Search results for: inelastic capacity

Authors: Salwa A. H. Hamdi, Maha A. M. El-Shazly, Mona Fathi Fol, Hanan S. Mossalem, Mosad A. Ghareeb, Amina M. Ibrahim

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One of the most distinctive and defining features of cephalopods squid, cuttlefish, and Octopus is their inking behavior. Their ink, which is blackened by melanin but also contains other constituents, has been used by humans in various ways for millennia. The present study aims to investigate the chemical profiling of the Octopus vulgaris ink extract and to evaluate its antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-schistosomal activities. The present results showed that GC-MS examination of Octopus vulgaris ink comprises 21 compounds. The main detected compounds are (E)-1, 2, 3, 4-Tetra (4-phenylphenyl)-2-butene-1,4-dione, Lipo-3-episapelin A, and 5,10-Dihexyltetrabenzoporphyrin. Results showed that the octopus ink had antioxidant capacity and the capability to mask DPPH free radicals in comparison with ascorbic acid. Octopus Vulgaris ink extract had inhibitory action against three gram-positive bacteria, Streptococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Bacillus subtilis, and three gram-negative bacteria, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeuroginosa. Additionally, the extracted ink revealed antifungal activity against Aspergillus flavus and yeast as Candida albicans. The obtained data indicated the effectiveness of ink extract in pharmaceutical industries as an antioxidant, antimicrobial and antischistosomicidal

Keywords: antimicrobial, antioxidant, ink, octopus vulgaris

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Authors: Ikediobi Lottanna Samuel

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Days are gone when perpetrators of core international crimes hide under the cloak of sovereignty to go with impunity. The principle of international criminal responsibility is a reality. This move to end impunity for violation of human rights has led to the creation of international and hybrid tribunals, a permanent international criminal court, and increased prosecution of human rights violations in domestic courts. This article examines the attempts by the international community to bring perpetrators of heinous crimes to book. The work reveals the inadequacy of the current international mechanism for prosecuting core international crimes in order to end the culture of impunity and entrench the culture of accountability. It also identifies that ad hoc international criminal tribunals and the international criminal court face similar challenges ranging from lack of cooperation by nation states, non-existence of hierarchy of crimes, lack of effective enforcement mechanism, limited prosecutorial capacity and agenda, difficulty in apprehending suspects, difficulty in blending different legal tradition, absence of a coherent sentencing guideline, distant location of courts, selective indictment, etc. These challenges adversely affect the functioning of these courts. It is suggested that a more helpful way to end impunity would be to have a more robust and synergistic relationship between national, regional, and international approaches to prosecuting core international crimes.

Keywords: prosecution, criminal, international, tribunal, justice, ad hoc

Procedia PDF Downloads 216

Authors: Alim Asamatdinov

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Superabsorbent polymer hydrogels can swell to absorb huge volumes of water or aqueous solutions. This property has led to many practical applications of these new materials, particularly in agriculture for improving the water retention of soils and the water supply of plants. This article reviews the methods of polymeric hydrogels, measurements and treatments of their properties, as well as their effects on soil and on plant growth. The thermodynamic approach used to describe the swelling behaviour of polymer networks proves to be quite helpful in modelling the hydrogel efficiency of water-absorbing additives. The paper presents the results of a study of the physical and chemical properties of hydrogels based on of the production of "Nitron" (Polyacrylonitrile) wastes fibre and salts of the 3-rd transition metals and formalin. The developed hydrogels HG-Al, HG-Cr and HG-formalin have been tested for water holding the capacity of sand. Such a conclusion was also confirmed by data from the method of determining the wilting point by vegetative thumbnails. In the entering process using a dose of 0.1% of the swelling polymeric hydrogel in sand with a culture of barley the difference between the wilting point in comparison with the control was negligible. This indicates that the moisture which was contained in the hydrogel is involved in moisture availability for plant growth, to the same extent as that in the capillaries.

Keywords: hydrogel, chemical, polymer, sandy, colloid

Procedia PDF Downloads 143

Authors: Gichun Cha, Byoungjoon Yu, Jihwan Park, Minsoo Park, Junghyun Im, Sehwan Park, Sujung Sin, Seunghee Park

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The goal of this research is to estimate a structural shape change using terrestrial laser scanning. This study proceeds with development of data reduction and shape change estimation algorithm for large-capacity scan data. The point cloud of scan data was converted to voxel and sampled. Technique of shape estimation is studied to detect changes in structure patterns, such as skyscrapers, bridges, and tunnels based on large point cloud data. The point cloud analysis applies the octree data structure to speed up the post-processing process for change detection. The point cloud data is the relative representative value of shape information, and it used as a model for detecting point cloud changes in a data structure. Shape estimation model is to develop a technology that can detect not only normal but also immediate structural changes in the event of disasters such as earthquakes, typhoons, and fires, thereby preventing major accidents caused by aging and disasters. The study will be expected to improve the efficiency of structural health monitoring and maintenance.

Keywords: terrestrial laser scanning, point cloud, shape information model, displacement measurement

Procedia PDF Downloads 235

Authors: Siddeeq Y. Ameen, Mohammed K. Yousif

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Cooperative communication systems are considered to be a promising technology to improve the system capacity, reliability and performances over fading wireless channels. Cooperative relaying system with a single antenna will be able to reach the advantages of multiple antenna communication systems. It is ideally suitable for the distributed communication systems; the relays can cooperate and form virtual MIMO systems. Thus the paper will aim to investigate the possible enhancement of cooperated system using decode and forward protocol. On decode and forward an attempt to cancel or at least reduce the interference instead of increasing the SNR values is achieved. The latter can be achieved via the use group of relays depending on the channel status from source to relay and relay to destination respectively. In the proposed system, the transmission time has been divided into two phases to be used by decode and forward protocol. The first phase has been allocated for the source to transmit its data whereas the relays and destination nodes are in receiving mode. On the other hand, the second phase is allocated for the first and second groups of relay nodes to relay the data to the destination node. Simulations results have shown an improvement in performance is achieved compared to the conventional decode and forward in terms of BER and transmission rate.

Keywords: cooperative systems, decode and forward, interference cancellation, virtual MIMO

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Authors: Héctor Rivera-Gómez, Eva Selene Hernández-Gress, Oscar Montaño-Arango, Jose Ramon Corona-Armenta

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This research studies the joint production, maintenance and subcontracting control policy for an unreliable deteriorating manufacturing system. Production activities are controlled by a derivation of the Hedging Point Policy, and given that the system is subject to deterioration, it reduces progressively its capacity to satisfy product demand. Multiple deterioration effects are considered, reflected mainly in the quality of the parts produced and the reliability of the machine. Subcontracting is available as support to satisfy product demand; also overhaul maintenance can be conducted to reduce the effects of deterioration. The main objective of the research is to determine simultaneously the production, maintenance and subcontracting rate which minimize the total incurred cost. A stochastic dynamic programming model is developed and solved through a simulation-based approach composed of statistical analysis and optimization with the response surface methodology. The obtained results highlight the strong interactions between production, deterioration and quality which justify the development of an integrated model. A numerical example and a sensitivity analysis are presented to validate our results.

Keywords: subcontracting, optimal control, deterioration, simulation, production planning

Procedia PDF Downloads 580

Authors: Zahra Abdolkarimi, Naser Zourikalatehsamad,

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Up to 40 years ago, after recognition of epilepsy, it was generally believed that these attacks occurred randomly and suddenly. However, thanks to the advance of mathematics and engineering, such attacks can be predicted within a few minutes or hours. In this way, various algorithms for long-term prediction of the time and frequency of the first attack are presented. In this paper, by considering the nonlinear nature of brain signals and dynamic recorded brain signals, ANFIS model is presented to predict the brain signals, since according to physiologic structure of the onset of attacks, more complex neural structures can better model the signal during attacks. Contribution of this work is the co-evolution algorithm for optimization of ANFIS network parameters. Our objective is to predict brain signals based on time series obtained from brain signals of the people suffering from epilepsy using ANFIS. Results reveal that compared to other methods, this method has less sensitivity to uncertainties such as presence of noise and interruption in recorded signals of the brain as well as more accuracy. Long-term prediction capacity of the model illustrates the usage of planted systems for warning medication and preventing brain signals.

Keywords: co-evolution algorithms, brain signals, time series, neural networks, ANFIS model, physiologic structure, time prediction, epilepsy suffering, illustrates model

Procedia PDF Downloads 283

Authors: S. Deswal, M. Pal

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The paper aims to compare the performance of vertical and inclined multiple plunging jets and to model and predict their mass transfer capacity by multi-linear regression based approach. The multiple vertical plunging jets have jet impact angle of θ = 90O; whereas, multiple inclined plunging jets have jet impact angle of θ = 600. The results of the study suggests that mass transfer is higher for multiple jets, and inclined multiple plunging jets have up to 1.6 times higher mass transfer than vertical multiple plunging jets under similar conditions. The derived relationship, based on multi-linear regression approach, has successfully predicted the volumetric mass transfer coefficient (KLa) from operational parameters of multiple plunging jets with a correlation coefficient of 0.973, root mean square error of 0.002 and coefficient of determination of 0.946. The results suggests that predicted overall mass transfer coefficient is in good agreement with actual experimental values; thereby suggesting the utility of derived relationship based on multi-linear regression based approach and can be successfully employed in modelling mass transfer by multiple plunging jets.

Keywords: mass transfer, multiple plunging jets, multi-linear regression, earth sciences

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Authors: Natalia Strobel, Jan Kratzer

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In this paper, we test whether different types of research and development (R&D) alliances positively impact the radical innovation performance of firms. We differentiate between the R&D alliances without extern R&D orders and embeddedness in knowledge source network. We test the differences between the domestically diversified R&D alliances and R&D alliances diversified abroad. Moreover, we test how non-price competition influences the impact of domestically diversified R&D alliances, and R&D alliance diversified abroad on radical innovation performance. Our empirical analysis is based on the comprehensive Swiss innovation panel, which allowed us to study 3520 firms between the years between 1996 and 2011 in 3 years intervals. We analyzed the data with a linear estimation with Swamy-Aurora transformation using plm package in R software. Our results show as hypothesized a positive impact of R&D alliances diversity abroad as well as domestically on radical innovation performance. The effect of non-price interaction is in contrast to our hypothesis, not significant. This suggests that diversity of R&D alliances is highly advantageous independent of non-price competition.

Keywords: R&D alliances, partner diversity, knowledge source diversity, non-price competition, absorptive capacity

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Authors: Qasim Kriri, Harsh B. Desai

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Water supply and sanitation in Saudi Arabia is portrayed by difficulties and accomplishments. One of the fundamental difficulties is water shortage. With a specific end goal to beat water shortage, significant ventures have been attempted in sea water desalination, water circulation, sewerage, and wastewater treatment. The motivation behind Statistical Process Control (SPC) is to decide whether the execution of a procedure is keeping up an acceptable quality level [AQL]. SPC is an analytical decision-making method. A fundamental apparatus in the SPC is the Control Charts, which follow the inconstancy in the estimations of the item quality attributes. By utilizing the suitable outline, administration can decide whether changes should be made with a specific end goal to keep the procedure in charge. The two most important quality factors in the distilled water which were taken into consideration were pH (Potential of Hydrogen) and TDS (Total Dissolved Solids). There were three stages at which the quality checks were done. The stages were as follows: (1) Water at the source, (2) water after chemical treatment & (3) water which is sent for packing. The upper specification limit, central limit and lower specification limit are taken as per Saudi water standards. The procedure capacity to accomplish the particulars set for the quality attributes of Berain water Factory chose to be focused by the proposed SPC system.

Keywords: acceptable quality level, statistical quality control, control charts, process charts

Procedia PDF Downloads 186

Authors: Mahmoud Fouad, Mervat Badr, Marwa Ibrahim

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Micro-grid system is presently considered a reliable solution for the expected deficiency in the power required from future power systems. Renewable power sources such as wind, solar and hydro offer high potential of benign power for future micro-grid systems. Micro-Grid (MG) is basically a low voltage (LV) or medium voltage (MV) distribution network which consists of a number of called distributed generators (DG’s); micro-sources such as photovoltaic array, fuel cell, wind turbine etc. energy storage systems and loads; operating as a single controllable system, that could be operated in both grid-connected and islanded mode. The capacity of the DG’s is sufficient to support all; or most, of the load connected to the micro-grid. This paper presents a micro-grid system based on wind and solar power sources and addresses issues related to operation, control, and stability of the system. Using Matlab/Simulink, the system is modeled and simulated to identify the relevant technical issues involved in the operation of a micro-grid system based on renewable power generation units.

Keywords: micro-grid system, photovoltaic, wind turbine, energy storage, distributed generation, modeling

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Authors: Rohan Shinde, Shreya Chugh

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Imagine a world where innovation is natural and not unusual. Imagine a world that works on inner wisdom rather than just information. Children live in such a world which is full of possibilities. If they learn to listen to their own intuition, genius would be common. We all are born with a natural intuitive ability to perceive beyond our senses. This is especially visible in children whose minds are still fresh, less obsessive and more in tune with nature. As we grow older, our modern lifestyle overloads with information and stresses our mind which obscures this innate intuitive capacity. The Art of Living Prajñā Yoga (Intuition Process), a 2-day program introduced for kids and teenagers between 5-18 years of age helps to kindle this intuitive ability and build confidence to act on their gut feeling. This program helps them to tap into the intuitive abilities of the mind, which is demonstrated by them seeing colors, reading text and identifying pictures with eyes closed. To make these faculties blossom and get more established, the mind needs proper nurturing and nourishment which is done in the Intuition Process. A research study has been conducted to measure these abilities manifested in students who have this program on different parameters such as confidence level, clarity of mind, problem solving skills, focus, increase in overall performance etc. The results have been plotted on the graph and conclusions are made on effectiveness of intuition process. Experience of few students with special abilities have also been documented.

Keywords: Abilities, Art of Living, Intuition, Mind

Procedia PDF Downloads 221

Authors: Thomas Seemann, Melanie Seemann

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The work environment has changed considerably due to the COVID pandemic. A growing body of empirical research shows that employees feel increasingly stressed and anxious. They consider themselves more detached from the organization they work for than previously. Organizations need to readjust their leadership practices to cope with this situation and rebuild work motivation and resilience. We propose a leadership tool that focuses on two key dimensions, which we call the "task channel" and the "energy channel." Managing the task channel comprises balancing the challenge [C] of a task and the corresponding skill set [S] of the individual performing the task. Recent research findings shed light on how to balance these two factors and create optimal work conditions in the workplace. Managing the energy channel comprise balancing the workload [WL] of an employee and his/her capacity to work [CW]. This ensures that the mid-term and long-term effectiveness of employees is maintained and energy depletion, fatigue, and burn-out are prevented. Organizations can actively apply strategies to leverage wellsprings and effectively reenergize their workforce. Thinking through and acting upon these factors will provide leaders with the insights they need to maximize their people's performance and, at the same time, establish a more mindful workplace.

Keywords: resilience, motivation, employee engagement, leadership

Procedia PDF Downloads 131

Authors: Sharifah M. Syed Mohsin, Sayid J. Azimi, Abdoullah Namdar

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The present article reports the findings of a study into the behavior of oil palm shell reinforced concrete (OPSRC) beams with the addition of kenaf fibres. The work aim is to examine the potential of using kenaf fibres to improve the strength and ductility of the OPSRC beams and also observe its potential in serving as part of shear reinforcement in the beams. Two different arrangements of the shear links in OPSRC beams with a selection of kenaf fibres (amount of [10kg/m] ^3 and [20kg/m] ^3) content are tested under monotonic loading. In the first arrangement, the kenaf fibres are added to the beam which has full shear reinforcement to study the structural behavior of OPSRC beams with fibres. In the second arrangement, the spacing between the shear links in the OPSRC beams are increased by 50% and experimental work is carried out to study the effect of kenaf fibres without compromising the beams strength and ductility. The results show that the addition of kenaf fibres enhanced the load carrying capacity, ductility and also altered the failure mode of the beams from a brittle shear mode to a flexural ductile one. Furthermore, the study depicts that kenaf fibres are compatible with OPSRC and suggest prospective results.

Keywords: oil palm shell reinforced concrete, kenaf fibres, peak strength, ductility

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Authors: A. Tarantino, F. Lops, G. Disciglio, E. Tarantino

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Apulia region (southern Italy) is excellent for heavy production of apricot (Prunus armeniaca L.). Fruit quality is a combination of physical, chemical and nutritional characteristics. The present experiment was laid in the commercial orchard in Cerignola (Foggia district, Apulia region, 41°15’49’’N; 15°53’59’’E; 126 a.s.l.) during the 2014-2015 season. The experiment consisted of the use of three biostimulant treatments (Hendophyt®, Ergostim® and Radicon®) compared with untreated control on ‘Farbaly’ apricot cultivar, in order to evaluate the vegeto-productive and fruit qualitative attributes. Foliar spray of biostimulants was applied at different times during the growth season (at red ball, fruit setting and fruit development stages). Experimental data showed some specific differences among the biostimulant treatments, which fruit set, growth and productivity were affected. Moderate influences were found regarding the qualitative attributes of fruits. The soluble solid content was positively affected by Hendophyt® treatment. Antioxidant capacity was significantly higher in Hendophyt® and Radicon® treatments respect to the untreated control.

Keywords: Prunus Armeniaca L., biostimulants, fruit set, fruit quality

Procedia PDF Downloads 294

Authors: Ahmad Shah Irshad, Naqibullah Kargar, Wais Samadi

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Building an integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) system is a new and modern technique for solar energy production in Kandahar. Due to its location, Kandahar has abundant sources of solar energy. People use both monocrystalline and polycrystalline silicon solar PV modules for the grid-connected solar PV system, and they don’t know which technology performs better for the BIPV system. This paper analyses the parameters described by IEC61724, “Photovoltaic System Performance Monitoring Guidelines for Measurement, Data Exchange and Analysis,” to evaluate which technology shows better performance for the BIPV system. The monocrystalline silicon BIPV system has a 3.1% higher array yield than the polycrystalline silicon BIPV system. The final yield is 0.2%, somewhat higher for monocrystalline silicon than polycrystalline silicon. Monocrystalline silicon has 0.2% and 4.5% greater yearly yield factor and capacity factors than polycrystalline silicon, respectively. Monocrystalline silicon shows 0.3% better performance than polycrystalline silicon. With 1.7% reduction and 0.4% addition in collection losses and useful energy produced, respectively, monocrystalline silicon solar PV system shows good performance than polycrystalline silicon solar PV system. But system losses are the same for both technologies. The monocrystalline silicon BIPV system injects 0.2% more energy into the grid than the polycrystalline silicon BIPV system.

Keywords: photovoltaic technologies, performance analysis, solar energy, solar irradiance, performance ratio

Procedia PDF Downloads 371

Authors: Minsung Kim, Jinkoo Kim

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In order to reduce or eliminate seismic damage in structures, many researchers have investigated various energy dissipation devices. In this study, the seismic capacity and cost of a slit-viscoelastic seismic retrofit system composed of a steel slit plate and viscoelastic dampers connected in parallel are evaluated. The combination of the two different damping mechanisms is expected to produce enhanced seismic performance of the building. The analysis model of the system is first derived using various link elements in the nonlinear dynamic analysis software Perform 3D, and fragility curves of the structure retrofitted with the dampers are obtained using incremental dynamic analyses. The analysis results show that the displacement of the structure equipped with the hybrid dampers is smaller than that of the structure with slit dampers due to the enhanced self-centering capability of the system. It is also observed that the initial cost of hybrid system required for the seismic retrofit is smaller than that of the structure with viscoelastic dampers. Acknowledgement: This research was financially supported by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy(MOTIE) and Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology(KIAT) through the International Cooperative R&D program(N043100016_Development of low-cost high-performance seismic energy dissipation devices using viscoelastic material).

Keywords: damped cable systems, seismic retrofit, viscous dampers, self-centering

Procedia PDF Downloads 268

Authors: Taufik Rizkiandi, Teuku Yuri M. Zagloel, Andri Dwi Setiawan

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Distribution and growth in the transportation and warehousing business sector decreased by 15,04%. There was a decrease in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contribution level from rank 7 of 4,41% in 2019 to 3,81% in rank 8 in 2020. A decline in the transportation and warehousing business sector contributes to GDP, resulting in oil and gas companies implementing an efficient supply chain strategy to ensure the availability of goods, especially lubricants. Fluctuating demand for lubricants and warehouse service time limits are essential things that are taken into account in determining an efficient route. Add depots points as a solution so that demand for lubricants is fulfilled (not stock out). However, adding a depot will increase operating costs and storage costs. Therefore, it is necessary to optimize the addition of depots using the Capacitated Vehicle Routing Problem with Time Windows (CVRPTW). This research case study was conducted at an oil and gas company that produces lubricants from 2019 to 2021. The study results obtained the optimal route and the addition of a depot with a minimum additional cost. The total cost remains efficient with the addition of a depot when compared to one depot from Jakarta.

Keywords: CVRPTW, optimal route, depot, tabu search algorithm

Procedia PDF Downloads 136

Authors: Hwei Voon Lee, N. Asikin-Mijana, Y. H. Taufiq-Yap, J. C. Juan, N. A. Rahman

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Cracking–Deoxygenation process is one of the important reaction pathways for the production of bio-fuel with desirable n-C17 hydrocarbon chain via removal of oxygen compounds. Calcium-based catalyst has attracted much attention in deoxygenation process due to its relatively high capacity in removing oxygenated compounds in the form of CO₂ and CO under decarboxylation and decarbonylation reaction, respectively. In the present study, deoxygenation of triolein was investigated using Ca(OH)₂ nanocatalyst derived from low cost natural waste shells. The Ca(OH)₂ nanocatalyst was prepared via integration techniques between surfactant treatment (anionic and non-ionic) and wet sonochemical effect. Results showed that sonochemically assisted surfactant treatment has successfully enhanced the physicochemical properties of Ca(OH)₂ nanocatalyst in terms of nanoparticle sizes (∼50 nm), high surface area(∼130 m²g⁻¹), large porosity (∼18.6 nm) and strong basic strength. The presence of superior properties from surfactant treated Ca(OH)₂ nanocatalysts rendered high deoxygenation degree, which is capable of producing high alkane and alkene selectivity in chain length of n-C17(high value of C17/(n-C17+ n-C18)ratio = 0.88). Furthermore, both Ca(OH)₂–EG and Ca(OH)₂–CTAB nanocatalysts showed high reactivity with 47.37% and 44.50%, respectively in total liquid hydrocarbon content of triolein conversion with high H/C and low O/C ratio.

Keywords: clamshell, cracking, decarboxylation-decarbonylation, hydrocarbon

Procedia PDF Downloads 187

Authors: Ghavamaldin Asadian, Aptin Rahnavard, Mariamalsadat Taghavi

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Achillea millefolium L. is one of the most important medicinal plants with antioxidant compounds. The use of compounds derived from plants reduces the incidence of many chronic diseases. The purpose of this investigation is study of total phenolic content and antioxidant activity some of ecotypes yarrow grown in natural habitats in Iran. This experimental study was conducted in 2013 at the Islamic Azad University, Tonekabon Branch. After identifying the natural sites, we have attempted to harvest of aerial part and after drying in lab temperature, essential oil was extracted by steam distillation. In this research for evaluate the antioxidant properties was used of three method, DPPH, Antioxidant capacity ferro revival and phosphomolybdenum, that all mechanism is based on the electron donating. All ecotypes had antioxidant activity and ecotypes grown in Kandovan region were measured with the most total phenolic (89.5 mg GA/g dew) and flavonoid (20.4 µg/g dew) and the lowest in Saveh (71.3 mg GA/g dew, 17.4 µg/g dew). Variation of the antioxidant properties were significant (P≤0.01) in areas and were accounted Kandovan with highest value and the lowest in Save. As a result, yarrow essential oil grown in Kandovan in terms of amount of total phenolic, flavonoid and antioxidant property, it was determined the best natural habitat.

Keywords: achillea millefolium L., antioxidant compounds, DPPH, total phenolic, flavonoid natural habitats

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Authors: Kuldeep Rawat, Michael O'Shea, Maureen McGough

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The paper will discuss a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) funded project to provide cost-effective aviation technologies and research to support counter-poaching operations related to endangered, protected, and/or regulated wildlife. The goal of this project is to provide cost-effective aviation technology and research support to Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) in their counter-poaching efforts. In pursuit of this goal, Elizabeth City State University (ECSU) is assisting the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) in enhancing the Kenya Wildlife Service’s aviation technology and related capacity to meet its counter-poaching mission. Poaching, at its core, is systemic as poachers go to the most extreme lengths to kill high target species such as elephant and rhino. These high target wildlife species live in underdeveloped or impoverished nations, where poachers find fewer barriers to their operations. In Kenya, with fifty-nine (59) parks and reserves, spread over an area of 225,830 square miles (584,897 square kilometers) adequate surveillance on the ground is next to impossible. Cost-effective aviation surveillance technologies, based on a comprehensive needs assessment and operational evaluation, are needed to curb poaching and effectively prevent wildlife trafficking. As one of the premier law enforcement Air Wings in East Africa, KWS plays a crucial role in Kenya, not only in counter-poaching and wildlife conservation efforts, but in aerial surveillance, counterterrorism and national security efforts as well. While the Air Wing has done, a remarkable job conducting aerial patrols with limited resources, additional aircraft and upgraded technology should significantly advance the Air Wing’s ability to achieve its wildlife protection mission. The project includes: (i) Needs Assessment of the KWS Air Wing, to include the identification of resources, current and prospective capacity, operational challenges and priority goals for expansion, (ii) Acquisition of Low-Cost Aviation Technology to meet priority needs, and (iii) Operational Evaluation of technology performance, with a focus on implementation and effectiveness. The Needs Assessment reflects the priorities identified through two site visits to the KWS Air Wing in Nairobi, Kenya, as well as field visits to multiple national parks receiving aerial support and interviewing/surveying KWS Air wing pilots and leadership. Needs Assessment identified some immediate technology needs that includes, GPS with upgrades, including weather application, Night flying capabilities, to include runway lights and night vision technology, Cameras and surveillance equipment, Flight tracking system and/or Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon, Lightweight ballistic-resistant body armor, and medical equipment, to include a customized stretcher and standard medical evacuation equipment. Results of this assessment, along with significant input from the KWS Air Wing, will guide the second phase of this project: technology acquisition. Acquired technology will then be evaluated in the field, with a focus on implementation and effectiveness. Results will ultimately be translated for any rural or tribal law enforcement agencies with comparable aerial surveillance missions and operational environments, and jurisdictional challenges, seeking to implement low-cost aviation technology. Results from Needs Assessment phase, including survey results and our ongoing technology acquisition and baseline operational evaluation will be discussed in the paper.

Keywords: aerial surveillance mission, aviation technology, counter-poaching, wildlife protection

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Authors: Vijayakumar Kunche

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Waste heat recovery from Pre Heater exhaust gases and Clinker cooler vent gases is now common place in Cement Industry. Most common practice is to use Steam Rankine cycle for heat to power conversion. In this process, waste heat from the flue gas is recovered through a Heat Recovery steam generator where steam is generated and fed to a conventional Steam turbine generator. However steam Rankine cycle tends to have lesser efficiency for smaller power plants with less than 5MW capacity and where the steam temperature at the inlet of the turbine is less than 350 deg C. further a steam Rankine cycle needs treated water and maintenance intensive. These problems can be overcome by using Thermodynamic cycle using Cyclopentane vapour in place of steam. This innovative cycle is best suited for Heat recovery in cement plants and results in best possible heat to power conversion efficiency. This paper discusses about Heat Recovery Power generation using innovative thermal cycle which uses Cyclopentane vapour in place of water- steam. And how this technology has been adopted for a Clinker cooler hot gas from mid-tap.

Keywords: clinker cooler, energy efficiency, organic rankine cycle, waste heat recovery

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Authors: Stanley Yap, Mahadevan Supramaniam, Chong Wei Ying, Fatemeh Kimiyaghalam

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Purpose: The paper shows the framework of financial planning in a different paradigm. It highlights the results from a focus group on retirement planning in the aspect of financial literacy and wealth accumulation in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach: A focus group consisted of thirty individuals and divided into six different clusters amongst 25 to 55 years old. The selection of focus group members is pertaining to retirement planning behavior and saving profile from the different level of educations. Findings: Our results show, firstly, the focus group reflects individual capacity on saving attitude, financial literacy and awareness towards financial products. Secondly, availability, accessibility and affordability which are the significant factors that influence saving attitude, financial literacy and awareness on personal retirement planning behavior. Practical implications: The participants express the concerns of retirement planning during their golden years and the current financial products in the Malaysian financial market. Originality/value: This study is a different approach that recognizes the needs of the consumers in the context of retirement planning and wealth accumulation. Therefore, customers should obtain financial services and products from financial providers to achieve financial independence.

Keywords: retirement planning, wealth accumulation, financial literacy, focus group, saving attitude, availability, accessibility, affordability

Procedia PDF Downloads 357

Authors: Samir Roy

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This paper investigates the relationship among knowledge, technology, and empowerment. In Physics power is defined as rate of doing work. In everyday use, the meaning of the word power is related to the capacity to bring change of value in the world. It appears that the popular aphorism “Knowledge is power” should be revisited in the context of contemporary states of affairs. For instance, classical mechanics is a system of knowledge, so also thermodynamics. But neither of them, per se, is sufficient to produce automobilin es. Boolean algebra, the logical foundation of digital electronic computers, was introduced by George Boole in 1847. But that knowledge was practically useless for almost one hundred years until digital electronics was developed in early twentieth century, which eventually led to invention of digital electronic computers. Empowerment of women is a burning issue in the arena of social justice. However, if we carefully analyze the functional elements of women’s empowerment, we find them to be highly technology driven as well as technology dependent in real life. On the other hand, technology has empowered modern states to maintain social order and promote democracy in an effective manner. This paper includes a few case studies to establish the close correspondence between knowledge, especially scientific knowledge, technology, and empowerment. It appears that in contemporary scenario, “Technology is power” is a more appropriate statement than the traditional aphorism “Knowledge is power”.

Keywords: knowledge, science, technology, empowerment, change, social justice

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Authors: Hien T. T. Ho, Tsunemi Watanabe

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The regulatory and market pressures on the restriction of nonylphenol and its ethoxylates in textile articles have confronted the textile manufacturers, particularly those in developing countries. This study aimed to examine the tentative behavior of the textile manufacturers in Vietnam from the perspectives of attitude and the perceptions of technical and organizational adaptabilities, risks, benefits, and barriers. Personal interviews were conducted with five technical specialists from four textile firms and one chemical supplier. The environmental regulatory and market situations regarding the chemical use in Vietnam were also described. The findings revealed two main opposing trends of chemical substitution depending on the market orientation of firms that governed the patterns of risk and benefit perception. The indirect influence of perceived adaptabilities on firm tentative behavior through perceived risks was elucidated, which initiated a conceptual model of firm’s behavior combining the organizational-based and the rational-based relationships. The intermediary role of non-governmental textile and garment industrial/ trade associations is highlighted to strengthen private firm’s informative capacity.

Keywords: firm behavior, institutional analysis, organizational adaptation, technical adaptation

Procedia PDF Downloads 164

Authors: Alexandru Gridan, Georgeta Ionescu, Ovidiu Ionescu, Ramon Jurj, George Sirbu, Mihai Fedorca

Abstract:

The Brown Bear population size in Romania is approximately 7300-7600 individuals, which is projected to be 3000 individuals over the ecological carrying capacity. The Habitats Directive imposed certain protection rules on European Union (EU) Member States with Brown Bear populations. These however allow countries like Sweden, Croatia, Slovakia, Estonia to hunting as management tool, harvesting up to 10% of the surplus bear population annually. From the point Romania joined the EU to 2016, active conservation management has contributed to maintaining the highest and most genetically diverse Brown Bear population in Europe. Importantly, there has been good coexistence between people and bears and low levels of human-bear conflict. After social pressure and campaigning by some non-governmental organisations citing issues over monitoring, the environment minister decided in September 2016 to stop the use of hunting as a management tool for bears. Against this background, this paper provides a set of recommendations to resolve the current conflict in Romania. These include the need for collaborative decision-making to reduce conflicts between stakeholders and mechanisms to reduce current human-bear conflicts, which have increased by 50 percent in the past year.

Keywords: bear, bear population, bear management, wildlife conflict

Procedia PDF Downloads 182

Authors: Chargui Abderrahman, Nehdi Afef , BelaïD Amine , Djerbi Nadir, Tauc Michel, Hofman Paul, Mograbi Baharia, El May MichèLe

Abstract:

K63-linked ubiquitination — i.e. conjugation of a chain of ubiquitins (Ub) linked through lys63 — has emerged as a key mechanism regulating signalling transduction pathways. Although critical, very little information is currently available about how subversion of K63 ubiquitination might contribute to cancers and inflammatory diseases. The present study provides the first evidence that Cadmium (Cd), a widespread environmental carcinogen and toxicant, is a powerful activator of K63 ubiquitination. Indeed, Cd induces accumulation of K63 polyUb proteins. Importantly, Cd-induced ubiquitination does not stem on oxidative damage or proteasome impairment. Rather, we demonstrate that Cd not only activates K63 ubiquitination but also amplifies their accumulation by overloading the capacity of autophagy pathway. At molecular level, Cd-induced ubiquitination is correlated with stabilization of HIF-1 and the activation of NF-B, two transcription factors. Strikingly, prolonged cell exposure to high Cd concentrations induces an exaggerated K63 ubiquitination that fosters aggresome formation, thus precluding these proteins from interacting with their downstream nuclear targets. We therefore propose that the aberrant activation of K63 ubiquitination by the carcinogen Cadmium could promote cell proliferation and inflammation at low levels while high levels committed cell to death.

Keywords: cadmium, environmental exposure, Lysine-63-ubiquitination, kidney, apoptosis, proliferation, autophagy

Procedia PDF Downloads 210

Authors: Saima Nasreen, Uzaira Rafique, Shery Ehrman, Muhammad Aqeel Ashraf

Abstract:

The release of heavy metals into the environment is a potential threat to water and soil quality as well as to plant, animal and human health. In current research work, organically functionalized mesoporous silicates (MSU-H) were prepared by the co-condensation between sodium silicate and oregano alkoxysilanes in the presence of the nonionic surfactant triblock copolymer P104. The surfactant was used as a template for improving the porosity of the hybrid gels. Synthesized materials were characterized by TEM, FT-IR, SEM/EDX, TG, surface area analysis. The surface morphology and textural properties of such materials varied with various kinds of groups in the channels. In this study, removal of some heavy metals ions from aqueous solution by adsorption process was investigated. Batch adsorption studies show that the adsorption capacity of metal ions on the functionalized silicates is more than that on pure MSU-H. Data shows adsorption on synthesized materials is a time efficient process, suggesting adsorption on external surface as well as the mesoporous process. Adsorption models of Langmuir, Freundlich, and Temkin depicted equal goodness for all adsorbents, whereas pseudo 2nd order kinetics is in best agreement with experimental data.

Keywords: heavy metals, mesoporous silica, hybrid, adsorption, freundlich, langmuir, temkin

Procedia PDF Downloads 269

Authors: A. Latif Karimi, M. K. Shrimali

Abstract:

Seismic design is a critical stage in the process of design and construction of a building. It includes strategies for designing earthquake-resistant buildings to ensure health, safety, and security of the building occupants and assets. Hence, it becomes very important to understand the behavior of structural members precisely, for construction of buildings that can yield a better response to seismic forces. This paper investigates the behavior of a typical structure when subjected to ground motion. The corresponding mode shapes and modal frequencies are studied to interpret the response of an actual structure using different fabricated models and 3D visual models. In this study, three different structural configurations are subjected to horizontal ground motion, and the effect of “stiffness eccentricity” and placement of infill walls are checked to determine how each parameter contributes in a building’s response to dynamic forces. The deformation data from lab experiments and the analysis on SAP2000 software are reviewed to obtain the results. This study revealed that seismic response in a building can be improved by introducing higher deformation capacity in the building. Also, proper design of infill walls and maintaining a symmetrical configuration in a building are the key factors in building stability during the earthquake.

Keywords: eccentricity, seismic response, mode shape, building configuration, building dynamics

Procedia PDF Downloads 200

Authors: Camilo Perez Lee, Mark Lefsrud, Edris Madadian, Yves Roy

Abstract:

Biomass availability is one of the most important aspects to consider when determining the proper location of potential bioenergy plants. Since this aspect has a direct impact on biomass transportation and storage, biomass availability greatly influences the operational cost. Biomass availability is more than the quantity available on a specific region; other elements such as biomass accessibility and potential play an important role. Accessibility establishes if the biomass could be extracted and conveyed easily considering factors such as biomass availability, infrastructure condition and other operational issues. On the other hand, biomass potential is defined as the capacity of a specific region to scale the usage of biomass as an energy source, move from another energy source or to switch the type of biomass to increase their biomass availability in the future. This paper defines methodologies and parameters in order to determine the biomass availability within the administrative regions of the province of Quebec; firstly by defining the forestry, agricultural, municipal solid waste and energy crop biomass availability per administrative region, next its infrastructure accessibility and lastly defining the region potential. Thus, these data are processed to create a biomass availability matrix allowing to define the overall biomass availability per region and to determine the most optional candidates for bioenergy plant location.

Keywords: biomass, availability, bioenergy, accessibility, biomass potential

Procedia PDF Downloads 319