Search results for: supply chain competitiveness

Authors: Jacob Seddlemeyer, Tahar Messadi, Hongmei Gu, Mahboobeh Hemmati

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The main purpose of this first tier of the study is to quantify and compare the embodied environmental impacts associated with alternative materials applied to Adohi Hall, a residence building at the University of Arkansas campus, Fayetteville, AR. This 200,000square foot building has5 stories builtwith mass timber and is compared to another scenario where the same edifice is built with a steel frame. Based on the defined goal and scope of the project, the materials respectivetothe respective to the two building options are compared in terms of Global Warming Potential (GWP), starting from cradle to the construction site, which includes the material manufacturing stage (raw material extract, process, supply, transport, and manufacture) plus transportation to the site (module A1-A4, based on standard EN 15804 definition). The consumedfossil fuels and emitted CO2 associated with the buildings are the major reason for the environmental impacts of climate change. In this study, GWP is primarily assessed to the exclusion of other environmental factors. The second tier of this work is to evaluate Tally’s performance in the decision-making process through the design phases, as well as determine its strengths and weaknesses. Tally is a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tool capable of conducting a cradle-to-grave analysis. As opposed to other software applications, Tally is specifically targeted at buildings LCA. As a peripheral application, this software tool is directly run within the core modeling application platform called Revit. This unique functionality causes Tally to stand out from other similar tools in the building sector LCA analysis. The results of this study also provide insights for making more environmentally efficient decisions in the building environment and help in the move forward to reduce Green House Gases (GHGs) emissions and GWP mitigation.

Keywords: comparison, GWP, LCA, materials, tally

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Authors: Hussein M. Etmimi, Peter E. Mallon

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Electrospinning uses an electrical charge to draw very fine fibers (typically on the micro or nano scale) from a liquid or molten precursor. Over the years, this method has become a widely used and a successful technique to process polymer materials and their composites into nanofibers. The main focus of this work is to study the electrospinning of multi-phase amphiphilic copolymers and their nanocomposites, which contain graphene as the nanofiller material. In such amphiphilic materials, the constituents segments are incompatible and thus the solid state morphology will be determined by the composition of the various constituents as well as the method of preparation. In this study, amphiphilic block copolymers of poly(dimethyl siloxane) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PDMS-b-PMMA) with well-defined structures were synthesized and the solution electrospinning of these materials and their properties were investigated. Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) was used to obtain the controlled block copolymers with relatively high molar masses and narrow dispersity. First, PDMS macroinitiators with different chain length of 1000, 5000 and 10000 g/mol were synthesized by the reaction of monocarbinol terminated PDMS with α-bromoisobutyryl bromide initiator. The obtained macroinitiators were used for the polymerization of methyl methacrylate monomer to obtain the desired block copolymers using the ATRP process. Graphene oxide (GO) of different loading was then added to the copolymer solution and the resultant nanocomposites were successfully electrospun into nanofibers. The electrospinning was achieved using dimethylformamide/chloroform mixture (60:40 vl%) as electrospinning solution medium. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed the successful formation of the electrospun fibers with dimensions in the nanometer range. X-ray diffraction indicated that the GO nanosheets were of an exfoliated structure, irrespective of the filler loading. Thermogravimetric analysis also showed that the thermal stability of the nanofibers was improved in the presence of GO, which was not a function of the filler loading. Differential scanning calorimetry also showed that the mechanical properties (measured as glass transition temperature) of the nanofibers was improved significantly in the presence of GO, which was a function of the filler loading.

Keywords: elctrospinning, graphene oxide, nanofibers, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)

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Authors: Yan Bachtiar Muslih, Hangga Wijaya, Trio Fani, Putri Agustin

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Demand of Energy in Indonesia always increases 5-6% a year, but production of conventional energy always decreases 3-5% a year, it means that conventional energy in 20-40 years ahead will not able to complete all energy demand in Indonesia, one of the solve way is using unconventional energy that is gas hydrate, gas hydrate is gas that form by biogenic process, gas hydrate stable in condition with extremely depth and low temperature, gas hydrate can form in two condition that is in pole condition and in deep-sea condition, wherein this research will focus in gas hydrate that association with methane form methane hydrate in deep-sea condition and usually form in depth between 150-2000 m, this research will focus in process of methane hydrate formation that is biogenic process and the important role of deep-sea sediment so can produce accumulation of methane hydrate, methane hydrate usually will be accumulated in find sediment in deep-sea environment with condition high-pressure and low-temperature this condition too usually make methane hydrate change into white nodule, methodology of this research is geology field work and laboratory analysis, from geology field work will get sample data consist of 10-15 samples from Kerek Formation outcrops as random for imagine the condition of deep-sea environment that influence the methane hydrate formation and also from geology field work will get data of measuring stratigraphy in outcrops Kerek Formation too from this data will help to imagine the process in deep-sea sediment like energy flow, supply sediment, and etc, and laboratory analysis is activity to analyze all data that get from geology field work, the result of this research can used to exploration activity of methane hydrate in another prospect deep-sea environment in Indonesia.

Keywords: methane hydrate, deep-sea sediment, kerek formation, sub-basin of kendeng, central java, Indonesia

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Authors: Wanjiku Karanja

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Facebook has monopoly power in the social networking market. It has grown and entrenched its monopoly power through the capture of its users’ data value chains. However, antitrust law’s consumer welfare roots have prevented it from effectively addressing the role of data capture in Facebook’s market dominance. These regulatory blind spots are augmented in Facebook’s proposed Diem cryptocurrency project and its Novi Digital wallet. Novi, which is Diem’s digital identity component, shall enable Facebook to collect an unprecedented volume of consumer data. Consequently, Novi has seismic implications on internet identity as the network effects of Facebook’s large user base could establish it as the de facto internet identity layer. Moreover, the large tracts of data Facebook shall collect through Novi shall further entrench Facebook's market power. As such, the attendant lock-in effects of this project shall be very difficult to reverse. Urgent regulatory action is therefore required to prevent this expansion of Facebook’s data resources and monopoly power. This research thus highlights the importance of data capture to competition and market health in the social networking industry. It utilizes interviews with key experts to empirically interrogate the impact of Facebook’s data capture and control of its users’ data value chains on its market power. This inquiry is contextualized against Novi’s expansive effect on Facebook’s data value chains. It thus addresses the novel antitrust issues arising at the nexus of Facebook’s monopoly power and the privacy of its users’ data. It also explores the impact of platform design principles, specifically data portability and data portability, in mitigating Facebook’s anti-competitive practices. As such, this study finds that Facebook is a powerful monopoly that dominates the social media industry to the detriment of potential competitors. Facebook derives its power from its size, annexure of the consumer data value chain, and control of its users’ social graphs. Additionally, the platform design principles of data interoperability and data portability are not a panacea to restoring competition in the social networking market. Their success depends on the establishment of robust technical standards and regulatory frameworks.

Keywords: antitrust law, data protection law, data portability, data interoperability, digital identity, Facebook

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Authors: G. Krishnamoorthy, S. Anandhakumar

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The effect of D-Lysine (D-Lys) on collagen with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide(EDC)/N-hydroxysuccinimide(NHS) initiated cross linking using experimental and modelling tools are evaluated. The results of the Coll-D-Lys-EDC/NHS scaffold also indicate an increase in the tensile strength (TS), percentage of elongation (% E), denaturation temperature (Td), and decrease the decomposition rate compared to L-Lys-EDC/NHS. Scanning electron microscopic (SEM) and atomic force microscopic (AFM) analyses revealed a well ordered with properly oriented and well-aligned structure of scaffold. The D-Lys stabilizes the scaffold against degradation by collagenase than L-Lys. The cell assay showed more than 98% fibroblast viability (NIH3T3) and improved cell adhesions, protein adsorption after 72h of culture when compared with native scaffold. Cell attachment after 74h was robust, with cytoskeletal analysis showing that the attached cells were aligned along the fibers assuming a spindle-shape appearance, despite, gene expression analyses revealed no apparent alterations in mRNA levels, although cell proliferation was not adversely affected. D-Lysine (D-Lys) plays a pivotal role in the self-assembly and conformation of collagen fibrils. The D-Lys assisted EDC/NHS initiated cross-linking induces the formation of an carboxamide by the activation of the side chain -COOH group, followed by aminolysis of the O-iso acylurea intermediates by the -NH2 groups are directly joined via an isopeptides bond. This leads to the formation of intra- and inter-helical cross links. Modeling studies indicated that D-Lys bind with collagen-like peptide (CLP) through multiple H-bonding and hydrophobic interactions. Orientational changes in collagenase on CLP-D-Lys are observed which may decrease its accessibility to degradation and stabilize CLP against the action of the former. D-Lys has lowest binding energy and improved fibrillar-assembly and staggered alignment without the undesired structural stiffness and aggregations. The proteolytic machinery is not well equipped to deal with Coll-D-Lys than Coll-L-Lys scaffold. The information derived from the present study could help in designing collagenolytically stable heterochiral collagen based scaffold for biomedical applications.

Keywords: collagen, collagenase, collagen like peptide, D-lysine, heterochiral collagen scaffold

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Authors: Yu-Mei Hsueh, Cheng-Shiuan Tsai, Chao-Yuan Huang

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Prostate Cancer (PC) is a malignant tumor originated in prostate and is a second common male’s cancer in the world. Incidence of PC in Asia countries, have still been rising over the past few decades. As an antioxidant, selenium can slow down prostate cancer tumor progression, but the association between plasma selenium levels and risk of aggressive prostate cancer may be modified by different genotype of selenoprotein. The aim of this study is to determine the relationship between plasma selenium, polymorphism of selenoprotein, urinaty total arsenic, and prostate cancer. Two hundred ninety five pathologically-confirmed cases of PC and 295 cancer-free controls were individually matched to case subjects by age (± 5 years) were recruited from Department of Urology of National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei Municipal Wan Fang Hospital and Taipei Medical University Hospital. Personal interview and biospeciment of urine and blood collection from participants were conducted by well-trained interviewers after participants’ informed consent was obtained. Plasma selenium was measured by an inductively coupled plasma mass. Urinary arsenic concentration was detected using high-performance liquid chromatography-linked hydride generator and atomic absorption spectrometry. The polymorphism of SEPP1rs3797310 and SEP15 rs5859 were determined using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism method. The higher plasma selenium was the lower OR of PC with a dose-response relationship. Prostate cancer patients with high plasma selenium had low tumor stage and grade. Participants carried SEPP1rs3797310 CT+TT genotype compared to those with CC genotype had a lower OR of PC in crude model; then this relationship was disappeared after confounder was adjusted. Prostate cancer patients with high urinary total arsenic concentration had high tumor stage and grade. Urinary total arsenic concentration was significantly positively related with plasma selenium and prostate specific antigen concentration. Participants with lower plasma selenium concentration and higher urinary total arsenic concentration compared to those with higher plasma selenium concentration and lower urinary total arsenic concentration had a higher OR of PC with a dose-response relationship.

Keywords: prostate cancer, plasma selenium concentration, urinary arsenic concentration, prostate specific antigen

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Authors: Isha Ranadive, Sonam Patel, Suresh Balakrishnan

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It has been observed that in lizards wound can be healed by either a scar free mechanism or by scarring. The animal model used to study both these healing processes was Northern House Gecko. In lizard, the tail when amputated heals by scar free mechanism which allows it to regenerate, the same is not seen when the limb is amputated. Proliferation, apoptosis, and angiogenesis are the main events which succeed an injury. We observed that proliferation of the cells beneath the wound epidermis was much higher in case of wound healing in tail. This could be because after the wound gets covered by the epithelium, it enters in to a cross-talk with the underlying mesenchyme to recruit a pool of blastemal cells which proliferate and later differentiate to form the lost part through epimorphic regeneration. This was substantiated by mRNA expression levels of various FGFs which facilitate the cross-talk and also by PCNA which is a marker for proliferation. Western blot result reaffirms the same notion. However, in case of the limb, the rate of apoptosis was more than proliferation as there are a lot of debris that needs to be removed. We came to this conclusion as we observed that p53 the apoptotic gene was highly upregulated in case of the scarred tissue. Further, we confirmed this result by checking the anti-apoptotic gene bcl2 and found it to be significantly down-regulated. As we noticed heightened proliferation in the case of scar-free wound healing in tail, angiogenesis was targeted for the study. This is because, when the cells are proliferating they require constant supply of blood and hence neo-vascularization is inevitable. It was observed that the marker of angiogenesis, VEGF, was expressed more during wound healing as compared to the resting stage of tail. Moreover, a high up-regulation was seen in KDR, a receptor of VEGF. Thus, this study reveals how proliferation, apoptosis, and angiogenesis play a key role in the scar-free as well as scarred wound healing.

Keywords: epimorphic regeneration, injury, northern house gecko, wound healing

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Authors: Seyedeh Banafsheh Bagheri Marzouni, Sona Rostampour Yasouri

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Salmonella is one of the most important common pathogens between humans and animals worldwide. Globally, the prevalence of the disease in humans is due to the consumption of food contaminated with animal-derived Salmonella. These foods include eggs, red meat, chicken, and milk. Contamination of chicken and its products with Salmonella may occur at any stage of the chicken processing chain. Salmonella infection is usually not fatal. However, its occurrence is considered dangerous in some individuals, such as infants, children, the elderly, pregnant women, or individuals with weakened immune systems. If Salmonella infection enters the bloodstream, the possibility of contamination of tissues throughout the body will arise. Therefore, determining the potential risk of Salmonella at various stages is essential from the perspective of consumers and public health. The aim of this study is to isolate and identify Salmonella from chicken samples distributed in the Tehran market using the Gold standard culture method and PCR techniques based on specific genes, invA and ent. During the years 2022-2023, sampling was performed using swabs from the liver and intestinal contents of distributed chickens in the Tehran province, with a total of 120 samples taken under aseptic conditions. The samples were initially enriched in buffered peptone water (BPW) for pre-enrichment overnight. Then, the samples were incubated in selective enrichment media, including TT broth and RVS medium, at temperatures of 37°C and 42°C, respectively, for 18 to 24 hours. Organisms that grew in the liquid medium and produced turbidity were transferred to selective media (XLD and BGA) and incubated overnight at 37°C for isolation. Suspicious Salmonella colonies were selected for DNA extraction, and PCR technique was performed using specific primers that targeted the invA and ent genes in Salmonella. The results indicated that 94 samples were Salmonella using the PCR technique. Of these, 71 samples were positive based on the invA gene, and 23 samples were positive based on the ent gene. Although the culture technique is the Gold standard, PCR is a faster and more accurate method. Rapid detection through PCR can enable the identification of Salmonella contamination in food items and the implementation of necessary measures for disease control and prevention.

Keywords: culture, PCR, salmonella spp, salmonella enteritidis

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Authors: Kayode Fatokun, Nozipho N. Motsa

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Field experiments were carried out during the summer/autumn (first trial) and winter/spring (second trial) seasons of 2019 and 2021 inDlangubo, Ngwelezane, and Mtubatubaareas of KwaZulu-Natal Province of South Africa to study the drought amelioration effects and impact of 2 locally available organic wastes [filter cake (FC) and macadamia husk compost (MHC)] on the productivity, and physiological responses of 4 orange-fleshed sweet potato cultivars (Buregard cv., Impilo, W-119 and 199062.1). The effects of FC and MHC were compared with that of inorganic fertilizer (IF) [2:3:2 (30)], FC+IF, MHC+IF, and control. The soil amendments were applied in the first trials only. Climatic data such as humidity, temperature, and rainfall were taken via remote sensing. The results of the first trial indicated that filter cake and IF significantly performed better than MHC. While the strength of filter cake may be attributable to its rich array of mineral nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, potassium, sodium, zinc, copper, manganese, iron, and phosphorus. The little performance from MHC may be attributable to its water holding capacity. Also, a positive correction occurred between the yield of the test OFSP cultivars and climatic factors such as rainfall, NDVI, and NDWI values. Whereas the inorganic fertilizer did not have any significant effect on the growth and productivity of any of the tested sweet potato cultivars in the second trial; FC, and MHC largely maintained their significant performances. In conclusion, the use of FC is highly recommended in the production of the test orange-fleshed sweet potato cultivars. Also, the study indicated that both FC and MHC may not only supply the needed plant nutrients but has the capacity to reduce the impact of drought on the growth of the test cultivars. These findings are of great value to farmers, especially the resource-poorones.

Keywords: amendments, drought, filter cake, macadamia husk compost, sweet potato

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Authors: S. Ibrahim, D. Salilew-Wondim, M. Hoelker, C. Looft, E. Tholen, C. Grosse-Brinkhaus, K. Schellander, C. Neuhoff, D. Tesfaye

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Bovine endometrial cells appear to have a key role in innate immune defense of the female genital tract. A better understanding of molecular changes in microRNAs (miRNAs) and their target genes expression may identify reliable prognostic indicators for cows that will resolve inflammation and resume cyclicity. In the current study, we hypothesized that let-7 miRNAs family has a primary role in the innate immune defence of the endometrium tissue against bacterial infection, which is partly achieved via regulating mRNA stability of pro-inflammatory cytokines at the post-transcriptional level. Therefore, we conducted two experiments. In the first experiment, primary bovine endometrial cells were challenged with clinical (3.0 μg/ml) and sub-clinical (0.5 μg/ml) doses of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) for 24h. In the 2nd experiment, we have investigated the potential role of let-7 miRNAs (let-7a and let-7f) using gain and loss of function approaches. Additionally, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα), transforming growth factor beta 1 induced transcript 1 (TGFB1I1) and serum deprivation response (SDPR) genes were validated using reporter assay. Here we addressed for the first time that let-7 miRNAs have a precise role in bovine endometrium, where LPS dysregulated let-7 miRNAs family expression was associated with an increased pro-inflammatory cytokine level by directly/indirectly targeting the TNFα, interleukin 6 (IL6), nuclear factor kappa-light-chain enhancer of activated B cells (NFκB), TGFβ1I1 and SDPR genes. To our knowledge, this is the first study showing that TNFα, TGFβ1I1 and SDPR were identified and validated as novel let-7 miRNAs targets and could have a distinct role in inflammatory immune response of LPS challenged bovine endometrial cells. Our data represent a new finding by which uterine homeostasis is maintained through functional regulation of let-7a by down-regulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines expression (TNFα and IL6) at the mRNA and protein levels. These findings suggest that LPS serves as a negative regulator of let-7 miRNAs expression and provides a mechanism for the persistent pro-inflammatory phenotype, which is a hallmark of bovine subclinical endometritis.

Keywords: bovine endometrial cells, let-7, lipopolysaccharide, pro-inflammatory cytokines

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Authors: G. H. B. Dilhari, A. A. D. T. Saparamadu

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The coir is one of the by-products of the coconut and the coir industry can be identified as one of the traditional industries in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is one of the prominent countries for the coir production. Due to the labour insensitiveness, the labourers are the significant factor in the coir production process. The study has analyzed the determinants and its impact on income of the household level coir yarn labourers. The study was conducted in the Kumarakanda Grama Niladhari division, Galle, Sri Lanka. Simple random sampling was used to generate the sample of 100 household level coir yarn labourers and structured questionnaire, personal interviews and discussion were performed to gather the required data. The obtained data were statistically analyzed by using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) software. Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis test were carried out. The findings revealed that the household level coir yarn industry is dominated by the female workers and fewer amounts of workers have engaged this industry as the main occupation. In addition to that, elderly participation of the industry is greater than younger participation and most of them engaged as an extra income source. Level of education, the methods of engagement, satisfaction, labour’s children employment in the coir industry, support from the government, method of government support, working hours per day, employed as a main job, no of completed units per day, suffering any job related diseases and type of the diseases were related with income level of household level coir yarn labourers. The recommendations were formulated in respect to these problems including technological transformation for coir yarn production, strengthening of the raw material base and regulating the raw material supply, introduction of new technologies, markets and training programs, the establishment of the labourers association, the initiation of micro credit schemes, better consideration about the job oriented diseases.

Keywords: coir, coir yarn labourers, income, Galle

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Authors: Madhav Khadilkar

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Construction of a large standby reservoir was required to provide secure water supply. The new reservoir was required to be constructed at the same location of an abandoned old open pond due to space constraints. Some investigations were carried out earlier to improvise and re-commission the existing pond. But due to a lack of quantified risk of settlement from voids in the underlying limestone, the shallow foundations were not found feasible. Since the reservoir was resting on hard strata for about three-quarter of plan area and one quarter was resting on soil underlying with limestone and considerably low subgrade modulus. Further investigations were carried out to ascertain the locations and extent of voids within the limestone. It was concluded that the risk due to lime dissolution was acceptably low, and the site was found geotechnically feasible. The hazard posed by limestone dissolution was addressed through the integrated structural and geotechnical analysis and design approach. Finite Element Analysis was carried out to quantify the stresses and differential settlement due to various probable loads and soil-structure interaction. Walls behaving as cantilever under operational loads were found undergoing in-plane bending and tensile forces due to soil-structure interaction. Sensitivity analysis for varying soil subgrade modulus was carried out to check the variation in the response of the structure and magnitude of stresses developed. The base slab was additionally checked for the loss of soil contact due to lime pocket formations at random locations. The expansion and contraction joints were planned to receive minimal additional forces due to differential settlement. The reservoir was designed to sustain the actions corresponding to allowable deformation limits per code, and geotechnical measures were proposed to achieve the soil parameters set in structural analysis.

Keywords: differential settlement, limestone dissolution, reservoir, soil structure interaction

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Authors: Arfan Fadli, Marini Kristina Situmeang, Mukhammad Fatkhullah, Siti Hazar Sitorus

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Merantau is one of the traditions that has been done by the Minangkabau tribe since the 15th century where it is based on socio-economic factors. In fact, that is not only limited to economic factors alone but more how to develop themselves through the experience to get the skills or education. The lack of jobs opportunity in the hometown causes the community, especially for young men to seek livelihoods in other areas. Unemployment impacts on the economy of the community that led to change in the pattern of employment from farmers to traders or new businesses in areas outside of their homeland. This is also worsened because many young people are not interested in becoming a farmer and working on the land in their village. In this context, merantau is considered to be an alternative to fulfilling livelihoods, and therefore this study examines how the merantau tradition constructed by the Minangkabau community, West Sumatera Province. The research method is done by literature review by collecting information related to the social construction of merantau tradition from various scientific publications. The results show how merantau becomes a solution of economic problems for Minangkabau society. Merantau which has now become an institutionalized tradition for the Minangkabau community where the culture of merantau occurred like a chain that can raise the people from the condition of poverty. When there are people who have successfully in merantau, they tend to bring other relatives who have not found a job to be able to trade with them. In the place of merantau, they will be disciplined to learn how to trade. Eventually, they will have new skills to trade and even make their own business. The tradition of bringing relatives to the rantau to be empowered is a unique side of merantau because it is influenced by the Matrilinear kinship system. The matrilineal kinship system in Minangkabau is the largest in the world where helping relatives are considered to be of the highest value. This system also places men as high positions where men should be encouraged to go abroad for financial success and to help their relatives in their hometown. The success of this tradition (to uplift and resolve the poverty and manpower issues) is demonstrated by the tradition of Minangkabau communities that have been successful in the area of Rantau that send money to their relatives in their homes (remittance). Merantau tradition can also be an alternative in reducing unemployment especially for young people where it is demonstrated by the culture of helping relatives to get work outside of their homeland.

Keywords: matrilineal kinship system, merantau, minangkabau community, reducing unemployment

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Authors: Akaash Tawade, Manan Khattar, Lucas Spangher, Costas J. Spanos

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Many grids are increasing the share of renewable energy in their generation mix, which is causing the energy generation to become less controllable. Buildings, which consume nearly 33% of all energy, are a key target for demand response: i.e., mechanisms for demand to meet supply. Understanding the behavior of office workers is a start towards developing demand response for one sector of building technology. The literature notes that dynamic computational modeling can be predictive of individual action, especially given that occupant behavior is traditionally abstracted from demand forecasting. Recent work founded on Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) has provided a promising conceptual basis for modeling behavior, personal states, and environment using control theoretic principles. Here, an adapted linear dynamical system of latent states and exogenous inputs is proposed to simulate energy demand amongst office workers engaged in a social energy shifting game. The energy shifting competition is implemented in an office in Singapore that is connected to a minigrid of buildings with a consistent 'price signal.' This signal is translated into a 'points signal' by a reinforcement learning (RL) algorithm to influence participant energy use. The dynamic model functions at the intersection of the points signals, baseline energy consumption trends, and SCT behavioral inputs to simulate future outcomes. This study endeavors to analyze how the dynamic model trains an RL agent and, subsequently, the degree of accuracy to which load deferability can be simulated. The results offer a generalizable behavioral model for energy competitions that provides the framework for further research on transfer learning for RL, and more broadly— transactive control.

Keywords: energy demand forecasting, social cognitive behavioral modeling, social game, transfer learning

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Authors: Manish Khanra, Shashank Prabhu

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The decarbonization of hard-to-abate sectors is currently high on the agenda in the EU and its member states, as these sectors have substantial shares in overall GHG emissions while it is facing serious challenges to decarbonize. In particular, the aviation sector accounts for 2.8% of global anthropogenic CO₂ emissions. These emissions are anticipated to grow dramatically unless immediate mitigating efforts are implemented. Hydrogen and its derivatives based on renewable electricity can have a key role in the transition towards CO₂-neutral flights. The substantial shares of energy carriers in the form of drop-in fuel, direct combustion and Hydrogen-to-Electric are promising in most scenarios towards 2050. For creating appropriate policies to ramp up the production and utilisation of hydrogen commodities in the German aviation sector, a detailed analysis of the spatial distribution of supply-demand sites is essential. The objective of this research work is to assess the demand for hydrogen-based alternative fuels in the German aviation sector to achieve the perceived goal of the ‘Net Zero’ scenario by 2050. Here, the analysis of the technological pathways for the production and utilisation of these fuels in various aircraft options is conducted for reaching mitigation targets. Our method is based on data-driven bottom-up assessment, considering production and demand sites and their spatial distribution. The resulting energy demand and its spatial distribution with consideration of technology diffusion lead to a possible transition pathway of the aviation sector to meet short-term and long-term mitigation targets. Additionally, to achieve mitigation targets in this sector, costs and policy aspects are discussed, which would support decision-makers from airline industries, policymakers and the producers of energy commodities.

Keywords: the aviation sector, hard-to-abate sectors, hydrogen demand, alternative fuels, technological pathways, data-driven approach

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Authors: Innocensia John, Henrik Egelyng, Razack Lokina

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As the world`s population is constantly growing, food security has become a thorny trending issue. The impact has particularly been felt more in Africa as most of the people depend on food Agriculture products. Geographical Indications can aid in transforming the Tanzania agriculture-dependent economy through tapping the unique attributes of their quality products like soil, taste color etc. Consumers worldwide demand more uniquer products featuring a ´connect´ with the land use systems producing particular qualities. Tanzania has demonstrated the capacity to tap into the organic world market and has untapped potential for harvesting market value from geographical indications. This paper presents preliminary results from VALOR — a research project investigating conditions under which Tanzanian origin food producers can add value by incorporating territory specific cultural, environmental and social qualities into marketing, production and processing of unique local, niche and specialty products. Cases are investigated of the prospects for Tanzania to leapfrog perhaps into exports of geographical indications products, and certainly into allowing smallholders to create employment and build monetary value, while stewarding local food cultures and natural environments and resources, and increasing the diversity of supply of natural and unique quality products and so contribute to enhanced food security. Rice from Kyela, coffee and Sugar from Kilimanjaro, are some of the product cases investigated and provides for the in-depth case study, as ´landscape´ products incorporating ´taste of place´. Framework conditions for producers creating or capturing market value as stewards of cultural and landscape values and environments and institutional requirements for such creation or capturing to happen, including presence of export opportunities, are discussed.

Keywords: food origins, food security, protected geographical indications, case study analysis

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Authors: Juan Alfredo Guevara Carrio, Swamy Toolahalli Thipperudra, Riddhi Naik Dharmeshbhai, Sergio Graniero Echeverrigaray, Jose Vitorio Emiliano, Antonio Helio Castro

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In order to advance the hydrogen economy, several industrial sectors can potentially benefit from the trillions of stimulus spending for post-coronavirus. Blending hydrogen into natural gas pipeline networks has been proposed as a means of delivering it during the early market development phase, using separation and purification technologies downstream to extract the pure H₂ close to the point of end-use. This first step has been mentioned around the world as an opportunity to use existing infrastructures for immediate decarbonisation pathways. Among current technologies used to extract hydrogen from mixtures in pipelines or liquid carriers, membrane separation can achieve the highest selectivity. The most efficient approach for the separation of H₂ from other substances by membranes is offered from the research of 2D layered materials due to their exceptional physical and chemical properties. Graphene-based membranes, with their distribution of pore sizes in nanometers and angstrom range, have shown fundamental and economic advantages over other materials. Their combination with the structure of ceramic and geopolymeric materials enabled the synthesis of nanocomposites and the fabrication of membranes with long-term stability and robustness in a relevant range of physical and chemical conditions. Versatile separation modules have been developed for hydrogen separation, which adaptability allows their integration in industrial prototypes for applications in heavy transport, steel, and cement production, as well as small installations at end-user stations of pipeline networks. The developed membranes and prototypes are a practical contribution to the technological challenge of supply pure H₂ for the mentioned industries as well as hydrogen energy-based fuel cells.

Keywords: graphene nano-composite membranes, hydrogen separation and purification, separation modules, indsutrial prototype

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Authors: Thanaa Abdel Moghny, Mohamed Keshawy, Mahmoud Fathy, Abdul-Raheim M. Abdul-Raheim, Khalid I. Kabel, Ahmed F. El-Kafrawy, Mahmoud Ahmed Mousa, Ahmed E. Awadallah

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Ecological pollution is of great concern for human health and the environment. Numerous organic and inorganic pollutants usually discharged into the water caused carcinogenic or toxic effect for human and different life form. In this respect, this work aims to treat water contaminated by organic and inorganic waste using sorbent based on polystyrene. Therefore, two different series of adsorbent material were prepared; the first one included the preparation of polymeric sorbent from the reaction of styrene acrylate ester and alkyl acrylate. The second series involved syntheses of composite ion exchange resins of waste polystyrene and   amorphous carbon thin film (WPS/ACTF) by solvent evaporation using micro emulsion polymerization. The produced ACTF/WPS nanocomposite was sulfonated to produce cation exchange resins ACTF/WPSS nanocomposite. The sorbents of the first series were characterized using FTIR, ¹H NMR, and gel permeation chromatography. The thermal properties of the cross-linked sorbents were investigated using thermogravimetric analysis, and the morphology was characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The removal of organic pollutant was determined through absorption tests in a various organic solvent. The chemical and crystalline structure of nanocomposite of second series has been proven by studies of FTIR spectrum, X-rays, thermal analysis, SEM and TEM analysis to study morphology of resins and ACTF that assembled with polystyrene chain. It is found that the composite resins ACTF/WPSS are thermally stable and show higher chemical stability than ion exchange WPSS resins. The composite resin was evaluated for calcium hardness removal. The result is evident that the ACTF/WPSS composite has more prominent inorganic pollutant removal than WPSS resin. So, we recommend the using of nanocomposite resin as new potential applications for water treatment process.

Keywords: nanocomposite, sorbent materials, waste water, waste polystyrene

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Authors: B. Makoudi, R. Ghanimi, A. Bargaz, M. Mouradi, M. Farissi, A. Kabbaj, J. J. Drevon, C. Ghoulam

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Legume species are able to establish a nitrogen fixing symbiosis with soil rhizobia that allows them, when it operates normally, to ensure their necessary nitrogen nutrition. This biological process needs high phosphorus (P) supply and consequently it is limited under low phosphorus availability. To overcome this constraint, legume-rhizobia symbiosis develops many mechanisms to increase P availability in the rhizosphere and also the efficiency of P fertilizers. The objectives of our research works are to understand the physiological and biochemical mechanisms implemented by legume-rhizobia symbiosis to increase its P use efficiency (PUE) in order to select legume genotypes-rhizobia strains combination more performing for BNF under P deficiency. Our studies were carried out on two grain legume species, common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) and faba bean (Vicia faba) tested in farmers’ fields and in experimental station fewer than two soil phosphorus levels. Under field conditions, the P deficiency caused a significant decrease of Plant and nodule biomasses in all of the tested varieties with a difference between them. This P limitation increased the contents of available P in the rhizospheric soils that was positively correlated with the increase of phosphatases activities in the nodules and the rhizospheric soil. Some legume genotypes showed a significant increase of their P use efficiency under P deficiency. The P solubilization test showed that some rhizobia strains isolated from Haouz region presented an important capacity to grow on solid and liquid media with tricalcium phosphate as the only P source and their P solubilizing activity was confirmed by the assay of the released P in the liquid medium. Also, this P solubilizing activity was correlated with medium acidification and the excretion of acid phosphatases and phytases in the medium. Thus, we concluded that medium acidification and excretion of phosphatases in the rhizosphere are the prominent reactions for legume-rhizobia symbiosis to improve its P nutrition.

Keywords: legume, phosphorus deficiency, rhizobia, rhizospheric soil

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Authors: A. Pensiri, K. Nantaporn, P. Parichut

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Tourism is very important to the economy of many countries due to the large contribution in the areas of employment and income generation. However, the rapid growth of tourism can also be considered as one of the major uses of water user, and therefore also have a significant and detrimental impact on the environment. Guest behavior in water usage can be used to manage water in hotels for sustainable water resources management. This research presents a study of hotel guest water usage behavior at two hotels, namely Hotel A (located in Kathu district) and Hotel B (located in Muang district) in Phuket Province, Thailand, as case studies. Primary and secondary data were collected from the hotel manager through interview and questionnaires. The water flow rate was measured in-situ from each water supply device in the standard room type at each hotel, including hand washing faucets, bathroom faucets, shower and toilet flush. For the interview, the majority of respondents (n = 204 for Hotel A and n = 244 for Hotel B) were aged between 21 years and 30 years (53% for Hotel A and 65% for Hotel B) and the majority were foreign (78% in Hotel A, and 92% in Hotel B) from American, France and Austria for purposes of tourism (63% in Hotel A, and 55% in Hotel B). The data showed that water consumption ranged from 188 litres to 507 liters, and 383 litres to 415 litres per overnight guest in Hotel A and Hotel B (n = 244), respectively. These figures exceed the water efficiency benchmark set for Tropical regions by the International Tourism Partnership (ITP). It is recommended that guest water saving initiatives should be implemented at hotels. Moreover, the results showed that guests have high satisfaction for the hotels, the front office service reveal the top rates of average score of 4.35 in Hotel A and 4.20 in Hotel B, respectively, while the luxury decoration and room cleanliness exhibited the second satisfaction scored by the guests in Hotel A and B, respectively. On the basis of this information, the findings can be very useful to improve customer service satisfaction and pay attention to this particular aspect for better hotel management.

Keywords: hotel, tourism, Phuket, water usage

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Authors: Naomi Huang Wenya, Xin Xiaohui, Vijaya Rao, Wong Ting Hway, Chow Kah Hoe Pierce, Tan Hiang Khoon

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Background: The majority of the cancelled elective surgeries caused by the COVID-19 pandemic globally were estimated to occur in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where surgical services had long been in short supply even before the pandemic. Therefore, minimising disruption to existing surgical care in LMICs is of crucial importance during a pandemic. This study aimed to explore contributory factors to the continuity of surgical care in LMICs, in the face of a pandemic. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted over zoom, with surgical leaders of 25 tertiary hospitals from 11 LMICs in South and Southeast Asia, from September to October 2020. Key themes were subsequently identified from the interview transcripts, using Braun and Clarke's method of thematic analysis. Results: The COVID-19 pandemic affected all surgical services of participating institutions but to varying degrees. Overall, elective surgeries suffered the gravest disruption, followed by outpatient surgical care, and finally, emergency surgeries. Keeping healthcare workers safe and striving for continuity of essential surgical care emerged as notable response strategies observed across all participating institutions. Conclusion: This study suggested that four factors are important for the resilience of surgical care against COVID-19: adequate COVID-19 testing capacity and effective institutional infection control measures, designated COVID-19 treatment facilities, a whole-system approach to balancing pandemic response and meeting essential surgical needs, and active community engagement. These findings can inform healthcare institutions in other countries, especially LMICs, in their effort to tread a fine line between preserving healthcare capacity for pandemic response and protecting surgical services against pandemic disruption.

Keywords: COVID-19, pandemic, LMICs, continuity of surgical service

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Authors: Priyanka Sharma, Manoj Jais, Poonam Gupta, Suraiya K. Ansari, Ravinder Kaur

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Introduction: As much as the Health Care is necessary for the population, so is the management of the Biomedical waste produced. Biomedical waste is a wide terminology used for the waste material produced during the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human beings and animals, in research or in the production or testing of biological products. Biomedical waste management is a chain of processes from the point of generation of Biomedical waste to its final disposal in the correct and proper way, assigned for that particular type of waste. Any deviation from the said processes leads to improper disposal of Biomedical waste which itself is a major health hazard. Proper segregation of Biomedical waste is the key for Biomedical Waste management. Improper disposal of BMW can cause sharp injuries which may lead to HIV, Hepatitis-B virus, Hepatitis-C virus infections. Therefore, proper disposal of BMW is of upmost importance. Health care establishments segregate the Biomedical waste and dispose it as per the Biomedical waste management rules in India. Objectives: This study was done to observe the current trends of Biomedical waste generated in a tertiary care Hospital in Delhi. Methodology: Biomedical waste management rounds were conducted in the hospital wards. Relevant details were collected and analysed and sites with maximum Biomedical waste generation were identified. All the data was cross checked with the commons collection site. Results: The total amount of waste generated in the hospital during January 2014 till December 2014 was 6,39,547 kg, of which 70.5% was General (non-hazardous) waste and the rest 29.5% was BMW which consisted highly infectious waste (12.2%), disposable plastic waste (16.3%) and sharps (1%). The maximum quantity of Biomedical waste producing sites were Obstetrics and Gynaecology wards with a total Biomedical waste production of 45.8%, followed by Paediatrics, Surgery and Medicine wards with 21.2 %, 4.6% and 4.3% respectively. The maximum average Biomedical waste generated was by Obstetrics and Gynaecology ward with 0.7 kg/bed/day, followed by Paediatrics, Surgery and Medicine wards with 0.29, 0.28 and 0.18 kg/bed/day respectively. Conclusions: Hospitals should pay attention to the sites which produce a large amount of BMW to avoid improper segregation of Biomedical waste. Also, induction and refresher training Program of Biomedical waste management should be conducted to avoid improper management of Biomedical waste. Healthcare workers should be made aware of risks of poor Biomedical waste management.

Keywords: biomedical waste, biomedical waste management, hospital-tertiary care, New Delhi

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Authors: Kgopa Bontle, Tholen Sodi

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Climate change poses a major threat to the well-being of both people and the environment, with subsistence farmers most affected as they rely on local supply systems that are sensitive to climate variation. This study documented psychological resilience factors associated with climate change adaptations by subsistence farmers in Maruleng Municipality, Limpopo Province. A qualitative study was conducted to examine the notions of climate change by subsistence farmers, the psychological resilience factors, the strategies to cope with climate change, adaptation methods, and the development of subsistence farmers’ psychological resilience factors model. Data were collected through direct interactions with participants using a grounded theory research design. An open-ended interview was used to collect data with a sample of 15 participants selected through theoretical sampling in Maruleng Municipality. The participants were both Sepedi and Xitsonga speaking from 2 villages, mostly unemployed, pensioners and dependent on social grants. The study included both males and females who were predominately the elderly. The research findings indicate that farmers have limited knowledge of what climate change is and what causes it. Furthermore, the research reflects that although their responses were non-scientific but sensible enough to know what they were dealing with. They mentioned extreme weather, which includes hot days and less rainfall and changes in seasons, as some of the impacts brought by climate change. The results also indicated that participants have learned to adapt through several adaptation strategies, including mulching, changes in irrigation time slots and being innovative. The resilience factors that emerged from the study were a passion for farming, hope, enthusiasm, courage, acceptance/tolerance, livelihood and belief systems. Looking at the socio-economic factors of the current study setting argumentation leads to the conclusion that it is important that government should assist the subsistence farmers as it was observed from the participants that they felt neglected by the government and policymakers as they are small scale farmers and are not included like commercial farmers.

Keywords: climate change, psychological resilience factors, human adaptation, subsistence farmers

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Authors: Pooja Balasubramanian, Ghida Karbala

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Unfair treatment at the workplace encourages workers to adjust their behavior in order to restore fairness and align monetary returns to costs. This adjustment of behavior, however, may differ depending on the reference group considered to evaluate equity. In this aspect two main questions are to be considered: How do workers respond to unfair treatment at the workplace? And how does this response change depending on the identity of the reference group? To answer the above research questions, this paper utilizes data from a randomized field experiment conducted in Kolkata, India where student assistants were hired to help in a data entry task. Recruited workers were working in a team of two and were offered a fixed wage per hour. Workers were randomly assigned to one of the following treatment groups: A control group not subjected (1) to wage cuts (2) A general wage cut (3) A unilateral wage cut in reference to colleagues with similar social identity (4) A unilateral wage cut in reference to colleagues with a different social identity, where social identity is defined in terms of gender. Results show a significant decrease in the quantity and quality of work following a general wage cut. A more severe drop in productivity was presented by men in the case of unilateral wage cut, while women experiencing unilateral wage cuts didn’t exhibit a similar behavior regardless of the gender of the team member. To the contrary, women matched with a male colleague and experiencing unilateral wage cut show a slight increase in productivity, a result that contributes to the discussion regarding the paradox of the 'content female worker'. These findings highlight the necessity of a better understanding of the social comparison processes prevailing at the workplace, given the major role they play in determining the level of productivity supplied.

Keywords: effort supply, fairness, reference groups, social comparison

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Authors: Jamilah Syafawati Yaacob, Muhammad Aiman Ramli

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Cili padi or Capsicum frutescens is one of capsicum species from nightshade family, Solanaceae. It is famous in Malaysia and is widely used as a food ingredient. Capsicum frutescens also possess vast medicinal properties. The objectives of this study are to determine the most optimum 2,4-D hormone concentration for callus induction from stem explants C. frutescens and the effects of different 2,4-D concentrations on expression of compounds from C. frutescens. Seeds were cultured on MS media without hormones (MS basal media) to yield aseptic seedlings of this species, which were then used to supply explant source for subsequent tissue culture experiments. Stem explants were excised from aseptic seedlings and cultured on MS media supplemented with various concentrations (0.1, 0.3 and 0.5 mg/L) of 2,4-D to induce formation of callus. Fresh weight, dry weight and callus growth percentage in all samples were recorded. The highest mean of dry weight was observed in MS media supplemented with 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D, where 0.4499 ± 0.106 g of callus was produced. The highest percentage of callus growth (16.4%) was also observed in cultures supplemented with 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D. The callus samples were also subjected to HPLC-MS to evaluate the effect of hormone concentration on expression of bio active compounds in different samples. Results showed that caffeoylferuloylquinic acids were present in all samples, but was most abundant in callus cells supplemented with 0.3 & 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D. Interestingly, there was an unknown compound observed to be highly expressed in callus cells supplemented with 0.1 mg/L 2,4-D, but its presence was less significant in callus cells supplemented with 0.3 and 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D. Furthermore, there was also a compound identified as octadecadienoic acid, which was uniquely expressed in callus supplemented with 0.5 mg/L 2,4-D, but absent in callus cells supplemented with 0.1 and 0.3 mg/L 2,4-D. The results obtained in this study indicated that plant growth regulators played a role in expression of secondary metabolites in plants. The increase or decrease of these growth regulators may have triggered a change in the secondary metabolite biosynthesis pathways, thus causing differential expression of compounds in this plant.

Keywords: callus, in vitro, secondary metabolite, 2, 4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid

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Authors: M. F. Wu, F. T. Cheng, C. S. Wu, M. C. Tan

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It is a critical time to upgrade technology and increase value added with manufacturing skills developing and management strategies that will highly satisfy the customers need in the precision machinery global market. In recent years, the supply side, each precision machinery manufacturers in each country are facing the pressures of price reducing from the demand side voices that pushes the high-end precision machinery manufacturers adopts low-cost and high-quality strategy to retrieve the market. Because of the trend of the global market, the manufacturers must take price reducing strategies and upgrade technology of low-end machinery for differentiations to consolidate the market. By using six key success factors (KSFs), customer perceived value, customer satisfaction, customer service, product design, product effectiveness and machine structure quality are causal conditions to explore the impact of competitive advantage of the enterprise, such as overall profitability and product pricing power. This research uses key success paths (KSPs) approach and f/s QCA software to explore various combinations of causal relationships, so as to fully understand the performance level of KSFs and business objectives in order to achieve competitive advantage. In this study, the combination of a causal relationships, are called Key Success Paths (KSPs). The key success paths guide the enterprise to achieve the specific outcomes of business. The findings of this study indicate that there are thirteen KSPs to achieve the overall profitability, sixteen KSPs to achieve the product pricing power and seventeen KSPs to achieve both overall profitability and pricing power of the enterprise. The KSPs provide the directions of resources integration and allocation, improve utilization efficiency of limited resources to realize the continuous vision of the enterprise.

Keywords: precision machinery industry, key success factors (KSFs), key success paths (KSPs), overall profitability, product pricing power, competitive advantages

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Authors: Juliana A. Galhardi, Daniel M. Bonotto

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Coal is an important non-renewable energy source of and can be associated with radioactive elements. In Figueira city, Paraná state, Brazil, it was recorded high uranium activity near the coal mine that supplies a local thermoelectric power plant. In this context, the radon activity (Rn-222, produced by the Ra-226 decay in the U-238 natural series) was evaluated in groundwater, river water and effluents produced from the acid mine drainage in the coal reject dumps. The samples were collected in August 2013 and in February 2014 and analyzed at LABIDRO (Laboratory of Isotope and Hydrochemistry), UNESP, Rio Claro city, Brazil, using an alpha spectrometer (AlphaGuard) adjusted to evaluate the mean radon activity concentration in five cycles of 10 minutes. No radon activity concentration above 100 Bq.L-1, which was a previous critic value established by the World Health Organization. The average radon activity concentration in groundwater was higher than in surface water and in effluent samples, possibly due to the accumulation of uranium and radium in the aquifer layers that favors the radon trapping. The lower value in the river waters can indicate dilution and the intermediate value in the effluents may indicate radon absorption in the coal particles of the reject dumps. The results also indicate that the radon activities in the effluents increase with the sample acidification, possibly due to the higher radium leaching and the subsequent radon transport to the drainage flow. The water samples of Laranjinha River and Ribeirão das Pedras stream, which, respectively, supply Figueira city and receive the mining effluent, exhibited higher pH values upstream the mine, reflecting the acid mine drainage discharge. The radionuclides transport indicates the importance of monitoring their activity concentration in natural waters due to the risks that the radioactivity can represent to human health.

Keywords: radon, radium, acid mine drainage, coal

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Authors: Mabel Usunobun Olanipekun, Henry Ogbemudia Omoregbee

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Anomalies such as water pipeline and hydraulic or petrochemical pipeline network leakages and bursts have significant implications for economic conditions and the environment. In order to ensure pipeline systems are reliable, they must be efficiently controlled. Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) have become a powerful network with critical infrastructure monitoring systems for water, oil and gas pipelines. The loss of water, oil and gas is inevitable and is strongly linked to financial costs and environmental problems, and its avoidance often leads to saving of economic resources. Substantial repair costs and the loss of precious natural resources are part of the financial impact of leaking pipes. Pipeline systems experts have implemented various methodologies in recent decades to identify and locate leakages in water, oil and gas supply networks. These methodologies include, among others, the use of acoustic sensors, measurements, abrupt statistical analysis etc. The issue of leak quantification is to estimate, given some observations about that network, the size and location of one or more leaks in a water pipeline network. In detecting background leakage, however, there is a greater uncertainty in using these methodologies since their output is not so reliable. In this work, we are presenting a scalable concept and simulation where a pressure-driven model (PDM) was used to determine water pipeline leakage in a system network. These pressure data were collected with the use of acoustic sensors located at various node points after a predetermined distance apart. We were able to determine with the use of correlation difference to determine the leakage point locally introduced at a predetermined point between two consecutive nodes, causing a substantial pressure difference between in a pipeline network. After de-noising the signal from the sensors at the nodes, we successfully obtained the exact point where we introduced the local leakage using the correlation difference model we developed.

Keywords: leakage detection, acoustic signals, pipeline network, correlation, wireless sensor networks (WSNs)

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Authors: Aswandi Anas Husin, Cut Rizlani Kholibrina

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Harvesting camphor resin has been carried out since the beginning of civilization on the west coast of Sumatra. Oil or crystals that containing borneol are harvested from the camphor tree (Dryobalanops aromatica). Non-timber forest products are utilized for the manufacture of fragrances, antiseptics, anti-inflammatory, analgesic as well as effective for the treatment of blocked arteries. Based on exploration on the west coast of Sumatra, these endemic tree species were found remaining growing in groups on small spots in the lowlands to the hills. Some populations are found at an altitude of 700 meters above sea level in Kadabuhan, Jongkong and Sultan Daulat in Subulussalam district, Singkohor and Lake Paris in Aceh Singkil district, and Sirandorung and Manduamas in the north of Barus, Central Tapanuli district. These multi-purpose tree species was also identified as being able to adapt to the Singkil Peat Swamp. The decline in tree population has a direct impact on reducing their productivity. Conventionally, the crystals are harvested by cutting and splitting the stem into wooden blocks. In this way about 1.5-2.5 kg of crystals are obtained with various qualities. Camphor retrieval can also be done by making a notch on a standing tree trunk and collecting liquid resin (ombil) that is removed from the injured resin channel. Twigs and leaves also contain borneol. The aromatic content in this section opens opportunities for the supply of borneol through the distillation process. Vegetative propagation technology is needed to overcome the limitations of available seeds. This breeding strategy for vulnerable species starts with gathering genetic material from various provenances which are then used to support the provision of basic populations, breeding populations, multiplication populations and production populations for extensive development of camphor tree plantations

Keywords: camphor, conservation, natural borneol, productivity, vulnerable species

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Authors: Vladimir Klepikov

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Countries of Central and Southern Europe have a typical feature: oil consumption in the region exceeds own commodity production capacity by far. So crude oil import prevails in the region’s crude oil consumption structure. Transportation using marine and pipeline transport is a common method of the imported oil delivery in the region. For certain refineries, in addition to possible transportation by oil pipelines from seaports, oil is delivered from Russian oil fields. With the view to these specific features and geographic location of the region’s refineries, three ways of imported oil delivery can be singled out: oil delivery by tankers to the port and subsequent transportation by pipeline transport of the port and the refinery; oil delivery by tanker fleet to the port and subsequent transportation by oil trunk pipeline transport; oil delivery from the fields by oil trunk pipelines to refineries. Oil is also delivered by road, internal water, and rail transport. However, the volumes transported this way are negligible in comparison to the three above transportation means. Multimodal oil transportation to refineries using the pipeline and marine transport is one of the biggest cargo flows worldwide. However, in scientific publications this problem is considered mainly for certain modes of transport. Therefore, this study is topical. To elaborate an efficient transportation policy of crude oil supply to Central and Southern Europe, in this paper the geographic concentration of oil refineries was determined and the capacities of the region’s refineries were assessed. The quantitative analysis method is used as a tool. The port infrastructure and the oil trunk pipeline system capacity were assessed in terms of delivery of raw materials to the refineries. The main groups of oil consuming countries were determined. The trends of crude oil production in the region were reviewed. The changes in production capacities and volumes at refineries in the last decade were shown. Based on the revealed refining trends, the scope of possible crude oil supplies to the refineries of the region under review was forecast. The existing transport infrastructure is able to handle the increased oil flow.

Keywords: European region, infrastructure, oil terminal capacity, pipeline capacity, refinery capacity, tanker draft

Procedia PDF Downloads 128