Search results for: north coast road

Authors: Ruvaitha Banu, Amaladhithyan Krishnamoorthy

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IoT networks today solve various consumer problems, from home automation systems to aiding in driving autonomous vehicles with the exploration of multiple devices. For example, in an autonomous vehicle environment, multiple sensors are available on roads to monitor weather and road conditions and interact with each other to aid the vehicle in reaching its destination safely and timely. IoT systems are predominantly dependent on the cloud environment for data storage, and computing needs that result in latency problems. With the advent of Fog networks, some of this storage and computing is pushed to the edge/fog nodes, saving the network bandwidth and reducing the latency proportionally. Managing the data stored in these fog nodes becomes crucial as it might also store sensitive information required for a certain application. Data management in fog nodes is strenuous because Fog networks are dynamic in terms of their availability and hardware capability. It becomes more challenging when the nodes in the network also live a short span, detaching and joining frequently. When an end-user or Fog Node wants to access, read, or write data stored in another Fog Node, then a new protocol becomes necessary to access/manage the data stored in the fog devices as a conventional static way of managing the data doesn’t work in Fog Networks. The proposed solution discusses a protocol that acts by defining sensitivity levels for the data being written and read. Additionally, a distinct data distribution and replication model among the Fog nodes is established to decentralize the access mechanism. In this paper, the proposed model implements stewardship towards the data stored in the Fog node using the application of Reinforcement Learning so that access to the data is determined dynamically based on the requests.

Keywords: IoT, fog networks, data stewardship, dynamic access policy

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Authors: Emir Borovac, Sedat İnan

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The Silurian Tannezuft Formation within the Ghadames Basin of Northwestern Libya, like other Silurian shales in North Africa and the Middle East, represents a significant prospect for unconventional hydrocarbon exploration. Unlike the more popular and extensively studied Sirt Basin, the Ghadames Basin remains underexplored, presenting untapped potential that warrants further investigation. This study focuses on the thermal maturity and hydrocarbon generation histories of the Tannezuft shales, utilizing calibrated basin modeling approaches. The Tannezuft shales are organic-rich and primarily contain Type II kerogen, especially in the basal layer, which contains up to 10 wt. % TOC, leading to its designation as ‘hot shale’. The research integrates geological, geochemical, and basin modeling data to elucidate the unconventional hydrocarbon potential of this formation, which is crucial given the global demand for energy and the need for new resources. By employing PetroMod software from Schlumberger, calibrated modeling results simulate hydrocarbon generation and migration within the Tannezuft shales. The findings suggest dual-phase hydrocarbon generation from the Lower Silurian Tannezuft source rock, related to deep burial prior to Hercynian orogeny and subsequent Alpine orogeny events. The Ghadames Basin's tectonic history, including major Hercynian and Alpine orogenies, has significantly influenced the generation, migration, and preservation of hydrocarbons, making the Ghadames Basin a promising area for further exploration.

Keywords: tanezzuft formation, ghadames basin, silurian hot shale, unconventional hydrocarbon

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Authors: Vedansh More, Lalatendu Bal, Ronak Panchal, Atharva Kulkarni

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The project aims at developing a cost-effective test bench capable of testing and validating the complete powertrain package of an electric vehicle. Emrax 228 high voltage synchronous motor was selected as the prime mover for study. A tandem type dynamometer comprising of two loading methods; inertial, using standard inertia rollers and absorptive, using a separately excited DC generator with resistive coils was developed. The absorptive loading of the prime mover was achieved by implementing a converter circuit through which duty of the input field voltage level was controlled. This control was efficacious in changing the magnetic flux and hence the generated voltage which was ultimately dropped across resistive coils assembled in a load bank with all parallel configuration. The prime mover and loading elements were connected via a chain drive with a 2:1 reduction ratio which allows flexibility in placement of components and a relaxed rating of the DC generator. The development will aid in determination of essential characteristics like torque-RPM, power-RPM, torque factor, RPM factor, heat loads of devices and battery pack state of charge efficiency but also provides a significant financial advantage over existing versions of dynamometers with its cost-effective solution.

Keywords: absorptive load, chain drive, chordal action, DC generator, dynamometer, electric vehicle, inertia rollers, load bank, powertrain, pulse width modulation, reduction ratio, road load, testbench

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Authors: Bongs Lainjo

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Educational institutions and authorities that are mandated to run education systems in various countries need to implement a curriculum that considers the possibility and existence of elementary school dropouts. This research focuses on elementary school dropout rates and the ability to replicate various predictive models carried out globally on selected Elementary Schools. The study was carried out by comparing the classical case studies in Africa, North America, South America, Asia and Europe. Some of the reasons put forward for children dropping out include the notion of being successful in life without necessarily going through the education process. Such mentality is coupled with a tough curriculum that does not take care of all students. The system has completely led to poor school attendance - truancy which continuously leads to dropouts. In this study, the focus is on developing a model that can systematically be implemented by school administrations to prevent possible dropout scenarios. At the elementary level, especially the lower grades, a child's perception of education can be easily changed so that they focus on the better future that their parents desire. To deal effectively with the elementary school dropout problem, strategies that are put in place need to be studied and predictive models are installed in every educational system with a view to helping prevent an imminent school dropout just before it happens. In a competency-based curriculum that most advanced nations are trying to implement, the education systems have wholesome ideas of learning that reduce the rate of dropout.

Keywords: elementary school, predictive models, machine learning, risk factors, data mining, classifiers, dropout rates, education system, competency-based curriculum

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Authors: Piotr Dukalski, Bartlomiej Bedkowski, Tomasz Jarek, Tomasz Wolnik

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The article is concerned with the design of an electric in wheel hub motor installed in an electric car with two-wheel drive. It presents the construction of the motor on the 3D cross-section model. Work simulation of the motor (applicated to Fiat Panda car) and selected driving parameters such as driving on the road with a slope of 20%, driving at maximum speed, maximum acceleration of the car from 0 to 100 km/h are considered by the authors in the article. The demand for the drive power taking into account the resistance to movement was determined for selected driving conditions. The parameters of the motor operation and the power losses in its individual elements, calculated using the FEM 2D method, are presented for the selected car driving parameters. The calculated power losses are used in 3D models for thermal calculations using the CFD method. Detailed construction of thermal models with materials data, boundary conditions and losses calculated using the FEM 2D method are presented in the article. The article presents and describes calculated temperature distributions in individual motor components such as winding, permanent magnets, magnetic core, body, cooling system components. Generated losses in individual motor components and their impact on the limitation of its operating parameters are described by authors. Attention is paid to the losses generated in permanent magnets, which are a source of heat as the removal of which from inside the motor is difficult. Presented results of calculations show how individual motor power losses, generated in different load conditions while driving, affect its thermal state.

Keywords: electric car, electric drive, electric motor, thermal calculations, wheel hub motor

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Authors: Ana Gabriela Diaz, Luis Fermín Córdova, Jr., Roberto Lamazares

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The island of Cuba, the largest of the Greater Antilles, is located in the tropical North Atlantic. It is annually affected by numerous weather events, which have caused severe damage to our coastal areas. In the same way that many other coastlines around the world, the beautiful beaches of the Hicacos Peninsula also suffer from erosion. This leads to a structural regression of the coastline. If measures are not taken, the hotels will be exposed to the advance of the sea, and it will be a serious problem for the economy. With the aim of studying the intensity of this type of activity, specialists of group of coastal and marine engineering from CIH, in the framework of the research conducted within the project MEGACOSTAS 2, provide their research to simulate extreme events and assess their impact in coastal areas, mainly regarding the definition of flood volumes and morphodynamic changes in sandy beaches. The main objective of this work is the evaluation of the process of Varadero beach erosion (the coastal sector has an important impact in the country's economy) on the Hicacos Peninsula for different paths of hurricanes. The mathematical model XBeach, which was integrated into the Coastal engineering system introduced by the project of MEGACOSTA 2 to determine the area and the more critical profiles for the path of hurricanes under study, was applied. The results of this project have shown that Center area is the greatest dynamic area in the simulation of the three paths of hurricanes under study, showing high erosion volumes and the greatest average length of regression of the coastline, from 15- 22 m.

Keywords: beach, erosion, mathematical model, coastal areas

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Authors: Li Xu, Huanbao Jiang, Zhenfei Huang, Lailai Zhang

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In recent years, as global warming, the sea-ice extent of North Arctic undergoes an evident decrease and Arctic channel has attracted the attention of shipping industry. Ice crystals existing in the seawater of Arctic channel which enter the seawater system of the ship with the seawater were found blocking the seawater pipe. The appearance of cooler paralysis, auxiliary machine error and even ship power system paralysis may be happened if seriously. In order to reduce the effect of high temperature in auxiliary equipment, seawater system will use external ice-water to participate in the cooling cycle and achieve the state of its flow. The distribution of ice crystals in seawater pipe can be achieved. As the ice slurry system is solid liquid two-phase system, the flow process of ice-water mixture is very complex and diverse. In this paper, the flow process in seawater pipe of ice slurry is simulated with fluid dynamics simulation software based on k-ε turbulence model. As the ice packing fraction is a key factor effecting the distribution of ice crystals, the influence of ice packing fraction on the flowing process of ice slurry is analyzed. In this work, the simulation results show that as the ice packing fraction is relatively large, the distribution of ice crystals is uneven in the flowing process of the seawater which has such disadvantage as increase the possibility of blocking, that will provide scientific forecasting methods for the forming of ice block in seawater piping system. It has important significance for the reliability of the operating of polar ships in the future.

Keywords: ice slurry, seawater pipe, ice packing fraction, numerical simulation

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Authors: Rajesh Chakraborty, Dibyendu Das, Rabindra Nath Barman, Uttam Kumar Mandal

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In the present study, the objective is to find out the most effective zone causing soil erosion in the Gumati river basin located in the state of Tripura, a north eastern state of India using analytical hierarchy process (AHP) and multi-objective optimization on the basis of ratio analysis (MOORA).The watershed is segmented into 20 zones based on Area. The watershed is considered by pointing the maximum elevation from sea lever from Google earth. The soil erosion is determined using the universal soil loss equation. The different independent variables of soil loss equation bear different weightage for different soil zones. And therefore, to find the weightage factor for all the variables of soil loss equation like rainfall runoff erosivity index, soil erodibility factor etc, analytical hierarchy process (AHP) is used. And thereafter, multi-objective optimization on the basis of ratio analysis (MOORA) approach is used to select the most effective zone causing soil erosion. The MCDM technique concludes that the maximum soil erosion is occurring in the zone 14.

Keywords: soil erosion, analytic hierarchy process (AHP), multi criteria decision making (MCDM), universal soil loss equation (USLE), multi-objective optimization on the basis of ratio analysis (MOORA)

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Authors: Fengmei Yao, Pengcheng Qin, Jiahua Zhang, Min Liu

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Global warming is expected to reduce the risk of low temperature stress in rice grown in temperate regions, but this impact has not been well verified by empirical studies directly on chilling injury in rice. In this study, a case study in Northeast China was presented to investigate whether the frequencies of chilling injury declined as a result of climate change, in comprehensive consideration of the potential effects from autonomous adaptation of rice production in response to climate change, such as shifts in cultivation timing and rice cultivars. It was found that frequency of total chilling injury (either delayed-growth type or sterile-type in a year) decreased but only to a limit extent in the context of climate change, mainly owing to a pronounced decrease in frequency of the delayed-growth chilling injury, while there was no overwhelming decreasing tendency for frequency of the sterile-type chilling injury, rather, it even increased considerably for some regions. If changes in cultivars had not occurred, risks of chilling injury of both types would have been much lower, specifically for the sterile-type chilling injury for avoiding deterioration in chilling sensitivity of rice cultivars. In addition, earlier planting helped lower the risk of chilling injury but still can not overweight the effects of introduction of new cultivars. It was concluded that risks of chilling injury in rice would not necessarily decrease as a result of climate change, considering the accompanying adaptation process may increase the chilling sensitivity of rice production system in a warmer climate conditions, and thus precautions should still be taken.

Keywords: chilling injury, rice, CERES-rice model, climate warming, North east China

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Authors: Zair Nadje, Attoui Badra, Miloudi Abdelmonem

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This study aims to assess sensitivity to nitrate pollution and monitor the temporal evolution of nitrate contents in groundwater using statistical models and map their spatial distribution. The nitrate levels observed in the waters of the town of El-Oued differ from one aquifer to another. Indeed, the waters of the Quaternary aquifer are the richest in nitrates, with average annual contents varying from 6 mg/l to 85 mg/l, for an average of 37 mg/l. These levels are higher than the WHO standard (50 mg/l) for drinking water. At the water level of the Terminal Complex (CT) aquifer, the annual average nitrate levels vary from 14 mg/l to 37 mg/l, with an average of 18 mg/l. In the Terminal Complex, excessive nitrate levels are observed in the central localities of the study area. The spatial distribution of nitrates in the waters of the Quaternary aquifer shows that the majority of the catchment points of this aquifer are subject to nitrate pollution. This study shows that in the waters of the Terminal Complex aquifer, nitrate pollution evolves in two major areas. The first focus is South-North, following the direction of underground flow. The second is West-East, progressing towards the East zone. The temporal distribution of nitrate contents in the water of the Terminal Complex aquifer in the city of El-Oued showed that for decades, nitrate contents have suffered a decline after an increase. This evolution of nitrate levels is linked to demographic growth and the rapid urbanization of the city of El-Oued.

Keywords: anthropogenic activities, groundwater, nitrates, pollution, arid zones city of El-Oued, Algeria

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Authors: Muhammad Sohail Sajid, Muhammad Abdullah Malik, Muhammad Saqib, Faiz Ahmad Raza, Waseem Akram

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Aedes (Ae.) aegypti, the vector of pathogens of one health significance, has gained currency over the last decade. The present study reports the prevalence of A. aegypti larvae in indoor and outdoor niches from the three districts of different agro-geo-climatic zones of Punjab, including Chakwal (north), Faisalabad (central), and Dera Ghazi Khan (south). Mosquito larvae were collected, preserved, and transferred for identification. The relevant data were collected on a predesigned questionnaire. Stegomyia indices, including House Index (HI), Breteau Index (BI), and Container Index (CI), were calculated. The association of different breeding containers with the prevalence of Ae. aegypti larvae were estimated through Chi-square analysis. The highest Stegomyia indices were calculated in Chakwal (HI = 46.61%, BI = 91.67%, and CI = 15.28%) as compared to Faisalabad (HI = 34.11%, BI = 68.75% and, CI = 13.04%) and DG Khan (HI = 28.39%, BI = 68.23% and, CI = 11.29%), respectively. Irrespective of the geographical area, earthen jars, water tanks, and tree holes were found to be significantly associated (p < 0.05) with the abundance of Ae. aegypti larvae. However, tires and plastic bottles in Faisalabad and DG Khan while flower tubs and plastic buckets in Faisalabad and Chakwal were found to be significantly associated (p < 0.05) with the larval abundance. The results are a maiden attempt to correlate the magnitude of Ae. aegypti larvae in various microclimatic niches of Punjab, Pakistan, which might help in policy-making for preventive management of the menace.

Keywords: Aedes aegypti, ecology, breeding habitats, Stegomyia indices, breeding containers

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Authors: Salizar Mohamed Ludin, Mohd Khairul Hasyimi Firdaus, Paul Arbon

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Purpose: This paper aims to develop Malaysian Government and community-level critical thinking, planning and action for improving community disaster resilience by reporting Phase 1, Part 1 of a larger community disaster resilience measurement study about adapting the Torrens Resilience Institute Australian Community Disaster Resilience Scorecard to the Malaysian context. Methodology: Pparticipatory action research encouraged key people involved in managing the six most affected areas in the 2014 flooding of Kelantan in Malaysia’s north-east to participate in discussions about adapting and self-testing the Australian Community Disaster Resilience Scorecard to measure and improve their communities’ disaster resilience. Findings: Communities need to strengthen their disaster resilience through better communication, cross-community cooperation, maximizing opportunities to compare their plans, actions and reactions with those reported in research publications, and aligning their community disaster management with reported best practice internationally while acknowledging the need to adapt such practice to local contexts. Research implications: There is a need for a Malaysia-wide, simple-to-use, standardized disaster resilience scorecard to improve the quality, quantity and capability of healthcare and emergency services’ preparedness, and to facilitate urgent reallocation of aid. Value: This study is the first of its kind in Malaysia. The resulting community disaster resilience guideline based on participants’ feedback about the Kelantan floods and scorecard self-testing has the potential for further adaptation to suit contexts across Malaysia, as well as demonstrating how the scorecard can be adapted for international use.

Keywords: community disaster resilience, CDR Scorecard, participatory action research, flooding, Malaysia

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Authors: Hira Jabbar

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Education is vital for inclusive growth of an economy and a critical contributor for investment in human capital. Like other developing countries, Pakistan is facing enormous challenges regarding the provision of public facilities, improper infrastructure planning, accelerating rate of population and poor accessibility. The influence of the rapid advancement and innovations in GIS and RS techniques have proved to be a useful tool for better planning and decision making to encounter these challenges. Therefore present study incorporates GIS and RS techniques to investigate the spatial distribution of school facilities, identifies settlements with served and unserved population, finds potential areas for new schools based on population and develops an accessibility index to evaluate the higher accessibility for schools. For this purpose high-resolution worldview imagery was used to develop road network, settlements and school facilities and to generate school accessibility for each level. Landsat 8 imagery was utilized to extract built-up area by applying pre and post-processing models and Landscan 2015 was used to analyze population statistics. Service area analysis was performed using network analyst extension in ArcGIS 10.3v and results were evaluated for served and underserved areas and population. An accessibility tool was used to evaluate a set of potential destinations to determine which is the most accessible with the given population distribution. Findings of the study may contribute to facilitating the town planners and education authorities for understanding the existing patterns of school facilities. It is concluded that GIS and remote sensing can be effectively used in urban transport and facility planning.

Keywords: accessibility, geographic information system, landscan, worldview

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Authors: Abdul Rahmat

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Community-based education in the economic empowerment of the family is an attempt to accelerate human development index (HDI) Dumbo Kingdom District of Gorontalo economics (purchasing power) program developed in this activity is the manufacture of functional skills shredded fish, fish balls, fish nuggets, chips anchovies, and corn sticks fish. The target audience of this activity is fishing se mothers subdistrict Dumbo Kingdom include Talumolo Village, Village Botu, Kampung Bugis Village, Village North and Sub Leato South Leato that each village is represented by 20 participants so totaling 100 participants. Time activities beginning in October s/d November 2014 held once a week on every Saturday at 9.00 s/d 13:00/14:00. From the results of the learning process of testing the skills of functional skills of making shredded fish, fish balls, fish nuggets, chips anchovies, fish and corn sticks residents have additional knowledge and experience are: 1) Order the concept include: nutrient content, processing food with fish raw materials , variations in taste, packaging, pricing and marketing sales. 2) Products made: in accordance with the wishes of the residents learned that estimated Eligible selling, product packaging logo creation, preparation and realization of the establishment of Business Study Group (KBU) and pioneered the marketing network with restaurant, store / shop staple food vendors that are around CLC.

Keywords: community development, functional skills, gender, HDI

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Authors: Samir Chekchaki, ArifaBeddiar

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Nowadays, more and more species are introduced outside their natural range. If most of them remain difficult, some may adopt a much more dynamic behavior. Indeed, we have witnessed in recent decades, the development of high forests of Acacia mearnsii in El Kala National Park. Introduced indefinitely, this leguminous intended to make money (nitrogen supply for industrial plantations of Eucalyptus), became one of the most invasive and more costly in terms of forest management. It has crossed all barriers: it has acclimatized, naturalized and then expanded through diverse landscapes; entry into competition with native species such as cork oak and altered ecosystem functioning. Therefore, it is interesting to analyze this new threat by relying on plants as bio-indicator for assessing biodiversity at different scales. We have identified the species present in several plots distributed in a range of vegetation types subjected to different degrees of disturbance by using the braun-blanquet method. Fifty-six species have been recorded. They are distributed in 48 genera and 29 families. The analysis of the relative frequency of species correlated with relative abundance clearly shows that the Acacia mearnsii feels marginalized. The ecological analysis of this biological invasion shows that disruption of either natural or anthropogenic origin (fire, prolonged drought, cut) represent the factors that exacerbate invasion by opening invasion windows. The lifting of seeds of Acacia mearnsii lasting physical dormancy (and variable) is ensured by the thermal shock in relation to its heliophilous character.

Keywords: Acacia mearnsii De Wild, El Kala National park, fire, invasive, vegetation

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Authors: Néstor Iván Rojas, Wilson Medina Sierra

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Managing spatial information is described through a Geographic Information System (GIS), for some neighborhoods in the city of Tunja, in relation to the structural typology of the buildings. The use of GIS provides tools that facilitate the capture, processing, analysis and dissemination of cartographic information, product quality evaluation of the classification of buildings. Allows the development of a method that unifies and standardizes processes information. The project aims to generate a geographic database that is useful to the entities responsible for planning and disaster prevention and care for vulnerable populations, also seeks to be a basis for seismic vulnerability studies that can contribute in a study of urban seismic microzonation. The methodology consists in capturing the plat including road naming, neighborhoods, blocks and buildings, to which were added as attributes, the product of the evaluation of each of the housing data such as the number of inhabitants and classification, year of construction, the predominant structural systems, the type of mezzanine board and state of favorability, the presence of geo-technical problems, the type of cover, the use of each building, damage to structural and non-structural elements . The above data are tabulated in a spreadsheet that includes cadastral number, through which are systematically included in the respective building that also has that attribute. Geo-referenced data base is obtained, from which graphical outputs are generated, producing thematic maps for each evaluated data, which clearly show the spatial distribution of the information obtained. Using GIS offers important advantages for spatial information management and facilitates consultation and update. Usefulness of the project is recognized as a basis for studies on issues of planning and prevention.

Keywords: microzonation, buildings, geo-processing, cadastral number

Procedia PDF Downloads 333

Authors: Abiodun M. Adeola, Hannes Rautenbach, Gbenga J. Abiodun, Thabo E. Makgoale, Joel O. Botai, Omolola M. Adisa, Christina M. Botai

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There was a surge in malaria morbidity as well as mortality in 2016/2017 malaria season in malaria-endemic regions of South Africa. Rainfall is a major climatic driver of malaria transmission and has potential use for predicting malaria. Annual and seasonal trends and cross-correlation analyses were performed on time series of monthly total rainfall (derived from interpolated weather station data) and monthly malaria cases in five districts of Limpopo Province for the period of 1998 to 2017. The time series analysis indicated that an average of 629.5mm of rainfall was received over the period of study. The rainfall has an annual variation of about 0.46%. Rainfall amount varies among the five districts, with the north-eastern part receiving more rainfall. Spearman’s correlation analysis indicated that total monthly rainfall with one to two months lagged effect is significant in malaria transmission in all the five districts. The strongest correlation is noticed in Mopani (r=0.54; p-value = < 0.001), Vhembe (r=0.53; p-value = < 0.001), Waterberg (r=0.40; p-value = < 0.001), Capricorn (r=0.37; p-value = < 0.001) and lowest in Sekhukhune (r=0.36; p-value = < 0.001). More particularly, malaria morbidity showed a strong relationship with an episode of rainfall above 5-year running means of rainfall of 400 mm. Both annual and seasonal analyses showed that the effect of rainfall on malaria varied across the districts and it is seasonally dependent. Adequate understanding of climatic variables dynamics annually and seasonally is imperative in seeking answers to malaria morbidity among other factors, particularly in the wake of the sudden spike of the disease in the province.

Keywords: correlation, malaria, rainfall, seasonal, trends

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Authors: Sarah Al-Lumai, Fatima Al-Attar, Nour Jamal, Badria Al-Dabbous, Manal Abdulla

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Today, many commonly used Industrial Engineering tools and techniques are being used in hospitals around the world for the goal of producing a more efficient and effective healthcare system. A common quality improvement methodology known as Lean Six-Sigma has been successful in manufacturing industries and recently in healthcare. The objective of our project is to use the Lean Six-Sigma methodology to reduce waiting time in the Emergency Department (ED), in a local private hospital. Furthermore, a comprehensive literature review was conducted to evaluate the success of Lean Six-Sigma in the ED. According to the study conducted by Ibn Sina Hospital, in Morocco, the most common problem that patients complain about is waiting time. To ensure patient satisfaction many hospitals such as North Shore University Hospital were able to reduce waiting time up to 37% by using Lean Six-Sigma. Other hospitals, such as John Hopkins’s medical center used Lean Six-Sigma successfully to enhance the overall patient flow that ultimately decreased waiting time. Furthermore, it was found that capacity constraints, such as staff shortages and lack of beds were one of the main reasons behind long waiting time. With the use of Lean Six-Sigma and bed management, hospitals like Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital were able to reduce patient delays. Moreover, in order to successfully implement Lean Six-Sigma in our project, two common methodologies were considered, DMAIC and DMADV. After the assessment of both methodologies, it was found that DMAIC was a more suitable approach to our project because it is more concerned with improving an already existing process. With many of its successes, Lean Six-Sigma has its limitation especially in healthcare; but limitations can be minimized if properly approached.

Keywords: lean six sigma, DMAIC, hospital, methodology

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Authors: Saint C. Nguedjip

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This paper is an analytical review a set of 20 literatures as required by the assignment prompt. The review centers on global peace and security. What role do international organizations play in global peace and security? The review centers around three main points. First, I examine global peace and security impacts on global governance. Secondly, it highlights the role traditional international community and security organizations such as the United Nations (UN), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and others play in providing the globe with peace and collective security. Third, it suggests a way forward as those institutions seek betterment and improvement. The review begins by defining some concepts and addressing the ambivalent meaning of peace and war. Scholars and researchers have conducted extensive research on the importance of international organizations. Yet, there is still a lot to consider if betterment and improvement are on the agenda. The review will shed light on the failures and challenges that these organizations. Those challenges are continuously undermining peacebuilding and peacekeeping actions of a great number among those institutions created with an ultimate mission of keeping the world order organized and coordinated for peace and security regardless of differences, cultures, and backgrounds. Women face violence on a daily basis, while racism and discrimination cause klm; ]]];inflammations worldwide. The chaotic situation in Ukraine is a wake-up call on scholarship and practitioners alike to come up with suggestions as well as recommendations that help mitigate insecurity while promoting peace and security, not only for Ukrainians but also for all countries facing wars and others issues. This paper will point the audience toward the right direction.

Keywords: security, peace, global governance, global peace and security, peacekeeping, international organizations, human rights, multilateralism, and unilateralism, gender, women

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Authors: Buse A. Ataç, Doğan K. Cenan, Arda Çetinkaya, Naz D. Şahin, Köksal Sanlı, Zeynep Koç, Akın Kısa

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With its spatial data reliability, interpretation and questioning capabilities, Geographical Information Systems make significant contributions to scientists, planners and practitioners. Geographic information systems have received great attention in today's digital world, growing rapidly, and increasing the efficiency of use. Access to and use of current and accurate geographical data, which are the most important components of the Geographical Information System, has become a necessity rather than a need for sustainable and economic development. This project aims to enable sharing of data collected by public institutions and organizations on a web-based platform. Within the scope of the project, INSPIRE (Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Community) data specifications are considered as a road-map. In this context, Turkey's National Geographic Information System (TUCBS) Integration Project supports sharing spatial data within 61 pilot public institutions as complied with defined national standards. In this paper, which is prepared by the project team members in the TUCBS Integration Project, the technical process with a detailed methodology is explained. In this context, the main technical processes of the Project consist of Geographic Data Analysis, Geographic Data Harmonization (Standardization), Web Service Creation (WMS, WFS) and Metadata Creation-Publication. In this paper, the integration process carried out to provide the data produced by 61 institutions to be shared from the National Geographic Data Portal (GEOPORTAL), have been trying to be conveyed with a detailed methodology.

Keywords: data specification, geoportal, GIS, INSPIRE, Turkish National Geographic Information System, TUCBS, Turkey's national geographic information system

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Authors: Arvind Srivastav, Tarun Kanti Bhattacharyya

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The north-eastern, Himalayan, and Eastern Ghats Belt of India comprise of earthquake-prone, remote, and hilly terrains. Earthquakes have caused enormous damages in these regions in the past. A wireless sensor network based earthquake early warning system (EEWS) is being developed to mitigate the damages caused by earthquakes. It consists of sensor nodes, distributed over the region, that perform majority voting of the output of the seismic sensors in the vicinity, and relay a message to a base station to alert the residents when an earthquake is detected. At the heart of the EEWS is a low-power two-stage seismic sensor that continuously tracks seismic events from incoming three-axis accelerometer signal at the first-stage, and, in the presence of a seismic event, triggers the second-stage P-wave detector that detects the onset of P-wave in an earthquake event. The parameters of the P-wave detector have been optimized for minimizing detection time and maximizing the accuracy of detection.Working of the sensor scheme has been verified with seven earthquakes data retrieved from IRIS. In all test cases, the scheme detected the onset of P-wave accurately. Also, it has been established that the P-wave onset detection time reduces linearly with the sampling rate. It has been verified with test data; the detection time for data sampled at 10Hz was around 2 seconds which reduced to 0.3 second for the data sampled at 100Hz.

Keywords: earthquake early warning system, EEWS, STA/LTA, polarization, wavelet, event detector, P-wave detector

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Authors: Lisdey Espinoza Pedraza

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In places from Latin America to Africa, a big number of authoritarian regimes have given way to democratic forces and increasingly responsive and open societies. Many countries have embarked upon a process of democratisation for the first time while many others have moved to restore their democratic roots. Mexico is one of these countries, and although the Mexican state is not democratic neither dictatorial in the strict sense the Anglo-Saxon and European tradition has defined these concepts, it is possible to find elements that combine both concepts. History helps us understand and study the past, interpret the present and predict the future. In the case of the Mexican political system, history has had a very specific effect in each of the areas that comprise the making of what it is now the contemporary Mexican system. Each of the different historical periods has left a legacy that has marked the way the political system has evolved. The historical periods that Mexico has undergone since its emergence as an independent state, have permeated until modern days and some of these legacies are the ones which will help us understand and interpret many of the structures of the current Mexican political system. The most notorious characteristic of contemporary Latin America is its dependency, underdevelopment and economic disparity once this region if compared with Europe and North America. There is a widespread persistence of economic dependence and social problems despite the creation of independent countries. The role of the state is to supervise the development of relations among actors. The political phenomenon is full of a constant process of transitions and the particular case of the formation of the Mexican state evidences this.

Keywords: Mexico, democratisation process, PRI, authoritarian regimes, political transitions, Latin America

Procedia PDF Downloads 291

Authors: Maha Zouaoui Khalifa, Hakim Ben Othman, Hussaney Khaled

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Prior empirical studies have investigated the economic consequences of accounting conservatism by examining its impact on the cost of equity capital (COEC). However, findings are not conclusive. We assume that inconsistent results of such association may be attributed to the regression models used in data analysis. To address this issue, we re-examine the effect of different dimension of accounting conservatism: unconditional conservatism (U_CONS) and conditional conservatism (C_CONS) on the COEC for a sample of listed firms from Middle Eastern and North Africa (MENA) countries, applying quantile regression (QR) approach developed by Koenker and Basset (1978). While classical ordinary least square (OLS) method is widely used in empirical accounting research, however it may produce inefficient and bias estimates in the case of departures from normality or long tail error distribution. QR method is more powerful than OLS to handle this kind of problem. It allows the coefficient on the independent variables to shift across the distribution of the dependent variable whereas OLS method only estimates the conditional mean effects of a response variable. We find as predicted that U_CONS has a significant positive effect on the COEC however, C_CONS has a negative impact. Findings suggest also that the effect of the two dimensions of accounting conservatism differs considerably across COEC quantiles. Comparing results from QR method with those of OLS, this study throws more lights on the association between accounting conservatism and COEC.

Keywords: unconditional conservatism, conditional conservatism, cost of equity capital, OLS, quantile regression, emerging markets, MENA countries

Procedia PDF Downloads 354

Authors: Abdalla Abdelnabi, Yousf Abushalah

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The G Formation is a major gas producing reservoir in the SM Field, eastern, Libya. It is called G limestone because it consists of shallow marine limestone. Well data and 3D-Seismic in conjunction with the results of a previous study were used to delineate the hydrocarbon reservoir of Middle Eocene G-Formation of SM Field area. The data include three-dimensional seismic data acquired in 2009. It covers approximately an area of 75 mi² and with more than 9 wells penetrating the reservoir. Seismic data are used to identify any stratigraphic and structural and features such as channels and faults and which may play a significant role in hydrocarbon traps. The well data are used to calculation petrophysical analysis of S field. The average porosity of the Middle Eocene G Formation is very good with porosity reaching 24% especially around well W 6. Average water saturation was calculated for each well from porosity and resistivity logs using Archie’s formula. The average water saturation for the whole well is 25%. Structural mapping of top and bottom of Middle Eocene G formation revealed the highest area in the SM field is at 4800 ft subsea around wells W4, W5, W6, and W7 and the deepest point is at 4950 ft subsea. Correlation between wells using well data and structural maps created from seismic data revealed that net thickness of G Formation range from 0 ft in the north part of the field to 235 ft in southwest and south part of the field. The gas water contact is found at 4860 ft using the resistivity log. The net isopach map using both the trapezoidal and pyramid rules are used to calculate the total bulk volume. The original gas in place and the recoverable gas were calculated volumetrically to be 890 Billion Standard Cubic Feet (BSCF) and 630 (BSCF) respectively.

Keywords: 3D seismic data, well logging, petrel, kingdom suite

Procedia PDF Downloads 148

Authors: Raed Kouta

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A fuel cell is a multi-physical system. Its electrical performance depends on chemical, electrochemical, fluid, and mechanical parameters. Many studies focus on physical and chemical aspects. Our study contributes to the evaluation of the influence of mechanical aspects on the performance of a fuel cell. This study is carried out as part of a reliability approach. Reliability modeling allows to consider the uncertainties of the incoming parameters and the probabilistic modeling of the outgoing parameters. The fuel cell studied is the one often used in land, sea, or air transport. This is the Low-Temperature Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC). This battery can provide the required power level. One of the main scientific and technical challenges in mastering the design and production of a fuel cell is to know its behavior in its actual operating environment. The study proposes to highlight the influence on the production of electrical energy: Mechanical design and manufacturing parameters and their uncertainties (Young module, GDL porosity, permeability, etc.). The influence of the geometry of the bipolar plates is also considered. An experimental design is proposed with two types of materials as well as three geometric shapes for three joining pressures. Other experimental designs are also proposed for studying the influence of uncertainties of mechanical parameters on cell performance. - Mechanical (static, dynamic) and thermal (tightening - compression, vibrations (road rolling and tests on vibration-climatic bench, etc.) loads. This study is also carried out according to an experimental scheme on a fuel cell system for vibration loads recorded on a vehicle test track with three temperatures and three expected performance levels. The work will improve the coupling between mechanical, physical, and chemical phenomena.

Keywords: fuel cell, mechanic, reliability, uncertainties

Procedia PDF Downloads 187

Authors: S. Potgieter-Vermaak, N. Bain, A. Brown, K. Shaw

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It is well-known from public news media that air pollution is a health hazard and is responsible for early deaths. The quantification of the relationship between air quality and health is a probing question not easily answered. It is known that airborne particulate matter (APM) <2.5µm deposits in the tracheal and alveoli zones and our research probes the possibility of quantifying pulmonary injury by linking reactive oxygen species (ROS) in these particles to DNA damage. Currently, APM mass concentration is linked to early deaths and limited studies probe the influence of other properties on human health. To predict the full extent and type of impact, particles need to be characterised for chemical composition and structure. APMs are routinely analysed for their bulk composition, but of late analysis on a micro level probing single particle character, using micro-analytical techniques, are considered. The latter, single particle analysis (SPA), permits one to obtain detailed information on chemical character from nano- to micron-sized particles. This paper aims to provide a snapshot of studies using data obtained from chemical characterisation and its link with in-vitro studies to inform on personal health risks. For this purpose, two studies will be compared, namely, the bioaccessibility of the inhalable fraction of urban road dust versus total suspended solids (TSP) collected in the same urban environment. The significant influence of metals such as Cu and Fe in TSP on DNA damage is illustrated. The speciation of Hg (determined by SPA) in different urban environments proved to dictate its bioaccessibility in artificial lung fluids rather than its concentration.

Keywords: air pollution, human health, in-vitro studies, particulate matter

Procedia PDF Downloads 225

Authors: Kamen Kirov

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In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Britain dominated global trade and finance in large part due to its maritime superiority. Germany, a land power, sought to undermine Britain’s position as the primary hegemon but ultimately could not challenge Britain’s maritime position or capabilities. This drove Germany to seek alternative strategies to weaken Britain’s position. Notably, it pushed Germany to create a reliable overland link through the Balkans to the Middle East via railroad. This article will seek to draw parallels between the German-British hegemonic conflict of the early 20th century and the Chinese-American hegemonic conflict taking place today using both secondary historical sources and current scholarly discussions of the changing international sphere. In doing so, it will provide useful insights into how China might attempt to outflank American power. The article will demonstrate that in many ways, the strategic positions and approaches of the early-20th century Germany and modern China are similar. Both countries were faced with a vastly superior foe with respect to maritime and economic power, and in both cases, their response was to undermine their rival hegemon by creating new overland infrastructure. Furthermore, in both cases, a major goal of creating new overland links was to gain further access to and control over Middle Eastern energy markets. It seems that in the modern day, China is conducting such a policy on a much grander scale than Germany did in the early 20th century—which may result in negative consequences for the US strategic position.

Keywords: belt and road Initiative, hegemonic conflict, maritime power, realism

Procedia PDF Downloads 181

Authors: Ilham Ihoume, Rachid Tadili, Nora Arbaoui

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The use of solar energy is a crucial tactic in the agricultural industry's plan ‎‎to decrease greenhouse gas emissions. This clean source of energy can ‎greatly lower the sector's carbon footprint and make a significant impact in ‎the ‎fight against climate change. In this regard, this study examines the ‎effects ‎of a solar-based heating system, in a north-south oriented agricultural ‎green‎house on the development of strawberry plants during winter. This ‎system ‎relies on the circulation of water as a heat transfer fluid in a closed ‎circuit ‎installed on the greenhouse roof to store heat during the day and ‎release it ‎inside at night. A comparative experimental study was conducted ‎in two ‎greenhouses, one experimental with the solar heating system and the ‎other ‎for control without any heating system. Both greenhouses are located ‎on the ‎terrace of the Solar Energy and Environment Laboratory of the ‎Mohammed ‎V University in Rabat, Morocco. The developed heating system ‎consists of a ‎copper coil inserted in double glazing and placed on the roof of ‎the greenhouse, a water pump circulator, a battery, and a photovoltaic solar ‎panel to ‎power the electrical components. This inexpensive and ‎environmentally ‎friendly system allows the greenhouse to be heated during ‎the winter and ‎improves its microclimate system. This improvement resulted ‎in an increase ‎in the air temperature inside the experimental greenhouse by 6 ‎‎°C and 8 °C, ‎and a reduction in its relative humidity by 23% and 35% ‎compared to the ‎control greenhouse and the ambient air, respectively, ‎throughout the winter. ‎For the agronomic performance, it was observed that ‎the production was 17 ‎days earlier than in the control greenhouse‎.‎

Keywords: sustainability, thermal energy storage, solar energy, agriculture greenhouse

Procedia PDF Downloads 85

Authors: R. F. Vieira, S. A. Figueiredo, O. M. Freitas, V. F. Domingues, C. Delerue-Matos

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The presence of sulphur compounds like hydrogen sulphide and mercaptans is one of the reasons for waste-water treatment and waste management being associated with odour emissions. In this context having a quantifying method for these compounds helps in the optimization of treatment with the goal of their elimination, namely biofiltration processes. The aim of this study was the development of a method for quantification of odorous gases in waste treatment plants air samples. A method based on head space solid phase microextraction (HS-SPME) coupled with gas chromatography - flame photometric detector (GC-FPD) was used to analyse H2S and Metil Mercaptan (MM). The extraction was carried out with a 75-μm Carboxen-polydimethylsiloxane fiber coating at 22 ºC for 20 min, and analysed by a GC 2010 Plus A from Shimadzu with a sulphur filter detector: splitless mode (0.3 min), the column temperature program was from 60 ºC, increased by 15 ºC/min to 100 ºC (2 min). The injector temperature was held at 250 ºC, and the detector at 260 ºC. For calibration curve a gas diluter equipment (digital Hovagas G2 - Multi Component Gas Mixer) was used to do the standards. This unit had two input connections, one for a stream of the dilute gas and another for a stream of nitrogen and an output connected to a glass bulb. A 40 ppm H2S and a 50 ppm MM cylinders were used. The equipment was programmed to the selected concentration, and it automatically carried out the dilution to the glass bulb. The mixture was left flowing through the glass bulb for 5 min and then the extremities were closed. This method allowed the calibration between 1-20 ppm for H2S and 0.02-0.1 ppm and 1-3.5 ppm for MM. Several quantifications of air samples from inlet and outlet of a biofilter operating in a waste management facility in the north of Portugal allowed the evaluation the biofilters performance.

Keywords: biofiltration, hydrogen sulphide, mercaptans, quantification

Procedia PDF Downloads 474

Authors: Vaishali D. Khairnar

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The main aim is to provide lower-latency and highly reliable communication facilities for vehicles in the automobile industry; vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication basically intends to increase expressway road security and its effectiveness. The Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC) algorithm and cellular networks are applied in combination with Mobile Broadband (MBB). This is particularly used in express way safety-based driving applications. Expressway vehicle drivers (humans) will communicate in V2X systems using the sixth-generation (6G) communication systems which have very high-speed mobility features. As a result, we need to determine how to ensure reliable and consistent wireless communication links and improve the quality to increase channel gain, which is becoming a challenge that needs to be addressed. To overcome this challenge, we proposed a unique multi-user scheduling algorithm for ultra-massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems using 6G. In wideband wireless network access in case of high traffic and also in medium traffic conditions, moreover offering quality-of-service (QoS) to distinct service groups with synchronized contemporaneous traffic on the highway like the Mumbai-Pune expressway becomes a critical problem. Opportunist MAC (OMAC) is a way of proposing communication across a wireless communication link that can change in space and time and might overcome the above-mentioned challenge. Therefore, a multi-user scheduling algorithm is proposed for MIMO systems using a cross-layered MAC protocol to achieve URLLC and high reliability in V2X communication.

Keywords: ultra-reliable low latency communications, vehicle-to-everything communication, multiple-input multiple-output systems, multi-user scheduling algorithm

Procedia PDF Downloads 87