Search results for: coordination in solution and solid state

Authors: Folajimi Oladimeji Shorunke

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Background: As of October 9, 2023, diphtheria has been noted to be re-emerging in four African countries: Algeria, Guinea, Niger, and Nigeria. 14,587 cases with a case fatality rate of 4.1% have been reported across these regions, with Nigeria alone responsible for over 90% of the cases. In Taraba State Nigeria, the index case of Diphtheria was reported on epidemic week 34, August 24, 2023 with 75 confirmed cases found 3 months after the index case and a case fatality of 1.3%. it described the distribution, trend and common symptoms found during the Outbreak. Methods: The Taraba State Diphtheria Outbreak line list on the Surveillance Outbreak Response Management & Analysis System (SORMAS) for all its 16 local government areas (LGAs) was analyzed using descriptive statistics (graphs, chats and maps) for the period between 24th August to 25th November 2023. Primary data was collected through the use of case investigation forms and variables like Age, gender, date of disease onset, LGA of residence, and symptoms exhibited were collected. Naso-pharyngeal and oro-pharyngeal samples were also collected for Laboratory confirmation. The most common diphtheria symptoms during the outbreak were also highlighted. Results: A total of 75 Diphtheria cases were diagnosed in 10 of the 16 LGAs in Taraba State between 24th August to 25th November 2023, 72% of the cases were female, with the age range 0-9 years having the highest proportion of 34 (45.3%), the number of positive diagnosis reduces with age among cases. The Northern part of the State had the highest proportion of cases, 68 (90.7%), with Ardo-Kola LGA having the highest 28 (29%). The remaining 9.2% of cases is shared among the middle belt and southern part of the State. The Epi-curve took the characteristic shape of a propagated infection with peaks at the 37th, 39th and 45th epidemic weeks. The most common symptoms found in cases were fever 71 (94.7%), pharyngitis 65( 86.7%), tonsillitis 60 (80%), and laryngitis 53 (71%). Conclusions: The number of confirmed cases of Diphtheria in Taraba State, Nigeria between 24th August to 25th November 2023 is 75. The condition is higher among females than male and mostly affected children between ages 0-9 with the northern part of the state most affected. The most common symptoms exhibited by cases include fever, pharyngitis, tonsillitis and laryngitis.

Keywords: diphtheria outbreak, taraba nigeria, descriptive epidemiology, trend

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Authors: Reena K., Mamatha H. G., Somshekarayya, P. Kumar

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Objectives: The annual proficiency testing of intermediate reference laboratories is conducted by the National Reference Laboratory (NRL) to assess the efficiency of the laboratories to correctly identify Mycobacterium tuberculosis and to determine its drug susceptibility pattern. The proficiency testing results from 2013 to 2017 were analyzed to determine laboratories that were consistent in reporting quality results and those that had difficulty in doing so. Methods: A panel of twenty cultures were sent out to each of these laboratories. The laboratories were expected to grow the cultures in their own laboratories, set up drug susceptibly testing by all the methods they were certified for and report the results within the stipulated time period. The turnaround time for reporting results, specificity, sensitivity positive and negative predictive values and efficiency of the laboratory in identifying the cultures were analyzed. Results: Most of the laboratories had reported their results within the stipulated time period. However, there was enormous delay in reporting results from few of the laboratories. This was mainly due to improper functioning of the biosafety level III laboratory. Only 40% of the laboratories had 100% efficiency in solid culture using Lowenstein Jensen medium. This was expected as a solid culture, and drug susceptibility testing is not used for diagnosing drug resistance. Rapid molecular methods such as Line probe assay and Genexpert are used to determine drug resistance. Automated liquid culture system such as the Mycobacterial growth indicator tube is used to determine prognosis of the patient while on treatment. It was observed that 90% of the laboratories had achieved 100% in the liquid culture method. Almost all laboratories had achieved 100% efficiency in the line probe assay method which is the method of choice for determining drug-resistant tuberculosis. Conclusion: Since the liquid culture and line probe assay technologies are routinely used for the detection of drug-resistant tuberculosis the laboratories exhibited higher level of efficiency as compared to solid culture and drug susceptibility testing which are rarely used. The infrastructure of the laboratory should be maintained properly so that samples can be processed safely and results could be declared on time.

Keywords: annual proficiency testing, drug susceptibility testing, intermediate reference laboratory, national reference laboratory

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Authors: Buddha Ratna Shrestha, Jimmy Faivre, Xavier Banquy

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By precisely controlling the molecular interactions between anti-wear macromolecules and bottle-brush lubricating molecules in the solution state, we obtained a fluid with excellent lubricating and wear protection capabilities. The reason for this synergistic behavior relies on the subtle interaction forces between the fluid components which allow the confined macromolecules to sustain high loads under shear without rupture. Our results provide rational guides to design such fluids for virtually any type of surfaces. The lowest friction coefficient and the maximum pressure that it can sustain is 5*10-3 and 2.5 MPa which is close to the physiological pressure. Lubricating and protecting surfaces against wear using liquid lubricants is a great technological challenge. Until now, wear protection was usually imparted by surface coatings involving complex chemical modifications of the surface while lubrication was provided by a lubricating fluid. Hence, we here research for a simple, effective and applicable solution to the above problem using surface force apparatus (SFA). SFA is a powerful technique with sub-angstrom resolution in distance and 10 nN/m resolution in interaction force while performing friction experiment. Thus, SFA is used to have the direct insight into interaction force, material and friction at interface. Also, we always know the exact contact area. From our experiments, we found that by precisely controlling the molecular interactions between anti-wear macromolecules and lubricating molecules, we obtained a fluid with excellent lubricating and wear protection capabilities. The reason for this synergistic behavior relies on the subtle interaction forces between the fluid components which allow the confined macromolecules to sustain high loads under shear without rupture. The lowest friction coefficient and the maximum pressure that it can sustain in our system is 5*10-3 and 2.5 GPA which is well above the physiological pressure. Our results provide rational guides to design such fluids for virtually any type of surfaces. Most importantly this process is simple, effective and applicable method of lubrication and protection as until now wear protection was usually imparted by surface coatings involving complex chemical modifications of the surface. Currently, the frictional data that are obtained while sliding the flat mica surfaces are compared and confirmed that a particular mixture of solution was found to surpass all other combination. So, further we would like to confirm that the lubricating and antiwear protection remains the same by performing the friction experiments in synthetic cartilages.

Keywords: bottle brush polymer, hyaluronic acid, lubrication, tribology

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Authors: Veronica Onyemauwa

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This research work examines the socio-ethical issues embedded in resource management and wealth creation in Nigeria, using Akwa Ibom State as a case study. The work is poised to proffer answers to the problematic questions raised, “why is the wealth of Akwa Ibom State not prudently managed, and wastages curbed in order to cater for the satisfaction of the indigent citizens, as Jesus Christ did in the feeding of five thousand people (John 6:12) ? Could ethical and responsible resource management not solve the paradox of poverty stricken people of Akwa Ibom in a rich economy? What ought to be done to better the lot of Akwa Ibomites? The research adopts phenomenological and sociological research methodology with primary and secondary sources of information to explore the socio-ethical issues embedded in resource management and wealth creation in Akwa Ibom State. Findings revealed that, reckless exploitation and mismanagement of the rich natural and human resources of Akwa Ibom State have spelt doom to the economic progress and survival of Akwa Ibomites in particular and Nigerians in general. Hence, hunger and poverty remain adversaries to majority of the people. Again, the culture of diversion of funds and squandermania institutionalized within the confine of Akwa Ibom State government, deter investment in economic enterprises, job and wealth creation that would have yielded economic dividends for Akwa Ibomites. These and many other unwholesome practices are responsible for the present deplorable condition of Akwa Ibom State in particular and Nigerian society in general. As a way out of this economic quagmire, it is imperative that, every unwholesome practice within the State be tackled more proactively and innovatively in the interest of the masses through responsible resource management and wealth creation. It is believed that, an effective leadership, a statesman with vision and commitment would transform the abundant resources to achieve meaningful development, create wealth and reduce poverty. Ethical leadership is required in all the tiers of government and public organizations to transform resources into more wealth. Thus, this paper advocates for ethics of virtue: a paradigm shift from exploitative leadership style to productive leadership style; change from atomistic human relation to corporative human relation; change from being subsistence to abundant in other to maximize the available resources in the State. To do otherwise is unethical and lack moral justification.

Keywords: corrective, mismanagement, resources, virtue ethics

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Authors: Eva Nedeliakova, Michal Panak

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This article describes the results of research focused on progressive view on quality management. It characterizes a research of improving services in railway transport. Improvement of these services has a strong importance in customer considering on the future use of railway transport. The research provides quality characteristics of transportation, defines critical points of technological processes and specifies the quality model supported by software solution. Main principles and results of the research have a significant importance and belong to numerous initiatives aimed to develop and support railway transport.

Keywords: quality, service, software solution, railway transport

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Authors: Shradha S. Binani, P. S. Bodke, R. V. Joat

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Recent decades have witnessed an exponential growth in the field of acoustical parameters and ultrasound on solid, liquid and gases. Ultrasonic propagation parameters yield valuable information regarding the behavior of liquid systems because intra and intermolecular association, dipolar interaction, complex formation and related structural changes affecting the compressibility of the system which in turn produces variations in the ultrasonic velocity. The acoustic and thermo dynamical parameters obtained in ultrasonic study show that ion-solvation is accompanied by the destruction or enhancement of the solvent structure. In the present paper the ultrasonic velocity (v), density (ρ), viscosity(η) have been measured for the pharmacological important compound 2-hydroxy substituted phenyl pyrimidine derivative (2-hydroxy-4-(4’-methoxy phenyl)-6-(2’-hydroxy-4’-methyl-5’-chlorophenyl)pyrimidine) in ethanol as a solvent by using different concentration at constant room temperature. These experimental data have been used to estimate physical parameter like adiabatic compressibility, intermolecular free length, relaxation time, free volume, specific acoustic impedance, relative association, Wada’s constant, Rao’s constant etc. The above parameters provide information in understanding the structural and molecular interaction between solute-solvent in the drug solution with respect to change in concentration.

Keywords: acoustical parameters, ultrasonic velocity, density, viscosity, 2-hydroxy substituted phenyl pyrimidine derivative

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Authors: Sang Wook Park, Se Woon Choi, Yousok Kim, Byung Kwan Oh, Hyo Seon Park

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Various retrofit techniques for reinforced concrete frame with infill wall have been steadily developed. Among those techniques, strengthening methodology based on diagonal FRP strips (FRP bracings) has numerous advantages such as feasibility of implementing without interrupting the building under operation, reduction of cost and time, and easy application. Considering the safety of structure and retrofit cost, the most appropriate retrofit solution is needed. Thus, the objective of this study is to suggest pareto-optimal solution for existing building using FRP bracings. To find pareto-optimal solution analysis, NSGA-II is applied. Moreover, the seismic performance of retrofit building is evaluated. The example building is 5-storey, 3-bay RC frames with infill wall. Nonlinear static pushover analyses are performed with FEMA 356. The criterion of performance evaluation is inter-story drift ratio at the performance level IO, LS, CP. Optimal retrofit solutions is obtained for 32 individuals and 200 generations. Through the proposed optimal solutions, we confirm the improvement of seismic performance of the example building.

Keywords: retrofit, FRP bracings, reinforced concrete frame with infill wall, seismic performance evaluation, NSGA-II

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Authors: A. Vinay, Mary Josephine, Shreesha. S. Rao, Dhande Kranthi Kumar, J. Nandini

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This paper looks at the development of Fisheries education in Karnataka and the supply of skilled human capital to the sector. The study tries to analyse their job occupancy patterns, Compound Growth Rate (CGR) and forecasts the fisheries graduates supply using the Holt method. In Karnataka, fisheries are one of the neglected allied sectors of agriculture in spite of having enormous scope and potential to contribute to the State's agriculture GDP. The State Government has been negligent in absorbing skilled human capital for the development of fisheries, as there are so many vacant positions in both education institutes, as well as the State fisheries department. CGR and forecasting of fisheries graduates shows a positive growth rate and increasing trend, from which we can understand that by proper utilization of skilled human capital can bring development in the fisheries sector of Karnataka.

Keywords: compound growth rate, fisheries education, holt method, skilled human capital

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Authors: Nisha Nandlal Sharma, Julaluk Carmai, Saiprasit Koetniyom, Bernd Markert

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Whiplash Injuries are usually associated with car accidents. The sudden forward or backward jerk to head causes neck strain, which is the result of damage to the muscle or tendons. Neck pain and headaches are the two most common symptoms of whiplash. Symptoms of whiplash are commonly reported in studies but the Injury mechanism is poorly understood. Neck muscles are the most important factor to study the neck Injury. This study focuses on the development of finite element (FE) model of human neck muscle to study the whiplash injury mechanism and effect of active muscle contraction on occupant kinematics. A detailed study of Injury mechanism will promote development and evaluation of new safety systems in cars, hence reducing the occurrence of severe injuries to the occupant. In present study, an active human finite element (FE) model with 3D neck muscle model is developed. Neck muscle was modeled with a combination of solid tetrahedral elements and 1D beam elements. Muscle active properties were represented by beam elements whereas, passive properties by solid tetrahedral elements. To generate muscular force according to inputted activation levels, Hill-type muscle model was applied to beam elements. To simulate non-linear passive properties of muscle, solid elements were modeled with rubber/foam material model. Material properties were assigned from published experimental tests. Some important muscles were then inserted into THUMS (Total Human Model for Safety) 50th percentile male pedestrian model. To reduce the simulation time required, THUMS lower body parts were not included. Posterior to muscle insertion, THUMS was given a boundary conditions similar to experimental tests. The model was exposed to 4g and 7g rear impacts as these load impacts are close to low speed impacts causing whiplash. The effect of muscle activation level on occupant kinematics during whiplash was analyzed.

Keywords: finite element model, muscle activation, neck muscle, whiplash injury prevention

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Authors: Shreyash Hadke, Manendra Singh Parihar, Rajesh Khatirkar

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In the present investigation, the variation in the microstructure with the changes in the heat treatment conditions i.e. temperature and time was observed. Ti-6Al-4V alloy was subject to solution annealing treatments in β (1066C) and α+β phase (930C and 850C) followed by quenching, air cooling and furnace cooling to room temperature respectively. The effect of solution annealing and cooling on the microstructure was studied by using optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) and x-ray diffraction (XRD). The chemical composition of the β phase for different conditions was determined with the help of energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) attached to SEM. Furnace cooling resulted in the development of coarser structure (α+β), while air cooling resulted in much finer structure with widmanstatten morphology of α at the grain boundaries. Quenching from solution annealing temperature formed α’ martensite, their proportion being dependent on the temperature in β phase field. It is well known that the transformation of β to α follows Burger orientation relationship (OR). In order to reconstruct the microstructure of parent β phase, a MATLAB code was written using neighbor-to-neighbor, triplet method and Tari’s method. The code was tested on the annealed samples (1066C solution annealing temperature followed by furnace cooling to room temperature). The parent phase data thus generated was then plotted using the TSL-OIM software. The reconstruction results of the above methods were compared and analyzed. The Tari’s approach (clustering approach) gave better results compared to neighbor-to-neighbor and triplet method but the time taken by the triplet method was least compared to the other two methods.

Keywords: Ti-6Al-4V alloy, microstructure, electron backscattered diffraction, parent phase reconstruction

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Authors: Ha-Guk Jeong, Jong-Beom Lee

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Cladding process is very typical technology for manufacturing composite materials by the hydrostatic extrusion. Because there is no friction between the metal and the container, it can be easily obtained in uniform flow during the deformation. The general manufacturing process for a metal-matrix composite in the solid state, mixing metal powders and ceramic powders with a suited volume ratio, prior to be compressed or extruded at the cold or hot condition in a can. Since through a plurality of unit processing steps of dispersing the materials having a large difference in their characteristics and physical mixing, the process is complicated and leads to non-uniform dispersion of ceramics. It is difficult and hard to reach a uniform ideal property in the coherence problems at the interface between the metal and the ceramic reinforcements. Metal hybrid composites, which presented in this report, are manufactured through the traditional plastic deformation processes like hydrostatic extrusion, caliber-rolling, and drawing. By the previous process, the realization of uniform macro and microstructure is surely possible. In this study, as a constituent material, aluminum, copper, and titanium have been used, according to the component ratio, excellent characteristics of each material were possible to produce a metal hybrid composite that appears to maximize. MgB₂ superconductor wire also fabricated via the same process. It will be introduced to their unique artistic and thermal characteristics.

Keywords: cladding process, metal-hybrid composites, hydrostatic extrusion, electronic/thermal characteristics

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Authors: Satyanarayana Engu, Ahmed Mohd, V. Murugan

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We study the large time asymptotics of solutions to the Cauchy problem for a forced Burgers equation (FBE) with the initial data, which is continuous and summable on R. For which, we first derive explicit solutions of FBE assuming a different class of initial data in terms of Hermite polynomials. Later, by violating this assumption we prove the existence of a solution to the considered Cauchy problem. Finally, we give an asymptotic approximate solution and establish that the error will be of order O(t^(-1/2)) with respect to L^p -norm, where 1≤p≤∞, for large time.

Keywords: Burgers equation, Cole-Hopf transformation, Hermite polynomials, large time asymptotics

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Authors: Moustafa Osman Mohammed

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This paper introduces topological order in descried social systems starting with the original concept of autopoiesis by biologists and scientists, including the modification of general systems based on socialized medicine. Topological order is important in describing the physical systems for exploiting optical systems and improving photonic devices. The stats of topological order have some interesting properties of topological degeneracy and fractional statistics that reveal the entanglement origin of topological order, etc. Topological ideas in photonics form exciting developments in solid-state materials, that being; insulating in the bulk, conducting electricity on their surface without dissipation or back-scattering, even in the presence of large impurities. A specific type of autopoiesis system is interrelated to the main categories amongst existing groups of the ecological phenomena interaction social and medical sciences. The hypothesis, nevertheless, has a nonlinear interaction with its natural environment 'interactional cycle' for exchange photon energy with molecules without changes in topology. The engineering topology of a biosensor is based on the excitation boundary of surface electromagnetic waves in photonic band gap multilayer films. The device operation is similar to surface Plasmonic biosensors in which a photonic band gap film replaces metal film as the medium when surface electromagnetic waves are excited. The use of photonic band gap film offers sharper surface wave resonance leading to the potential of greatly enhanced sensitivity. So, the properties of the photonic band gap material are engineered to operate a sensor at any wavelength and conduct a surface wave resonance that ranges up to 470 nm. The wavelength is not generally accessible with surface Plasmon sensing. Lastly, the photonic band gap films have robust mechanical functions that offer new substrates for surface chemistry to understand the molecular design structure and create sensing chips surface with different concentrations of DNA sequences in the solution to observe and track the surface mode resonance under the influences of processes that take place in the spectroscopic environment. These processes led to the development of several advanced analytical technologies: which are; automated, real-time, reliable, reproducible, and cost-effective. This results in faster and more accurate monitoring and detection of biomolecules on refractive index sensing, antibody-antigen reactions with a DNA or protein binding. Ultimately, the controversial aspect of molecular frictional properties is adjusted to each other in order to form unique spatial structure and dynamics of biological molecules for providing the environment mutual contribution in investigation of changes due to the pathogenic archival architecture of cell clusters.

Keywords: autopoiesis, photonics systems, quantum topology, molecular structure, biosensing

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Authors: Pablo Cardozo Herrera

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In a dynamic market of Information Technology (IT) Service and with high quality demands and high performance requirements in decreasing costs, it is imperative that IT companies invest organizational effort in order to increase the effectiveness of their Information Technology Service Management (ITSM) processes through the improvement of ITSM project management and through solid support to the strategic decision-making process of IT directors. In this article, the author presents an analysis of common issues of IT companies around the world, with strategic needs of information unmet that provoke their ITSM processes and projects management that do not achieve the effectiveness and efficiency expected of their results. In response to the issues raised, the author proposes a framework consisting of an innovative theoretical framework model of ITSM management and a technological solution aligned to the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) good practices guidance and ISO/IEC 20000-1 requirements. The article describes a research that proves the proposed framework is able to integrate, manage and coordinate in a holistic way, measurable and auditable, all ITSM processes and projects of IT organization and utilize the effectiveness assessment achieved for their strategic decision-making process increasing the process maturity level and improving the capacity of an efficient management.

Keywords: innovation in IT services, ITSM processes, ITIL and ISO/IEC 20000-1, IT service management, IT service excellence

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Authors: Amirreza Fazely Hamedani, Muzzamil Aziz, Philipp Wieder, Ramin Yahyapour

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Software-defined networking in recent years came into the sight of so many network designers as a successor to the traditional networking. Unlike traditional networks where control and data planes engage together within a single device in the network infrastructure such as switches and routers, the two planes are kept separated in software-defined networks (SDNs). All critical decisions about packet routing are made on the network controller, and the data level devices forward the packets based on these decisions. This type of network is vulnerable to DDoS attacks, degrading the overall functioning and performance of the network by continuously injecting the fake flows into it. This increases substantial burden on the controller side, and the result ultimately leads to the inaccessibility of the controller and the lack of network service to the legitimate users. Thus, the protection of this novel network architecture against denial of service attacks is essential. In the world of cybersecurity, attacks and new threats emerge every day. It is essential to have tools capable of managing and analyzing all this new information to detect possible attacks in real-time. These tools should provide a comprehensive solution to automatically detect, predict and prevent abnormalities in the network. Big data encompasses a wide range of studies, but it mainly refers to the massive amounts of structured and unstructured data that organizations deal with on a regular basis. On the other hand, it regards not only the volume of the data; but also that how data-driven information can be used to enhance decision-making processes, security, and the overall efficiency of a business. This paper presents an intelligent big data framework as a solution to handle illegitimate traffic burden on the SDN network created by the numerous DDoS attacks. The framework entails an efficient defence and monitoring mechanism against DDoS attacks by employing the state of the art machine learning techniques.

Keywords: apache spark, apache kafka, big data, DDoS attack, machine learning, SDN network

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Authors: Anatoly A. Kuznetsov, Pavel G. Berezhko, Sergey M. Kunavin, Eugeny V. Zhilkin, Maxim V. Tsarev, Vyacheslav V. Yaroshenko, Valery V. Mokrushin, Olga Y. Yunchina, Sergey A. Mityashin

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The acoustic emission is caused by short-time propagation of elastic waves that are generated as a result of quick energy release from sources localized inside some material. In particular, the acoustic emission phenomenon lies in the generation of acoustic waves resulted from the reconstruction of material internal structures. This phenomenon is observed at various physicochemical transformations, in particular, at those accompanying hydrogenation processes of metals or intermetallic compounds that make it possible to study parameters of these transformations through recording and analyzing the acoustic signals. It has been known that at the interaction between metals or inter metallides with hydrogen the most intensive acoustic signals are generated as a result of cracking or crumbling of an initial compact powder sample as a result of the change of material crystal structure under hydrogenation. This work is dedicated to the study into changes occurring in metallic titanium samples at their interaction with hydrogen and followed by acoustic emission signals. In this work the subjects for investigation were specimens of metallic titanium in two various initial forms: titanium sponge and fine titanium powder made of this sponge. The kinetic of the interaction of these materials with hydrogen, the acoustic emission signals accompanying hydrogenation processes and the structure of the materials before and after hydrogenation were investigated. It was determined that in both cases interaction of metallic titanium and hydrogen is followed by acoustic emission signals of high amplitude generated on reaching some certain value of the atomic ratio [H]/[Ti] in a solid phase because of metal cracking at a macrolevel. The typical sizes of the cracks are comparable with particle sizes of hydrogenated specimens. The reasons for cracking are internal stresses initiated in a sample due to the increasing volume of a solid phase as a result of changes in a material crystal lattice under hydrogenation. When the titanium powder is used, the atomic ratio [H]/[Ti] in a solid phase corresponding to the maximum amplitude of an acoustic emission signal are, as a rule, higher than when titanium sponge is used.

Keywords: acoustic emission signal, cracking, hydrogenation, titanium specimen

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Authors: Nonlapun Meenil, Pisitpong Intarapong, Thitima Wongsheree, Pranchalee Samanpiboon

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In Thailand, once pineapples are harvested, they must be classified into two classes based on their sweetness: sweet and unsweet. This paper has studied and developed the assessment of internal quality of pineapples using a low-cost compact spectroscopy sensor according to the Spectroscopy approach and Neural Network (NN). During the experiments, Batavia pineapples were utilized, generating 100 samples. The extracted pineapple juice of each sample was used to determine the Soluble Solid Content (SSC) labeling into sweet and unsweet classes. In terms of experimental equipment, the sensor cover was specifically designed to install the sensor and light source to read the reflectance at a five mm depth from pineapple flesh. By using a spectroscopy sensor, data on visible and near-infrared reflectance (Vis-NIR) were collected. The NN was used to classify the pineapple classes. Before the classification step, the preprocessing methods, which are Class balancing, Data shuffling, and Standardization were applied. The 510 nm and 900 nm reflectance values of the middle parts of pineapples were used as features of the NN. With the Sequential model and Relu activation function, 100% accuracy of the training set and 76.67% accuracy of the test set were achieved. According to the abovementioned information, using a low-cost compact spectroscopy sensor has achieved favorable results in classifying the sweetness of the two classes of pineapples.

Keywords: neural network, pineapple, soluble solid content, spectroscopy

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Authors: Daniela Evtimovska, Ivana Srbinovska, Padraig O’Rourke

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Kostal Macedonia has the challenge to mill a rigid-flex printed circuit board (PCB). The PCB elaborated in this paper is made of FR4 material covered with polyimide through the whole surface on the one side, including the tabs where PCBs need to be separated. After milling only 1.44 meters, the updraft routing tool isn’t effective and causes polyimide debris on all PCB cuts if it continues to mill with the same tool. Updraft routing tool is used for all another product in Kostal Macedonia, and it is changing after milling 60 meters. Changing the tool adds 80 seconds to the cycle time. One solution is using a laser-cut machine. Buying a laser-cut machine for cutting only one product doesn’t make financial sense. The focus is given to find an internal solution among the options under review to solve the issue with polyimide debris. In the paper, the design of the rigid-flex panel is described deeply. It is evaluated downdraft routing tool as a possible solution which could be used for the flex rigid panel as a specific product. It is done a comparison between updraft and down draft routing tools from a technical and financial aspect of view, taking into consideration the customer requirements for the rigid-flex PCB. The results show that using the downdraft routing tool is the best solution in this case. This tool is more expensive for 0.62 euros per piece than updraft. The downdraft routing tool needs to be changed after milling 43.44 meters in comparison with the updraft tool, which needs to be changed after milling only 1.44 meters. It is done analysis which actions should be taken in order further improvements and the possibility of maximum serving of downdraft routing tool.

Keywords: Kostal Macedonia, rigid flex PCB, polyimide, debris, milling process, up/down draft routing tool

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Authors: S. F. Bayona, J. Nunez, D. Paez

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The diagnostic processes have been consolidated as fundamental tools in the adequate knowledge of organizations and their processes. The diagnosis is related to the interpretation of the data, findings and the relevant information, to determine problems, causes, or the simple state and behavior of a process, without including a solution to the problems detected. The objective of this work is to identify the necessary stages to diagnose the logistic processes in a metalworking company, from the literary revision of different disciplines. A total of 62 articles were chosen to identify, through bibliometric analysis, the most cited articles, as well as the most frequent authors and journals. The results allowed to identify the two fundamental stages in the diagnostic process: a primary phase (general) based on the logical subjectivity of the knowledge of the person who evaluates, and the secondary phase (specific), related to the interpretation of the results, findings or data. Also, two phases were identified, one related to the definition of the scope of the actions to be developed and the other, as an initial description of what was observed in the process.

Keywords: business, diagnostic, management, process

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Authors: Axel Thallemer, Martin Danzer, Dominik Diensthuber, Aleksandar Kostadinov, Bernhard Rogler

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Nature has always inspired the creative mind, to a lesser or greater extent. Introduced around the 1950s, Biomimetics served as a systematic method to treat the natural world as a ‘pattern book’ for technical solutions with the aim to create innovative products. Unfortunately, this technique is prone to failure when performed as a mere reverse engineering of a natural system or appearance. Contrary to that, a solution which looks at the principles of a natural design, promises a better outcome. One such example is the here presented case study, which shows the design process of three distinctive grippers. The devices have biomimetic properties on two levels. Firstly, they use a kinematic chain found in beaks and secondly, they have a biomimetic structural geometry, which was realized using additive manufacturing. In a next step, the manufacturing method was evaluated to estimate its efficiency for commercial production. The results show that the fabrication procedure is still in its early stage and thus it is not able to guarantee satisfactory results. To summarize the study, we claim that a novel solution can be derived using principles from nature, however, for the solution to be actualized successfully, there are parameters which are beyond reach for designers. Nonetheless, industrial designers can contribute to product innovation using biomimetics.

Keywords: biomimetics, innovation, design process, additive manufacturing

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Authors: Jaspreet Kaur, Parminder Nain, Vipin Saini, Sumitra Dahiya

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Elaeocarpus sphaericus has been traditionally used in the Indian traditional medicine system for the treatment of stress, anxiety, depression, palpitation, epilepsy, migraine and lack of concentration. The study was investigated to evaluate the neurological potential such as anxiolytic, muscle relaxant and sedative activity of methanolic extract of Elaeocarpus sphaericus stem bark (MEESSB) in mice. Preliminary phytochemical screening and acute oral toxicity of MEESSB was carried out by using standard methods. The anxiety was induced by employing Elevated Plus-Maze (EPM), Light and Dark Test (LDT), Open Field Test (OFT) and Social Interaction test (SIT). The motor coordination and sedative effect was also observed by using actophotometer, rota-rod apparatus and ketamine-induced sleeping time, respectively. Animals were treated with different doses of MEESSB (i.e.100, 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg orally) and diazepam (2 mg/kg i.p) for 21 days. Brain neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin and nor-epinephrine level were estimated by validated methods. Preliminary phytochemical analysis of the extract revealed the presence of tannins, phytosterols, steroids and alkaloids. In the acute toxicity studies, MEESSB was found to be non-toxic and with no mortality. In anxiolytic studies, the different doses of MEESSB showed a significant (p<0.05) effect on EPM and LDT. In OFT and SIT, a significant (p<0.05) increase in ambulation, rearing and social interaction time was observed. In the case of motor coordination activity, the MEESSB does not cause any significant effect on the latency to fall off from the rotarod bar as compared to the control group. Moreover, no significant effects on ketamine-induced sleep latency and total sleeping time induced by ketamine were observed. Results of neurotransmitter estimation revealed the increased concentration of dopamine, whereas the level of serotonin and nor-epinephrine was found to be decreased in the mice brain, with MEESSB at dose 800 mg/kg only. The study has validated the folkloric use of the plant as an anxiolytic in Indian traditional medicine while also suggesting potential usefulness in the treatment of stress and anxiety without causing sedation.

Keywords: anxiolytic, behavior experiments, brain neurotransmitters, elaeocarpus sphaericus

Procedia PDF Downloads 173

Authors: Malek Mahmoudi, Jonas Keruckas, Dmytro Volyniuk, Jurate Simokaitiene, Juozas V. Grazulevicius

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Host materials have been discovered as one of the most appealing methods for harvesting triplet states in organic materials for application in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). The ideal host-guest system for emission in thermally delayed fluorescence OLEDs with 20% guest concentration for efficient energy transfer has been demonstrated in the present investigation. In this work, 3,3'-bis[9-(4-fluorophenyl) carbazole] (bFPC) has been used as the host, which induces balanced charge carrier transport for high-efficiency OLEDs.For providing a complete characterization of the synthesized compound, photophysical, photoelectrical, charge-transporting, and electrochemical properties of the compound have been examined. Excited-state lifetimes and singlet-triplet energy gaps were measured for characterization of photophysical properties, while thermogravimetric analysis, as well as differential scanning calorimetry measurements, were performed for probing of electrochemical and thermal properties of the compound. The electrochemical properties of this compound were investigated by cyclic voltammetry (CV) method, and ionization potential (IPCV) value of 5.68 eV was observed. UV–Vis absorption and photoluminescence spectrum of a solution of the compound in toluene (10-5 M) showed maxima at 302 and 405 nm, respectively. Photoelectron emission spectrometry was used for the characterization of charge-injection properties of the studied compound in solid. The ionization potential of this material was found to be 5.78 eV, and time-of-flight measurement was used for testing charge-transporting properties and hole mobility estimated using this technique in a vacuum-deposited layer reached 4×10-4 cm2 V-1s-1. Since the compound with high charge mobilities was tested as a host in an organic light-emitting diode. The device was fabricated by successive deposition onto a pre-cleaned indium tin oxide (ITO) coated glass substrate under a vacuum of 10-6 Torr and consisting of an indium-tin-oxide anode, hole injection and transporting layer(MoO3, NPB), emitting layer with bFPC as a host and 4CzIPN (2,4,5,6-tetra(9-carbazolyl)isophthalonitrile) which is a new highly efficient green thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) material as an emitter, an electron transporting layer(TPBi) and lithium fluoride layer topped with aluminum layer as a cathode exhibited the highest maximum current efficiency and power efficiency of 33.9 cd/A and 23.5 lm/W, respectively and the electroluminescence spectrum showed only a peak at 512nm. Furthermore, the new bicarbazole-based compound was tested as a host in thermally activated delayed fluorescence organic light-emitting diodes are reaching luminance of 25300 cd m-2 and external quantum efficiency of 10.1%. Interestingly, the turn-on voltage was low enough (3.8 V), and such a device can be used for highly efficient light sources.

Keywords: thermally-activated delayed fluorescence, host material, ionization energy, charge mobility, electroluminescence

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Authors: Hu-Cheng Weng, Jhen-Ting Huang, Chia-Chia Chang, An-Ya Lo

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In this study, carbon mesoporous material, CMK-3, was adopted as supporting material for electroactive polymerspolyaniline (PANI), polyaniline, for supercapacitor application, where hydroquinone (HQ) was integrated to enhance the redox reaction of PANI. The results show that the addition of PANI improves the capacitance of electrode from 89 F/g (CMK-3) to 337 F/g (PANI/CMK-3), the addition of HQ furtherly improves the capacitance to 463 F/g (PANI/CMK-3/HQ). The PANI provides higher energy density and also acts as binder of the electrode; the CMK-3 provides higher electron double layer capacitance EDLC and stabilize the polyaniline by its highly porosity. With the addition of HQ, the capacitance of PANI/CMK-3 was further enhanced. In-situ analyses including cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronopotentiometry (CP), electron impedance spectrum (EIS) analyses were applied for electrode performance examination. For materials characterization, the crystal structure, morphology, microstructure, and porosity were examined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and 77K N2 adsorption/desorption analyses, respectively. The effects of electrolyte pH value, PANI polymerization time, HQ concentration, and PANI/CMK-3 ratio on capacitance were discussed. The durability was also studied by long-term operation test. The results show that PANI/CMK-3/HQ with great potential for supercapacitor application. Finally, the potential of all-solid PANI/CMK-3/HQ based supercapacitor was successfully demonstrated.

Keywords: CMK3, PANI, redox electrolyte, solid supercapacitor

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Authors: Sandip Suman

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Mechanical defects (cracks, voids, irregularities) in rocket motor propellant are not new and it is induced due to various reasons, which could be an improper manufacturing process, lot-to-lot variation in chemicals or just the natural aging of the products. These defects are normally identified during the examination of radiographic films by quality inspectors. However, a lot of times, these defects are under or over-classified by human inspectors, which leads to unpredictable performance during lot acceptance tests and significant economic loss. The human eye can only visualize larger cracks and defects in the radiographs, and it is almost impossible to visualize every small defect through the human eye. A different artificial intelligence-based machine vision methodology has been proposed in this work to identify and classify the structural defects in the radiographic films of rocket motors with solid propellant. The proposed methodology can extract the features of defects, characterize them, and make intelligent decisions for acceptance or rejection as per the customer requirements. This will automatize the defect detection process during manufacturing with human-like intelligence. It will also significantly reduce production downtime and help to restore processes in the least possible time. The proposed methodology is highly scalable and can easily be transferred to various products and processes.

Keywords: artificial intelligence, machine vision, defect detection, rocket motor propellant grains

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Authors: Hossein Soltani, Zahra Hojati, Seyed Reza Attarzadeh Hossini

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Anxiety levels before and during competition are not clear due to conflicting findings; various athletes have reported different levels of anxiety from much too low. With respect to the fact that every sport field has its own special nature, and the lack of a comprehensive theory in this field made the author to compare competitive state anxiety among team sport and individual sport athletes in Iran. The sample included 120 male athletes, 60 athletes in individual sports (taekwondo, karate, and wrestling) and 60 athletes in team sports (volleyball, basketball, futsal). All participants in this study were regularly competing at the super leagues and regional level. The research instrument employed was the Persian version of the Competitive State Anxiety Inventory-2. This inventory was distributed among the subjects about 30 minutes before the first competition. Finally, using one-way ANOVA data was analyzed. The results indicated that the mean score of cognitive and somatic anxiety among individual sport athletes was higher than that of team sport athletes (P<0.05). Self-confidence levels of individual sports athletes was higher than that of team sports athletes but the difference was not significant (P >0.05). It seems the being part of a team alleviates some of the pressure experienced by those who compete alone. Conclusion: Individual sport athletes may be more exposed to evaluation and more engaged in their own skills and abilities than team sport athletes given that responsibility for performance is not distributed across several performers.

Keywords: competitive state anxiety, cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety, team sports, individual sports

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Authors: Mais Qandeel

Abstract:

Within the Jewish and democratic Israeli state, as dually characterized, the treatment of citizens differs according to their religious groups and nationalities. The laws and policies against Arab citizens concerning ownership and use of land are the main focus of this article. As the Jewish character has led to Jewish based legal provisions which give the privilege to Jews, first, this article examines the legal bases which distinguish between citizens in Israel based on their religion. It examines the major Israeli laws which are used to confiscate, manage, and lease properties. Second, the article demonstrates the de facto practices against Arab citizens in using lands. Most of the Palestinian land was confiscated and turned over to Jewish owners or to state land, Palestinian citizens are distinguished in using the state administered lands. They are also restricted in using full ownership rights and denied using plots of lands and housing units. Such policies have created, within the same state, a class of secondary citizens who are categorized as non-Jews. Last, within the Basic Law: Human Dignity and Freedom which has served as the constitutional bill of rights for Israelis and also the International law, particularly the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, it will be concluded whether these restricted policies against Arab citizens in using land constitute a religion-based-discrimination among Israeli citizens and create a situation of separation and inequality between two groups of people in Israel.

Keywords: Israel, citizens, discrimination, equality

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Authors: V. Sacca, A. Sarica, F. Novellino, S. Barone, T. Tallarico, E. Filippelli, A. Granata, P. Valentino, A. Quattrone

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In the last few years, resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) was widely used to investigate the architecture of brain networks by investigating the Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent response. This technique represented an interesting, robust and reliable approach to compare pathologic and healthy subjects in order to investigate neurodegenerative diseases evolution. On the other hand, the elaboration of rs-fMRI data resulted to be very prone to noise due to confounding factors especially the head motion. Head motion has long been known to be a source of artefacts in task-based functional MRI studies, but it has become a particularly challenging problem in recent studies using rs-fMRI. The aim of this work was to evaluate in MS patients a well-known motion correction algorithm from the FMRIB's Software Library - MCFLIRT - that could be applied to minimize the head motion distortions, allowing to correctly interpret rs-fMRI results.

Keywords: head motion correction, MCFLIRT algorithm, multiple sclerosis, resting state fMRI

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Authors: Basant K. Jha, M. L. Kaurangini

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An approximate analytical solution is presented for convective flow in a horizontal channel filled with porous material. The Brinkman-Forchheimer extension of Darcy equation is utilized to model the fluid flow while the energy equation is utilized to model temperature distribution in the channel. The solutions were obtained utilizing the newly suggested technique and compared with those obtained from an implicit finite-difference solution.

Keywords: approximate analytical, convective flow, porous material, Brinkman-Forchiemer

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Authors: Panumard Kaewmora, Thirasak Rirksomboon, Vissanu Meeyoo

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Due to the globally growing demands of petroleum fuel and fossil fuels, the scarcity or even depletion of fossil fuel sources could be inevitable. Alternatively, the utilization of renewable sources, such as biomass, has become attractive to the community. Biomass can be converted into bio-oil by fast pyrolysis. In water phase of bio-oil, acetic acid which is one of its main components can be converted to hydrogen with high selectivity over effective catalysts in steam reforming process. Steam reforming of acetic acid as model compound has been intensively investigated for hydrogen production using various metal oxide supported nickel catalysts and yet they seem to be rapidly deactivated depending on the support utilized. A catalyst support such as Ce1-xZrxO2 mixed oxide was proposed for alleviating this problem with the anticipation of enhancing hydrogen yield. However, catalyst preparation methods play a significant role in catalytic activity and performance of the catalysts. In this work, Ce0.75Zr0.25O2 mixed oxide solid solution support was prepared by urea hydrolysis using microwave as heat source. After that nickel metal was incorporated at 15 wt% by incipient wetness impregnation method. The catalysts were characterized by several techniques including BET, XRD, H2-TPR, XRF, SEM, and TEM as well as tested for the steam reforming of acetic acid at various operating conditions. Preliminary results showed that a hydrogen yield of ca. 32% with a relatively high acetic conversion was attained at 650°C.

Keywords: acetic acid, steam reforming, microwave, nickel, ceria, zirconia

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Authors: Yang Zhong, Mei-Jie Xu

Abstract:

To study the dynamic mechanics response of asphalt pavement under the temperature load and vehicle loading, asphalt pavement was regarded as multilayered elastic half-space system, and theory analysis was conducted by regarding dynamic modulus of asphalt mixture as the parameter. Firstly, based on the dynamic modulus test of asphalt mixture, function relationship between the dynamic modulus of representative asphalt mixture and temperature was obtained. In addition, the analytical solution for thermal stress in the single layer was derived by using Laplace integral transformation and Hankel integral transformation respectively by using thermal equations of equilibrium. The analytical solution of calculation model of thermal stress in asphalt pavement was derived by transfer matrix of thermal stress in multilayer elastic system. Finally, the variation of thermal stress in pavement structure was analyzed. The result shows that there is an obvious difference between the thermal stress based on dynamic modulus and the solution based on static modulus. Therefore, the dynamic change of parameter in asphalt mixture should be taken into consideration when the theoretical analysis is taken out.

Keywords: asphalt pavement, dynamic modulus, integral transformation, transfer matrix, thermal stress

Procedia PDF Downloads 495