Search results for: Anthony R. Hassan

Authors: Anthony Oppong Kyekyeku, Sussana Antwi-Boasiako, Emmanuel De-Graft Johnson Owusu Ansah

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In this observational study, the performance of a known conventional storage system was tested and evaluated for fitness for its intended purpose. The system has a scope extended for the storage of dry cocoa beans. System sensitivity, reproducibility and uncertainties are not known in details. This study discusses the system performance in the context of existing literature on factors that influence the quality of cocoa beans during storage. Controlled conditions were defined precisely for the system to give reliable base line within specific established procedures. Minitab® 17 and R statistical software (R-3.3.1) were used for the statistical analyses. The approach to the storage system testing was to observe and compare through laboratory test methods the quality of the cocoa beans samples before and after storage. The samples were kept in Kilner jars and the temperature of the storage environment controlled and monitored over a period of 408 days. Standard test methods use in international trade of cocoa such as the cut test analysis, moisture determination with Aqua boy KAM III model and bean count determination were used for quality assessment. The data analysis assumed the entire population as a sample in order to establish a reliable baseline to the data collected. The study concluded a statistically significant mean value at 95% Confidence Interval (CI) for the performance data analysed before and after storage for all variables observed. Correlational graphs showed a strong positive correlation for all variables investigated with the exception of All Other Defect (AOD). The weak relationship between the before and after data for AOD had an explained variability of 51.8% with the unexplained variability attributable to the uncontrolled condition of hidden infestation before storage. The current study concluded with a high-performance criterion for the storage system.

Keywords: benchmarking performance data, cocoa beans, hidden infestation, storage system validation

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Authors: Babak Moradi, Hassan Zare-Maivan

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A greenhouse investigation has been conducted to study the effect of crude oil on morphology and protein content of Avicennia marina plant. Avicennia marina seeds were sown in different concentrations of the crude oil mixed soil (i.e., 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 w/w). Controls and replicates were also set up. Morphological traits were recorded 4 months after plantation. Avicennia marina seedlings could tolerate up to 10% (w/w). Results demonstrated that there was a reduction in plant shoot and root biomass with the increase of crude oil concentration. Plant height, total leaf number and length reduced significantly with increase of crude oil contamination. Investigation revealed that there is a great impact of crude oil contamination on protein content of the roots of the experimental plant. Protein content of roots grown in different concentrations of crude oil were more than those of the control plant. Further, results also showed that protein content was increased with increased concentration of crude oil.

Keywords: Avicennia marina, morphology, oil contamination, protein content

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Authors: Binod Shrestha, Sandrine Hoppe, Thierry Ghislain, Phillipe Marchal, Nicolas Brosse, Anthony Dufour

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The thermochemical conversion of lignin has received an increasing interest in the frame of different biorefinery concepts for the production of chemicals or energy. It is needed to better understand the physical and chemical conversion of lignin for feeder and reactor designs. In-situ rheology reveals the viscoelastic behaviour of lignin upon thermal conversion. The softening, re-solidification (char formation), swelling and shrinking behaviours are quantified during pyrolysis in real-time [1]. The in-situ rheology of an alkali lignin (Protobind 1000) was conducted in high torque controlled strain rheometer from 35°C to 400°C with a heating rate of 5°C.min-1. The swelling, through glass phase transition overlapped with depolymerization, and solidification (crosslinking and “char” formation) are two main phenomena observed during lignin pyrolysis. The onset of temperatures for softening and solidification for this lignin has been found to be 141°C and 248°C respectively. An ex-situ characterization of lignin/char residues obtained at different temperatures after quenching in the rheometer gives a clear understanding of the pathway of lignin degradation. The lignin residues were sampled from the mid-point temperatures of the softening range and solidification range to study the chemical transformations undergoing. Elemental analysis, FTIR and solid state NMR were conducted after quenching the solid residues (lignin/char). The quenched solid was also extracted by suitable solvent and followed by acetylation and GPC-UV analysis. The combination of 13C NMR and GPC-UV reveals the depolymerization followed by crosslinking of lignin/char. NMR and FTIR provide the evolution of functional moieties upon temperature. Physical and chemical mechanisms occurring during lignin pyrolysis are accounted in this study. Thanks to all these complementary methods.

Keywords: pyrolysis, bio-chemicals, valorization, mechanism, softening, solidification, cross linking, rheology, spectroscopic methods

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Authors: Lucilla Crosta, Anthony Edwards

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Companies and the market place nowadays struggle to find employees with adequate skills in relation to anticipated growth of their businesses. At least half of workers will need to undertake some form of up-skilling process in the next five years in order to remain aligned with the requests of the market . In order to meet these challenges, there is a clear need to explore the potential uses of AI (artificial Intelligence) based tools in assessing transversal skills (critical thinking, communication and soft skills of different types in general) of workers and adult students while empowering them to develop those same skills in a reliable trustworthy way. Companies seek workers with key transversal skills that can make a difference between workers now and in the future. However, critical thinking seems to be the one of the most imprtant skill, bringing unexplored ideas and company growth in business contexts. What employers have been reporting since years now, is that this skill is lacking in the majority of workers and adult students, and this is particularly visible trough their writing. This paper investigates how critical thinking and communication skills are currently developed in Higher Education environments through use of AI tools at postgraduate levels. It analyses the use of a branch of AI namely Machine Learning and Big Data and of Neural Network Analysis. It also examines the potential effect the acquisition of these skills through AI tools and what kind of effects this has on employability This paper will draw information from researchers and studies both at national (Italy & UK) and international level in Higher Education. The issues associated with the development and use of one specific AI tool Edulai, will be examined in details. Finally comparisons will be also made between these tools and the more recent phenomenon of Chat GPT and forthcomings and drawbacks will be analysed.

Keywords: critical thinking, artificial intelligence, higher education, soft skills, chat GPT

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Authors: Viana Hassan

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Each year, 600 million tourists travelled abroad to practice several types of tourism. Nowadays, whatever is the type of tourism practiced it considered as a real public health problem which can contribute the spread of several diseases such as AIDS, H1N1, NDM1 With regard to HIV/AIDS, Lebanon is always considered as a low HIV prevalence country. However, the potential risks associated with the mobility of the population, migration and tourism. The total number of cases reported by the ministry of health since 1989 until the end of 2011 is of 1455 cases, with an average of 85 new cases per year over the last three years. The main reason of the increased number is Travel and migration which represent 50% of the risks reported by cumulative cases. Given the interest of this kind of epidemic it would be interesting to study the Evolution of HIV/ AIDS and its relation with travel and tourism The main aim of this research is to study in general the relation between tourism and health, more specific to understand the relation between Tourism and AIDS, the problem of the transmission of HIV in Lebanon, the ways of contamination and the countries in which these people are contaminated.

Keywords: AIDS, tourism, health, Lebanon

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Authors: Soroush Rasti Boroujeni, S. Hassan Mousavi, Javad Ebrahimizadeh, Ardeshir Palizban, Mohammad-Reza Nezhad-Ahmadi, Safieddin Safavi-Naeini

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This paper presents a wideband True Time Delay (TTD) phase shifter with low insertion loss variation. The circuit benefits from a controllable resistive load shunt with transmission line segments to optimize return loss variations, addressing the unbalanced capacitive nature of the varactor. The phase shifter reduces the complexity of the calibration process because the dependency of insertion loss on voltage controls is improved up to 3 dB. The TTD phase shifter provides a continuous changing delay time of 6.4 ps with low insertion loss (IL) in the 10-35 GHz frequency range. The proposed circuit benefits from lowloss phase shifters with a small footprint. Fabricated using a 65 nm CMOC process, the TTD phase shifter occupies only 388 × 615 µm 2 of chip area, achieving a 20% improvements compared to conventional TTD phase shifters.

Keywords: millimeter-wave phased-array, true time delay phase shifter, insertion loss variation, compact size

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Authors: Khalid Mujaljal, Hassan Alhajhoj

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This paper empirically investigates the influence of oil price fluctuations on the key macroeconomic variables of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia using unrestricted VAR methodology. Two analytical tools- Granger-causality and variance decomposition are used. The Granger-causality test reveals that almost all specifications of oil price shocks significantly Granger-cause GDP and demonstrates evidence of causality between oil price changes and money supply (M3) and consumer price index percent (CPIPC) in the case of positive oil price shocks. Surprisingly, almost all specifications of oil price shocks do not Granger-cause government expenditure. The outcomes from variance decomposition analysis suggest that positive oil shocks contribute about 25 percent in causing inflation in the country. Also, contribution of symmetric linear oil price shocks and asymmetric positive oil price shocks is significant and persistent with 25 percent explaining variation in world consumer price index till end of the period.

Keywords: Granger causality, oil prices changes, Saudi Arabian economy, variance decomposition

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Authors: Hamid Fazlollahi, Behzad Rafezy, Hassan Afshin

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There masonry infill increases the stiffness of reinforced concrete frames, thus increasing the force of the earthquake also the interaction between the frame and infill, which can have devastating effects on structures. In contrast presence of infill to increase the structural strength and stability. What is seen in the construction and design of structures has largely ignored the effects of infill and regardless infill structure and its positive and negative effects analyzes and designs, that it is not economically justified and the positive effects of positive infill to be increased and almost all of the useful capacity of moment frames used for infill. In this paper, by using ABAQUS software, reinforced concrete frame with masonry infill will be modeled, then add a mechanical rubber element to modify the interaction between the frame and infill and thus reduce the losses caused by the presence of infill explains. Finally, by comparing the analytical curves, benefits of this approach we will study and to present the results of the interaction between the frame and infill masonry needs modification and methods it will provide.

Keywords: masonry infill, mechanical rubber, reinforced concrete frame, interaction, ductility

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Authors: Rosilah Hassan, Karam Dhafer Mayoof, Norngainy Mohd Tawil, Shamshubaridah Ramlee

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Application of adaptive online quiz system and a design are performed in this paper. The purpose of adaptive quiz system is to establish different questions automatically for each student and measure their competence on a definite area of discipline. This model determines students competencies in cases like distant-learning which experience challenges frequently. Questions are specialized to allow clear deductions about student gains; they are able to identify student competencies more effectively. Also, negative effects of questions requiring higher knowledge than competency over student’s morale and self-confidence are dismissed. The advantage of the system in the quiz management requires less total time for measuring and is more flexible. Self sufficiency of the system in terms of repeating, planning and assessment of the measurement process allows itself to be used in the individual education sets. Adaptive quiz technique prevents students from distraction and motivation loss, which is led by the questions with quite lower hardness level than student’s competency.

Keywords: e-learning, adaptive system, security, quiz database

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Authors: Assma Azeroual, Karim Afdel, Mohamed El Hajji, Hassan Douzi

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Key frame extraction methods select the most representative frames of a video, which can be used in different areas of video processing such as video retrieval, video summary, and video indexing. In this paper we present a novel approach for extracting key frames from video sequences. The frame is characterized uniquely by his contours which are represented by the dominant blocks. These dominant blocks are located on the contours and its near textures. When the video frames have a noticeable changement, its dominant blocks changed, then we can extracte a key frame. The dominant blocks of every frame is computed, and then feature vectors are extracted from the dominant blocks image of each frame and arranged in a feature matrix. Singular Value Decomposition is used to calculate sliding windows ranks of those matrices. Finally the computed ranks are traced and then we are able to extract key frames of a video. Experimental results show that the proposed approach is robust against a large range of digital effects used during shot transition.

Keywords: FSDWT, key frame extraction, shot detection, singular value decomposition

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Authors: Michael Anthony Doherty

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Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) is a significant topic in the construction industry; while reviewing (MMC) over different fields that are significant in the modern construction world, the following areas were assessed where (MMC) is developing, supply chain management, automation, digital technology, and new construction technologies. Different methods were considered as an approach to research and exploring areas highlighted within the construction industry that are making advancements using Modern Methods of Construction Methods and Technologies (MCMTs). The research was conducted using the following methodologies, literature review of academic sources, primary and secondary data sources, questionaries, and interviews. The paper is composed of two parts, firstly a literature review and secondly a questionnaire used as the basis for interviews were utilised to achieve the following key objectives: to identify (MCMTs) being implemented in the construction industry, research and compile information with regards to these methods, determine their purpose and their application in the industry, establishing what (MCMTs) are being used in the industry while also determining the success of the methods. The research considers the evolution and development of these methods in projects and within the industry itself. Major findings were as follows; automation technologies such as robotics, offsite fabrication utilising automated production lines are increasingly part of project execution, digital technologies such as AR and VR are increasingly utilised in project co-ordination, (MMCTs) are proving to be a solution to the construction industry problems such as a lack of skilled workforce, hazardous work tasks, and situations, new construction technologies are available and finding their place in mainstream construction, (SCM) and (GSCM) are evolving to new levels using new systems and technologies such as block chain technology as well as Company Size and Project size influence the use of (MMCTs) and the adoption of (MMCTS). In summary the paper endeavours to identify and detail how areas of (MMCTs) are developing and are gaining traction within mainstream construction.

Keywords: automation, digital technology, new construction technologies, supply chain management

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Authors: Hassan Adedoyin Rasaq

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The marketing efforts of the present day business is not just geared towards meeting the consumer’s needs at a price, but ensuring good customer satisfaction, and strategizing on how to retain such customers. Customer satisfaction and retention is achievable through the co-ordination of the marketing mixes; Product, Price, Promotion and Place; Relationship Marketing; After-Sales Service; Rebates/Discounts/Price reduction policy and Total Quality Management (TQM). A first-hand customer, If well satisfied, will become a company’s repeat customer, proceeds to become a client and goes further to become an advocate of the company by applauding the company’s products/services and encouraging others to buy from it. It is the objective of this paper, therefore, to guide business organizations on how to enhance customer satisfaction, and retain existing customers as a means of long-term survival in marketing. The responses of 72 randomly selected Marketing personnel spread across three (3) food and beverage companies in Nigeria were analyzed. One hypothesis was tested using a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) statistical tool, and it was discovered that Relationship marketing contributed to organizational profitability and growth.

Keywords: customer satisfaction, retention strategies, marketing, marketing mixes

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Authors: Syed Mahbubuz Zaman, A. B. M. Abrar Haque, Mehedi Hassan Nayeem, Misbah Uddin Sagor

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Everyday e-mails are being used by millions of people as an effective form of communication over the Internet. Although e-mails allow high-speed communication, there is a constant threat known as spam. Spam e-mail is often called junk e-mails which are unsolicited and sent in bulk. These unsolicited emails cause security concerns among internet users because they are being exposed to inappropriate content. There is no guaranteed way to stop spammers who use static filters as they are bypassed very easily. In this paper, a smart system is proposed that will be using neural networks to approach spam in a different way, and meanwhile, this will also detect the most relevant features that will help to design the spam filter. Also, a comparison of different parameters for different neural network models has been shown to determine which model works best within suitable parameters.

Keywords: long short-term memory, bidirectional long short-term memory, gated recurrent unit, natural language processing, natural language processing

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Authors: Hassan Jassim Motlak

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A novel design technique employing CMOS Current Feedback Operational Amplifier (CFOA) is presented. The feature of consumption whivh has a very low power in designing pseudo-OTA is used to decreasing the total power consumption of the proposed CFOA. This design approach applies pseudo-OTA as input stage cascaded with buffer stage. Moreover, the DC input offset voltage and harmonic distortion (HD) of the proposed CFOA are very low values compared with the conventional CMOS CFOA due to symmetrical input stage. P-Spice simulation results using 0.18µm MIETEC CMOS process parameters using supply voltage of ±1.2V and 50μA biasing current. The P-Spice simulation shows excellent improvement of the proposed CFOA over existing CMOS CFOA. Some of these performance parameters, for example, are DC gain of 62. dB, open-loop gain-bandwidth product of 108 MHz, slew rate (SR+) of +71.2V/µS, THD of -63dB and DC consumption power (PC) of 2mW.

Keywords: pseudo-OTA used CMOS CFOA, low power CFOA, high-performance CFOA, novel CFOA

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Authors: Mohammed Hassan Alshaikhi

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Vocabulary is essential factor of learning and mastering any languages, and it helps learners to communicate with others and to be understood. The aim of this study was to examine whether semantic mapping technique was helpful in terms of improving student's English vocabulary learning comparing to the traditional technique. The students’ age was between 11 and 13 years old. There were 60 students in total who participated in this study. 30 students were in the treatment group (target vocabulary items were taught with semantic mapping). The other 30 students were in the control group (the target vocabulary items were taught by a traditional technique). A t-test was used with the results of pre-test and post-test in order to examine the outcomes of using semantic mapping when teaching vocabulary. The results showed that the vocabulary mastery in the treatment group was increased more than the control group.

Keywords: English language, learning vocabulary, Saudi teachers, semantic mapping, teaching vocabulary strategies

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Authors: Aliasghar Baziar, Hassan Masoumi, Alireza Ale Saadi

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The control of the response of electric motors plays a significant role in the damping of transient responses. In this regard, this paper presents a static VAR compensator (SVC) based on a fuzzy logic which is applied to an industrial power network consisting of three phase synchronous, asynchronous and DC motor loads. The speed and acceleration variations of a specific machine are the inputs of the proposed fuzzy logic controller (FLC). In order to verify the effectiveness and proficiency of the proposed Fuzzy Logic based SVC (FLSVC), several non-linear time-domain digital simulation tests are performed. The proposed fuzzy model can properly control the response of electric motors. The results show that the FLSVC is successful to improve the voltage profile significantly over a wide range of operating conditions and disturbances thus improving the overall dynamic performance of the network.

Keywords: fuzzy logic controller, VAR compensator, single cage asynchronous motor, DC motor

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Authors: Farhia Hassan Mohamed

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This study examined the macroeconomic factors that affect the inflation Rate in Somalia using quarterly time series data from 1991q1 to 2017q4 retired from World Development Indicators and SESRIC. It employed the vector error correction model (VECM) and Granger Causality method to measure the long-run and short-run causality of the GDP, inflation exchange rate, and unemployment. The study confirmed that there is one cointegration equation between GDP, exchange rate, inflation, and unemployment in Somalia. However, the VECM model's result indicates a long-run relationship among variables. The VEC Granger causality/Block Exogeneity Wald test result confirmed that all covariates are statistically significant at 5% and are Granger's cause of inflation in the short term. Finally, the impulse response result showed that inflation responds negatively to the shocks from the exchange rate and unemployment rate and positively to GDP and itself. Drawing from the empirical findings, the study makes several policy recommendations for both the monetary and Government sides.

Keywords: CPI, OP, exchange rate, inflation ADF, Johansen, PP, VECM, impulse, ECT

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Authors: Lakmali Anthony, Bushra Oathman, Anshini Jain, Raaj Chandra

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Introduction: Abscesses are traditionally treated by incision and drainage with the packing of the residual abscess cavity until healing. This method requires regular visits from community nurses for continuous wound packing upon discharge from the hospital and causes considerable patient discomfort. Whether abscess cavity packing offers any advantage over non-packing has not yet been adequately studied to the best of our knowledge. This study aims to determine if there are differences in clinical outcomes of time to healing, fistula formation and recurrence of abscess between abscess cavity packing vs. non-packing groups. Methods: This study was a single-center, single-blind, randomized controlled trial where patients were randomized into packing and non-packing arms. All patients over 18 years presenting to Eastern Health with an abscess requiring incision and drainage in the theatre were invited to participate. Those with underlying conditions that cause recurrent abscesses were excluded. Data were collected from December 2018 to April 2020. Results: There were 63 patients who had abscesses treated with incision and drainage that were enrolled in the study, 52 of which were suitable for analysis. Demographic characteristics were similar in both groups. The packing group had a significantly longer time to heal compared to the non-packing group. Rates of fistula formation and recurrence of abscess were low and there were no statistically significant differences between groups. The packing group had more patients with delayed healing (defined as >60 days) and required more follow-up visits compared to the non-packing group. Conclusion: This pilot study indicates that abscesses can not only be managed safely with incision and drainage alone without the need for continuous abscess cavity packing but also that non-packing may offer clinical benefits to patients with earlier healing of abscesses compared to continuous cavity packing.

Keywords: abscess packing, subcutaneous, perianal, pilonidal

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Authors: Mary-Ellen Hooper, Graeme Browne, Anthony Paul O'Brien

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Background: It has been reported that the experience of the organisational workplace culture for new graduate mental health nurses plays an important role in their attraction and retention to the discipline. Additionally, other research indicates that a negative workplace culture contributes to their dissatisfaction and attrition rate. Method: An ethnographic research design was applied to explore the subcultural experiences of new graduate nurses as they encounter mental health nursing. Data was collected between April and September 2017 across 6 separate Australian, NSW, mental health units. Data comprised of semi-structured interviews (n=24) and 31 episodes of field observation (62 hours). A total number of 26 new graduate and recent graduate nurses participated in the study – 14 new graduate nurses and 12 recently graduated nurses. Results: A key finding from this study was the New Graduate difficulty in articulating the role the of mental health nurse. Participants described a dichotomy between their ideological view of the mental health nurse and the reality of clinical practice. The participants’ ideological view of the mental health nurse involved providing holistic and individualised care within a flexible framework. Participants, however, described feeling powerless to change the recovery practices within the mental health service(s) because of their low status within the hierarchy. Resulting in participants choosing to fit into the existing culture, or considering leaving the field altogether. Conclusion: An incongruence between the values and ideals of an organisational culture and the reality shock of practice are shown to contribute to role ambiguity within its members. New graduate nurses entering the culture of mental health nursing describe role ambiguity resulting in dissatisfaction with practice. The culture and philosophy inherent to a service are posited to be crucial in creating positive experiences for graduate nurses.

Keywords: culture, mental health nurse, mental health nursing role, new graduate nurse

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Authors: Alireza Ghaffari, Hassan Saghi

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Project management is more complex than managing the day-to-day affairs of an organization. When the project dimensions are broad and multiple projects have to be monitored in different locations, the integrated management becomes even more complicated. One of the main concerns of project managers is the integrated project management, which is mainly rooted in the lack of accurate and accessible information from different projects in various locations. The collection of dispersed information from various parts of the network, their integration and finally the selective reporting of this information is among the goals of integrated information systems. It can help resolve the main problem, which is bridging the information gap between executives and senior managers in the organization. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to design and implement an important subset of a project management information system in order to successfully control the cost of construction projects so that its results can be used to design raw software forms and proposed relationships between different project units for the collection of necessary information.

Keywords: financial performance, cost subsystem, PMIS, project management

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Authors: Saleh H. Abud, Z. Hassan, F. K. Yam

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Characteristics of MSM photodetector based on a porous In0.08Ga0.92N thin film were reported. Nanoporous structures of n-type In0.08Ga0.92N/AlN/Si thin films were synthesized by photoelectrochemical (PEC) etching at a ratio of 1:4 of HF:C2H5OH solution for 15 min. The structural and optical properties of pre- and post-etched thin films were investigated. Field emission scanning electron microscope and atomic force microscope images showed that the pre-etched thin film has a sufficiently smooth surface over a large region and the roughness increased for porous film. Blue shift has been observed in photoluminescence emission peak at 300 K for porous sample. The photoluminescence intensity of the porous film indicated that the optical properties have been enhanced. A high work function metals (Pt and Ni) were deposited as a metal contact on the porous films. The rise and recovery times of the devices were investigated at 390 nm chopped light. Finally, the sensitivity and quantum efficiency were also studied.

Keywords: porous InGaN, photoluminescence, SMS photodetector, atomic force microscopy

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Authors: M. H. Yee, J. Md Yunos, W. Othman, R. Hassan, T. K. Tee, M. M. Mohamad

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The generation of an idea that goes through several phases is affected by individual factors, interests, preferences and motivation. The purpose of this research was to analyze the difference in difficulties of generating ideas according to individual learning styles. A total of 375 technical students from four technical universities in Malaysia were randomly selected as samples. The Kolb Learning Styles Inventory and a set of developed questionnaires were used in this research. The results showed that the most dominant learning style is among technical students is Doer. A total of 319 (85.1%) technical students faced difficulties in solving individual assignments. Most of the problem faced by technical students is the difficulty of generating ideas for solving individual assignments. There was no significant difference in difficulties of generating ideas according to students’ learning styles. Therefore, students need to learn higher order thinking skills enabling students to generate ideas and consequently complete assignments.

Keywords: difference, difficulties, generating idea, learning styles, Kolb Learning Styles Inventory

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Authors: Shahzad Hassan, Kamran Saeed

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People are always in search of Wi-Fi hotspots because Internet is a major demand nowadays. But like all other technologies, there is still room for improvement in the Wi-Fi technology with regards to the speed and quality of connectivity. In order to address these aspects, Harald Haas, a professor at the University of Edinburgh, proposed what we know as the Li-Fi (Light Fidelity). Li-Fi is a new technology in the field of wireless communication to provide connectivity within a network environment. It is a two-way mode of wireless communication using light. Basically, the data is transmitted through Light Emitting Diodes which can vary the intensity of light very fast, even faster than the blink of an eye. From the research and experiments conducted so far, it can be said that Li-Fi can increase the speed and reliability of the transfer of data. This paper pays particular attention on the assessment of the performance of this technology. In other words, it is a 5G technology which uses LED as the medium of data transfer. For coverage within the buildings, Wi-Fi is good but Li-Fi can be considered favorable in situations where large amounts of data are to be transferred in areas with electromagnetic interferences. It brings a lot of data related qualities such as efficiency, security as well as large throughputs to the table of wireless communication. All in all, it can be said that Li-Fi is going to be a future phenomenon where the presence of light will mean access to the Internet as well as speedy data transfer.

Keywords: communication, LED, Li-Fi, Wi-Fi

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Authors: Hassan Hajabdollahi

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Economic optimization of shell and tube heat exchanger (STHE) is presented in this paper. To increase the rate of heat transfer, copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticle is added into the tube side fluid and their optimum results are compared with the case of without additive nanoparticle. Total annual cost (TAC) is selected as fitness function and nine decision variables related to the heat exchanger parameters as well as concentration of nanoparticle are considered. Optimization results reveal the noticeable improvement in the TAC and in the case of heat exchanger working with nanofluid compared with the case of base fluid (8.9%). Comparison of the results between two studied cases also reveal that the lower tube diameter, tube number, and baffle spacing are needed in the case of heat exchanger working with nanofluid compared with the case of base fluid.

Keywords: shell and tube heat exchanger, nanoparticles additive, total annual cost, particle volumetric concentration

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Authors: Fatma Ezzahra Kateb, Neila Boulila Taktak, Mohamed Kabir Hassan

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We examine the impact of Islamic accounting and auditing standards issued by the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) on the income smoothing perspective of Islamic financial institutions located in the Middle East and North Africa region between 2013 and 2018. Based on General Least square regression for panel data, we find a significant and positive relationship between intentional income smoothing and earning persistence and cash flow predictability in all models. However, we discovered that AAOIFI accounting standards (FAS) had a negative and significant effect on intentional income smoothing and earning persistence. As a result, the income smoothing efficiency is lower for IFIs that use FASs than IFIs that use IFRSs. Our findings emphasize the need for specific standards to enhance the relevance of financial reports disclosed by Islamic financial institutions.

Keywords: AAOIFI, financial reporting quality, income smoothing perspective, MENA countries

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Authors: Hassan S. Naeini, Hashem Mosaddad

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Industrial design as a multidisciplinary science has a vast field in which some different aspects are involved. In this regard, aspects of art, technology and engineering, social and economics are known as the main related fields. Also, state of the art scientific areas and also art based files have been making the new conditions for industrial design discipline. Furthermore, there are some new approaches and branches of industrial design. However, there is not any categorized style for these industrial design sub-groups. Undoubtedly, if there is an appropriate chart for the main industrial design approaches and branches, the related groups such as industrial designers, manufacturers, and industrial design students will have practical ideas to categorize their activities. In this case study, we developed a scientific umbrella for industrial design in which most of current approaches and branches and related association are introduced. For data gathering, some interviews were done among volunteer industrial design lecturers who are teaching at some well-known universities in Iran. Also, according to the inventory of industrial design, theses which are in university libraries, thesis approaches, and titles were assessed. Based on gathered data, we introduced a scientific umbrella for industrial design in which most of related branches and approaches are categorized. In this umbrella, the hierarchy of related branches is highlighted as well.

Keywords: industrial design, art, industrial design approaches, scientific umbrella

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Authors: Ali Abojassim, Nabeel Kadhim, Adil Jaber, Ali Hussein

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Water quality index (WQI) is valuable and unique rating to depict the total water quality status in a single term that is helpful for the selection of appropriate treatment technique to meet the concerned issues. Fifteen surface water samples were collected from the Euphrates river within AlHaydria is sub district of AL-Najaf (Iraq). The quality of surface water were evaluated by testing various physicochemical parameters such as pH, Total Dissolved Solid (TDS), , Calcium, Chloride, Sulphate and Electrical conductivity. The WQI for all samples were found in the range of 25.92 to 47.22. The highest value of WQI was observed in the Ali Hajj Hassan(SW4,SW8), El Haj Abdel Sayed (SW 10 to SW 12)and Hasan alsab(SW 14) sampling locations. Most of the water samples within study area were found good to moderate categories. most of the water samples for study area were found good as well as moderate categories

Keywords: water quality index, GIS, physicochemical parameters, Iraq Standards for irrigation purpose 2012

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Authors: Shahbaz G. Hassan

Abstract:

Water quality models are very important to predict the changes in surface water quality for environmental management. The aim of this paper is to give an overview of the water qualities, and to provide directions for selecting models in specific situation. Water quality models include one kind of model based on a mechanistic approach, while other models simulate water quality without considering a mechanism. Mechanistic models can be widely applied and have capabilities for long-time simulation, with highly complexity. Therefore, more spaces are provided to explain the principle and application experience of mechanistic models. Mechanism models have certain assumptions on rivers, lakes and estuaries, which limits the application range of the model, this paper introduces the principles and applications of water quality model based on the above three scenarios. On the other hand, mechanistic models are more easily to compute, and with no limit to the geographical conditions, but they cannot be used with confidence to simulate long term changes. This paper divides the empirical models into two broad categories according to the difference of mathematical algorithm, models based on artificial intelligence and models based on statistical methods.

Keywords: empirical models, mathematical, statistical, water quality

Procedia PDF Downloads 264

Authors: B. Safsaf, M. Tlidjane, B. Mamache, M. A. Dehimi, H. Boukrous, Aly A. Hassan

Abstract:

The aim of this study is to determine the effect of age and physiological status on progesterone and energy metabolism of Ouled Djellal (O.D) breed ewes. 40 healthy ewes were divided into two groups, primiparous and multiparous, with 20 ewes in each group. The body weights (BW) (kg) were 46.6 ± 4.20 and 59.2 ± 3.02, and consuming less 25 to 30% of their basal energetic requirements. The values of serum glucose, triglycerides and cholesterol were lower in pregnant than in non-pregnant ewes. The high to very high significant differences were found during the 15th week of pregnancy for glycaemia and triglyceridemia respectively. Concerning serum progesterone, a very highly significant difference (p < 0.001) was noted in the pregnant group, and the values were higher in MP than in PP. After lambing, the triglyceridemia values were slightly lower in primiparous than in multiparous pregnant ewes. In order to prevent imbalance during critical periods of reproduction, we can use the serum metabolic profile.

Keywords: age, energy metabolites, ouled djellal breed ewes, physiologic status, progesterone

Procedia PDF Downloads 580

Authors: Maryam Nejat Dehkordi, Per Lincoln, Hassan Momtaz

Abstract:

Interaction of Schiff base complexes of iron and manganese (iron [N, N’ Bis (5-(triphenyl phosphonium methyl) salicylidene) -1, 2 ethanediamine) chloride, [Fe Salen]Cl, manganese [N, N’ Bis (5-(triphenyl phosphonium methyl) salicylidene) -1, 2 ethanediamine) acetate) with DNA were investigated by spectroscopic and isothermal titration calorimetry techniques (ITC). The absorbance spectra of complexes have shown hyper and hypochromism in the presence of DNA that is indication of interaction of complexes with DNA. The linear dichroism (LD) measurements confirmed the bending of DNA in the presence of complexes. Furthermore, isothermal titration calorimetry experiments approved that complexes bound to DNA on the base of both electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions. Furthermore, ITC profile exhibits the existence of two binding phases for the complex. Antibacterial activity of ligand and complexes were tested in vitro to evaluate their activity against the gram positive and negative bacteria.

Keywords: Schiff base complexes, ct-DNA, linear dichroism (LD), isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), antibacterial activity

Procedia PDF Downloads 470