Search results for: parameter intervals

Authors: Abdul Malek Abdul Wahab, Emiliano Rustighi

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The elastomeric dielectric material has become a new alternative for actuator technology recently. The characteristic of dielectric elastomer that induces significant strain by applying voltage attracts the attention of many researchers to study this material in actuator technology. Thus, for a couple of years, Danfoss Ventures A/S has established their dielectric electro-active polymer (DEAP), which called Polypower. The main objective of this work was to investigate the characterization of PolyPower folded actuator as a ‘pull’ actuator for vibration control. A range of experiment was carried out on folded actuator including passive (without electrical stimulate) and active (with electrical stimulate) testing. For both categories static and dynamic testing have been done to determine the behavior of folded DEAP actuator. Voltage-Strain experiment determines that DEAP folded actuator is the non-linear system. The voltage supplied has no effect on the natural frequency which shows by ongoing dynamic testing. Finally, varies AC voltage with different amplitude and frequency has been provided to DEAP folded actuator. This experiment shows the parameter that influences the performance of DEAP folded actuator. As a result, the actuator performance dominated by the frequency dependence of the elastic response and was less influenced by dielectric properties.

Keywords: elastomeric dielectric, dielectric electro-active polymer, folded actuator, voltage-strain

Procedia PDF Downloads 320

Authors: Rachid Zentar, Mokrane Bala, Pascal Boustingorry

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The prediction of the rheological behavior of concrete is at the center of current concerns of the concrete industry for different reasons. The shortage of good quality standard materials combined with variable properties of available materials imposes to improve existing models to take into account these variations at the design stage of concrete. The main reasons for improving the predictive models are, of course, saving time and cost at the design stage as well as to optimize concrete performances. In this study, we will highlight the different properties of the granular mixtures that affect the rheological properties of concrete. Our objective is to identify the intrinsic parameters of the aggregates which make it possible to predict the yield stress of concrete. The work was done using two typologies of grains: crushed and rolled aggregates. The experimental results have shown that the rheology of concrete is improved by increasing the packing density of the granular mixture using rolled aggregates. The experimental program realized allowed to model the yield stress of concrete by a modified model of Chateau et al. through a dimensionless parameter following Krieger-Dougherty law. The modelling confirms that the yield stress of concrete depends not only on the properties of cement paste but also on the packing density of the granular skeleton and the shape of grains.

Keywords: crushed aggregates, intrinsic viscosity, packing density, rolled aggregates, slump, yield stress of concrete

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Norashikin Ismail, Nadia Anridho

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Sustainable investing is a responsible investment that focuses on Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) elements. ESG integration is essential in the investment process as it provides a positive contribution to the corporate performance for stakeholders, specifically investors. Sustainable investing is in line with the objectives of Shariah (Maqasid of Shariah), such as social inclusion as well as environmental preservation. This study attempts to evaluate the impact of ESG elements to the corporate financial performance among Shariah compliant stocks listed in two countries, namely Malaysia and Indonesia. The motivation of this study is to provide a further understanding in corporate sustainability for two different Islamic capital markets. The existence of the FTSE4Good Asean Index has played a vital role for ESG practices and eventually encouraged specific index for ESG and Shariah Compliant stocks. Our sample consists of 60 companies over the period 2010-2020 from two Southeast countries. We employ System Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) to reduce bias and more specific parameter estimation. Shariah Compliant companies tend to have higher ESG scores and are positively correlated to corporate financial performance. ESG integration with Shariah based investing would provide higher returns and lower risks for Muslim investors. Essentially, integrating ESG and Shariah, compliant companies lead to better financial performance.

Keywords: shariah compliant, southeast asia, corporate performance, sustainable investing

Procedia PDF Downloads 189

Authors: Avadhoot Bhosale, Robin Davis P., Pradip Sarkar

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The seismic performance of buildings with irregular distribution of mass, stiffness and strength along the height may be significantly different from that of regular buildings with masonry infill. Masonry infilled reinforced concrete (RC) frames are very common structural forms used for multi-storey building construction. These structures are found to perform better in past earthquakes owing to additional strength, stiffness and energy dissipation in the infill walls. The seismic performance of a building depends on the variation of material, structural and geometrical properties. The sensitivity of these properties affects the seismic response of the building. The main objective of the sensitivity analysis is to found out the most sensitive parameter that affects the response of the building. This paper presents a sensitivity analysis by considering 5% and 95% probability value of random variable in the infills characteristics, trying to obtain a reasonable range of results representing a wide number of possible situations that can be met in practice by using pushover analysis. The results show that the strength-related variation values of concrete and masonry, with the exception of tensile strength of the concrete, have shown a significant effect on the structural performance and that this effect increases with the progress of damage condition for the concrete. The seismic risk assessments of the selected frames are expressed in terms of reliability index.

Keywords: fragility curve, sensitivity analysis, reliability index, RC frames

Procedia PDF Downloads 323

Authors: Yousef I. Salamin

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Theoretical investigations, analytical as well as numerical, have shown that electrons can be accelerated to GeV energies by the process of cyclotron auto-resonance acceleration (CARA). In CARA, the particle would be injected along the lines of a uniform magnetic field aligned parallel to the direction of propagation of a plane-wave radiation field. Unfortunately, an accelerator based on CARA would be prohibitively too long and too expensive to build and maintain. However, the process stands a better chance of success near the polar cap of a compact object (such as a neutron star, a black hole or a magnetar) or in an environment created in the wake of a binary neutron-star or blackhole merger. Dynamics of the nuclides ₁H¹, ₂He⁴, ₂₆Fe⁵⁶, and ₂₈Ni⁶², in such astrophysical conditions, have been investigated by single-particle calculations and many-particle simulations. The investigations show that these nuclides can reach ZeV energies (1 ZeV = 10²¹ eV) due to interaction with super-intense radiation of wavelengths = 1 and 10 m and = 50 pm and magnetic fields of strengths at the mega- and giga-tesla levels. Examples employing radiation intensities in the range 10³²-10⁴² W/m² have been used. Employing a two-parameter model for representing the radiation field, CARA is analytically generalized to include any state of polarization, and the basic working equations are derived rigorously and in closed analytic form.

Keywords: compact objects, cosmic-ray acceleration, cyclotron auto-resonance, polarization effects, zevatron

Procedia PDF Downloads 123

Authors: Mehdi Modabberifar, Milad Roodi, Ehsan Souri

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In recent years, honeycomb fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) sandwich panels have been increasingly used in various industries. Low weight, low price, and high mechanical strength are the benefits of these structures. However, their mechanical properties and behavior have not been fully explored. The objective of this study is to conduct a combined numerical-statistical investigation of honeycomb FRP sandwich beams subject to torsion load. In this paper, the effect of geometric parameters of the sandwich panel on the maximum shear strain in both face and core and angle of torsion in a honeycomb FRP sandwich structures in torsion is investigated. The effect of Parameters including core thickness, face skin thickness, cell shape, cell size, and cell thickness on mechanical behavior of the structure were numerically investigated. Main effects of factors were considered in this paper and regression equations were derived. Taguchi method was employed as experimental design and an optimum parameter combination for the maximum structure stiffness has been obtained. The results showed that cell size and face skin thickness have the most significant impacts on torsion angle, maximum shear strain in face and core.

Keywords: finite element, honeycomb FRP sandwich panel, torsion, civil engineering

Procedia PDF Downloads 418

Authors: Sky Chou, Joseph C. Chen

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This paper focuses on using Six Sigma methodologies to improve the surface roughness of a manufactured part produced by the CNC milling machine. It presents a case study where the surface roughness of milled aluminum is required to reduce or eliminate defects and to improve the process capability index C_p and C_pk for a CNC milling process. The six sigma methodology, DMAIC (design, measure, analyze, improve, and control) approach, was applied in this study to improve the process, reduce defects, and ultimately reduce costs. The Taguchi-based six sigma approach was applied to identify the optimized processing parameters that led to the targeted surface roughness specified by our customer. A L₉ orthogonal array was applied in the Taguchi experimental design, with four controllable factors and one non-controllable/noise factor. The four controllable factors identified consist of feed rate, depth of cut, spindle speed, and surface roughness. The noise factor is the difference between the old cutting tool and the new cutting tool. The confirmation run with the optimal parameters confirmed that the new parameter settings are correct. The new settings also improved the process capability index. The purpose of this study is that the Taguchi–based six sigma approach can be efficiently used to phase out defects and improve the process capability index of the CNC milling process.

Keywords: CNC machining, six sigma, surface roughness, Taguchi methodology

Procedia PDF Downloads 242

Authors: Ingrid Argote, John Archila, Marcelo Becker

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In agriculture, intelligent systems applications have generated great advances in automating some of the processes in the production chain. In order to improve the efficiency of those systems is proposed a vision system to estimate the amount of fruits in sweet orange trees. This work presents a system proposal using capture of thermal images and fuzzy logic. A bibliographical review has been done to analyze the state-of-the-art of the different systems used in fruit recognition, and also the different applications of thermography in agricultural systems. The algorithm developed for this project uses the metrics of the fuzzines parameter to the contrast improvement and segmentation of the image, for the counting algorith m was used the Hough transform. In order to validate the proposed algorithm was created a bank of images of sweet orange Citrus (L.) Osbeck acquired in the Maringá Farm. The tests with the algorithm Indicated that the variation of the tree branch temperature and the fruit is not very high, Which makes the process of image segmentation using this differentiates, This Increases the amount of false positives in the fruit counting algorithm. Recognition of fruits isolated with the proposed algorithm present an overall accuracy of 90.5 % and grouped fruits. The accuracy was 81.3 %. The experiments show the need for a more suitable hardware to have a better recognition of small temperature changes in the image.

Keywords: Agricultural systems, Citrus, Fuzzy logic, Thermal images.

Procedia PDF Downloads 229

Authors: N. Guo, C. Xu, Z. C. Yang

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In order to ensure the high reliability of an aircraft, the accurate structural dynamics analysis has become an indispensable part in the design of an aircraft structure. Therefore, the structural finite element model which can be used to accurately calculate the structural dynamics and their transfer relations is the prerequisite in structural dynamic design. A dynamic finite element model updating method is presented to correct the uncertain parameters of the finite element model of a structure using measured modal parameters. The coordinate modal assurance criterion is used to evaluate the correlation level at each coordinate over the experimental and the analytical mode shapes. Then, the weighted summation of the natural frequency residual and the coordinate modal assurance criterion residual is used as the objective function. Moreover, the hybrid pattern search (HPS) optimization technique, which synthesizes the advantages of pattern search (PS) optimization technique and genetic algorithm (GA), is introduced to solve the dynamic FE model updating problem. A numerical simulation and a model updating experiment for GARTEUR aircraft model are performed to validate the feasibility and effectiveness of the present dynamic model updating method, respectively. The updated results show that the proposed method can be successfully used to modify the incorrect parameters with good robustness.

Keywords: model updating, modal parameter, coordinate modal assurance criterion, hybrid genetic/pattern search

Procedia PDF Downloads 161

Authors: A. Rifa’i, Y. Takeshita, M. Komatsu

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The post-rain puddles problem that occurs in the first yard of Prambanan Temple are often disturbing visitor activity. A poodle layer and a drainage system has ever built to avoid such a problem, but puddles still didn’t stop appearing after rain. Permeability parameter needs to be determined by using more simple procedure to find exact method of solution. The instrument modelling were proposed according to the development of field permeability testing instrument. This experiment used proposed Constant Discharge method. Constant Discharge method used a tube poured with constant water flow. The procedure were carried out from unsaturated until saturated soil condition. Volumetric water content (θ) were being monitored by soil moisture measurement device. The results were relationship between k and θ which drawn by numerical approach Van Genutchen model. Parameters θr optimum value obtained from the test was at very dry soil. Coefficient of permeability with a density of 19.8 kN/m3 for unsaturated conditions was in range of 3 x 10-6 cm/sec (Sr= 68 %) until 9.98 x 10-4 cm/sec (Sr= 82 %). The equipment and testing procedure developed in this research was quite effective, simple and easy to be implemented on determining field soil permeability coefficient value of sandy soil. Using constant discharge method in proposed permeability test, value of permeability coefficient under unsaturated condition can be obtained without establish soil water characteristic curve.

Keywords: constant discharge method, in situ permeability test, sandy soil, unsaturated conditions

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Authors: J. K. Adedeji, S. T. Ijatuyi

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The application of neural network using pattern recognition to study the fluid dynamics and predict the groundwater reservoirs properties has been used in this research. The essential of geophysical survey using the manual methods has failed in basement environment, hence the need for an intelligent computing such as predicted from neural network is inevitable. A non-linear neural network with an XOR (exclusive OR) output of 8-bits configuration has been used in this research to predict the nature of groundwater reservoirs and fluid dynamics of a typical basement crystalline rock. The control variables are the apparent resistivity of weathered layer (p₁), fractured layer (p₂), and the depth (h), while the dependent variable is the flow parameter (F=λ). The algorithm that was used in training the neural network is the back-propagation coded in C++ language with 300 epoch runs. The neural network was very intelligent to map out the flow channels and detect how they behave to form viable storage within the strata. The neural network model showed that an important variable g_r (gravitational resistance) can be deduced from the elevation and apparent resistivity p_a. The model results from SPSS showed that the coefficients, a, b and c are statistically significant with reduced standard error at 5%.

Keywords: gravitational resistance, neural network, non-linear, pattern recognition

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Authors: Ahmed O. Apampa, Yinusa A. Jimoh

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The potential economic viability and environmental benefits of using a biomass waste, such as corn cob ash (CCA) as pozzolan in stabilizing soils for road pavement construction in a sub-tropical region was investigated. Corn cob was obtained from Maya in South West Nigeria and processed to ash of characteristics similar to Class C Fly Ash pozzolan as specified in ASTM C618-12. This was then blended with ordinary Portland cement in the CCA:OPC ratios of 1:1, 1:2 and 2:1. Each of these blends was then mixed with lateritic soil of ASHTO classification A-2-6(3) in varying percentages from 0 – 7.5% at 1.5% intervals. The soil-CCA-Cement mixtures were thereafter tested for geotechnical index properties including the BS Proctor Compaction, California Bearing Ratio (CBR) and the Unconfined Compression Strength Test. The tests were repeated for soil-cement mix without any CCA blending. The cost of the binder inputs and optimal blends of CCA:OPC in the stabilized soil were thereafter analyzed by developing algorithms that relate the experimental data on strength parameters (Unconfined Compression Strength, UCS and California Bearing Ratio, CBR) with the bivariate independent variables CCA and OPC content, using Matlab R2011b. An optimization problem was then set up minimizing the cost of chemical stabilization of laterite with CCA and OPC, subject to the constraints of minimum strength specifications. The Evolutionary Engine as well as the Generalized Reduced Gradient option of the Solver of MS Excel 2010 were used separately on the cells to obtain the optimal blend of CCA:OPC. The optimal blend attaining the required strength of 1800 kN/m2 was determined for the 1:2 CCA:OPC as 5.4% mix (OPC content 3.6%) compared with 4.2% for the OPC only option; and as 6.2% mix for the 1:1 blend (OPC content 3%). The 2:1 blend did not attain the required strength, though over a 100% gain in UCS value was obtained over the control sample with 0% binder. Upon the fact that 0.97 tonne of CO2 is released for every tonne of cement used (OEE, 2001), the reduced OPC requirement to attain the same result indicates the possibility of reducing the net CO2 contribution of the construction industry to the environment ranging from 14 – 28.5% if CCA:OPC blends are widely used in soil stabilization, going by the results of this study. The paper concludes by recommending that Nigeria and other developing countries in the sub-tropics with abundant stock of biomass waste should look in the direction of intensifying the use of biomass waste as fuel and the derived ash for the production of pozzolans for road-works, thereby reducing overall green house gas emissions and in compliance with the objectives of the United Nations Framework on Climate Change.

Keywords: corn cob ash, biomass waste, lateritic soil, unconfined compression strength, CO2 emission

Procedia PDF Downloads 373

Authors: N. K. Caecar Pratiwi, Yunendah Nur Fuadah, Rita Magdalena, R. D. Atmaja, Sofia Saidah, Ocky Tiaramukti

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Colon cancer or colorectal cancer is a type of cancer that attacks the last part of the human digestive system. Lymphoma and carcinoma are types of cancer that attack human’s colon. Colon cancer causes deaths about half a million people every year. In Indonesia, colon cancer is the third largest cancer case for women and second in men. Unhealthy lifestyles such as minimum consumption of fiber, rarely exercising and lack of awareness for early detection are factors that cause high cases of colon cancer. The aim of this project is to produce a system that can detect and classify images into type of colon cancer lymphoma, carcinoma, or normal. The designed system used 198 data colon cancer tissue pathology, consist of 66 images for Lymphoma cancer, 66 images for carcinoma cancer and 66 for normal / healthy colon condition. This system will classify colon cancer starting from image preprocessing, feature extraction using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and classification using K-Nearest Neighbor (K-NN) method. Several stages in preprocessing are resize, convert RGB image to grayscale, edge detection and last, histogram equalization. Tests will be done by trying some K-NN input parameter setting. The result of this project is an image processing system that can detect and classify the type of colon cancer with high accuracy and low computation time.

Keywords: carcinoma, colorectal cancer, k-nearest neighbor, lymphoma, principle component analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 205

Authors: S. K. Jain, M. K. Mishra

Abstract:

Oblique propagation of ion-acoustic solitons in magnetized electron-positron-ion (EPI) plasma with warm adiabatic ions and isothermal electrons has been studied. Korteweg-de Vries (KdV) equation using reductive perturbation method has been derived for the system, which admits an obliquely propagating soliton solution. It is found that for the selected set of parameter values, the system supports only compressive solitons. Investigations reveal that an increase in positron concentration diminishes the amplitude as well as the width of the soliton. It is also found that the temperature ratio of electron to positron (γ) affects the amplitude of the solitary wave. An external magnetic field do not affect the amplitude of ion-acoustic solitons, but obliqueness angle (θ), the angle between wave vector and magnetic field affects the amplitude. The amplitude of the ion-acoustic solitons increases with increase in angle of obliqueness. Magnetization and obliqueness drastically affect the width of the soliton. An increase in ionic temperature decreases the amplitude and width. For the fixed set of parameters, profiles have been drawn to study the combined effect with variation of two parameters on the characteristics of the ion-acoustic solitons (i.e., amplitude and width). The result may be applicable to plasma in the laboratory as well as in the magnetospheric region of the earth.

Keywords: ion-acoustic solitons, Korteweg-de Vries (KdV) equation, magnetized electron-positron-ion (EPI) plasma, reductive perturbation method

Procedia PDF Downloads 293

Authors: Talal Al-Bazali, S. Mohammad

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The threshold capillary pressure of shale caprocks is an important parameter in CO₂ storage modeling. A correct estimation of the threshold capillary pressure is not only essential for CO₂ storage modeling but also important to assess the overall economical and environmental impact of the design process. A standard step by step approach has to be used to measure the threshold capillary pressure of shale and non-wetting fluids at different temperatures. The objective of this work is to assess the impact of high temperature on the threshold capillary pressure of four different shales as they interacted with four different oil based muds, air, CO₂, N₂, and methane. This study shows that the threshold capillary pressure of shale and non-wetting fluid is highly impacted by temperature. An empirical correlation for the dependence of threshold capillary pressure on temperature when different shales interacted with oil based muds and gasses has been developed. This correlation shows that the threshold capillary pressure decreases exponentially as the temperature increases. In this correlation, an experimental constant (α) appears, and this constant may depend on the properties of shale and non-wetting fluid. The value for α factor was found to be higher for gasses than for oil based muds. This is consistent with our intuition since the interfacial tension for gasses is higher than those for oil based muds. The author believes that measured threshold capillary pressure at ambient temperature is misleading and could yield higher values than those encountered at in situ conditions. Therefore one must correct for the impact of temperature when measuring threshold capillary pressure of shale at ambient temperature.

Keywords: capillary pressure, shale, temperature, thresshold

Procedia PDF Downloads 371

Authors: Ana Paula S. A. Correa, Allan K. R. Galardo, Luana A. Lima, Talita F. Sobral, Josiane N. Muller, Jessica F. S. Barroso, Nercy V. R. Furtado, Ednaldo C. Rêgo., Jose B. P. Lima

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Malaria is a public health problem in the Brazilian Legal Amazon. Among the integrated approaches for anopheline control, the Indoor Residual Spraying (IRS) remains one of the main tools in the basic strategy applied in the Amazonian States, where the National Malaria Control Program currently uses one of the insecticides from the pyrethroid class, the Etofenprox WP. Understanding the residual efficacy of insecticides on different surfaces is essential to determine the spray cycles, in order to maintain a rational use and to avoid product waste. The aim of this study was to evaluate the residual efficacy of Etofenprox - VECTRON ® 20 WP on surfaces of Unplastered Cement (UC) and Unpainted Wood (UW) on panels, in field, and in semi-field evaluation of Brazil’s Amapa State. The evaluation criteria used was the cone bioassay test, following the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended method, using plastic cones and female mosquitos of Anopheles sp. The tests were carried out in laboratory panels, semi-field evaluation in a “test house” built in the Macapa municipality, and in the field in 20 houses, being ten houses per surface type (UC and UW), in an endemic malaria area in Mazagão’s municipality. The residual efficacy was measured from March to September 2017, starting one day after the spraying, repeated monthly for a period of six months. The UW surface presented higher residual efficacy than the UC. In fact, the UW presented a residual efficacy of the insecticide throughout the period of this study with a mortality rate above 80% in the panels (= 95%), in the "test house" (= 86%) and in field houses ( = 87%). On the UC surface it was observed a mortality decreased in all the tests performed, with a mortality rate of 45, 47 and 29% on panels, semi-field and in field, respectively; however, the residual efficacy ≥ 80% only occurred in the first evaluation after the 24-hour spraying bioassay in the "test house". Thus, only the UW surface meets the specifications of the World Health Organization Pesticide Evaluation Scheme (WHOPES) regarding the duration of effective action (three to six months). To sum up, the insecticide residual efficacy presented variability on the different surfaces where it was sprayed. Although the IRS with Etofenprox WP was efficient on UW surfaces, and it can be used in spraying cycles at 4-month intervals, it is important to consider the diversity of houses in the Brazilian Legal Amazon, in order to implement alternatives for vector control, including the evaluation of new products or different formulations types for insecticides.

Keywords: Anopheles, vector control, insecticide, bioassay

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Authors: Habib Akbarzadeh Bengar, Mohammad Asadi Kiadehi, Ali Rameeh

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The result of the past earthquakes has shown that insufficient amount of stirrups and brittle behavior of concrete lead to the shear and flexural failure in reinforced concrete (RC) members. In this paper, an analytical model proposed to predict the nonlinear behavior of RC and SFRC elements and frames. In this model, some important parameter such as shear effect, varying axial load, and longitudinal bar buckling are considered. The results of analytical model were verified with experimental tests. The results of verification have shown that the proposed analytical model can predict the nonlinear behavior of RC and SFRC members and also frames accurately. In addition, the results have shown that use of steel fibers increased bearing capacity and ductility of RC frame. Due to this enhancement in shear strength and ductility, insufficient amount of stirrups, which resulted in shear failure, can be offset with usage of the steel fibers. In addition to the steps taken, to analyze the effects of fibers percentages on the bearing capacity and ductility of frames parametric studies have been performed to investigate of these effects.

Keywords: nonlinear analysis, SFRC frame, shear failure, varying an axial load

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Authors: Isabela Moreira Queiroz

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Slope stability analyses are largely carried out by deterministic methods and evaluated through a single security factor. Although it is known that the geotechnical parameters can present great dispersal, such analyses are considered fixed and known. The probabilistic methods, in turn, incorporate the variability of input key parameters (random variables), resulting in a range of values of safety factors, thus enabling the determination of the probability of failure, which is an essential parameter in the calculation of the risk (probability multiplied by the consequence of the event). Among the probabilistic methods, there are three frequently used methods in geotechnical society: FOSM (First-Order, Second-Moment), Rosenblueth (Point Estimates) and Monte Carlo. This paper presents a comparison between the results from deterministic and probabilistic analyses (FOSM method, Monte Carlo and Rosenblueth) applied to a hypothetical slope. The end was held to evaluate the behavior of the slope and consequent risk analysis, which is used to calculate the risk and analyze their mitigation and control solutions. It can be observed that the results obtained by the three probabilistic methods were quite close. It should be noticed that the calculation of the risk makes it possible to list the priority to the implementation of mitigation measures. Therefore, it is recommended to do a good assessment of the geological-geotechnical model incorporating the uncertainty in viability, design, construction, operation and closure by means of risk management. 

Keywords: probabilistic methods, risk assessment, risk management, slope stability

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Authors: Arun Goel

Abstract:

The present paper attempts to investigate the prediction of air entrainment rate and aeration efficiency of a free over-fall jets issuing from a triangular sharp crested weir by using regression based modelling. The empirical equations, support vector machine (polynomial and radial basis function) models and the linear regression techniques were applied on the triangular sharp crested weirs relating the air entrainment rate and the aeration efficiency to the input parameters namely drop height, discharge, and vertex angle. It was observed that there exists a good agreement between the measured values and the values obtained using empirical equations, support vector machine (Polynomial and rbf) models, and the linear regression techniques. The test results demonstrated that the SVM based (Poly & rbf) model also provided acceptable prediction of the measured values with reasonable accuracy along with empirical equations and linear regression techniques in modelling the air entrainment rate and the aeration efficiency of a free over-fall jets issuing from triangular sharp crested weir. Further sensitivity analysis has also been performed to study the impact of input parameter on the output in terms of air entrainment rate and aeration efficiency.

Keywords: air entrainment rate, dissolved oxygen, weir, SVM, regression

Procedia PDF Downloads 436

Authors: Shuenn-Yih Chang, Chiu-LI Huang, Ngoc-Cuong Tran

Abstract:

A new family of structure-dependent integration methods, whose coefficients of the difference equation for displacement increment are functions of the initial structural properties and the step size for time integration, is proposed in this work. This family method can simultaneously integrate the controllable numerical dissipation, explicit formulation and unconditional stability together. In general, its numerical dissipation can be continuously controlled by a parameter and it is possible to achieve zero damping. In addition, it can have high-frequency damping to suppress or even remove the spurious oscillations high frequency modes. Whereas, the low frequency modes can be very accurately integrated due to the almost zero damping for these low frequency modes. It is shown herein that the proposed family method can have exactly the same numerical properties as those of HHT-α method for linear elastic systems. In addition, it still preserves the most important property of a structure-dependent integration method, which is an explicit formulation for each time step. Consequently, it can save a huge computational efforts in solving inertial problems when compared to the HHT-α method. In fact, it is revealed by numerical experiments that the CPU time consumed by the proposed family method is only about 1.6% of that consumed by the HHT-α method for the 125-DOF system while it reduces to be 0.16% for the 1000-DOF system. Apparently, the saving of computational efforts is very significant.

Keywords: structure-dependent integration method, nonlinear dynamic analysis, unconditional stability, numerical dissipation, accuracy

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Authors: T. P. Singh, Vijay Gautam

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Gladiolus is an important cash crop and is grown mainly for its elegant spikes. Traditionally the gladiolus corms are planted manually which is very tedious, time consuming and labor intensive operation. So far, there is no planter available for planting of gladiolus corms. With a view to mechanize the planting operation of this horticultural crop, a prototype of 4-row gladiolus planter was developed and its performance was evaluated in-situ condition. Cup-chain type metering device was used to singulate the gladiolus corms while planting. Three levels of corm spacing viz 15, 20 and 25 cm and four levels of forward speed viz 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 km/h was taken as evaluation parameter for the planter. The performance indicators namely corm spacing in each row, coefficient of uniformity, missing index, multiple index, quality of feed index, number of corms per meter length, mechanical damage to the corms etc. were determined during the field test. The data was statistically analyzed using Completely Randomized Design (CRD) for testing the significance of the parameters. The result indicated that planter was able to drop the corms at required nominal spacing with minor variations. The highest deviation from the mean corm spacing was observed as 3.53 cm with maximum coefficient of variation as 13.88%. The highest missing and quality of feed indexes were observed as 6.33% and 97.45% respectively with no multiples. The performance of the planter was observed better at lower forward speed and wider corm spacing. The field capacity of the planter was found as 0.103 ha/h with an observed field efficiency of 76.57%.

Keywords: coefficient of uniformity, corm spacing, gladiolus planter, mechanization

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Authors: Pankaj Chandna, Dinesh Kumar

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The present work analyses different parameters of end milling to minimize the surface roughness for AISI D2 steel. D2 Steel is generally used for stamping or forming dies, punches, forming rolls, knives, slitters, shear blades, tools, scrap choppers, tyre shredders etc. Surface roughness is one of the main indices that determines the quality of machined products and is influenced by various cutting parameters. In machining operations, achieving desired surface quality by optimization of machining parameters, is a challenging job. In case of mating components the surface roughness become more essential and is influenced by the cutting parameters, because, these quality structures are highly correlated and are expected to be influenced directly or indirectly by the direct effect of process parameters or their interactive effects (i.e. on process environment). In this work, the effects of selected process parameters on surface roughness and subsequent setting of parameters with the levels have been accomplished by Taguchi’s parameter design approach. The experiments have been performed as per the combination of levels of different process parameters suggested by L9 orthogonal array. Experimental investigation of the end milling of AISI D2 steel with carbide tool by varying feed, speed and depth of cut and the surface roughness has been measured using surface roughness tester. Analyses of variance have been performed for mean and signal-to-noise ratio to estimate the contribution of the different process parameters on the process.

Keywords: D2 steel, orthogonal array, optimization, surface roughness, Taguchi methodology

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Authors: Aminat. O Adelekan, Olawale T. Gbadebo

Abstract:

Biscuit is one of the most consumed cereal foods in Nigeria and research has shown that locally available tropical crops like cassava, sweet potato can be made into flour and used in the production of biscuits and other pastries. This study investigates some quality parameters in biscuits made from blends of wheat, cassava and carrot flour. The values of result of samples increased with increasing percentage substitution of cassava and carrot flour in some quality parameter like fiber, ash, gluten content, and carbohydrate. The protein content reduced significantly (P < 0.05) with increasing percentage substitution of cassava and carrot flour which ranged from 14.80% to 11.80% compared with the control sample which had 15.60%. There was a recorded significant increase (P < 0.05) in some mineral composition such as calcium, magnesium, sodium, iron, phosphorus, and vitamin A and C composition as the percentage substitution of cassava and carrot flour increased. During storage stability test, samples stored in the fridge and freezer were found to be the best storage location to preserve the sensory attributes and inhibit microbial growth when compared with storage under the sun and on the shelf. Biscuit made with blends of wheat, cassava and carrot flour can therefore serve as an alternative to biscuits made from 100% wheat flour, as they are richer in vitamin A, vitamin C, carbohydrate, dietary fiber and some essential minerals.

Keywords: biscuit, carrot, flour blends, storage

Procedia PDF Downloads 138

Authors: Rita Rostika, Junianto, Zulfiqar W. Ibrahim, Iskandar, Lantun P. Dewanti

Abstract:

The purpose of this research is to determine the influence of asparagus bean powder and its most effective administration dose to improve the gonad maturity of nilem carp (Osteochilus hasselti). The research is conducted in October-July 2017 located at Cirata Reservoir and Aquaculture Laboratory, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Padjadjaran University, Jatinangor. The research employs an experimental method using a Complete Random Design (RAL) with six treatments and three repetitions. The treatments include the addition of asparagus bean powder by 0% (Control), 4% per kg of feed, 5% per kg of feed, 6% per kg of feed, 7% per kg of feed, as well as the addition of vitamin E essential as the control. The results show that the addition of asparagus bean powder to the feed may influence the gonad maturity of nilem carp shown by its Gonado Somatic Index (GSI) parameter, fecundity, egg diameter and egg reaching its maturity phase or GVBD (Germinal Vesicle Breakdown). The best administration dose influencing nilem carp is the addition of asparagus bean powder by 7% per kg of feed with the average GSI of 15.02%, relative fecundity of 137 eggs/g of fish parent weight, egg diameter of 1,263 mm, and egg reaching its maturity phase (GVBD) of 78.15%.

Keywords: asparagus bean powder, nilem carp, gonad maturity, Cirata reservoir

Procedia PDF Downloads 167

Authors: Ziani Zakarya, Mahdad Moustafa Yassine

Abstract:

Greenhouse farming has greatly contributed to the development of modern agriculture by optimizing crops, especially market gardening, ornamental horticulture, and recently, fruit species ... Greenhouse cultivation has enabled farmers to produce fruits and vegetables out of season while guaranteeing them a good production, and therefore a considerable gain throughout the year. However, this mode of production has shown its limits, especially in extreme conditions, such as the continental steppe climate and the Saharan climate, which are characterized by significant thermal amplitudes and strong winds, making it impossible to use conventional greenhouses for several months, of the year. In Algeria and precisely in the highlands, the use of greenhouses by farmers is very rare or occasional, especially in spring, because the limiting factors mentioned above are frequent there, causing significant damage to the plant product and to the environment. infrastructure. The same observation is observed in the Saharan regions but with less frequencies. Certainly, the use of controlled multi-chapel greenhouses would solve the problem, but at what cost? These hi-tech infrastructures are very expensive to purchase but also to maintain, so few farmers have the financial means to obtain them. In addition, the existence of intelligent and less expensive polymer films, whose properties could control greenhouse production parameters, in particular, the temperature parameter, maybe a judicious solution for the development of new generations of greenhouses that can be used in extreme conditions and normal.

Keywords: greenhouse, polymer film, modern agriculture, optimizing crops

Procedia PDF Downloads 178

Authors: Neslihan Genckal, Reha Gursoy, Vedat Z. Dogan

Abstract:

In this study, dynamic responses of composite plates on elastic foundations subjected to impact and moving loads are investigated. The first order shear deformation (FSDT) theory is used for moderately thick plates. Pasternak-type (two-parameter) elastic foundation is assumed. Elastic foundation effects are integrated into the governing equations. It is assumed that plate is first hit by a mass as an impact type loading then the mass continues to move on the composite plate as a distributed moving loading, which resembles the aircraft landing on airport pavements. Impact and moving loadings are modeled by a mass-spring-damper system with a wheel. The wheel is assumed to be continuously in contact with the plate after impact. The governing partial differential equations of motion for displacements are converted into the ordinary differential equations in the time domain by using Galerkin’s method. Then, these sets of equations are solved by using the Runge-Kutta method. Several parameters such as vertical and horizontal velocities of the aircraft, volume fractions of the steel rebar in the reinforced concrete layer, and the different touchdown locations of the aircraft tire on the runway are considered in the numerical simulation. The results are compared with those of the ABAQUS, which is a commercial finite element code.

Keywords: elastic foundation, impact, moving load, thick plate

Procedia PDF Downloads 313

Authors: Woolfrey K., Woolfrey M., Bolton C. L., Warchuk D.

Abstract:

Objectives: Osteoarthritis is the most common joint disease of adults worldwide. Despite total knee arthroplasty (TKA) demonstrating high levels of success, 20% of patients report dissatisfaction with their result. VOXX Wellness Stasis Socks are embedded with a proprietary pattern of neuro-receptor activation points that have been proven to activate a precise neuro-response, according to the pattern theory of haptic perception, which stimulates improvements in pain and function. The use of this technology in TKA patients may prove beneficial as an adjunct to recovery as many patients suffer from deficits to their proprioceptive system caused by ligamentous damage and alterations to mechanoreceptors during the procedure. We hypothesized that VOXX Wellness Stasis Socks are a safe, cost-effective, and easily scalable strategy to support TKA patients through their recovery. Design: Double-blinded, placebo-controlled randomized trial. Participants: Patients scheduled to receive TKA were considered eligible for inclusion in the trial. Interventions: Intervention group (I): VOXX Wellness Stasis socks containing receptor point-activation technology. Control group (C): VOXX Wellness Stasis socks without receptor point-activation technology. Sock use during the waking hours x 6 weeks. Main Outcome Measures: Western Ontario McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) questionnaire completed at baseline, 2 weeks, and 6 weeks to assess pain, stiffness, and physical function. Results: Data analysis using SPSS software. P-values, effect sizes, and confidence intervals are reported to assess clinical relevance of the finding. Physical status classifications were compared using t-test. Within-subject and between-subject differences in the mean WOMAC were analyzed by ANOVA. Effect size was analyzed using Cramer’s V. Consistent improvement in WOMAC scores for pain and stiffness at 2 weeks post op in the I over the C group. The womac scores assessing physical function showed a consistent improvement at both 2 and 6 weeks post op in the I group compared to C group. Conclusions: VOXX proved to be a low cost, safe intervention in TKA to help patients improve with regard to pain, stiffness, and physical function. Disclosures: None

Keywords: osteoarthritis, RCT, pain management, total knee arthroplasty

Procedia PDF Downloads 531

Authors: Melody Yin

Abstract:

Concussions impact a large amount of adolescents; they make up as much as half of the diagnosed concussions in America. This research proposes a hybrid machine learning model based on the combination of human/knowledge-based domains and computer-generated feature rankings to improve the accuracy of diagnosing sports related concussion (SRC). Using a data set of symptoms collected on the sideline post-SRC events, the symptom selection criteria method has been developed by using Google AutoML's important score function to identify the top 10 symptom features. In addition, symptom domains have been introduced as another parameter, categorizing the symptoms into physical, cognitive, sleep, and emotional domains. The hybrid machine learning model has been trained with a combination of the top 10 symptoms and 4 domains. From the results, the hybrid model was the best performer for symptom resolution time prediction in 2 and 4-week thresholds. This research is a proof of concept study in the use of domains along with machine learning in order to improve concussion prediction accuracy. It is also possible that the use of domains can make the model more efficient due to reduced training time. This research examines the use of a hybrid method in predicting sports-related concussion. This achievement is based on data preprocessing, using a hybrid method to select criteria to achieve high performance.

Keywords: hybrid model, machine learning, sports related concussion, symptom resolution time

Procedia PDF Downloads 168

Authors: Mandeep Kataria, Ritu Narula, Navneet Kaur

Abstract:

Asparagine is vital amino acid which is required for the development of brain and it regulates the equilibrium of central nervous system. Asparagine is the chief amino acid that forms acrylamide in baked food by reacting with reducing sugars at high temperature ( Millard Reaction i.e. amino acids and sugars give new flavors at high temperature). It can also be a parameter of freshness in fruit juices because on storage of juices at 37°C caused an 87% loss in the total free amino acids and major decrease was recorded in asparagine contents. With this significance of monitoring asparagine, in the present work a biosensor for determining asparagine in fruit juices is developed. For the construction of biosensor L-asparaginase enzyme (0.5 IU) was co-immobilized with phenol red on TEOS chitosan sol-gel plastic disc and fixed on the fiber optic tip. Tip was immersed in a cell having 5ml of substrate and absorption was noted at response time of 5 min with 10-1 - 10-10 M concentrations of asparagine at 538 nm. L-asparaginase was extracted and from Solanum nigrum Asparagine biosensor was applied fruit juices on the monitoring asparagine contents. L-asparagine concentration found to be present in fruit juices like Guava Juice, Apple Juice, Mango Juice, Litchi juice, Strawberry juice, Pineapple juice Lemon juice, and Orange juice. Hence the developed biosensor has commercial aspects in quality insurance of fruit juices.

Keywords: fiber optic biosensor, chitosan, teos, l-asparaginase

Procedia PDF Downloads 289

Authors: Timothy O. Adekunle, Sigridur Bjarnadottir

Abstract:

Several studies have investigated thermal behavior of buildings with limited studies focusing on high-rise buildings. Of the limited investigations that have considered thermal performance of high-rise buildings, only a few studies have considered thermal behavior of high-rise structural sustainable buildings. As a result, this study investigates the thermal behavior of a high-rise structural timber building. The study aims to understand the thermal environment of a high-rise structural timber block of apartments located in East London, UK by comparing the indoor environmental conditions at different floors (ground and upper floors) of the building. The environmental variables (temperature and relative humidity) were measured at 15-minute intervals for a few weeks in the summer of 2012 to generate data that was considered for calibration and validation of the simulated results. The study employed mainly dynamic thermal building simulation using DesignBuilder by EnergyPlus and supplemented with environmental monitoring as major techniques for data collection and analysis. The weather file (Test Reference Years- TRYs) for the 2000s from the weather generator carried out by the Prometheus Group was considered for the simulation since the study focuses on investigating thermal behavior of high-rise structural timber buildings in the summertime and not in extreme summertime. In this study, the simulated results (May-September of the 2000s) will be the focus of discussion, but the results will be briefly compared with the environmental monitoring results. The simulated results followed a similar trend with the findings obtained from the short period of the environmental monitoring at the building. The results revealed lower temperatures are often predicted (at least 1.1°C lower) at the ground floor than the predicted temperatures at the upper floors. The simulated results also showed that higher temperatures are predicted in spaces at southeast facing (at least 0.5°C higher) than spaces in other orientations across the floors considered. There is, however, a noticeable difference between the thermal environment of spaces when the results obtained from the environmental monitoring are compared with the simulated results. The field survey revealed higher temperatures were recorded in the living areas (at least 1.0°C higher) while higher temperatures are predicted in bedrooms (at least 0.9°C) than living areas for the simulation. In addition, the simulated results showed spaces on lower floors of high-rise structural timber buildings are predicted to provide more comfortable thermal environment than spaces on upper floors in summer, but this may not be the same in wintertime due to high upward movement of hot air to spaces on upper floors.

Keywords: building simulation, high-rise, structural timber buildings, sustainable, temperatures, thermal behavior

Procedia PDF Downloads 177