Search results for: physico chemical characteristics

Authors: José Neves, M. Rosário Martins, Fátima Candeias, Diana Ferreira, Sílvia Arantes, Júlio Cruz-Morais, Guida Gomes, Joaquim Macedo, António Abelha, Henrique Vicente

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Some plants of genus Schinus have been used in the folk medicine as topical antiseptic, digestive, purgative, diuretic, analgesic or antidepressant, and also for respiratory and urinary infections. Chemical composition of essential oils of S. molle and S. terebinthifolius had been evaluated and presented high variability according with the part of the plant studied and with the geographic and climatic regions. The pharmacological properties, namely antimicrobial, anti-tumoural and anti-inflammatory activities are conditioned by chemical composition of essential oils. Taking into account the difficulty to infer the pharmacological properties of Schinus essential oils without hard experimental approach, this work will focus on the development of a decision support system, in terms of its knowledge representation and reasoning procedures, under a formal framework based on Logic Programming, complemented with an approach to computing centered on Artificial Neural Networks and the respective Degree-of-Confidence that one has on such an occurrence.

Keywords: artificial neuronal networks, essential oils, knowledge representation and reasoning, logic programming, Schinus molle L., Schinus terebinthifolius Raddi

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Authors: Sandra Christina Gressler

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Resting is essentially the physical and mental relaxation. So, can behaviors that go beyond the merely physical relaxation to some extent be understood as a behavior of restoration? Studies on restorative environments emphasize the physical, mental and social benefits that some environments can provide and suggest that activities in natural environments reduce the stress of daily lives, promoting recovery against the daily wear. These studies, though specific in their results, do not unify the different possibilities of restoration. Considering the importance of restorative environments by promoting well-being, this research aims to verify the applicability of the theory on restorative environments in a Brazilian context, inquiring about the environment/behavior of rest. The research sought to achieve its goals by; a) identifying daily ways of how participants interact/connect with nature; b) identifying the resting environments/behavior; c) verifying if rest strategies match the restorative environments suggested by restorative studies; and d) verifying different rest strategies related to time. Workers from different companies in which certain functions require focused attention, and high school students from different schools, participated in this study. An interview was used to collect data and information. The data obtained were compared with studies of attention restoration theory and stress recovery. The collected data were analyzed through the basic descriptive inductive statistics and the use of the software ALCESTE® (Analyse Lexicale par Contexte d'un Ensemble de Segments de Texte). The open questions investigate perception of nature on a daily basis – analysis using ALCESTE; rest periods – daily, weekends and holidays – analysis using ALCESTE with tri-croisé; and resting environments and activities – analysis using a simple descriptive statistics. According to the results, environments with natural characteristics that are compatible with personal desires (physical aspects and distance) and residential environments when they fulfill the characteristics of refuge, safety, and self-expression, characteristics of primary territory, meet the requirements of restoration. Analyzes suggest that the perception of nature has a wide range that goes beyond the objects nearby and possible to be touched, as well as observation and contemplation of details. The restoration processes described in the studies of attention restoration theory occur gradually (hierarchically), starting with being away, following compatibility, fascination, and extent. They are also associated with the time that is available for rest. The relation between rest behaviors and the bio-demographic characteristics of the participants are noted. It reinforces, in studies of restoration, the need to insert not only investigations regarding the physical characteristics of the environment but also behavior, social relationship, subjective reactions, distance and time available. The complexity of the theme indicates the necessity for multimethod studies. Practical contributions provide subsidies for developing strategies to promote the welfare of the population.

Keywords: attention restoration theory, environmental psychology, rest behavior, restorative environments

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Authors: Yashvir Singh, Amneesh Singla, Swapnil Bhurat

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Around the globe, there is demand for the development of bio-based lubricant which will be biodegradable, non toxic, and environmentally-friendly. This paper outlines the friction and wear characteristics of ponagamia biodiesel contaminated bio-lubricant by using pin-on-disc tribometer. To formulate the bio-lubricants, Ponagamia oil based biodiesel were blended in the ratios 5, 10, and 20% by volume with the base lubricant SAE 20 W 40. Tribological characteristics of these blends were carried out at 2.5 m/s sliding velocity and loads applied were 50, 100, 150 N. Experimental results showed that the lubrication regime that occurred during the test was boundary lubrication while the main wear mechanisms was the adhesive wear. During testing, the lowest wear was found with the addition of 5 and 10% Ponagamia oil based biodiesel, and above this contamination, the wear rate was increased considerably. The addition of 5 and 10% Ponagamia oil based biodiesel with the base lubricant acted as a very good lubricant additive which reduced the friction and wear rate during the test. It has been concluded that the PBO 5 and PBO 10 can act as an alternative lubricant to increase the mechanical efficiency at 2.5 m/s sliding velocity and contribute in reduction of dependence on the petroleum based products.

Keywords: friction, load, pongamia oil blend, sliding velocity, wear

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Authors: Moses Basitere, Marshal Sherene Sheldon, Seteno Karabo Obed Ntwampe, Debbie Dejager

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In South Africa, Poultry slaughterhouses consume largest amount of freshwater and discharges high strength wastewater, which can be treated successfully at low cost using anaerobic digesters. In this study, the performance of bench-scale mesophilic Static Granular Bed Reactor (SGBR) containing fully anaerobic granules coupled with ultra-filtration (UF) membrane as a post-treatment for poultry slaughterhouse wastewater was investigated. The poultry slaughterhouse was characterized by chemical oxygen demand (COD) range between 2000 and 6000 mg/l, average biological oxygen demand (BOD) of 2375 mg/l and average fats, oil and grease (FOG) of 554 mg/l. A continuous SGBR anaerobic reactor was operated for 6 weeks at different hydraulic retention time (HRT) and an Organic loading rate. The results showed an average COD removal was greater than 90% for both the SGBR anaerobic digester and ultrafiltration membrane. The total suspended solids and fats oil and grease (FOG) removal was greater than 95%. The SGBR reactor coupled with UF membrane showed a greater potential to treat poultry slaughterhouse wastewater.

Keywords: chemical oxygen demand, poultry slaughterhouse wastewater, static granular bed reactor, ultrafiltration, wastewater

Procedia PDF Downloads 387

Authors: Mohammed Seid, Aklilu Azazh, Fikre Enquselassie, Engida Yisma

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Background: Road traffic injuries are the eighth leading cause of death globally, and the leading cause of death for young people. More than a million people die each year on the world’s roads, and the risk of dying as a result of a road traffic injury is highest in the Africa. Methods: A prospective hospital-based study was undertaken to assess injury characteristics and outcome of road traffic accident among victims at Adult Emergency Department of Tikur Anbesa specialized hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A structured pre-tested questionnaire was used to gather the required data. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS version 16.0. Results: A total of 230 road traffic accident victims were studied. The majority of the study subjects were men 165 (71.7%) and the male/female ratio was 2.6:1. The victims’ ages ranged from 14 to 80 years with the mean and standard deviations of 32.15 and ± 14.38 years respectively. Daily laborers (95 (41.3%)) and students (28 (12.2%)) were the majority of road traffic accident victims. Long-distance travelling Minibus (16.5%) was responsible for the majority of road traffic crash followed by followed by Taxi (14.8%) and pedestrians (62.6%) accounted for the majority of road traffic accident. Head (50.4%) and musculoskeletal (extremities) (47.0%) were the most common body region injured. Fractures (78.0%) and open wounds (56.5%) were the most common type of injuries sustained. Treatment of fracture was the most common procedure performed in 57.7 % of the victims. The overall length of hospital stay (LOS) ranged from 1 day to 61 days with mean (± standard deviation) of 7.12 ± 10.5 days and the mortality rate was 7.4 %. A significant higher proportion of victims aged 14-55 years were had less likelihood of death compared to those victims aged more than 55 years of age [Adjusted OR = 0.1 (95% CI: 0.01, 0.82)]. Conclusions: This study showed diverse injury characteristics and high morbidity and mortality among the victims attending Adult Emergency Department of Tikur Anbesa specialized hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The findings reflect that road traffic accident is a major public health problem. Urgent road traffic accident preventive measures and prompt treatment of the victims are warranted in order to reduce morbidity and mortality among the victims.

Keywords: road traffic accident, injury characteristics, outcome, Tikur Anbesa specialized hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

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Authors: Alya Harichane, Abderraouf Achour, Abdelbaki Benmounah

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The main difficulty encountered in the formulation of high-performance concrete (HPC) consists in choosing the most efficient cement-superplasticizer pair allowing to obtain maximum water reduction, good workability of the concrete in the fresh state, and very good mechanical resistance in the hardened state. The aim of this work is to test the efficiency of three polycarboxylate ether-based superplasticizers (PCE) marketed in Algeria with CEMI 52.5 R cement and to study the effect of chemical structure of PCE on zeta potential, rheological and mechanical properties of cement pastes. The property of the polymers in cement was tested by a Malvern Zetasizer 2000 apparatus and VT 550 viscometer. Results showed that the zeta potential and its rheological properties are related to the molecular weight and the density carboxylic of PCE. The PCE with a moderate molecular weight and the highest carboxylic groups had the best dispersion (high value of zeta potential) and lowest viscosity. The effect of the chemical structure of PCEs on mechanical properties is evaluated by the formulation of cement mortar with these PCEs. The result shows that there is a correlation between the zeta potential of polymer and the compressive strength of cement paste.

Keywords: molecular weight, polycarboxylate-ether superplasticizer, rheology, zeta potential

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Authors: Lin Chih-Ken

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This paper explores the A Li Shan hotel of Taiwan during the Japanese occupation period, after over a hundred years of time, it has been handed over to the hotel managing enterprise to retain the historic building and the culture. Applying the innovative marketing strategies, coordinate the local government traveling policy then combined local tea agriculture and forestry specialty integrated marketing, to create the special hotel located in the Alishan National Scenic Area with the characteristics of landscape, innovative marketing and history, to attract domestic tourism and visitors around the world. This study interview the hotel owner, managers, employees and guests, in addition to collected message feedback from reservation website, to apply Ambidexterity Marketing Theory and Resource Base Theory to analyze the main impact factors. The conclusion showed that the integration of several key factors and make good use of resource strength generate heterogeneous product characteristics to attracting wider range of visitors.

Keywords: heritage tourism, historic hotel, marketing ambidexterity, resource base theory

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Authors: T. Prabakaran

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Gas Insulated Substations (GIS) are widely used as important switchgear equipment because of its high reliability, low space requirement, low risk factor and easy maintenance, yet some failures have been reported. Some of the failures are due to presence of metallic particles inside the GIS compartment. The defect can be generated in GIS during production, maintenance, installation and can be due to ageing of the component. The Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) method is used to diagnose the insulation condition of GIS by detecting the PD signals in GIS. This paper identifies PD patterns for free moving particle defect and particle fixed on cone using UHF method. As insulation failure usually starts with PD activity, this paper investigates the differences in PD characteristics in SF6 gas with different types of defects. Experimental results show that correct identification of defects can be achieved based on considered PD characteristics. The method can be applied to prove the quality of assembly work at commissioning, also on a regular basis after many years in service to detect aged and conducting particles as a part of the condition based maintenance.

Keywords: gas insulated substation, partial discharge, free moving particle defect, particle fixed on cone defect, ultra high frequency method

Procedia PDF Downloads 246

Authors: Débora C. Mendes, Matthias Eckert, Cláudia S. Moço, Hélio Martins, Jean-Pierre P. Gonçalves, Miguel Oliveira, José P. Da Silva

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Uncontrolled disposal of construction and demolition waste (C & DW) in embankments in the periphery of cities causes both environmental and social problems, namely erosion, deforestation, water contamination and human conflicts. One of the milestones of EU Horizon 2020 Programme is the management of waste as a resource. To achieve this purpose for C & DW, a detailed analysis of the properties of these materials should be done. In this work we report the physical, chemical and environmental properties of C & DW aggregates from 25 different origins. The results are compared with those of common natural aggregates used in construction. Assays were performed according to European Standards. Additional analysis of heavy metals and organic compounds such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), were performed to evaluate their environmental impact. Finally, properties of concrete prepared with C & DW aggregates are also reported. Physical analyses of C & DW aggregates indicated lower quality properties than natural aggregates, particularly for concrete preparation and unbound layers of road pavements. Chemical properties showed that most samples (80%) meet the values required by European regulations for concrete and unbound layers of road pavements. Analyses of heavy metals Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Ni, Mo and Zn in the C&DW leachates showed levels below the limits established by the Council Decision of 19 December 2002. Identification and quantification of PCBs and PAHs indicated that few samples shows the presence of these compounds. The measured levels of PCBs and PAHs are also below the limits. Other compounds identified in the C&DW leachates include phthalates and diphenylmethanol. In conclusion, the characterized C&DW aggregates show lower quality properties than natural aggregates but most samples showed to be environmentally safe. A continuous monitoring of the presence of heavy metals and organic compounds should be made to trial safe C&DW aggregates. C&DW aggregates provide a good economic and environmental alternative to natural aggregates.

Keywords: concrete preparation, construction and demolition waste, heavy metals, organic pollutants

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Authors: Omar Awad, R. Mamat, F. Yusop, M. M. Noor, I. M. Yusri

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Fusel oil is a by-product obtained through the fermentation of some agricultural products. The fusel oil properties are closer to other alternative combustible types and the limited number of studies on the use of fusel oil as an alcohol derivative in SI engines constitutes to the base of this study. This paper experimentally examined the impacts of a by-product of alcohol, which is fusel oil by blending it with gasoline, on engine performance, combustion characteristics, and emissions in a 4-cylinder SI engine. The test was achieved at different engine speeds and a 60 % throttle valve (load). As results, brake power, BTE, and BSFC of F10 are higher at all engine speeds. Maximum engine BTE was 33.9%, at the lowest BSFC with F10. Moreover, it is worth seeing that the F10 under rich air-fuel ratio has less variation of COVIMEP compared to the F20 and gasoline. F10 represents shorter combustion duration, thereby, the engine power increased. NOx emission for F10 at 4500 rpm was lower than gasoline. The highest value of HC emission is obtained with F10 compared to gasoline and F20 with an average increase of 11% over the engine speed range. CO and CO2 emissions increased when using fusel oil blends.

Keywords: fusel oil, spark ignition engine, by-product alcohol, combustion characteristics, engine emissions, alternative fuel

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Authors: Andrey V. Samokhin, Nikolay V. Alekseev, Mikhail A. Sinaiskii

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The report presents the results of R&D of plasma-chemical production of W, W-Cu, W-Ni-Fe nanopowders as well as spherical micropowders of these compounds for their use in modern 3D printing technologies. Plasma-chemical synthesis of nanopowdersis based on the reduction of tungsten oxide compounds powders in a stream of hydrogen-containing low-temperature thermal plasma generated in an electric arc plasma torch. The synthesis of W-Cu and W-Ni-Fe nanocompositesiscarried out using the reduction of a mixture of the metal oxides. Using the synthesized tungsten-based nanocomposites powders, spherical composite micropowders with a submicron structure canbe manufactured by spray dryinggranulation of nanopowder suspension and subsequent densification and spheroidization of granules by melting in a low-temperature thermal plasma flow. The DC arc plasma systems are usedfor the synthesis of nanopowdersas well as for the spheroidization of microgranuls. Plasma systems have a capacity of up to 1 kg/h for nanopowder and up to 5 kg/h for spheroidized powder. All synthesized nanopowders consist of aggregated particles with sizes less than 100 nm, and nanoparticles of W-Cu and W-Ni-Fe composites have core (W) –shell (Cu or Ni-Fe) structures. The resulting dense spherical microparticles with a size of 20-60 microns have a submicron structure with a uniform distribution of metals over the particle volume. The produced tungsten-based nano- and spherical micropowderscan be used to develop new materials and manufacture products using advanced modern technologies.

Keywords: plasma, powders, production, tungsten-based

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Authors: Caroline A. Mathieu, Steve Geoffrion, Alexandre Dumais, Denis Lafortune

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In Quebec, troubled youths stay in a rehabilitation Center (RC), and educators in RC’S are particularly at risk of exposure to workplace violence. In order to manage youth violence and protect youth safety or their own, educators can resort to restraint and seclusion (R&S) strategies. To our best knowledge, in the literature, no study was found on the topic of R&S super users either in psychiatry or in a rehabilitation center. The objective of this study is to explore the differences between R&S super users and normal users among educators in terms of individual and environmental characteristics, over an eight weeks period. The 278 participants were volunteers recruited from 36 units that foster around 8 to 12 youths per unit, in a suburb of Montreal; Quebec, Canada. The results indicate that among the variables that were studied, only fear of violence and past exposure to violence at work characterized the R&S super users. These results suggest that exposure to violence in the workplace might increase the anticipation and fear of violence from a youth; this is concordant with the results indicating that these variables are the ones separating normal users from super users.

Keywords: seclusion and restraint, violence, youth, educators

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Authors: Turan Çalban, Nursel Keskin, Sabri Çolak, Soner Kuşlu

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Gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O) is a mineral that is found in large quantities in the Turkey and in the World. The dissolution of this mineral in the diammonium hydrogen phosphate solutions has not been studied so far. Investigation of the dissolution and dissolution kinetics gypsum in diammonium hydrogen phosphate solutions will be useful for evaluating of solid wastes containing gypsum. In this study, parameters such as diammonium hydrogen phosphate concentration, temperature and stirring speed affecting on the dissolution rate of the gypsum in diammonium hydrogen phosphate solutions were investigated. In experimental studies have researched effectiveness of the selected parameters. The dissolution of gypsum were examined in two parts at low and high temperatures. The experimental results were successfully correlated by linear regression using Statistica program. Dissolution curves were evaluated shrinking core models for solid-fluid systems. The activation energy was found to be 34.58 kJ/mol and 44.45 kJ/mol for the low and the high temperatures. The dissolution of gypsum was controlled by chemical reaction both low temperatures and high temperatures. Reaction rate expressions of dissolution of gypsum at the low temperatures and the high temperatures controlled by chemical reaction are as follows, respectively. = k1.e-5159.5/T.t = k2.e-5346.8/T.t Where k1 and k2 are constants depending on the diammonium hydrogen phosphate solution concentration, the solid/liquid ratio, the stirring speed and the particle size.

Keywords: diammonium hydrogen phosphate, dissolution kinetics, gypsum, kinetics.

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Authors: Xianping Du, Runlu Miao, Guanjun Zhang, Libo Cao, Feng Zhu

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Current vehicle safety standards and human body injury criteria were established based on the biomechanical response of Euro-American human body, without considering the difference in the body anthropometry and injury characteristics among different races, particularly the East Asian people with smaller body size. Absence of such race specific design considerations will negatively influence the protective performance of safety products for these populations, and weaken the accuracy of injury thresholds derived. To resolve these issues, in this study, we aim to develop a race specific finite element model to simulate the impact response of the lower extremity of a 50th percentile East Asian (Chinese) male. The model was built based on medical images for the leg of an average size Chinese male and slightly adjusted based on the statistical data. The model includes detailed anatomic features and is able to simulate the muscle active force. Thirteen biomechanical tests available in the literature were used to validate its biofidelity. Using the validated model, a pedestrian-car impact accident taking place in China was re-constructed computationally. The results show that the newly developed lower leg model has a good performance in predicting dynamic response and tibia fracture pattern. An additional comparison on the fracture tolerance of the East Asian and Euro-American lower limb suggests that the current injury criterion underestimates the degree of injury of East Asian human body.

Keywords: lower limb, East Asian body characteristics, traffic accident reconstruction, finite element analysis, injury tolerance

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Authors: Alieh Arasteh

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The main purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of parents and educators on the self-control of children in pre-primary schools in District 5 of Tehran. The method of this survey was a survey and post-correlation type. The statistical population of this study included all teachers and parents of children in preschool centers in the region. The 5th city of Tehran in 1397 was the number of kindergartens in 117 centers and the number of parents was 1872, the sample size of the parents was 320 and the sample size of the trainers was 76. The method of sampling in this study was randomized and clustered. The data gathering tool was Rosenbaum and Ronen (1992) self-control skills, a five-factor questionnaire NEO personality Costa and McCrae (1985) and a questionnaire on demographic characteristics, reliability using Cronbach's alpha, the data analysis was performed using the software spss24. The results of the research showed that the personality characteristics of parents, parents' socioeconomic status and personality traits of educators affect the self-control dimensions of pre-primary school children (P <0.05).

Keywords: self-control, pre-primary school, the effect of parents, couches

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Authors: Ben Kwame Agyei-Mensah

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This study investigated the influence of firm-specific characteristics which include proportion of Non-Executive Directors, ownership concentration, firm size, profitability, debt equity ratio, liquidity and leverage on the extent and quality of financial ratios disclosed by firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The research was conducted through detailed analysis of the 2012 financial statements of the listed firms. Descriptive analysis was performed to provide the background statistics of the variables examined. This was followed by regression analysis which forms the main data analysis. The results of the extent of financial ratio disclosure level, mean of 62.78%, indicate that most of the firms listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange did not overwhelmingly disclose such ratios in their annual reports. The results of the low quality of financial ratio disclosure mean of 6.64% indicate that the disclosures failed woefully to meet the International Accounting Standards Board's qualitative characteristics of relevance, reliability, comparability and understandability. The results of the multiple regression analysis show that leverage (gearing ratio) and return on investment (dividend per share) are associated on a statistically significant level as far as the extent of financial ratio disclosure is concerned. Board ownership concentration and proportion of (independent) non-executive directors, on the other hand were found to be statistically associated with the quality of financial ratio disclosed. There is a significant negative relationship between ownership concentration and the quality of financial ratio disclosure. This means that under a higher level of ownership concentration less quality financial ratios are disclosed. The findings also show that there is a significant positive relationship between board composition (proportion of non-executive directors) and the quality of financial ratio disclosure.

Keywords: voluntary disclosure, firm-specific characteristics, financial reporting, financial ratio disclosure, Ghana stock exchange

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Authors: Ismail Aslantas

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Value-Added Models (VAMs), the statistical methods for evaluating the effectiveness of teachers and schools based on student achievement growth, has attracted decision-makers’ and researchers’ attention over the last decades. As a result of this attention, many studies have conducted in recent years to discuss these statistical models from different aspects. This research focused on the importance of conceptual variables in VAM estimations; therefor, this research was undertaken to examine the extent to which value-added effectiveness estimates for teachers can be affected by using context predictions. Using longitudinal data over three years from the international school context, value-added teacher effectiveness was estimated by ordinary least-square value-added models, and the effectiveness of the teachers was examined. The longitudinal dataset in this study consisted of three major sources: students’ attainment scores up to three years and their characteristics, teacher background information, and school characteristics. A total of 1,027 teachers and their 35,355 students who were in eighth grade were examined for understanding the impact of model specifications on the value-added teacher effectiveness evaluation. Models were created using selection methods that adding a predictor on each step, then removing it and adding another one on a subsequent step and evaluating changes in model fit was checked by reviewing changes in R² values. Cohen’s effect size statistics were also employed in order to find out the degree of the relationship between teacher characteristics and their effectiveness. Overall, the results indicated that prior attainment score is the most powerful predictor of the current attainment score. 47.1 percent of the variation in grade 8 math score can be explained by the prior attainment score in grade 7. The research findings raise issues to be considered in VAM implementations for teacher evaluations and make suggestions to researchers and practitioners.

Keywords: model specification, teacher effectiveness, teacher performance evaluation, value-added model

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Authors: Ren Guangchun

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The village in the city is surrounded by formal cities but retains distinct social and morphological characteristics of the countryside, and has the ability of self-growth. County is the basic unit of urban-rural integration development, and urban village is the key focus of integration. At present, the flow of urban and rural factors in Chongqing does not match the development needs of urban villages. Based on the multi-case study of Chongqing 's districts and counties, this paper studies the characteristics of its geospatial advantages, composite functions, open spatial structure, pluralistic social structure, and reciprocity. From the aspects of community governance, social relations and space construction, this paper analyzes the dilemma of lack of subjectivity and social atomization faced by the interaction between urban villages and cities, and explores the strategies of community opening and social integration in urban villages, so as to present diversified landscapes and value spaces.

Keywords: gated community, open community, city update, Urban village

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Authors: Guenther Schuh, Stephan Schroeder, Marcel Faulhaber

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Companies are facing an increasing pressure to innovate faster, cheaper and more radical in last years, due to shrinking product lifecycles and higher volatility of markets and customer demands. Especially established companies struggle meeting those demands. Thus, many producing companies are adapting their development processes to address this increasing pressure. One approach taken by many companies is the use of agile, highly iterative development processes to reduce development times and costs as well as to increase the fulfilled customer requirements and the realized level of innovation. At the same time decreasing depths of added value and increasing focus on core competencies as well as a growing product complexity result in a high dependency on suppliers and external development partners during the product development. Thus, a successful introduction of agile development methods into the development of physical products requires also a successful integration of the necessary external partners and suppliers into the new processes and procedures and an adaption of the organizational interfaces to external partners according to the new circumstances and requirements of agile development processes. For an effective and efficient product development, the design of customer-supplier-relationships should be demand-oriented. A significant influence on the required design has the characteristics of the procurement object. Examples therefore are the complexity of technical interfaces between supply object and final product or the importance of the supplied component for the major product functionalities. Thus, this paper presents an approach to derive general requirements on the design of supplier integration according to the characteristics of supply objects. First, therefore the most relevant evaluation criteria and characteristics have been identified based on a thorough literature review. Subsequently the resulting requirements on the design of the supplier integration were derived depending on the different possible values of these criteria.

Keywords: iterative development processes, agile new product development, procurement, supplier integration

Procedia PDF Downloads 172

Authors: A. M. Iordache, S. M. Iordache, V. Barna, M. Elisa, I. C. Vasiliu, C. R. Stefan, I. Chilibon, I. Stamatin, S. Caramizoiu, C. E. A. Grigorescu

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The general objective of the presentation is the development of an e-tongue like sensor based on modified screen printed electrode (SPE) structures with a receptor part made of porphyrins/metalloporphyrins chemically bound to graphene (the sensitive assembly) to act as antennas and “capture” the histamine molecules. Using a single, ultra-sensitive electrochemical sensor, we measured the concentration of histamine, a compound which is strongly connected to the level of freshness in foods (the caution level of histamine is 50 ppm, whereas the maximum accepted levels range from 200 ppm to 500 ppm). Our approach for the chemical immobilization of the porphyrins onto the surface of the graphenes was via substitution reaction: a solution of graphene in SOCl2 was heated to 800C for 6 hours. Upon cooling, the metallo-porphyrins were added and ultrasonicated for 4 hours. The solution was then allowed to cool to room temperature and then centrifuged in order to separate the deposit. The sensitive assembly was drop casted onto the carbon SPE and cyclic voltammetry was performed in the presence of histamine. The reaction is quasi-reversible and the sensor showed an oxidation potential for histamine at 600 mV. The results indicate a linear dependence of concentration of histamine as function of intensity. The results are reproducible; however the chemical stability of the sensitive assembly is low.

Keywords: histamine, cyclic voltammetry, metallo-porphyrin, food freshness

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Authors: B. Kędra, R. Małkowski

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This paper presents information on Power System Component Simulator – a device designed for LINTE^2 laboratory owned by Gdansk University of Technology in Poland. In this paper, we first provide an introductory information on the Power System Component Simulator and its capabilities. Then, the concept of the unit is presented. Requirements for the unit are described as well as proposed and introduced functions are listed. Implementation details are given. Hardware structure is presented and described. Information about used communication interface, data maintenance and storage solution, as well as used Simulink real-time features are presented. List and description of all measurements is provided. Potential of laboratory setup modifications is evaluated. Lastly, the results of experiments performed using Power System Component Simulator are presented. This includes simulation of under frequency load shedding, frequency and voltage dependent characteristics of groups of load units, time characteristics of group of different load units in a chosen area.

Keywords: power converter, Simulink Real-Time, Matlab, load, tap controller

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Authors: Belkadi Adel, Beboucha Wahib, Cherara lalia

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Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the characteristics of Kumi-kata in elite judokas and characterize the kinematic and temporal parameters of different types of handgrip (HG). Method: fourteen participated in this study male athlete (23.5±2.61 years; 1.81±0.37 0 m; 87.25±22.75 kg), members of the Georgian Judo team. To characterize the dominance and types of kumi-kata used, videos of international competitions from each athlete were analyzed, and to characterize kinematic and temporal parameters and handgrip, and the volunteers pressed a digital dynamometer with each hand for 30 seconds(s) after a visual signal. Results: The values of 0.26±0.69s and 0.31±0.03s for reaction time were obtained, respectively, in the full grip and pinch grip; 19.62±18.83N/cm/s and 6.17±3.48N/cm/s for the rate of force development; 475,21 ± 101,322N and 494,65±112,73 for the FDR; 1,37 ± 0,521s and 1,45 ± 0,824s for the time between the force onset to the TFP; and 41,27±4,54N/cm/s and 45,16 ± 5,64N/cm/s for the fall index, in the dominant hand. There was no significant difference between hands for any variable, except for the dominance of Kumi-kata (p<0.05) used in combat. Conclusion: The dominance of application of the Kumi-kata is a technical option, as it does not depend on the kinetic-temporal parameters of the handgrip.

Keywords: hand grip, judo, athletes, Kumi-Kata

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Authors: B. A. Alabadan, E. S. Ajayi, C. A. Okolo

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The storage losses recorded globally in maize (Zea mays) especially in the developing countries is worrisome. Certain degenerating changes in the physical characteristics (PC) of the grain occur due to the interaction between the stored maize and the immediate environment especially during long storage period. There has been tremendous reduction in the storage losses since the evolution of metallic silos. This study was carried out to assess the physical quality attributes of maize stored in 2500 MT and 1 MT metallic silos for a period of eight months. The PC evaluated includes percentage moisture content MC, insect damage ID, foreign matters FM, hectolitre weight HC, mould M and germinability VG. The evaluation of data obtained was done using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS 20) for windows evaluation version to determine significant levels and trend of deterioration (P < 0.05) for all the values obtained using Multiple Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) and Duncan’s multivariate test. The result shows that the PC are significant with duration of storage at (P < 0.05) except MI and FM that are significant at (P > 0.05) irrespective of the size of the metallic silos. The average mean deviation for physical properties from the control in respect to duration of storage are as follows: MC 10.0 ±0.00%, HC 72.9 ± 0.44% ID 0.29 ± 0.00%, BG 0.55±0.05%, MI 0.00 ± 0.65%, FM 0.80± 0.20%, VG 100 ± 0.03%. The variables that were found to be significant (p < 0.05) with the position of grain in the bulk are VG, MI and ID while others are insignificant at (p > 0.05). Variables were all significant (p < 0.05) with the duration of storage with (0.00) significant levels, irrespective of the size of the metallic silos, but were insignificant with the position of the grain in the bulk (p > 0.05). From the results, it can be concluded that there is a slight decrease of the following variables, with time, HC, MC, and V, probably due to weather fluctuations and grain respiration, while FM, BG, ID and M were found to increase slightly probably due to insect activity in the bigger silos and loss of moisture. The size of metallic silos has no remarkable influence on the PC of stored maize (Zea mays). Germinability was found to be better with the 1 MT silos probably due to its hermetic nature. Smaller size metallic silos are preferred for storage of seeds but bigger silos largely depend on the position of the grains in the bulk.

Keywords: maize, storage, silo, physical characteristics

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Authors: Mutiara Effendi

Abstract:

Nunukan Island is located on North Kalimantan of Indonesia. The region is one of Indonesia’s cross-border with Malaysia. In conjunction with its strategic geographic location, its potential as the new oil and gas resources has brought many researchers to do their studies here. The research area consists of claystone which criss-crossed with quarts sandstone. There are also rocks claystone-grained which are the weathering product of basaltic volcanic rocks. In some places, there are argillic clays which are the hydrothermal-altered product of Sei Apok ancient volcano. Geochemical study was established to learn the origin of the claystones, whether it came from weathering, hydrothermal alteration, or both. The samples used in this research are fresh rock, weathering rocks, hydrothermally-altered rock, and claystones. Chemical compositions of each sample were determined and their relations was studied. The studies encompass major and minor elements analysis using X-Ray Fluoresence (XRF) method and trace elements analysis, specifically rare earth elements, using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS) method. The results were plotted on certain graphics to learn about the trend and the relations of each sample and element. Any changes in chemical compositions, like increase and decrease of elements or species, was analysed to learn about geological phenomenon that happens during the formation of claystones. The result of this study shows that claystones of Nunukan Island have relation with volcanic rocks of its surrounding area. Its chemical composition profile corresponds to weathering product of volcanic rocks rather than hydrothermally-altered product. The general profile also resembles claystone minerals of illite or montmorillonite, especially in the existence of aluminum, iron, potassium, and magnesium. Both minerals are formed in basic condition and commonly happen to shales. It is consistent with the fact that claystone was found mixing with shales and silt to clay grained mudstones in field exploration. Even though the general profile is much alike, the amount of each elements is not precisely the same as theoretically claystone mineral compositions because the mineral have not formed completely yet.

Keywords: claystone, geochemistry, ICP-MS, XRF

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Authors: Seyyed Naeim Saber, Javad Usefi

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This study was conducted to determine the effect of salbutamol (beta-adrenergic agonist) on carcass characteristics and some blood parameters in male broiler chicks. Four hundred and twenty day-old (Coob-500) male broiler were used in this experiment for six weeks. All birds were randomly divided into 7 treatment groups with 4 replicates of 15 birds per pen. Treatment groups included: control, 5, 10, and 15 mg salbutamol per liter water and 10, 20 and 30 mg salbutamol per kg diet. The data obtained from this study indicated that supplementation of salbutamol in water and diets have significant effect on live body weight, abdominal fat, and gizzard weight (p<0.05). Also adding salbutamol in broiler water and feed did not have significant effect on thigh and breast dry matter, thigh and breast crude protein, and thigh and breast crude fat (p>0.05). The results from this study demonstrated that salbutamol has significant (p<0.05) effect on hemoglobin content and RV/TV but it does not have significant effect (p>0.05) on hematocrit amount.

Keywords: salbutamol, beta-adrenergic agonist, broiler chicks, carcass characteristic

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Authors: Alaa Y. Ali, Natalie P. Holmes, John Holdsworth, Warwick Belcher, Paul Dastoor, Xiaojing Zhou

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Multi-layered graphene has been produced under low temperature chemical vapour deposition (CVD) growth conditions by utilizing an organic solvent and polymer film source. Poly(methylmethacrylate) (PMMA) was dissolved in chlorobenzene solvent and used as a drop-cast film carbon source on a quartz slide. A source temperature (T_source) of 180 °C provided sufficient carbon to grow graphene, as identified by Raman spectroscopy, on clean copper foil catalytic surfaces.  Systematic variation of hydrogen gas (H₂) flow rate from 25 standard cubic centimeters per minute (sccm) to 100 sccm and CVD temperature (T_growth) from 400 to 800 °C, yielded graphene films of varying quality as characterized by Raman spectroscopy. The optimal graphene growth parameters were found to occur with a hydrogen flow rate of 75 sccm sweeping the 180 °C source carbon past the Cu foil at 600 °C for 1 min. The deposition at 600 °C with a H₂ flow rate of 75 sccm yielded a 2D band peak with ~53.4 cm^-1 FWHM and a relative intensity ratio of the G to 2D bands (I_G/I_2D) of 0.21. This recipe fabricated a few layers of good quality graphene.

Keywords: graphene, chemical vapor deposition, carbon source, low temperature growth

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Authors: Modupe O. Jimoh

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During manhole overflows, its contents pollute the immediate environment. Understanding the pollutant transfer characteristics between manhole’s incoming sewer and the overflow is therefore of great importance. A square manhole with sides 388 mm by 388 mm and height 700 mm with an overflow facility was used in the laboratory to carry out overflow concentration measurements. Two scenarios were investigated using three flow rates. The first scenario corresponded to when the exit of the pipe becomes blocked and the only exit for the flow is the manhole. The second scenario is when there is an overflow in combination with a pipe exit. The temporal concentration measurements showed that the peak concentration of pollutants in the flow was attenuated between the inlet and the overflow. A deconvolution software was used to predict the Residence time distribution (RTD) and consequently the Cumulative Residence time distribution (CRTD). The CRTDs suggest that complete mixing is occurring between the pipe inlet and the overflow, like what is obtained in a low surcharged manhole. The results also suggest that an instantaneous stirred tank reactor model can describe the mixing characteristics.

Keywords: CRTDs, instantaneous stirred tank reactor model, overflow, square manholes, surcharge, temporal concentration profiles

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Authors: Farid Arya, Trevor Hyde, Paul Henshall, Phillip Eames, Roger Moss, Stan Shire

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Vacuum flat plate solar thermal collectors offer several advantages over other collectors namely the excellent optical and thermal characteristics they exhibit due to a combination of their wide surface area and high vacuum thermal insulation. These characteristics can offer a variety of applications for industrial process heat as well as for building integration as they are much thinner than conventional collectors making installation possible in limited spaces. However, many technical challenges which need to be addressed to enable wide scale adoption of the technology still remain. This paper will discuss the challenges, expectations and requirements for the flat-plate vacuum solar collector development. In addition, it will provide an overview of work undertaken in Ulster University, Loughborough University, and the University of Warwick on flat-plate vacuum solar thermal collectors. Finally, this paper will present a detailed experimental investigation on the development of a vacuum panel with a novel sealing method which will be used to accommodate a novel slim hydroformed solar absorber.

Keywords: hot box calorimeter, infrared thermography, solar thermal collector, vacuum insulation

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Authors: Archana Gupta, Rajesh Kumar

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The chemistry of chalcones has generated intensive scientific studies throughout the world. Especially, interest has been focused on the synthesis and biodynamic activities of chalcones. The blue light transmittance, excellent crystallizability and the two planar rings connected through a conjugated double bond show that chalcone derivatives are superior nonlinear organic compounds. 3-(2-Chloro-6-fluoro¬phen¬yl)-1-(2-thien¬yl) prop-2-en-1-one, 3-(2, 4- Dichlorophenyl) – 1 - (4-methylphenyl) – prop -2-en-1-one, (2E)-3-[4-(methylsulfanyl) phenyl]-1-(4-nitrophenyl) prop-2-en-1-one are some chalcone derivatives exhibiting non linear optical (NLO) properties. NLO materials have been extensively investigated in recent years as they are the key elements for photonic technologies of optical communication, optical interconnect oscillator, amplifier, frequency converter etc. Due to their high molecular hyperpolarizabilities, organic materials display a number of significant NLO properties. Experimental measurements and theoretical calculations on molecular hyperpolarizability β have become one of the key factors in the design of second order NLO materials. Theoretical determination of hyperpolarizability is quite useful both in understanding the relationship between the molecular structure and NLO properties. It also provides a guideline to experimentalists for the design and synthesis of organic NLO materials. Quantum-chemical calculations have made an important contribution to the understanding of the electronic polarization underlying the molecular NLO processes and the establishment of structure–property relationships. In the present investigation, the detailed vibrational analysis of some chalcone derivatives is taken up to understand the correlation of the charge transfer interaction and the NLO activity of the molecules based on density functional theory calculations. The vibrational modes contributing toward the NLO activity have been identified and analyzed. Rather large hyperpolarizability derived by theoretical calculations suggests the possible future use of these compounds for non-linear optical applications. The study suggests the importance of π - conjugated systems for non-linear optical properties and the possibility of charge transfer interactions. We hope that the results of the present study of chalcone derivatives are of assistance in development of new efficient materials for technological applications.

Keywords: hyperpolarizability, molecular structure, NLO material, quantum chemical calculations

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Authors: Seyed Alireza Farrokhzad, Seyed Amin Alavi, Ebrahim Panahpour

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The use of industrial wastewater affects the properties of soil, including its chemical properties. This research was conducted randomly in order to investigate the effect of industrial wastewater application on the concentration of nitrate and phosphate in loamy soil in the land space of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Sefid Dasht Steel Company. Industrial wastewater was added in ten irrigation periods in the three months of summer 2022 and was used in a part of the land space of the factory. After finishing the irrigation process with wastewater, the soil nitrate and phosphate values were measured at the depths of 0-25, 25-50 and 50-100 cm. The results showed that adding sewage to the soil increased nitrate and phosphate. The increase of these ions in the soil became loamy. Also, the results showed that the amount of phosphate in the soil decreases with increasing depth, while the amount of nitrate in the soil increases with increasing depth, which is due to the high mobility of nitrate along the soil profile. Also, with the increase in the level of use of wastewater, the amount of nitrate accumulation in the lower layers of the soil increased.

Keywords: industrial wastewater, soil chemical properties, loamy texture, land space

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