poor quality of production. In order to gain further insight into the topic, the paper presents results of the research identifying factors that adversely affect the performance of mechanical engineering enterprises in the Czech Republic. The research methodology focuses on both the qualitative and the quantitative aspect of the topic. The qualitative data were obtained from a questionnaire survey of the enterprises senior management, while the quantitative financial data were obtained from the Analysis Major Database for European Sources (AMADEUS). The questionnaire prompted managers to list factors which negatively affect business performance of their enterprises. The range of potential factors was based on a secondary research – analysis of previously undertaken questionnaire surveys and research of studies published in the scientific literature. The results of the survey were evaluated both in general, by average scores, and by detailed sub-analyses of additional criteria. These include the company specific characteristics, such as its size and ownership structure. The evaluation also included a comparison of the managers’ opinions and the performance of their enterprises – measured by return on equity and return on assets ratios. The comparisons were tested by a series of non-parametric tests of statistical significance. The results of the analyses show that the factors most detrimental to the enterprise performance include the incompetence of responsible employees and the disregard to the customers‘ requirements.

Keywords: business value, financial ratios, performance measurement, value drivers

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Authors: Vishaal Subramanian, Annuatha Vinod Kumar, Santosh Kumar Budankayala, M. Senthil Kumar

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This paper discusses the aerodynamic and structural design, simulation and optimization of a mini-High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) UAV. The applications of this mini HALE UAV vary from aerial topological surveys, quick first aid supply, emergency medical blood transport, search and relief activates to border patrol, surveillance and estimation of forest fire progression. Although classified as a mini UAV according to UVS International, our design is an amalgamation of the features of ‘mini’ and ‘HALE’ categories, combining the light weight of the ‘mini’ and the high altitude ceiling and endurance of the HALE. Designed with the idea of implementation in India, it is in strict compliance with the UAS rules proposed by the office of the Director General of Civil Aviation. The plane can be completely automated or have partial override control and is equipped with an Infra-Red camera and a multi coloured camera with on-board storage or live telemetry, GPS system with Geo Fencing and fail safe measures. An additional of 1.5 kg payload can be attached to three major hard points on the aircraft and can comprise of delicate equipment or releasable payloads. The paper details the design, optimization process and the simulations performed using various software such as Design Foil, XFLR5, Solidworks and Ansys.

Keywords: aircraft, endurance, HALE, high altitude, long range, UAV, unmanned aerial vehicle

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Authors: Rudra Vaghela, P. K. Kulkarni

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The aim of the present research was to develop oral Amphotericin B (AmB) nanocrystals (Nc) grafted with suitable ligand in order to enhance drug transport across the intestinal epithelial barrier and subsequently, active uptake by macrophages. AmB Nc were prepared by liquid anti-solvent precipitation technique (LAS). Poloxamer 188 was used to stabilize the prepared AmB Nc and grafted with mannose for actively targeting M cells in Peyer’s patches. To prevent shedding of the stabilizer and ligand, N,N’-Dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC) was used as a cross-linker. The prepared AmB Nc were characterized for particle size, PDI, zeta potential, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and surface morphology using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and evaluated for drug content, in vitro drug release and cell uptake studies using caco-2 cells. The particle size of stabilized AmB Nc grafted with WGA was in the range of 287-417 nm with negative zeta potential between -18 to -25 mV. XRD studies revealed crystalline nature of AmB Nc. SEM studies revealed that ungrafted AmB Nc were irregular in shape with rough surface whereas, grafted AmB Nc were found to be rod-shaped with smooth surface. In vitro drug release of AmB Nc was found to be 86% at the end of one hour. Cellular studies revealed higher invasion and uptake of AmB Nc towards caco-2 cell membrane when compared to ungrafted AmB Nc. Our findings emphasize scope on developing oral delivery system for passively targeting M cells in Peyer’s patches.

Keywords: leishmaniasis, amphotericin b nanocrystals, macrophage targeting, LAS technique

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Authors: Karim Kheloufi, El Hachemi Amara

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In the present study, a three-dimensional transient numerical model was developed to study the temperature field and cutting kerf shape during laser fusion cutting. The finite volume model has been constructed, based on the Navier–Stokes equations and energy conservation equation for the description of momentum and heat transport phenomena, and the Volume of Fluid (VOF) method for free surface tracking. The Fresnel absorption model is used to handle the absorption of the incident wave by the surface of the liquid metal and the enthalpy-porosity technique is employed to account for the latent heat during melting and solidification of the material. To model the physical phenomena occurring at the liquid film/gas interface, including momentum/heat transfer, a new approach is proposed which consists of treating friction force, pressure force applied by the gas jet and the heat absorbed by the cutting front surface as source terms incorporated into the governing equations. All these physics are coupled and solved simultaneously in Fluent CFD®. The main objective of using a transient phase change model in the current case is to simulate the dynamics and geometry of a growing laser-cutting generated kerf until it becomes fully developed. The model is used to investigate the effect of some process parameters on temperature fields and the formed kerf geometry.

Keywords: laser cutting, numerical simulation, heat transfer, fluid flow

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Authors: Harvey Sanchez-Restrepo, Jorge Louca

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Equity and education are major focus of government policies around the world due to its relevance for addressing the sustainable development goals launched by Unesco. In this research, we developed a primary analysis of a data set of more than one hundred educational and non-educational factors associated with learning, coming from a census-based large-scale assessment carried on in Ecuador for 1.038.328 students, their families, teachers, and school directors, throughout 2014-2018. Each participating student was assessed by a standardized computer-based test. Learning outcomes were calibrated through item response theory with two-parameters logistic model for getting raw scores that were re-scaled and synthetized by a learning index (LI). Our objective was to develop a network for modelling educational deprivation and analyze the structure of inequality gaps, as well as their relationship with socioeconomic status, school financing, and student's ethnicity. Results from the model show that 348 270 students did not develop the minimum skills (prevalence rate=0.215) and that Afro-Ecuadorian, Montuvios and Indigenous students exhibited the highest prevalence with 0.312, 0.278 and 0.226, respectively. Regarding the socioeconomic status of students (SES), modularity class shows clearly that the system is out of equilibrium: the first decile (the poorest) exhibits a prevalence rate of 0.386 while rate for decile ten (the richest) is 0.080, showing an intense negative relationship between learning and SES given by R= –0.58 (p < 0.001). Another interesting and unexpected result is the average-weighted degree (426.9) for both private and public schools attending Afro-Ecuadorian students, groups that got the highest PageRank (0.426) and pointing out that they suffer the highest educational deprivation due to discrimination, even belonging to the richest decile. The model also found the factors which explain deprivation through the highest PageRank and the greatest degree of connectivity for the first decile, they are: financial bonus for attending school, computer access, internet access, number of children, living with at least one parent, books access, read books, phone access, time for homework, teachers arriving late, paid work, positive expectations about schooling, and mother education. These results provide very accurate and clear knowledge about the variables affecting poorest students and the inequalities that it produces, from which it might be defined needs profiles, as well as actions on the factors in which it is possible to influence. Finally, these results confirm that network analysis is fundamental for educational policy, especially linking reliable microdata with social macro-parameters because it allows us to infer how gaps in educational achievements are driven by students’ context at the time of assigning resources.

Keywords: complex network, educational deprivation, evidence-based policy, large-scale assessments, policy informatics

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Authors: Hassan Farhan Alfugha

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the cenozoic volcanism in westt central jordan which show homohgenous lava from upper mantle.es represented by basaltic scoria cones and flows and covers approximately 10 km. fourtten nephelinitic rock samples were collected at jurf ed-darawish volcanism to analyze major minor and trace elements by using XRF.. geochemical parameters of these samp;es such as MG/MG+FE+2, the ratio range from 0.41 to 0.45 and high ti contents 3.09-3.28wt % indicate that the corresponding magmas are nearly of primary origin . this magma show low variable abundances of compatible and incompatible trace elements reflecting a homogenous source. the studied volcanic rocks, which are mainly nephlinites, belong to the alkaline rocks series containing 4.38-5.95wt% alkali oxides they are usually undersaturated in regard it the silica content, which ranges between 39.88-41.50wt.%.value compared to other jordanien basaltic rocks majorminor and trace elementes data as well as mantel xenoliths entrained in the volcanic rocks are spinel iherzolites that suggest the lithospheric mantle as the source for the pleistocene volcanism these xenoliths resided at shallow mantle depths (45 km ) because a geothermobarometric analysis yielded p-t conditions close to 15 kbar and 1100c the mantle nodules did not equilibrate with the melts indicating a fast transport from the mantle to the surface and a mgma >65 km deeper source area of the melts.

Keywords: nephelinite plestocene western central jordan, western central jordan, volcano in western central jordan, central jordan

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Authors: Rajini Murugesan, Anantharaj Sengeni, Arthanareeswari Maruthapillai

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The global transition to renewable energy hinges on breakthroughs in catalysis for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) a bottleneck in fuel cell and water-splitting technologies. The 3D nanostructured Mn-doped CoFe-LDH catalyst merges high-performance engineering with next-generation material design. By leveraging the synergistic effects of Mn doping within the CoFe-LDH framework, this self-supported catalyst achieves a quantum leap in OER efficiency. The strategically tailored 3D architecture amplifies active surface areas and facilitates seamless electron transport, while Mn incorporation fine-tunes the electronic structure, unlocking new catalytic pathways. Synthesized through an accessible hydrothermal approach, the material redefines scalability in catalyst production. The Mn-doped CoFe-LDH delivers industry-leading performance, with an impressively low overpotential of 255 mV at 20 mA cm⁻², combined with enduring stability over 24 hours of rigorous operation in alkaline media. This remarkable performance not only rivals state-of-the-art alternatives but also offers a sustainable, cost-effective solution tailored for real-world energy applications. Our findings bridge the gap between material innovation and practical implementation, setting a benchmark for OER catalysis in the era of clean energy. The Mn-doped CoFe-LDH isn’t just a catalyst; it’s a vision for the future of sustainable energy technologies.

Keywords: clean energy, fuel cells, layered double hydroxides (LDH), oxygen evolution reaction (OER).

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Authors: Sakul Jariyachansit

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The purposes of this research were to investigate and to compare the factors affecting the decision for Tourism in Thailand by ASEAN Tourists and among ASEAN community tourists. Samples in this research were 400 ASEAN Community Tourists who travel in Thailand at Suvarnabhumi Airport during November 2016 - February 2016. The researchers determined the sample size by using the formula Taro Yamane at 95% confidence level tolerances 0.05. The English questionnaire, research instrument, was distributed by convenience sampling, for gathering data. Descriptive statistics was applied to analyze percentages, mean and standard deviation and used for hypothesis testing. The statistical analysis by multiple regression analysis (Multiple Regression) was employed to prove the relationship hypotheses at the significant level of 0.01. The results showed that majority of the respondents indicated the factors affecting the decision for Tourism in Thailand by ASEAN Tourists, in general there were a moderate effects and the mean of each side is moderate. Transportation was the most influential factor for tourism in Thailand. Therefore, the mode of transport, information, infrastructure and personnel are very important to factor affecting decision making for tourism in Thailand by ASEAN tourists. From the hypothesis testing, it can be predicted that the decision for choosing Tourism in Thailand is at R2 = 0.449. The predictive equation is decision for choosing Tourism in Thailand = 1.195 (constant value) + 0.425 (tourist attraction) +0.217 (information received) and transportation factors, tourist attraction, information, human resource and infrastructure at the significant level of 0.01.

Keywords: factor, decision making, ASEAN tourists, tourism in Thailand

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Authors: Sinsze Koo, Benjin Luo, Matthew Henry

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In order to increase the performance of an automatic transmission, the automatic transmission fluid is required to be warm up to an optimal operating temperature. In a conventional vehicle, cold starts result in friction loss occurring in the gear box and engine. The stop and go nature of city driving dramatically affect the warm-up of engine oil and automatic transmission fluid and delay the time frame needed to reach an optimal operating temperature. This temperature phenomenon impacts both engine and transmission performance but also increases fuel consumption and CO2 emission. The aim of this study is to develop know-how of the thermal behavior in order to identify thermal impacts and functional principles in automatic transmissions. Thermal behavior was studied using models and simulations, developed using GT-Suit, on a one-dimensional thermal and flow transport. A power train of a conventional vehicle was modeled in order to emphasis the thermal phenomena occurring in the various components and how they impact the automatic transmission performance. The simulation demonstrates the thermal model of a transmission fluid cooling system and its component parts in warm-up after a cold start. The result of these analyses will support the future designs of transmission systems and components in an attempt to obtain better fuel efficiency and transmission performance. Therefore, these thermal analyses could possibly identify ways that improve existing thermal management techniques with prioritization on fuel efficiency.

Keywords: thermal management, automatic transmission, hybrid, and systematic approach

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Authors: Gangacharyulu Dasaroju, Sumeet Sharma, Sanjay Singh

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Heat pipe is characterised as superconductor of heat because of its excellent heat removal ability. The operation of several engineering system results in generation of heat. This may cause several overheating problems and lead to failure of the systems. To overcome this problem and to achieve desired rate of heat dissipation, there is need to study the performance of heat pipe with annular fins under free convection at different inclinations. This study demonstrates the effect of different mass flow rate of hot fluid into evaporator section on the condenser side heat transfer coefficient with annular fins under natural convection at different inclinations. In this study annular fins are used for the experimental work having dimensions of length of fin, thickness of fin and spacing of fin as 10 mm, 1 mm and 6 mm, respectively. The main aim of present study is to discover at what inclination angles the maximum heat transfer coefficient shall be achieved. The heat transfer coefficient on the external surface of heat pipe condenser section is determined by experimental method and then predicted by empirical correlations. The results obtained from experimental and Churchill and Chu relation for laminar are in fair agreement with not more than 22% deviation. It is elucidated the maximum heat transfer coefficient of 31.2 W/(m²-K) at 25˚ tilt angle and minimal condenser heat transfer coefficient of 26.4 W/(m²-K) is seen at 45˚ tilt angle and 200 ml/min mass flow rate. Inclination angle also affects the thermal performance of heat pipe. Beyond 25^o inclination, heat transport rate starts to decrease.

Keywords: heat pipe, annular fins, natural convection, condenser heat transfer coefficient, tilt angle

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Authors: M. Nazim, S. Ameen, H. K. Seo, H. S. Shin

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Energy is the basis of life and strong attention has been growing for the cost-effective energy production. Recently, solution-processed small molecule organic solar cells (SMOSCs) have grown much attention due to the wages such as well-defined molecular structures, definite molecular weight, easy synthesis and easy purification techniques. In particular, the size of donor (D) and acceptor (A) unit is a crucial factor for the exciton-diffusion towards D-A interface and then charge-separation for the effective charge-transport to the electrodes. Furan-bridged materials are more electron-rich, high fluorescence, with better molecular-packing, and greater rigidity and greater solubility than their thiophene-counterparts In this work, a furan-bridged thiazolo[5,4-d]thiazole based organic small molecule (RFTzR) was formulated and applied for BHJ organic solar cells (OSCs). The introduction of furan spacer with two terminal alkyl units improved its absorption and solubility in the common organic solvents, significantly. RFTzR exhibited a HOMO and LUMO energy levels of -5.36 eV and -3.14 eV, respectively. The fabricated solar cell devices of RFTzR (donor) with PC60BM (acceptor) as photoactive materials showed high performance of 2.72% (RFTzR:PC60BM, 2:1, w/w) ratio with open-circuit voltage of 0.756 V and high photocurrent density of 10.13 mA/cm².

Keywords: chromophore, organic solar cells, photoactive materials, small molecule

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Authors: S. Tireche, A. Tairi abdelaziz

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Environmental damage has increased steadily in recent decades: Depletion of natural resources, destruction of the ozone layer, greenhouse effect, degradation of the quality of life, land use etc. New terms have emerged as: "Prevention rather than cure" or "polluter pays" falls within the principles of common sense, their practical implementation still remains fragmented. Among the avenues to be explored, one of the most promising is certainly one that focuses on product design. Indeed, where better than during the design phase, can reduce the source of future impacts on the environment? What choices or those of design, they influence more on the environmental characteristics of products? The most currently recognized at the international level is the analysis of the life cycle (LCA) and Life Cycle Assessment, subject to International Standardization (ISO 14040-14043). LCA provides scientific and objective assessment of potential impacts of the product or service, considering its entire life cycle. This approach makes it possible to minimize impacts to the source in pollution prevention. It is widely preferable to curative approach, currently majority in the industrial crops, led mostly by a report of pollution. The "product" is to reduce the environmental impacts of a given product, taking into account all or part of its life cycle. Currently, there are emerging tools, known as eco-design. They are intended to establish an environmental profile of the product to improve its environmental performance. They require a quantity sufficient information on the product for each phase of its life cycle: raw material extraction, manufacturing, distribution, usage, end of life (recycling or incineration or deposit) and all stages of transport. The assessment results indicate the sensitive points of the product studied, points on which the developer must act.

Keywords: eco design, impact, life cycle analysis (LCA), sustainability

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Authors: Stephane Laussac, Jacques Piazzola, Gilles Tedeschi

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Estimation of the impact of atmospheric aerosols on the climate evolution is an important scientific challenge. One of a major source of particles is constituted by the oceans through the generation of sea-spray aerosols. In coastal areas, marine aerosols can affect air quality through their ability to interact chemically and physically with other aerosol species and gases. The integration of accurate sea-spray emission terms in modeling studies is then required. However, it was found that sea-spray concentrations are not represented with the necessary accuracy in some situations, more particularly at short fetch. In this study, the WRF-Chem model was implemented on a North-Western Mediterranean coastal region. WRF-Chem is the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model online-coupled with chemistry for investigation of regional-scale air quality which simulates the emission, transport, mixing, and chemical transformation of trace gases and aerosols simultaneously with the meteorology. One of the objectives was to test the ability of the WRF-Chem model to represent the fine details of the coastal geography to provide accurate predictions of sea spray evolution for different fetches and the anthropogenic aerosols. To assess the performance of the model, a comparison between the model predictions using a local emission inventory and the physicochemical analysis of aerosol concentrations measured for different wind direction on the island of Porquerolles located 10 km south of the French Riviera is proposed.

Keywords: sea-spray aerosols, coastal areas, sea-spray concentrations, short fetch, WRF-Chem model

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Authors: Yasser Mahmoudi, Nader Karimi

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The present work examines analytically the effect internal heat generation on temperature fields in a channel partially-filled with a porous under local thermal non-equilibrium condition. The Darcy-Brinkman model is used to represent the fluid transport through the porous material. Two fundamental models (models A and B) represent the thermal boundary conditions at the interface between the porous medium and the clear region. The governing equations of the problem are manipulated, and for each interface model, exact solutions for the solid and fluid temperature fields are developed. These solutions incorporate the porous material thickness, Biot number, fluid to solid thermal conductivity ratio Darcy number, as the non-dimensional energy terms in fluid and solid as parameters. Results show that considering any of the two models and under zero or negative heat generation (heat sink) and for any Darcy number, an increase in the porous thickness increases the amount of heat flux transferred to the porous region. The obtained results are applicable to the analysis of complex porous media incorporating internal heat generation, such as heat transfer enhancement (THE), tumor ablation in biological tissues and porous radiant burners (PRBs).

Keywords: porous media, local thermal non-equilibrium, forced convection, heat transfer, exact solution, internal heat generation

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Authors: Giovanni Matheus Rech, Gilberto Zan, Filipe P. Aguiar

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The current pandemic scenario raises questions that many times would have previously gone unnoticed. One of these issues is the quality of the air we breathe in the most diverse environments in which we are inserted in an everyday. It is plausible to suppose that, at times like this, there is apprehension regarding the possibility of contamination by pathological agents such as viruses and bacterias through the airways. However, the renewal of indoor air, combined with a properly sanitized air conditioning system, are important tools for the prevention of viral diseases, as is the case with COVID-19. The bus is an example of an environment where renovation is applied to improve the quality of indoor air, helping to reduce the possibility of spreading pathological agents. Together with other care, such as an alcohol gel dispenser, curtains to separate the passengers, cleaning the environment more frequently, and mandatory use of masks, help to reduce the transmission of pathologies, such as COVID-19. Knowing the reality of a large part of the population regarding the need for public transport, there are standards and devices dedicated to promoting air quality, ensuring greater comfort and safety for users. This paper seeks to present such standards and recommendations to improve the quality of indoor air, as well as the equipment responsible for the renewal of the air in the body of a bus. Experimental measurement of the flow rates of the renewal devices present in the bus body allows quantifying the average volume of external air admitted in each type of body. This way, it was possible to compare, in terms of airflow per person, the values of a bus in relation to a series of other environments, using recommendations for air renewal are described through the Brazilian standard ABNT NBR 16401.

Keywords: air quality, air renewal, buses, Covid-19

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Authors: Rose Hattab

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Women have been an important dynamic in religious context and the state-building process of Arab countries throughout history. During the 1970s as the movement for women’s activism and rights developed, the Iraqi state under the Ba’ath Party began to provide Iraqi women with legal and civil rights. This was done to liberate women from the grasps of social traditions and was a tangible espousing of equality between men and women in the process of nation-building. Whereas women’s rights were stronger and more supported throughout the earliest years of the Ba’ath Regime (1970-1990), the aftermath of the Gulf War and economic sanctions on the conditions of Iraqi society laid the foundation for a division of women’s rights between civil and religious authorities. Personal status codes that were secured in 1959 were being pushed back by amendments made in coordination with religious leaders. Civil laws were present on paper, but religious authority took prominence in practice. The written legal codes were inclusive of women’s rights, but there is not an active or ensured practice of these rights within Iraqi society. This is due to many different factors, such as religious, sectarian, political and conservative reasons that hold back or limit the ability for Iraqi women to have autonomy in aspects such as participation in the workforce, getting married, and ensuring social justice. This paper argues that the Personal Status Code introduced in 1959 – which replaced Sharia-run courts with personal status courts – provided Iraqi women with equality and increased mobility in social and economic dynamics. The statewide crisis felt after the Gulf War and the economic sanctions imposed by the United Nations led to a stark shift in the Ba’ath party’s political ideology. This ideological turn guided the social system to the embracement of social conservatism and religious traditions in the 1990s. The effect of this implementation continued after the establishment of a new Iraqi government during 2003-2005. Consequently, Iraqi women's rights in employment, marriage, and family became divided into paper and practice by religious authorities and civil law from that period to the present day. This paper also contributes to the literature by expanding on the gap between legal codes on paper and in practice, through providing an analysis of Iraqi women’s rights in the Iraqi Constitution of 2005 and Iraq’s Penal Code. The turn to conservative and religious traditions is derived from the multiplicity of identities that make up the Iraqi social fabric. In the aftermath of a totalitarian regime, active wars, and economic sanctions, the Iraqi people attempted to unite together through their different identities to create a sense of security in the midst of violence and chaos. This is not an excuse to diminish the importance of women’s rights, but in the process of building a new nation-state, women were lost from the narrative. Thus, the presence of gender equity is found in the written text but is not practiced and upheld in the social context.

Keywords: civil rights, Iraqi women, nation building, religion and conflict

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Authors: Sepehr Lajevardi Esfahani, Shohre Rouhani, Zahra Ranjbar

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Graphene has gained much attention owing to its unique optical and electrical properties. Charge carriers in graphene sheets (GS) carry out a linear dispersion relation near the Fermi energy and behave as massless Dirac fermions resulting in unusual attributes such as the quantum Hall effect and ambipolar electric field effect. It also exhibits nondispersive transport characteristics with an extremely high electron mobility (15000 cm²/(Vs)) at room temperature. Recently, several progresses have been achieved in the fabrication of single- or multilayer GS for functional device applications in the fields of optoelectronic such as field-effect transistors ultrasensitive sensors and organic photovoltaic cells. In addition to device applications, graphene also can serve as reinforcement to enhance mechanical, thermal, or electrical properties of composite materials. Electrophoretic deposition (EPD) is an attractive method for development of various coatings and films. It readily applied to any powdered solid that forms a stable suspension. The deposition parameters were controlled in various thicknesses. In this study, the graphene electrodeposition conditions were optimized. The results were obtained from SEM, Ohm resistance measuring technique and AFM characteristic tests. The minimum sheet resistance of electrodeposited reduced graphene oxide layers is achieved at conditions of 2 V in 10 s and it is annealed at 200 °C for 1 minute.

Keywords: electrophoretic deposition (EPD), graphene oxide (GO), electrical conductivity, electro-optical devices

Procedia PDF Downloads 192

Authors: Renato André S. Silva, Nana L. F. Sampaio, Carlos J. G. Cruz, Bruno Vianna, Flávio O. Pires

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multiple stage bicycle races require high physiological loads from professional cyclists. Such demands can lead to immunosuppression and health problems. However, in this type of competition, little is known about its physiological effects on amateur athletes, who generally receive less medical support. Thus, this study analyzes the hematological effects of a multiple stage bicycle race on amateur cyclists. Seven Brazilian national amateur cyclists (34 ± 4.21 years) underwent a laboratory test to evaluate VO2Max (69.89 ± 7.43 ml⋅kg-1⋅min-1). Six days later, these volunteers raced in the Tour of Goiás, participating in five races in four days (435 km) of competition. Arterial blood samples were collected one day before and one day after the competition. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests were used to evaluate the data distribution and Wilcoxon to compare the two moments (p <0.05) of data collection. The results show: Red cells ↓ 7.8% (5.1 ± 0.28 vs 4.7 ± 0.37 106 / mm 3, p = 0.01); Hemoglobin ↓ 7.9% (15.1 ± 0.31 vs 13.9 ± 0.27 g / dL, p = 0.01); Leukocytes ↑ 9.5% (4946 ± 553 versus 5416 ± 1075 / mm 3, p = 0.17); Platelets ↓ 7.0% (200.2 ± 51.5 vs 186.1 ± 39.5 / mm 3, p = 0.01); LDH ↑ 11% (164.4 ± 28.5 vs 182.5 ± 20.5 U / L, p = 0.17); CK ↑ 13.5% (290.7 ± 206.1 vs 330.1 ± 90.5 U / L, p = 0.39); CK-MB ↑ 2% (15.7 ± 3.9 vs. 20.1 ± 2.9 U / L, p = 0.06); Cortizol ↓ 13.5% (12.1 ± 2.4 vs 9.9 ± 1.9 μg / dL, p = 0.01); Total testosterone ↓ 7% (453.6 ± 120.1 vs 421.7 ± 74.3 ng / dL, p = 0.12); IGF-1 ↓ 15.1% (213.8 ± 18.8 vs 181.5 ± 34.7 ng / mL, p = 0.04). This means that there was significant reductions in O2 allocation / transport capacities, vascular injury disruption, and a fortuitous reduction of muscle skeletal anabolism along with maintenance and / or slight elevation of immune function, glucose and lipid energy and myocardial damage. Therefore, the results suggest that no abnormal health effect was identified among the athletes after participating in the Tour de Goiás.

Keywords: cycling, health effects, cycling stages races, haematology

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Authors: Y. Y. Babanyara, D. B. Ibrahim, T. Garba

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Proper management of medical waste is a crucial issue for maintaining human health and the environment. The waste generated in the hospitals has the potential for spreading infections and causing diseases. The study is aimed at assessing the medical waste management practices in Nigeria. Three instruments, questionnaire administration, in-depth interview and observation method for data collection were adopted in the study. The results revealed that the hospital does not quantify medical waste. Segregation of medical wastes is not conducted according to definite rules and standards. Wheeled trolleys are used for on-site transportation of waste from the points of production to the temporary storage area. Offsite transportation of the hospital waste is undertaken by a private waste management company. Small pickups are mainly used to transport waste daily to an off-site area for treatment and disposal. The main treatment method used in the final disposal of infectious waste is incineration. Non-infectious waste is disposed off using land disposal method. The study showed that the hospital does not have a policy and plan in place for managing medical waste. The study revealed number of problems the hospital faces in terms of medical waste management, including; lack of necessary rules, regulations and instructions on the different aspects of collections and disposal of waste, failure to quantify the waste generated in reliable records, lack of use of coloured bags by limiting the bags to only one colour for all waste, the absence of a dedicated waste manager, and no committee responsible for monitoring the management of medical waste. Recommendations are given with the aim of improving medical waste management in the hospital.

Keywords: medical waste, treatment, disposal, public health

Procedia PDF Downloads 325

Authors: Goran Sporiš, Dinko Vuleta, Stefan Lovro

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The purpose of the present study was to determine the associations between health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and physical activity (PA) in different domains. In this cross-sectional study, participants were 169 Croatian police officers (mean age 35.14±8.95 yrs, mean height 180.93±7.53 cm, mean weight 88.39±14.05 kg, mean body-mass index 26.90±3.39 kg/m2). The dependent variables were two general domains extracted from the HRQOL questionnaire: (1) physical component scale (PCS) and (2) mental component scale (MCS). The independent variables were job-related, transport, domestic and leisure-time PA, along with other factors: age, body-mass index, smoking status, psychological distress, socioeconomic status and time spent in sedentary behaviour. The associations between dependent and independent variables were analyzed by using multiple regression analysis. Significance was set up at p < 0.05. PCS was positively associated with leisure-time PA (β 0.28, p < 0.001) and socioeconomic status (SES) (β 0.16, p=0.005), but inversely associated with job-related PA (β -0.15, p=0.012), domestic-time PA (β -0.14, p=0.014), age (β -0.12, p=0.050), psychological distress (β -0.43, p<0.001) and sedentary behaviour (β -0.15, p=0.009). MCS was positively associated with leisure-time PA (β 0.19, p=0.013) and SES (β 0.20, p=0.002), while inversely associated with age (β -0.23, p=0.001), psychological distress (β -0.27, p<0.001) and sedentary behaviour (β -0.22, p=0.001). Our results added new information about the associations between domain-specific PA and both physical and mental component scale in police officers. Future studies should deal with the same associations in other stressful occupations.

Keywords: health, fitness, police force, relations

Procedia PDF Downloads 302