Search results for: motor vehicle growth

Authors: Jeong-Hyun Hong, Wonsuk Choi, Hyungdal Park, Jinseok Kim, Junesun Kim

Abstract:

Identifying the chronic functions of an implanted neural electrode is an important factor in acquiring neural signals through the electrode or restoring the nerve functions after peripheral nerve injury. The purpose of this study was to investigate the biocompatibility of the chronic implanted neural electrode into the sciatic nerve. To do this, a sieve-type neural electrode was implanted at proximal and distal ends of a transected sciatic nerve as an experimental group (Sieve group, n=6), and the end-to-end epineural repair was operated with the cut sciatic nerve as a control group (reconstruction group, n=6). All surgeries were performed on the sciatic nerve of the right leg in Sprague Dawley rats. Behavioral tests were performed before and 1, 4, 7, 10, 14, and weekly days until 5 months following surgery. Changes in sensory function were assessed by measuring paw withdrawal responses to mechanical and cold stimuli. Motor function was assessed by motion analysis using a Qualisys program, which showed a range of motion (ROM) related to the joints. Neurofilament-heavy chain and fibronectin expression were detected 5 months after surgery. In both groups, the paw withdrawal response to mechanical stimuli was slightly decreased from 3 weeks after surgery and then significantly decreased at 6 weeks after surgery. The paw withdrawal response to cold stimuli was increased from 4 days following surgery in both groups and began to decrease from 6 weeks after surgery. The ROM of the ankle joint was showed a similar pattern in both groups. There was significantly increased from 1 day after surgery and then decreased from 4 days after surgery. Neurofilament-heavy chain expression was observed throughout the entire sciatic nerve tissues in both groups. Especially, the sieve group was showed several neurofilaments that passed through the channels of the sieve-type neural electrode. In the reconstruction group, however, a suture line was seen through neurofilament-heavy chain expression up to 5 months following surgery. In the reconstruction group, fibronectin was detected throughout the sciatic nerve. However, in the sieve group, the fibronectin was observed only in the surrounding nervous tissues of an implanted neural electrode. The present results demonstrated that the implanted sieve-type neural electrode induced a focal inflammatory response. However, the chronic implanted sieve-type neural electrodes did not cause any further inflammatory response following peripheral nerve injury, suggesting the possibility of the chronic application of the sieve-type neural electrodes. This work was supported by the Basic Science Research Program funded by the Ministry of Science (2016R1D1A1B03933986), and by the convergence technology development program for bionic arm (2017M3C1B2085303).

Keywords: biocompatibility, motor functions, neural electrodes, peripheral nerve injury, sensory functions

Procedia PDF Downloads 151

Authors: Denis Ushakov

Abstract:

Fast growing international migration as a factor of labor globalization now is one of the most important trends of world economy and determinant of social-political transformations. Study of fundamental economical reasons for international migration is relevant due to their prognostic, predictable and normative potential, which can be used in conditions of global economic non-stability. This paper analyzes role of natural-resources, financial and labor factors in economic growth of the modern states; studies relationships between stimulating role of natural resources, finance and labor with levels of modern countries’ economy development. Based on achieved results, findings about fundamental reasons of international migration; transformation of labor factor’s role in providing an economical progress of the states; efficiency of positive impact of manufacturing factors (domestic and attracted from international markets) were offered.

Keywords: international migration, migrant, labor productivity, economy efficiency of migration, migration policy

Procedia PDF Downloads 276

Authors: Marianne D. M. Rendon, Sonia P. Acda, Veneranda A. Magpantay, Norma N. Fajardo, Amado A. Angeles

Abstract:

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of supplementing broiler starter diet with different levels of an essential oil blend (EOB) containing capsaicin, carvacrol and cinnamaldehyde on the performance of broilers. A total of 300 day-old straight-run Cobb broiler chicks were randomly assigned to three treatments after 7-day group brooding following a completely randomized design (CRD). Birds assigned in treatment 1 were given starter basal diet while those in treatments 2 and 3 were given starter basal diet with 400 mg/kg antibiotic growth promoter (AGP) and 150 mg/kg EOB, respectively, until the 28th day. Basal finisher feed were given for all the treatments until harvest. Following 37 d feeding, body weight gain, feed consumption, feed efficiency, dressing percentage, livability and jejunal villi height were determined. Results showed no significant differences (P>0.05) in growth performance. However, villi height and crypt depth was significantly lower for birds fed EOB.

Keywords: broiler, capsaicin, carvacrol, cinnamaldehyde, essential oil

Procedia PDF Downloads 469

Authors: Yadong Liu

Abstract:

The experimental study on reduction carbonization of coke containing iron respectively with the particle size of <0.3mm, 0.3-0.6mm and 0.6-0.9mm and synthetic sea sand ore smelting reduction titanium-bearing slag as material were studied under the conditions of holding 6h at most at 1500℃. The effects of coke containing iron particle size and heat preservation time on the formation of TiC and the size of TiC crystal were studied by XRD, SEM and EDS. The results show that it is not good for the formation, concentration and growth of TiC crystal when the particle size of coke containing iron is too small or too large. The suitable particle size is 0.3~0.6mm. The heat preservation time of 2h basically ensures that all the component TiO2 in the slag are reduced and carbonized and converted to TiC. The size of TiC crystal will increase with the prolongation of heat preservation time. The thickness of the TiC layer can reach 20μm when the heat preservation time is 6h.

Keywords: coke containing iron, formation and concentration and growth of TiC, reduction and carbonization, titanium-bearing slag

Procedia PDF Downloads 149

Authors: Visar Baxhuku, Halil Demolli, Alishukri Shkodra

Abstract:

This paper presents the monitoring of vehicle movement, namely the developing of speed of vehicles during movement in a certain twist. The basic geometry data of twist are measured with the purpose of calculating the slide in border speed. During the research, measuring developed speed of passenger vehicles for the real conditions of the road surface, dry road with average damage, was realised. After setting values, the analysis was done in function security of movement in twist.

Keywords: critical sliding velocity, moving velocity, curve, passenger vehicles

Procedia PDF Downloads 421

Authors: Marko Kolakovic

Abstract:

Creative industries are an important sector of growth and development of knowledge economies. They have a positive impact on employment, economic growth, export and the quality of life in the areas where they are developed. Creative sectors include architecture, design, advertising, publishing, music, film, television and radio, video games, visual and performing arts and heritage. Following the positive trends of development of creative industries on the global and European level, this paper analyzes creative industries in general and specific characteristics of creative entrepreneurship. Special focus in this paper is put on the influence of the information communication technology on the development of new creative business models and protection of the intellectual property rights. One part of the paper is oriented on the analysis of the status of creative industries and creative entrepreneurship in Croatia. The main objective of the paper is by using the statistical analysis of creative industries in Croatia and information gained during the interviews with entrepreneurs, to make conclusions about potentials and development of creative industries in Croatia. Creative industries in Croatia are at the beginning of their development and growth strategy still does not exist at the national level. Statistical analysis pointed out that in 2015 creative enterprises made 9% of all enterprises in Croatia, employed 5,5% of employed people and their share in GDP was 4,01%. Croatian creative entrepreneurs are building competitive advantage using their creative resources and creating specific business models. The main obstacles they meet are lack of business experience and impossibility of focusing on the creative activities only. In their business, they use digital technologies and are focused on export. The conclusion is that creative industries in Croatia have development potential, but it is necessary to take adequate measures to use this potential in a right way.

Keywords: creative entrepreneurship, knowledge economy, business models, intellectual property

Procedia PDF Downloads 208

Authors: Svetlana Gusarova

Abstract:

The essential role in the recent development of world economy has led to the developing countries, notably to BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa). Over the next 50 years the BRICS countries are expected to be the engines of global trade and economic growth. Trade cooperation of BRICS countries can enhance their economic development. BRICS countries were among Top 10 world exporters of office and telecom equipment, of textiles, of clothing, of iron and steel, of chemicals, of agricultural products, of automotive products, of fuel and mining products. China was one of the main trading partners of all BRICS countries, maintaining close relationship with all BRICS countries in the development of trade. Author analyzed trade complementarity of BRICS countries and revealed the high level of complementarity of their trade flows in connection with availability of specialization in different types of goods. The correlation and regression analysis of communication of Intra-BRICS merchandise turnover and their GDP (PPP) revealed very strong impact on the development of their economies.

Keywords: BRICS countries, trade cooperation, complementarity, regression analysis

Procedia PDF Downloads 281

Authors: Marcin Adamczak

Abstract:

The growth of Chinese film market and its dynamic incomparable to any other historical phenomenon has already made China the second world market and potential future leader in 2-3 years period. The growing power of Chines box-office and its future prospects is then the crucial and potentially disturbing factor for persistence of global Hollywood reality. The paper is based on market statistical data. The main findings of the analysis are defining of essential obstacles for the development of Chinese market and its foreign expansion. However, the new strategies employed by the industry (acquisitions of cinema chains abroad, blockbuster made with the involvement of figures from Hollywood star system, coproduction ties within Pacific basin) could be a successful remedy for current shortcomings. The main factor for development will be wider economical framework and maintenance of growth pace. The future state of Chinese film market will be one of the main factors shaping global film culture and film market in following decades of XXI century.

Keywords: production studies, film market, Chinese film market, distribution

Procedia PDF Downloads 215

Authors: Deng Tingting

Abstract:

There is a very close interaction between the rapid development of the real estate industry and regional urbanization. The real estate problem can be boiled down to the problem of urbanization, in essence. The growth of hundreds of millions of people in the future will determine the development of low-level demand in the real estate market. At the same time, the practical problems of urbanization also seriously restrict the healthy development of real estate itself. The latter two interact with each other by adjusting the industrial structure, economic aggregate, regional population flow, and many other linkage factors. Through the case analysis of Chongqing, this paper finds that the urbanization of Chongqing and the overall development level of the real estate industry are still in the stage of development and upgrading, and its development potential and future development and application space are still very large. Therefore, from the perspective of the regional economy, studying the interaction between the two is of great significance to accelerate the process of urbanization in Chongqing, promote the healthy development of the real estate industry, and promote the rapid growth of the regional economy.

Keywords: urbanization, demographics, real estate, interrelationships

Procedia PDF Downloads 130

Authors: Magaya Rutendo P., Mutibvu Tonderai, Nyahangare emmanuel T., Ncube Sharai

Abstract:

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of phytase and tannase addition in broiler diets on growth performance and meat quality of broilers fed sorghum-based diets. Twelve experimental diets were formulated at three sorghum levels, which include 0, 50, and 100%, and 4 enzyme levels: No enzyme, 5000FTU phytase, 25TU tannase, and a combination of 5000FTU phytase plus 25TU tannase. Data on voluntary feed intake, average weekly weight gain and feed conversion ratio were recorded and used to assess growth performance. Meat technical and nutritional parameters were used to determine meat quality. Broilers fed total sorghum diets with phytase and tannase enzyme combination had the highest feed intake in the first (24.4 ± 0.04g/bird/day) and second weeks of life (23.0 ± 1.06g/bird/day), respectively. Complete sorghum diets with phytase (83.0 ± 0.88g/bird/day) and tannase (122.0 ± 0.88g/bird/day) showed the highest feed intake in the third and fourth weeks, respectively. Broilers fed 50% sorghum diets with tannase (135.3 ± 0.05g/bird/day) and complete maize diets with phytase (158.1 ± 0.88g/bird/day) had the highest feed intake during weeks five and six, respectively. Broilers fed a 50% sorghum diet without enzymes had the highest weight gain in the final week (606.5 ± 32.39g). Comparable feed conversion was observed in birds fed complete maize and 50% sorghum diets. Dietary treatment significantly influences the live body, carcass, liver, kidneys, abdominal fat pad weight, and intestinal length. However, it did not affect Pectoralis major meat nutritional and technical parameters.

Keywords: feed efficiency, sorghum, carcass, exogenous enzymes

Procedia PDF Downloads 55

Authors: Abbas Al-Refaie, Ruba Najdawi, Nour Bata, Mohammad D. AL-Tahat

Abstract:

The pharmaceutical industry is an important component of health care systems throughout the world. Measurement of a production unit-performance is crucial in determining whether it has achieved its objectives or not. This paper applies data envelopment (DEA) window analysis to assess the efficiencies of two packaging lines; Allfill (new) and DP6, in the Penicillin plant in a Jordanian Medical Company in 2010. The CCR and BCC models are used to estimate the technical efficiency, pure technical efficiency, and scale efficiency. Further, the Malmquist productivity index is computed to measure then employed to assess productivity growth relative to a reference technology. Two primary issues are addressed in computation of Malmquist indices of productivity growth. The first issue is the measurement of productivity change over the period, while the second is to decompose changes in productivity into what are generally referred to as a ‘catching-up’ effect (efficiency change) and a ‘frontier shift’ effect (technological change). Results showed that DP6 line outperforms the Allfill in technical and pure technical efficiency. However, the Allfill line outperforms DP6 line in scale efficiency. The obtained efficiency values can guide production managers in taking effective decisions related to operation, management, and plant size. Moreover, both machines exhibit a clear fluctuations in technological change, which is the main reason for the positive total factor productivity change. That is, installing a new Allfill production line can be of great benefit to increasing productivity. In conclusions, the DEA window analysis combined with the Malmquist index are supportive measures in assessing efficiency and productivity in pharmaceutical industry.

Keywords: window analysis, malmquist index, efficiency, productivity

Procedia PDF Downloads 609

Authors: Muhammad Adeel Arshad, Shaukat Ali Bhatti

Abstract:

The study aimed to investigate the effect of bile acids and lipase supplementation in low-energy diets on growth performance and meat quality of broilers. Seven hundred day-old Cobb-500 broiler chicks with an average initial body weight of 45.9 ± 0.3 g were assigned to 5 dietary treatments, with five replications of 28 birds each in a completely randomized design. The five treatments were as follows: (i) HE: broilers received a diet with high energy content; (ii) LE: broilers received a diet with low energy content and energy content reduced by 100 kcal/kg as compared to HE; (iii) LEB: broilers received a diet similar to the LE group supplemented with 300 g/ton bile acids; (iv) LEL: broilers received a diet similar to the LE group supplemented with 180 g/ton lipase enzyme and (v) LEBL: broilers received a diet similar to the LE group supplemented with both 300 g/ton bile acids and 180 g/ton lipase enzyme. The experimental period lasted for 35 days. Broilers fed HE had a lower (P < 0.05) body weight (BW) gain and lower feed intake (1-35 d), but during finisher period (21-35 d), BW gain was similar with other treatments. Feed conversion ratio (FCR) was lower in HE and higher in LEBL group (P < 0.05), while the LE, LEB, and LEL had intermediate values. At 35 d no difference occurred between treatment for water holding capacity and pH of breast and thigh muscles (P > 0.05). The relative weight of pancreas was higher (P < 0.05) in LEB treatment but lower (P < 0.05) in LEL treatment. In conclusion, bile acids and lipase supplementation at 300 g/ton and 150g/ton of feed in low-energy diets respectively had no effect on broiler performance and meat quality. However, FCR was improved in HE treatment.

Keywords: bile acids, energy, enzyme, growth

Procedia PDF Downloads 120

Authors: Young-Kwan Choi, Gang-Wook Shin, Sung-Taek Hong

Abstract:

Water supply system consumes large amount of power load during water treatment and transportation of purified water. Many energy conserving high efficiency materials such as DC motor and LED light have recently been introduced to water supply system for energy conservation. This paper performed empirical analysis on BLDC, AC motors, and comparatively analyzed the change in power according to DC power supply ratio in order to conserve energy of a next-generation water treatment system called vertical water treatment system. In addition, a DC distribution system linked with photovoltaic generation was simulated to analyze the energy conserving effect of DC load.

Keywords: vertical water treatment system, DC power supply, energy efficiency, BLDC

Procedia PDF Downloads 503

Authors: Madhuri Kanala, Geoffrey Savage

Abstract:

Worldwide CO₂ levels are slowly rising, and this may have effects on the growth and nutritional composition of many food plants. The production of secondary metabolites such as oxalates has not been investigated in depth. The oxalate content of many food plants are known to have adverse nutritional effects on humans and reduction in the oxalate contents of food plants is a very positive move. Recent studies had shown that the oxalate content of the leaves of spinach and silver beet reduced when the plants were grown in an environment where CO₂ was increased. The response of amaranth and strawberry spinach leaves to changes in the high CO₂ environment have not been understood though it is known that the plants do contain appreciable oxalate contents. A study was conducted where amaranth and strawberry spinach plants were grown in identical plant growth chambers with the same environmental conditions except that one chamber was supplied with ambient air (CO₂ 405 ppm) while the other chamber had the CO₂ level increased to 650 ppm. The total and soluble oxalate content of the leaves of raw and cooked amaranth and strawberry spinach were determined by HPLC and calcium levels were determined using ICP following 6 weeks of growth. The total oxalate content of the fresh leaves of amaranth and strawberry spinach were reduced by 29.5 % and 24.6% respectively in the leaves of the plants grown in increased CO₂ conditions compared to ambient levels. The soluble oxalate content of amaranth leaves grown under ambient and increased CO₂ conditions were future reduced by 42% and 26.8% respectively following cooking as the soluble oxalate was leached into the cooking water and discarded. The reduction of the oxalate and calcium levels of raw and cooked amaranth and strawberry spinach leaves following an increase in CO₂ content in the air is an interesting positive response to an otherwise significant environmental problem.

Keywords: amaranth, calcium oxalate, enriched CO₂, oxalates, strawberry spinach

Procedia PDF Downloads 192

Authors: Mahdi Allaoua Seklab, Süleyman BaşTürk

Abstract:

In the quest to enhance coastal environmental health, this study introduces a fully autonomous beach cleaning machine, a breakthrough in leveraging green energy and advanced artificial intelligence for ecological preservation. Designed to operate independently, the machine is propelled by a solar-powered system, underscoring a commitment to sustainability and the use of renewable energy in autonomous robotics. The vehicle's autonomous navigation is achieved through a sophisticated integration of LIDAR and a camera system, utilizing an SSD MobileNet V2 object detection model for accurate and real-time trash identification. The SSD framework, renowned for its efficiency in detecting objects in various scenarios, is coupled with the lightweight and precise highly MobileNet V2 architecture, making it particularly suited for the computational constraints of on-board processing in mobile robotics. Training of the SSD MobileNet V2 model was conducted on Google Colab, harnessing cloud-based GPU resources to facilitate a rapid and cost-effective learning process. The model was refined with an extensive dataset of annotated beach debris, optimizing the parameters using the Adam optimizer and a cross-entropy loss function to achieve high-precision trash detection. This capability allows the machine to intelligently categorize and target waste, leading to more effective cleaning operations. This paper details the design and functionality of the beach cleaning machine, emphasizing its autonomous operational capabilities and the novel application of AI in environmental robotics. The results showcase the potential of such technology to fill existing gaps in beach maintenance, offering a scalable and eco-friendly solution to the growing problem of coastal pollution. The deployment of this machine represents a significant advancement in the field, setting a new standard for the integration of autonomous systems in the service of environmental stewardship.

Keywords: autonomous beach cleaning machine, renewable energy systems, coastal management, environmental robotics

Procedia PDF Downloads 27

Authors: Ivana Tadić, Željana Aljinović Barać, Nikolina Plazonić

Abstract:

Living today in turbulent business environment forces companies to distinguish from each other, securing sustainable competitive growth and competitive advantage. The best possible solution is to invest (effort and financial resources) within companies’ different practices of human resource management (HRM), more specifically in employees’ knowledge, skills and abilities. Applying this approach companies will create enviable level of human capital securing its economic growth. Employees become human capital for their employers at the moment when they contribute with their own knowledge and abilities in creating material and non-material value of the company. The main aim of this research is to explore the relations between human capital investments and business excellence of Croatian companies. Furthermore, the differences in the level of human capital investments with regard to several companies’ characteristics (e.g. size of the company, ownership and type of the industry) are investigated.

Keywords: business excellence, Croatian industries, human capital investments, human resource management

Procedia PDF Downloads 362

Authors: G. Karunakaran, M. Jagathambal, N. Van Minh, E. Kolesnikov, A. Gusev, O. V. Zakharova, E. V. Scripnikova, E. D. Vishnyakova, D. Kuznetsov

Abstract:

Iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe₂O₃NPs) are widely used in different applications due to its ecofriendly nature and biocompatibility. Hence, in this investigation, biosynthesized Fe₂O₃NPs influence on flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) plant was examined. The biosynthesized nanoparticles were found to be cubic phase which is confirmed by XRD analysis. FTIR analysis confirmed the presence of functional groups corresponding to the iron oxide nanoparticle. The elemental analysis also confirmed that the obtained nanoparticle is iron oxide nanoparticle. The scanning electron microscopy and the transmission electron microscopy confirm that the average particle size was around 56 nm. The effect of Fe₂O₃NPs on seed germination followed by biochemical analysis was carried out using standard methods. The results obtained after four days and 11 days of seed vigor studies showed that the seedling length (cm), average number of seedling with leaves, increase in root length (cm) was found to be enhanced on treatment with iron oxide nanoparticles when compared to control. A positive correlation was noticed with the dose of the nanoparticle and plant growth, which may be due to changes in metabolic activity. Hence, to evaluate the change in metabolic activity, peroxidase and catalase activities were estimated. It was clear from the observation that higher concentration of iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe₂O₃NPs 1000 mg/L) has enhanced peroxidase and catalase activities and in turn plant growth. Thus, this study clearly showed that biosynthesized iron oxide nanoparticles will be an effective nano-nutrient for agriculture applications.

Keywords: catalase, fertilizer, iron oxide nanoparticles, Linum usitatissimum L., nano-nutrient, peroxidase

Procedia PDF Downloads 391

Authors: Leila Noori, Rosario Barone, Francesca Rappa, Antonella Marino Gammazza, Alessandra Maria Vitale, Giuseppe Donato Mangano, Giusy Sentiero, Filippo Macaluso, Kathryn H. Myburgh, Francesco Cappello, Federica Scalia

Abstract:

The neuromuscular system controls, directs, and allows movement of the body through the action of neural circuits, which include motor neurons, sensory neurons, and skeletal muscle fibers. Protein homeostasis of the involved cytotypes appears crucial to maintain the correct and prolonged functions of the neuromuscular system, and both neuronal cells and skeletal muscle fibers express significant quantities of protein chaperones, the molecular machinery responsible to maintain the protein turnover. Genetic mutations or defective post-translational modifications of molecular chaperones (i.e., genetic or acquired chaperonopathies) may lead to neuromuscular disorders called as neurochaperonopathies. The limited knowledge of the effects of the defective chaperones on skeletal muscle fibers and neurons impedes the progression of therapeutic approaches. A distinct genetic variation of CCT5 gene encoding for the subunit 5 of the chaperonin CCT (Chaperonin Containing TCP1; also known as TRiC, TCP1 Ring Complex) was recently described associated with severe distal motor neuropathy by our team. In this study, we investigated the histopathological abnormalities of the skeletal muscle biopsy of the pediatric patient affected by the mutation Leu224Val in the CCT5 subunit. We provide molecular and structural features of the diseased skeletal muscle tissue that we believe may be useful to identify undiagnosed cases of this rare genetic disorder. We investigated the histological abnormalities of the affected tissue via hematoxylin and eosin staining. Then we used immunofluorescence and qPCR techniques to explore the expression and distribution of CCT5 in diseased and healthy skeletal muscle tissue. Immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry assays were performed to study the sarcomeric and structural proteins of skeletal muscle, including actin, myosin, tubulin, troponin-T, telethonin, and titin. We performed Western blot to examine the protein expression of CCT5 and some heat shock proteins, Hsp90, Hsp60, Hsp27, and α-B crystallin, along with the main client proteins of the CCT5, actin, and tubulin. Our findings revealed muscular atrophy, abnormal morphology, and different sizes of muscle fibers in affected tissue. The swollen nuclei and wide interfiber spaces were seen. Expression of CCT5 had been decreased and showed a different distribution pattern in the affected tissue. Altered expression, distribution, and bandage pattern were detected by confocal microscopy for the interested muscular proteins in tissue from the patient compared to the healthy control. Protein levels of the studied Hsps normally located at the Z-disk were reduced. Western blot results showed increased levels of the actin and tubulin proteins in the diseased skeletal muscle biopsy compared to healthy tissue. Chaperones must be expressed at high levels in skeletal muscle to counteract various stressors such as mechanical, oxidative, and thermal crises; therefore, it seems relevant that defects of molecular chaperones may result in damaged skeletal muscle fibers. So far, several chaperones or cochaperones involved in neuromuscular disorders have been defined. Our study shows that alteration of the CCT5 subunit is associated with the damaged structure of skeletal muscle fibers and alterations of chaperone system components and paves the way to explore possible alternative substrates of chaperonin CCT. However, further studies are underway to investigate the CCT mechanisms of action to design applicable therapeutic strategies.

Keywords: molecular chaperones, neurochaperonopathy, neuromuscular system, protein homeostasis

Procedia PDF Downloads 71

Authors: Mingbao Chen

Abstract:

After Rio+20, the blue economy rises all over the world, and it has become the focus field of national development. At present, the blue economy has become a new growth point in the field of global economy and the direction of the development of ‘green’ in the ocean. However, in fact, the key factors affecting the development of the blue economy have not been explored in depth, and the development policies and performance of the blue economy have not been scientifically evaluated. This cannot provide useful guidance for the development of the blue economy. Therefore, it is urgent to establish a quantitative evaluation framework to measure the performance of the blue economic development. Based on the full understanding of the connotation and elements of the blue economy, and studying the literature, this article has built an universality and operability evaluation index system, including ecological environment, social justice, sustainable growth, policy measures, and so on. And this article also established a sound evaluation framework of blue economic development performance. At the same time, this article takes China as a sample to test the framework of the adaptability, and to assess the performance of China's blue economic.

Keywords: Blue economy, development performance, evaluation framework, assess method

Procedia PDF Downloads 248

Authors: Mthiyane Pretty, Mitsui Toshiake, Aycan Murat, Nagano Hirohiko

Abstract:

Methane (CH₄) is one of the most dangerous greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted into the atmosphere by terrestrial ecosystems, with a global warming potential (GWP) 25-34 times that of CO2 on a centennial scale. Paddy rice cultivations are a major source of methane emission and is the major driving force for climate change. Thus, it is necessary to find out GHG emissions mitigation strategies from rice cultivation. A study was conducted at Niigata University. And the prime objective of this research was to determine the effects of rice varieties CH4 lowland (NU1, YNU, Nipponbare, Koshihikari) and upland (Norin 1, Norin 24, Hitachihatamochi) japonica rice varieties using different growth media which was paddy field soil and artificial soil. The treatments were laid out in a split plot design. The soil moisture was kept at 40-50% and 70%, respectively. The CH₄ emission rates were determined by collecting air samples using the closed chamber technique and measuring CH₄ concentrations using a gas chromatograph. CH₄ emission rates varied with the growth, growth media type and development of the rice varieties. The soil moisture was monitored at a soil depth of 5–10 cm with an HydraGO portable soil sensor system every three days for each pot, and temperatures were be recorded by a sensitive thermometer. The lowest cumulative CH4 emission rate was observed in Norin 24, particularly under 40 to 50% soil moisture. Across the rice genotypes, 40-50% significantly reduced the cumulative CH4 , followed by irrigation of 70% soil moisture. During the tillering stage, no significant variation in tillering and plant height was observed between and 70% soil moisture. This study suggests that the cultivation of Norin 24 and Norin 1 under 70% soil irrigation could be effective at reducing the CH4 in rice fields.

Keywords: methane, paddy fields, rice varieties, soil moisture

Procedia PDF Downloads 93

Authors: Benazzouz Djamel, Termeche Adel, Touati Youcef, Alem Said, Ouziala Mahdi

Abstract:

This paper presents an approach which detect and isolate efficiently a fault in a system. This approach avoids false alarms, non-detections and delays in detecting faults. A study case have been proposed to show the importance of taking into consideration the uncertainties in the decision-making procedure and their effect on the degradation diagnostic performance and advantage of using Bond Graph (BG) for such degradation. The use of BG in the Linear Fractional Transformation (LFT) form allows generating robust Analytical Redundancy Relations (ARR’s), where the uncertain part of ARR’s is used to generate the residuals adaptive thresholds. The study case concerns an electromechanical system composed of a motor, a reducer and an external load. The aim of this application is to show the effectiveness of the BG-LFT approach to robust fault detection.

Keywords: bond graph, LFT, uncertainties, detection and faults isolation, ARR

Procedia PDF Downloads 305

Authors: Yufei Peng, Zhen Qin, Jianbe Li, Jidong Long

Abstract:

The thermal cathode is widely used in accelerators, FELs and kinds of vacuum electronics. However, emission nonuniformity exists due to surface profile, material distribution, temperature variation, crystal orientation, etc., which will cause intrinsic emittance growth, brightness decline, envelope size augment, device performance deterioration or even failure. To understand how emittance is manipulated by emission nonuniformity, an intrinsic emittance model consisting of contributions from macro and micro surface nonuniformity is developed analytically based on general thermal emission model at temperature limited regime according to a real 3mm cathode. The model shows relative emittance increased about 50% due to temperature variation, and less than 5% from several kinds of micro surface nonuniformity which is much smaller than other research. Otherwise, we also calculated emittance growth combining with Monte Carlo method and PIC simulation, experiments of emission uniformity and emittance measurement are going to be carried out separately.

Keywords: thermal cathode, electron emission fluctuation, intrinsic emittance, surface nonuniformity, cathode lifetime

Procedia PDF Downloads 298

Authors: Eung-Seok Park, Tae-Chul Jeong, Hyun-Jong Park, Hyun-Woo Jun, Dong-Woo Kang, Ju Lee

Abstract:

This presents a methodology to determine detail design directions of an 150kW-class IPMSM (interior permanent magnet synchronous motor) and its detail design. The basic design of the stator and rotor was conducted. After dividing the designed models into the best cases and the worst cases based on rotor shape parameters, Sensitivity analysis and 3D Voltage-Inductance Map (3D EL-Map) parameters were analyzed. Then, the design direction for the final model was predicted. Based on the prediction, the final model was extracted with Trend analysis. Lastly, the final model was validated with experiments.

Keywords: PMSM, optimal design, rotor design, voltage-inductance map

Procedia PDF Downloads 674

Authors: Melvin Mothoa

Abstract:

Small Micro and Medium Enterprises are very significant for the development of their market economies. They are the main creators of the new working places, and they present a vital core of the market economy in countries across the globe. Access to finance is identified as crucial for small, micro, and medium-sized enterprises for their growth and innovation. This paper is conceived to propose a perception-based SMME framework to aid in access to financial support. Furthermore, the study will address issues that impede SMMEs in South Africa from obtaining finance from financial institutions. The framework will be tested against data collected from 200 Small Micro & Medium Enterprises in the Gauteng province of South Africa. The study adopts a quantitative method, and the delivery of self-administered questionnaires to SMMEs will be the primary data collection tool. Structural equation modeling will be used to further analyse the data collected.

Keywords: finance, small business, growth, development

Procedia PDF Downloads 112

Authors: Safiullah Abdullahi

Abstract:

This paper describes the design of a digital control system which controls the speed and direction of a robot. The robot is expected to follow a black thick line with the highest possible speed and lowest error around the line. The control system of the robot will correct for the angle error that is made between the frame axis of the robot and the line. The cause for error is the difference in speed of the two driving wheels of the robot which are driven by two separate DC motors, whereas the speed difference in wheels is due to the un-modeled fraction that is available in the wheels with different magnitudes in each. The control scheme is that a number of photo sensors are mounted in the front of the robot and report their position in reference to the black line to the digital controller. The controller then, evaluates the position error and generates the needed duty cycle for the related wheel motor to drive it faster or slower.

Keywords: digital control, robot, controller, control system

Procedia PDF Downloads 551

Authors: Fatih Kılıç, Burak Birol, Necmettin Maraşlı

Abstract:

The directional solidification process is generally used for homogeneous compound production, single crystal growth, and refining (zone refining), etc. processes. The most important two parameters that control eutectic structures are temperature gradient and grain growth rate which are called as solidification parameters The solidification behavior and microstructure characteristics is an interesting topic due to their effects on the properties and performance of the alloys containing eutectic compositions. The solidification behavior of multicomponent and multiphase systems is an important parameter for determining various properties of these materials. The researches have been conducted mostly on the solidification of pure materials or alloys containing two phases. However, there are very few studies on the literature about multiphase reactions and microstructure formation of multicomponent alloys during solidification. Because of this situation, it is important to study the microstructure formation and the thermodynamical, thermophysical and microstructural properties of these alloys. The production process is difficult due to easy oxidation of magnesium and therefore, there is not a comprehensive study concerning alloys containing high Mg (> 30 wt.% Mg). With the increasing amount of Mg inside Al alloys, the specific weight decreases, and the strength shows a slight increase, while due to formation of β-Al8Mg5 phase, ductility lowers. For this reason, production, examination and development of high Mg containing alloys will initiate the production of new advanced engineering materials. The original value of this research can be described as obtaining high Mg containing (> 30% Mg) Al based multicomponent alloys by melting under vacuum; controlled directional solidification with various growth rates at a constant temperature gradient; and establishing relationship between solidification rate and microstructural, mechanical, electrical and thermal properties. Therefore, within the scope of this research, some > 30% Mg containing ternary or quaternary Al alloy compositions were determined, and it was planned to investigate the effects of directional solidification rate on the mechanical, electrical and thermal properties of these alloys. Within the scope of the research, the influence of the growth rate on microstructure parameters, microhardness, tensile strength, electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity of directionally solidified high Mg containing Al-32,2Mg-0,37Si; Al-30Mg-12Zn; Al-32Mg-1,7Ni; Al-32,2Mg-0,37Fe; Al-32Mg-1,7Ni-0,4Si; Al-33,3Mg-0,35Si-0,11Fe (wt.%) alloys with wide range of growth rate (50-2500 µm/s) and fixed temperature gradient, will be investigated. The work can be planned as; (a) directional solidification of Al-Mg based Al-Mg-Si, Al-Mg-Zn, Al-Mg-Ni, Al-Mg-Fe, Al-Mg-Ni-Si, Al-Mg-Si-Fe within wide range of growth rates (50-2500 µm/s) at a constant temperature gradient by Bridgman type solidification system, (b) analysis of microstructure parameters of directionally solidified alloys by using an optical light microscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), (c) measurement of microhardness and tensile strength of directionally solidified alloys, (d) measurement of electrical conductivity by four point probe technique at room temperature (e) measurement of thermal conductivity by linear heat flow method at room temperature.

Keywords: directional solidification, electrical conductivity, high Mg containing multicomponent Al alloys, microhardness, microstructure, tensile strength, thermal conductivity

Procedia PDF Downloads 260

Authors: Haffaf Hafid

Abstract:

Hypergraphs, after being used to model the structural organization of System of Sytems (SoS) at macroscopic level, has recent trends towards generalizing this powerful representation at different stages of complex system modelling. In this paper, we first describe different applications of hypergraph theory, and step by step, introduce multilevel modeling of SoS by means of integrating Constraint Programming Langages (CSP) dealing with engineering system reconfiguration strategy. As an application, we give an A.C.T Terminal controlled by a set of Intelligent Automated Vehicle.

Keywords: hypergraph model, structural analysis, bipartite graph, monitoring, system of systems, reconfiguration analysis, hypernetwork

Procedia PDF Downloads 488

Authors: N. Ravikumar, S. Krishnan, B. Yokeshkumar

Abstract:

In present days, the power quality issues are increases due to non-linear loads like fridge, AC, washing machines, induction motor, etc. This power quality issues will affects the output voltages, output current, and output power of the total performance of the generator. This paper explains how to test the generator using the Fluke 435 II series power quality analyser. This Fluke 435 II series power quality analyser is used to measure the voltage, current, power, energy, total harmonic distortion (THD), current harmonics, voltage harmonics, power factor, and frequency. The Fluke 435 II series power quality analyser have several advantages. They are i) it will records output in analog and digital format. ii) the fluke analyzer will records at every 0.25 sec. iii) it will also measure all the electrical parameter at a time.

Keywords: THD, harmonics, power quality, TNEB, Fluke 435

Procedia PDF Downloads 177

Authors: Sungin Jeong

Abstract:

This paper presents a linear oscillating generator of cylindrical type for hybrid electric vehicle application. The focus of the study is the suggestion of the optimal model and the design rule of the cylindrical linear oscillating generator with permanent magnet in the back-iron translator. The cylindrical topology is achieved using equivalent magnetic circuit considering leakage elements as initial modeling. This topology with permanent magnet in the back-iron translator is described by number of phases and displacement of stroke. For more accurate analysis of an oscillating machine, it will be compared by moving just one-pole pitch forward and backward the thrust of single-phase system and three-phase system. Through the analysis and comparison, a single-phase system of cylindrical topology as the optimal topology is selected. Finally, the detailed design of the optimal topology takes the magnetic saturation effects into account by finite element analysis. Besides, the losses are examined to obtain more accurate results; copper loss in the conductors of machine windings, eddy-current loss of permanent magnet, and iron-loss of specific material of electrical steel. The considerations of thermal performances and mechanical robustness are essential, because they have an effect on the entire efficiency and the insulations of the machine due to the losses of the high temperature generated in each region of the generator. Besides electric machine with linear oscillating movement requires a support system that can resist dynamic forces and mechanical masses. As a result, the fatigue analysis of shaft is achieved by the kinetic equations. Also, the thermal characteristics are analyzed by the operating frequency in each region. The results of this study will give a very important design rule in the design of linear oscillating machines. It enables us to more accurate machine design and more accurate prediction of machine performances.

Keywords: equivalent magnetic circuit, finite element analysis, hybrid electric vehicle, linear oscillating generator

Procedia PDF Downloads 195

Authors: Rishi Saxena

Abstract:

Cyanobacteria is a photosynthetic prokaryote, and these obtain their energy through photosynthesis. In this paper, we studied the effect of iron on metabolic changes in the diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaena PCC 7120. Nowadays, metal contamination due to natural and anthropogenic sources is a global environment concern. Iron induced changes in growth, N2-fixation, CO2 fixation and photosynthetic activity were studied in a diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaena PCC 7120. Iron at 50 uM concentration supported the maximum growth, heterocyst frequency, CO2 fixation, photosystem I (PS I), photosystem II (PS II) and nitrogenase activities in the organism. Higher concentration of iron inhibited these processes. Chl a and PS II activities were more sensitive to iron than the protein and PS I activity. Here, it is also mentioned that heavy metal induced altered macromolecules metabolism and changes in the central dogma of life (DNA→ mRNA → Protein). And also recent advances have been made in understanding heavy metal-cyanobacteria interaction and their application for metal detoxification.

Keywords: cyanobacterium anabaena 7120, nitrogen fixation, photosystem I (PS I), photosystem II (PS II)

Procedia PDF Downloads 137