Search results for: nerve and tendon transfer surgery

Authors: Sneha Noble, Rahul Krishnan, Uma G., D. K. Vijaykumar

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Breast-Cancer related Lymphedema is a major problem that affects many women. Lymphedema is the swelling that generally occurs in the arms or legs caused by the removal of or damage to lymph nodes as a part of cancer treatment. Treating it at the earliest possible stage is the best way to manage the condition and prevent it from leading to pain, recurrent infection, reduced mobility, and impaired function. So, this project aims to focus on the multi-modal approaches to identify the risks of Lymphedema in post-surgical oncology patients and prevent it at the earliest. The Kinect IR Sensor is utilized to capture the images of the body and after image processing techniques, the region of interest is obtained. Then, performing the voxelization method will provide volume measurements in pre-operative and post-operative periods in patients. The formation of a mathematical model will help in the comparison of values. Clinical pathological data of patients will be investigated to assess the factors responsible for the development of lymphedema and its risks.

Keywords: Kinect IR sensor, Lymphedema, voxelization, lymph nodes

Procedia PDF Downloads 119

Authors: Eunice Chiamaka Allen-Ngbale

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Cargo claims are brought by cargo interests against carriers when the goods are not delivered or delivered short or mis-delivered or delivered damaged. The objective of the cargo claimant is to seek recovery for the loss suffered through the award of damages against the carrier by a court of competent jurisdiction. Moreover, whether the vessel on which the goods were carried is or is not under charter, the bill of lading plays a central role in the cargo claim. Since the bill of lading is an important international transport document, this paper examines, by chronicling the progress of a cargo claim as governed by the English law of contract. It finds that other than by contract, there are other modes of recovery available to a consignee or endorsee of a bill of lading to obtain a remedy under the sui generis contract of carriage contained in or evidenced by a bill of lading.

Keywords: bill of lading, cargo interests, carriage contract, transfer of right of suit

Procedia PDF Downloads 130

Authors: Funda Erdem Şahnali, Ş. Özgür Atayılmaz, Tolga N. Aynur

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Almost all of the domestic refrigerators operate on the principle of the vapor compression refrigeration cycle and removal of heat from the refrigerator cabinets is done via one of the two methods: natural convection or forced convection. In this study, airflow and temperature distributions inside a 375L no-frost type larder cabinet, in which cooling is provided by forced convection, are evaluated both experimentally and numerically. Airflow rate, compressor capacity and temperature distribution in the cooling chamber are known to be some of the most important factors that affect the cooling performance and energy consumption of a refrigerator. The objective of this study is to evaluate the original temperature distribution in the larder cabinet, and investigate for better temperature distribution solutions throughout the refrigerator domain via system optimizations that could provide uniform temperature distribution. The flow visualization and airflow velocity measurements inside the original refrigerator are performed via Stereoscopic Particle Image Velocimetry (SPIV). In addition, airflow and temperature distributions are investigated numerically with Ansys Fluent. In order to study the heat transfer inside the aforementioned refrigerator, forced convection theories covering the following cases are applied: closed rectangular cavity representing heat transfer inside the refrigerating compartment. The cavity volume has been represented with finite volume elements and is solved computationally with appropriate momentum and energy equations (Navier-Stokes equations). The 3D model is analyzed as transient, with k-ε turbulence model and SIMPLE pressure-velocity coupling for turbulent flow situation. The results obtained with the 3D numerical simulations are in quite good agreement with the experimental airflow measurements using the SPIV technique. After Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis of the baseline case, the effects of three parameters: compressor capacity, fan rotational speed and type of shelf (glass or wire) are studied on the energy consumption; pull down time, temperature distributions in the cabinet. For each case, energy consumption based on experimental results is calculated. After the analysis, the main effective parameters for temperature distribution inside a cabin and energy consumption based on CFD simulation are determined and simulation results are supplied for Design of Experiments (DOE) as input data for optimization. The best configuration with minimum energy consumption that provides minimum temperature difference between the shelves inside the cabinet is determined.

Keywords: air distribution, CFD, DOE, energy consumption, experimental, larder cabinet, refrigeration, uniform temperature

Procedia PDF Downloads 88

Authors: Anuj Abraham, N. Pappa, Daniel Honc, Rahul Sharma

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In this paper, an analysis of some model order reduction techniques is presented. A new hybrid algorithm for model order reduction of linear time invariant systems is compared with the conventional techniques namely Balanced Truncation, Hankel Norm reduction and Dominant Pole Algorithm (DPA). The proposed hybrid algorithm is known as Clustering Dominant Pole Algorithm (CDPA) is able to compute the full set of dominant poles and its cluster center efficiently. The dominant poles of a transfer function are specific eigenvalues of the state space matrix of the corresponding dynamical system. The effectiveness of this novel technique is shown through the simulation results.

Keywords: balanced truncation, clustering, dominant pole, Hankel norm, model reduction

Procedia PDF Downloads 584

Authors: Maassoumeh Bemani Naeini

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Studies on interlanguage have long been engaged in describing the phenomenon of variation in SLA. Pursuing the same goal and particularly addressing the role of linguistic features, this study describes the use of Persian morphology in the interlanguage of two adult English-speaking learners of Persian L2. Taking the general approach of a combination of contrastive analysis, error analysis and interlanguage analysis, this study focuses on the identification and prediction of some possible instances of transfer from English L1 to Persian L2 across six elicitation tasks aiming to investigate whether any of contextual features may variably influence the learners’ order of morpheme accuracy in the areas of copula, possessives, articles, demonstratives, plural form, personal pronouns, and genitive cases.  Results describe the existence of task variation in the interlanguage system of Persian L2 learners.

Keywords: English L1, Interlanguage Analysis, Persian L2, SLA variation

Procedia PDF Downloads 304

Authors: S. Dhivya, M. Abirami, M. Farjana Parveen, M. Keerthiga

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The development of high-speed railway makes people’s lives more and more convenient; meanwhile, handover is the major problem on high-speed railway communication services. In order to overcome that drawback the architecture of Long-Term Evolution (LTE) femtocell networks is used to improve network performance, and the deployment of a femtocell is a key for bandwidth limitation and coverage issues in conventional mobile network system. To increase the handover performance this paper proposed a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) assisted handoff (MAHO) algorithm. It is a technique used in mobile telecom to transfer a mobile phone to a new radio channel with stronger signal strength and improved channel quality.

Keywords: flawless handover, high-speed train, home evolved Node B, LTE, mobile femtocell, RSS

Procedia PDF Downloads 458

Authors: Zenah Gheblawi, Susan Armijo-Olivo, Elisa B. Pelai, Vaishali Sharma, Musa Tashfeen, Angela Fung, Francisca Claveria

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Due to physiological differences between men and women, pain is experienced differently between the two sexes. Chronic pain disorders, notably temporomandibular disorders (TMDs), disproportionately affect women in diagnosis, and pain severity in opposition of their male counterparts. TMDs are a type of musculoskeletal disorder that target the masticatory muscles, temporalis muscle, and temporomandibular joints, causing considerable orofacial pain which can usually be referred to the neck and back. Therapeutic methods are scarce, and are not TMD-centered, with the latest research suggesting that subjects with chronic musculoskeletal pain disorders have abnormal alterations in the grey matter of their brains which can be remedied with exercise, and thus, decreasing the pain experienced. The aim of the study is to investigate the effects of exercise therapy in TMD female patients experiencing chronic jaw pain and to assess the consequential effects on brain activity. In a randomized controlled trial, the effectiveness of an exercise program to improve brain alterations and clinical outcomes in women with TMD pain will be tested. Women with chronic TMD pain will be randomized to either an intervention arm or a placebo control group. Women in the intervention arm will receive 8 weeks of progressive exercise of motor control training using visual feedback (MCTF) of the cervical muscles, twice per week. Women in the placebo arm will receive innocuous transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation during 8 weeks as well. The primary outcomes will be changes in 1) pain, measured with the Visual Analogue Scale, 2) brain structure and networks, measured by fractional anisotropy (brain structure) and the blood-oxygen level dependent signal (brain networks). Outcomes will be measured at baseline, after 8 weeks of treatment, and 4 months after treatment ends and will determine effectiveness of MCTF in managing TMD, through improved clinical outcomes. Results will directly inform and guide clinicians in prescribing more effective interventions for women with TMD. This study is underway, and no results are available at this point. The results of this study will have substantial implications on the advancement in understanding the scope of plasticity the brain has in regards with pain, and how it can be used to improve the treatment and pain of women with TMD, and more generally, other musculoskeletal disorders.

Keywords: exercise therapy, musculoskeletal disorders, physical therapy, rehabilitation, tempomandibular disorders

Procedia PDF Downloads 278

Authors: Y. Megrous, A. Chouaih, F. Hamzaoui

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The crystal structure of 4-Methyl-7-(salicylideneamino)coumarin C17H13NO3has been determined using X-ray diffraction to establish the configuration and stereochemistry of the molecule. This crystal is characterized by its nolinear activity. The molecular electron charge density distribution of the title compound is described accurately using the multipolar model of Hansen and Coppens. The net atomic charge and the molecular dipole moment in-crystal have been determined in order to understand the nature of inter-and intramolecular charge transfer. The study present the thermal motion and the structural analysis obtained from the least-square refinement on F2,this study has also allowed us to determine the electrostatic potential and therefore locate the electropositive part and the electronegative part in molecular scale of the title compound.

Keywords: electron charge density, net atomic charge, molecular dipole moment, X-ray diffraction

Procedia PDF Downloads 441

Authors: Opeyemi Fadipe, Seong Lee, Guangming Chen, Steve Efe

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In comparison to conventional combustion technologies, fluidized bed combustion has several advantages, such as superior heat transfer characteristics due to homogeneous particle mixing, lower temperature needs, nearly isothermal process conditions, and the ability to operate continuously. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) can help anticipate the intricate combustion process and the hydrodynamics of a fluidized bed thoroughly by using CFD techniques. Bubbling Fluidized bed was model using the Eulerian-Eulerian model, including the kinetic theory of the flow. The model was validated by comparing it with other simulation of the fluidized bed. The effects of operational gas velocity, volume fraction, and feed rate were also investigated numerically. A higher gas velocity and feed rate cause an increase in fluidization of the bed.

Keywords: fluidized bed, operational gas velocity, volume fraction, computational fluid dynamics

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Authors: Hossein Shokouhmand, Majid Hasanpour

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A new modification to the Strelow method of chevron-type plate heat exchangers (PHX) modeling is proposed. The effects of maldistribution are accounted in the resulting equation. The results of calculations are validated by reported experiences. The good accuracy of heat transfer performance prediction is shown. The results indicate that considering flow maldistribution improve the accuracy of predicting the flow and thermal behavior of the plate exchanger. Additionally, a wide range of the parametric study has been presented which brings out the effects of chevron angle of PHE on its thermal efficiency with considering maldistribution effect. In addition, the thermally optimal corrugation discussed for the chevron-type PHEs.

Keywords: chevron angle, plate heat exchangers, maldistribution, strelow method

Procedia PDF Downloads 177

Authors: Anshul Gupta, T. Shankar

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In this paper, we had analyzed the call drop to provide a good quality of service to user. By optimizing it we can increase the coverage area and also the reduction of interference and congestion created in a network. Basically handover is the transfer of call from one cell site to another site during a call. Here we have analyzed the whole network by two method-statistic model and analytic model. In statistic model we have collected all the data of a network during busy hour and normal 24 hours and in analytic model we have the equation through which we have to find the call drop probability. By avoiding unnecessary handovers we can increase the number of calls per hour. The most important parameter is co-efficient of variation on which the whole paper discussed.

Keywords: coefficient of variation, mean, standard deviation, call drop probability, handover

Procedia PDF Downloads 474

Authors: Dae Kyung Choi, Won Man Park, Kyungsoo Kim, Yoon Hyuk Kim

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The interspinous process devices have been recently used due to its advantages such as minimal invasiveness and less subsidence of the implant to the osteoporotic bone. In this paper, we have analyzed the influences of ligature tightening of several interspinous process devices using finite element analysis. Four types of interspinous process implants were inserted to the L3-4 spinal motion segment based on their surgical protocols. Inferior plane of L4 vertebra was fixed and 7.5 Nm of extension moment were applied on superior plane of L3 vertebra with 400N of compressive load along follower load direction and pretension of the ligature. The stability of the spinal unit was high enough than that of intact model. The higher value of pretension in the ligature led the decrease of dynamic stabilization effect in cases of the WallisTM, DiamTM, Viking, and Spear®. The results of present study could be used to evaluate surgical option and validate the biomechanical characteristics of the spinal implants.

Keywords: interspinous process device, bone fracture risk, lumbar spine, finite element analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 393

Authors: Samira Cherid, Samir Bentata, Feyza Zahira Meghoufel, Yamina Sefir, Sabria Terkhi, Fatima Bendahma, Bouabdellah Bouadjemi, Ali Zitouni

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Using the transfer-matrix technique and the Kronig Penney model, we numerically and analytically investigate the effect of short-range correlated disorder in random dimer model (RDM) on transmission properties of light in one dimension photonic crystals made of three different materials. Such systems consist of two different structures randomly distributed along the growth direction, with the additional constraint that one kind of these layers appears in pairs. It is shown that the one-dimensional random dimer photonic crystals support two types of extended modes. By shifting of the dimer resonance toward the host fundamental stationary resonance state, we demonstrate the existence of the ballistic response in these systems.

Keywords: photonic crystals, disorder, correlation, transmission

Procedia PDF Downloads 459

Authors: Ghasem Yazadani, Hamidreza Ahmadi, Masoud Ahmadi, Sajad Rezazadeh

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In this paper with designing and proposing a compound of a heating and cooling system has been tried to show effect of this system on preventing esophagus cancer that can be caused by hot and cold drinks such as tea, coffee and ice water. This system has been simulated mechanically by fluent software and also has been validated by experimental way and a comprehensive result has been presented. Both of solution ways show that this system can reduce or increase temperature of drink to safe very dramatically and it can be a huge step toward consuming drinks safely and also it can be efficient about time issues. The system consists of a temperature sensor and an electronic controller that has a computer program to act automatically this task. Also this system has been presented after many different simulations and has been tried to find the best one in the point view of velocity of heating and cooling.

Keywords: fluent, heat transfer, controller, esophagus cancer

Procedia PDF Downloads 370

Authors: Prabhu Thangaraju, Manoj Deepak, A. Sivakumar

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Removal of inter vertebral disc along with spinal fusion has many disadvantages such as causing stress fractures. If it is possible regenerate the spine it would be possible avoid the complications of the surgery and achieve better results. Our study involves the use of mesenchymal stem cells in regenerating the discs. Our study involved 10 patients who presented with degenerative disc disease between 2008-2011 in our hospital. After adequate pre-operative check prepared mesenchymal stem cells were injected into the disc spaces. These patients were subjected to conservative therapy for a minimum of six weeks before they were accepted into the study. They were followed up regularly for a minimum of 2years with serial radiographs and MRI. 8 out of the 10 patients had completed reduction in the pain. The T2 weighted MRI images in 9 out of the 10 patients showed a bright signal compared the previous Images which indicated that there was improvement in the hydration levels. From the case study of 10 patients who were subjected to mesenchymal cell therapy in our hospital, we can conclude that the use of mesenchymal cells in treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration in a safe and effective option.

Keywords: mesenchymal stem cells, intervertebral disc, the spine, disc degeneration

Procedia PDF Downloads 357

Authors: Katie Jerram, Jacqui Nevols, Rebecca Howes, Hayley Richardson, Debbie Suso, Thomas Batten, Reny Mathai

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Pyomyositis is an uncommon acute purulent skeletal muscle infection, usually caused by Staphylococcus aureus, occurring either spontaneously or following local trauma. Immunocompromise is a risk factor. It presents with pyrexia, pain, and tenderness of the affected muscle, which may have a firm ‘woody’ feel. Management usually involves surgery and prolonged courses of antibiotics, but alongside these active treatments, palliation of symptoms such as pain is also a priority. A short case series of diabetic inpatients under the care of the Renal Medicine team with pyomyositis is presented, demonstrating that Hospital Palliative Care Teams may be well placed to provide symptom management advice by working jointly with the patient’s medical or surgical team. A review of the literature on the management of pain in pyomyositis is also presented, and there was no clear consensus on the best strategy. It may be that a combination of analgesics and adjuncts is the most effective strategy, perhaps combined with the holistic approach used within palliative care.

Keywords: pyomyositis, pain, palliation, analgesia

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Chirag Raval, Jimmy Toussaint, Tieuvi Nguyen, Hadi Fadaifard, George Wolberg, Steven Quarfordt, Kung-ming Jan, David S. Rumschitzki

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Numerous studies examine aquaporins’ role in osmotic water transport in various systems but virtually none focus on aquaporins’ role in hydrostatically-driven water transport involving mammalian cells save for our laboratory’s recent study of aortic endothelial cells. Here we investigate aquaporin-1 expression and function in the aortic endothelium in two high-renin rat models of hypertension, the spontaneously hypertensive genomically altered Wystar-Kyoto rat variant and Sprague-Dawley rats made hypertensive by two kidney, one clip Goldblatt surgery. We measured aquaporin-1 expression in aortic endothelial cells from whole rat aortas by quantitative immunohistochemistry, and function by measuring the pressure driven hydraulic conductivities of excised rat aortas with both intact and denuded endothelia on the same vessel. We use them to calculate the effective intimal hydraulic conductivity, which is a combination of endothelial and subendothelial components. We observed well-correlated enhancements in aquaporin-1 expression and function in both hypertensive rat models as well as in aortas from normotensive rats whose expression was upregulated by 2h forskolin treatment. Upregulated aquaporin-1 expression and function may be a response to hypertension that critically determines conduit artery vessel wall viability and long-term susceptibility to atherosclerosis. Numerous studies examine aquaporins’ role in osmotic water transport in various systems but virtually none focus on aquaporins’ role in hydrostatically-driven water transport involving mammalian cells save for our laboratory’s recent study of aortic endothelial cells. Here we investigate aquaporin-1 expression and function in the aortic endothelium in two high-renin rat models of hypertension, the spontaneously hypertensive genomically altered Wystar-Kyoto rat variant and Sprague-Dawley rats made hypertensive by two kidney, one clip Goldblatt surgery. We measured aquaporin-1 expression in aortic endothelial cells from whole rat aortas by quantitative immunohistochemistry, and function by measuring the pressure driven hydraulic conductivities of excised rat aortas with both intact and denuded endothelia on the same vessel. We use them to calculate the effective intimal hydraulic conductivity, which is a combination of endothelial and subendothelial components. We observed well-correlated enhancements in aquaporin-1 expression and function in both hypertensive rat models as well as in aortas from normotensive rats whose expression was upregulated by 2h forskolin treatment. Upregulated aquaporin-1 expression and function may be a response to hypertension that critically determines conduit artery vessel wall viability and long-term susceptibility to atherosclerosis.

Keywords: acute hypertension, aquaporin-1, hydraulic conductivity, hydrostatic pressure, aortic endothelial cells, transcellular flow

Procedia PDF Downloads 214

Authors: Ghandehari Motlagh, Mohammad

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Purpose: We tried to find the most common etiologies for anisometropia in pre-op cataract cases: axial or refractive. Methods: In this cross-sectional study ,41 pre-op cataract eyes with more than 0.33 difference between axial lengths of 2 eyes were enrolled.Considered for each 1mm difference between axial lengths in long eyes( AXL more than 25):1.75-2.00 D of anisometropia, for normal eyes(AXL: 22- 25):2.50D and for short eyes (AXL less than 22):3.50-3.75 D as axial anisometropia. If there are more or lesser anisometropia, we recorded as refractive anisometropia. Results: Average of anisometropia :4.24 D, prevalence of PK or LK :1 (2.38%), kc:1(2.38%), glaucoma surgery: 1(2.38%), and pseudophakic status of the opposite eye 8(19.04%). Prevalence of axial anisometropia:21 (52.4%) and refractive anisometropia 20(47.6%).Then on basis of this study we can rely on the patient’s refraction exactly before phaco for evaluation of axial length differences between the 2 eyes, because most of the anisometropias are axial. Conclusion: In most cases, cataract does not induce significant change in refractive error (secondary myopia) and AXL difference between the 2 eyes are correlated with anisometropia.so it can be used for cataract patient’s ocular biometry evaluation. Pre-cataract refraction is a valuable variable should be measured and recorded in routin eye examination.

Keywords: ocular axial length, anisometropia, cataract, ophthalmology and optometry

Procedia PDF Downloads 365

Authors: O. W. Lawal, L. O. Ahmed, Y. K. Ali

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The unsteady MHD Poiseuille flow of a third grade fluid between two parallel horizontal nonconducting porous plates is studied with heat transfer. The two plates are fixed but maintained at different constant temperature with the Joule and viscous dissipation taken into consideration. The fluid motion is produced by a sudden uniform exponential decaying pressure gradient and external uniform magnetic field that is perpendicular to the plates. The momentum and energy equations governing the flow are solved numerically using Maple program. The effects of magnetic field and third grade fluid parameters on velocity and temperature profile are examined through several graphs.

Keywords: exponential decaying pressure gradient, MHD flow, Poiseuille flow, third grade fluid

Procedia PDF Downloads 463

Authors: Radhakumari Challa

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In India the commercial banks have taken the initiative of visiting the villages and helping the villagers open the no-frill accounts as part of the mission towards achieving the total financial inclusion. As an extension to the first phase of the study conducted a year back which revealed that the required awareness that the no-frill accounts creation is the initiative of the government to transfer either the financial assistance or other benefits of economic development directly was lacking among the villagers, the present study is undertaken to review the change in perceptions of beneficiaries in villages over a year period. The study reveals that that there is increase in the awareness among villagers regarding the purpose for which no-frills accounts are opened, about the method of operating these accounts. Awareness about their right for accessing all the financial services is also found to be on the rise.

Keywords: business correspondence, financial inclusion no-frill account, percolation

Procedia PDF Downloads 344

Authors: Srestha Chaturabul, Wanchalerm Srirachat, Thanaporn Wannachod, Prakorn Ramakul, Ura Pancharoen, Soorathep Kheawhom

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The separation of mercury(II) from petroleum-produced water from the Gulf of Thailand was carried out using a hollow fiber supported liquid membrane system (HFSLM). Optimum parameters for feed pretreatment were 0.2 M HCl, 4% (v/v) Aliquat 336 for extractant and 0.1 M thiourea for stripping solution. The best percentage obtained for extraction was 99.73% and for recovery 90.11%, respectively. The overall separation efficiency noted was 94.92% taking account of both extraction and recovery prospects. The model for this separation developed along a combined flux principle i.e. convection–diffusion–kinetic. The results showed excellent agreement with theoretical data at an average standard deviation of 1.5% and 1.8%, respectively.

Keywords: separation, mercury(ii), petroleum produced water, hollow fiber, liquid membrane

Procedia PDF Downloads 286

Authors: Milos Beran, Josef Drahorad, Ondrej Vltavsky, Martin Fronek, Jiri Sova

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While most nanofibers are produced using electrospinning, this technique suffers from several drawbacks, such as the requirement for specialized equipment, high electrical potential, and electrically conductive targets. Consequently, recent years have seen the increasing emergence of novel strategies in generating nanofibers in a larger scale and higher throughput manner. The centrifugal spinning is simple, cheap and highly productive technology for nanofiber production. In principle, the drawing of solution filament into nanofibers using centrifugal spinning is achieved through the controlled manipulation of centrifugal force, viscoelasticity, and mass transfer characteristics of the spinning solutions. Engineering efforts of researches of the Food research institute Prague and the Czech Technical University in the field the centrifugal nozzleless spinning led to introduction of a pilot plant demonstrator NANOCENT. The main advantages of the demonstrator are lower investment cost - thanks to simpler construction compared to widely used electrospinning equipments, higher production speed, new application possibilities and easy maintenance. The centrifugal nozzleless spinning is especially suitable to produce submicron fibers from polymeric solutions in highly volatile solvents, such as chloroform, DCM, THF, or acetone. To date, submicron fibers have been prepared from PS, PUR and biodegradable polyesters, such as PHB, PLA, PCL, or PBS. The products are in form of 3D structures or nanofiber membranes. Unique self-supporting nanofiber membranes were prepared from the biodegradable polyesters in different mixtures. The nanofiber membranes have been tested for different applications. Filtration efficiencies for water solutions and aerosols in air were evaluated. Different active inserts were added to the solutions before the spinning process, such as inorganic nanoparticles, organic precursors of metal oxides, antimicrobial and wound healing compounds or photocatalytic phthalocyanines. Sintering can be subsequently carried out to remove the polymeric material and transfer the organic precursors to metal oxides, such as Si02, or photocatalytic Zn02 and Ti02, to obtain inorganic nanofibers. Electrospinning is more suitable technology to produce membranes for the filtration applications than the centrifugal nozzleless spinning, because of the formation of more homogenous nanofiber layers and fibers with smaller diameters. The self-supporting nanofiber membranes prepared from the biodegradable polyesters are especially suitable for medical applications, such as wound or burn healing dressings or tissue engineering scaffolds. This work was supported by the research grants TH03020466 of the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic.

Keywords: polymeric nanofibers, self-supporting nanofiber membranes, biodegradable polyesters, active inserts

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Authors: Hariti Rafika, Fekih Malika, Saighi Mohamed

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Heat transfer by natural convection in storage tanks for LNG is extremely related to heat gains through the walls with thermal insulation is not perfectly efficient. In this paper, we present the study of natural convection in the unsteady regime for natural gas in aware phase using the fluent software. The gas is just on the surface of the liquid phase. The CFD numerical method used to solve the system of equations is based on the finite volume method. This numerical simulation allowed us to determine the temperature profiles, the stream function, the velocity vectors and the variation of the heat flux density in the vapor phase in the LNG storage tank volume. The results obtained for a general configuration, by numerical simulation were compared to those found in the literature.

Keywords: numerical simulation, natural convection, heat gains, storage tank, liquefied natural gas

Procedia PDF Downloads 420

Authors: Azadeh Farzaneh, Mohammad Reza Abdi, A. Quaranta, Matteo Dalla Palma, Seyedshahram Mortazavi

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We report on the synthesis of cesium-iodide nanoparticles using sol-gel technique. The structural properties of CsI nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) Also, optical properties were followed by optical absorption and UV–vis fluorescence. Intense photoluminescence is also observed, with some spectral tuning possible with ripening time getting a range of emission photon wavelength approximately from 366 to 350 nm. The size effect on CsI luminescence leads to an increase in scintillation light yield, a redshift of the emission bands of the on_center and off_center self_trapped excitons (STEs) and an increase in the contribution of the off_center STEs to the net intrinsic emission yield. The energy transfer from the matrix to CsI nanoparticles is a key characteristic for scintillation detectors. So the scintillation spectra to alpha particles of sample were monitored.

Keywords: nanoparticles, luminescence, sol gel, scintillator

Procedia PDF Downloads 578

Authors: Debjit Ray

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Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) and recombination leads to the emergence of bacterial antibiotic resistance and pathogenic traits. HGT events can be identified by comparing a large number of fully sequenced genomes across a species or genus, define the phylogenetic range of HGT, and find potential sources of new resistance genes. In-depth comparative phylogenomics can also identify subtle genome or plasmid structural changes or mutations associated with phenotypic changes. Comparative phylogenomics requires that accurately sequenced, complete and properly annotated genomes of the organism. Assembling closed genomes requires additional mate-pair reads or “long read” sequencing data to accompany short-read paired-end data. To bring down the cost and time required of producing assembled genomes and annotating genome features that inform drug resistance and pathogenicity, we are analyzing the performance for genome assembly of data from the Illumina NextSeq, which has faster throughput than the Illumina HiSeq (~1-2 days versus ~1 week), and shorter reads (150bp paired-end versus 300bp paired end) but higher capacity (150-400M reads per run versus ~5-15M) compared to the Illumina MiSeq. Bioinformatics improvements are also needed to make rapid, routine production of complete genomes a reality. Modern assemblers such as SPAdes 3.6.0 running on a standard Linux blade are capable in a few hours of converting mixes of reads from different library preps into high-quality assemblies with only a few gaps. Remaining breaks in scaffolds are generally due to repeats (e.g., rRNA genes) are addressed by our software for gap closure techniques, that avoid custom PCR or targeted sequencing. Our goal is to improve the understanding of emergence of pathogenesis using sequencing, comparative genomics, and machine learning analysis of ~1000 pathogen genomes. Machine learning algorithms will be used to digest the diverse features (change in virulence genes, recombination, horizontal gene transfer, patient diagnostics). Temporal data and evolutionary models can thus determine whether the origin of a particular isolate is likely to have been from the environment (could it have evolved from previous isolates). It can be useful for comparing differences in virulence along or across the tree. More intriguing, it can test whether there is a direction to virulence strength. This would open new avenues in the prediction of uncharacterized clinical bugs and multidrug resistance evolution and pathogen emergence.

Keywords: genomics, pathogens, genome assembly, superbugs

Procedia PDF Downloads 186

Authors: Ali Mohammadi

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The construction of Embankment dams is considered one of the most challenging construction projects, for which several main reasons can be mentioned. Excavation and embankment must be done in a large area, and its design is based on preliminary studies, but at the time of construction, it is possible that excavation does not match with the stability or slope of the rock, or the design is incomplete, and corrections should be made in order to be able to carry out excavation and embankment. Also, the progress of the work depends on the main factors, the lack of each of which can slow down the construction of the dams, and lead to an increase in costs, and control of excavations and embankments and calculations of their volumes are done in this collection. In the following, we will investigate three Embankment dams in Iran that faced these challenges and how they overcame these challenges. KHODA AFARIN on the Aras River between the two countries of IRAN and AZARBAIJAN, SIAH BISHEH PUMPED STORAGE on CHALUS River and GOTVAND on KARUN River are among the most important dams built in Iran.

Keywords: section, data transfer, tunnel, free station

Procedia PDF Downloads 55

Authors: Ahmad B. Musamih, Ahmad A. Albloushi, Ahmed H. Alshemeili, Abdulaziz Y. Alfili, Ala A. Hussien

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This paper proposes a universal wireless battery charger design for portable electronic devices. As the number of portable electronics devices increases, the demand for more flexible and reliable charging techniques is becoming more urgent. A wireless battery charger differs from a traditional charger in the way the power transferred to the battery. In the latter, the power is transferred through electrical wires that connect the charger terminals to the battery terminals, while in the former; the power is transferred by induction without electrical connections. With a detection algorithm that detects the battery size and chemistry, the proposed charger will be able to accommodate a wide range of applications, and will allow a more flexible and reliable option to most of today’s portable electronics.

Keywords: efficiency, magnetically-coupled resonators, resonance frequency, wireless power transfer

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Authors: S. Alireza Mirghasemi, Elly Trepman, Mohammad Saleh Sadeghi, Narges Rahimi Gabaran, Shervin Rashidinia

Abstract:

Bone marrow edema syndrome (BMES) is an uncommon and self-limited syndrome characterized by atraumatic extremity pain with unknown of etiology. Symptom onset may include sudden or gradual swelling and pain at rest or during activity, usually at night. This syndrome mostly affects middle-aged men and younger women who have pain in the lower extremities. The most common sites involved with BMES, in decreasing order of frequency, are the bones about the hip, knee, ankle, and foot. The diagnosis of BMES is made with magnetic resonance imaging to exclude other causes of bone marrow edema. The correct diagnosis often is delayed because of the low prevalence and nonspecific signs in the foot and ankle. This delay may intensify bone pain and impair patient function and quality of life. The goal of BMES treatment is to relieve pain and shorten disease duration. Treatment options are limited and may include symptomatic treatment, pharmacologic treatment, and surgery.

Keywords: transient osteoporosis, bone marrow edema syndrome, iloprost, bisphosphonates

Procedia PDF Downloads 349

Authors: Gabrielle Holt

Abstract:

This paper is looking to prove the efficacy of the Schulte Holt IOL Toric Calculator Processor (Schulte Holt ITCP). It has been completed using manually inputted data into the Barrett Toric Calculator and comparing the number of minutes taken to complete the Toric calculations, the number of errors identified during completion, and distractions during completion. It will then compare that data to the number of minutes taken for the Schulte Holt ITCP to complete also, using the Barrett method, as well as the number of errors identified in the Schulte Holt ITCP. The data clearly demonstrate a momentous advantage to the Schulte Holt ITCP and notably reduces time spent doing Toric Calculations, as well as reducing the number of errors. With the ever-growing number of cataract surgeries taking place around the world and the waitlists increasing -the Schulte Holt IOL Toric Calculator Processor may well demonstrate a way forward to increase the availability of ophthalmologists and ophthalmic staff while maintaining patient safety.

Keywords: Toric, toric lenses, ophthalmology, cataract surgery, toric calculations, Barrett

Procedia PDF Downloads 72

Authors: Alok Kumar Kamal, Vinod Kumar

Abstract:

The trench gate MOSFET has shown itself as the most appropriate power device for low to medium voltage power applications due to its lowest possible ON resistance among all power semiconductor devices. In this research work a double-epilayer PSGT structure using a thin layer of N+ polysilicon as gate material. The total ON-state resistance (RON) of UMOSFET can be reduced by optimizing the epilayer thickness. The optimized structure of Double-Epilayer exhibits a 25.8% reduction in the ON-state resistance at Vgs=5V and improving the switching characteristics by reducing the Reverse transfer capacitance (Cgd) by 7.4%.

Keywords: Miller-capacitance, double-Epilayer;switching characteristics, power trench MOSFET (U-MOSFET), on-state resistance, blocking voltage

Procedia PDF Downloads 55