Search results for: Maximum Likelihood Approach
3470 In Vitro Antibacterial and Antifungal Effects of a 30 kDa D-Galactoside-Specific Lectin from the Demosponge, Halichondria okadai
Authors: Sarkar M. A. Kawsar, Sarkar M. A. Mamun, Md S. Rahman, Hidetaro Yasumitsu, Yasuhiro Ozeki
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The present study has been taken to explore the screening of in vitro antimicrobial activities of D-galactose-binding sponge lectin (HOL-30). HOL-30 was purified from the marine demosponge Halichondria okadai by affinity chromatography. The molecular mass of the lectin was determined to be 30 kDa with a single polypeptide by SDS-PAGE under non-reducing and reducing conditions. HOL-30 agglutinated trypsinized and glutaraldehydefixed rabbit and human erythrocytes with preference for type O erythrocytes. The lectin was subjected to evaluation for inhibition of microbial growth by the disc diffusion method against eleven human pathogenic gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The lectin exhibited strong antibacterial activity against gram-positive bacteria, such as Bacillus megaterium and Bacillus subtilis. However, it did not affect against gram-negative bacteria such as Salmonella typhi and Escherichia coli. The largest zone of inhibition was recorded of Bacillus megaterium (12 in diameter) and Bacillus subtilis (10 mm in diameter) at a concentration of the lectin (250 μg/disc). On the other hand, the antifungal activity of the lectin was investigated against six phytopathogenic fungi based on food poisoning technique. The lectin has shown maximum inhibition (22.83%) of mycelial growth of Botrydiplodia theobromae at a concentration of 100 μg/mL media. These findings indicate that the lectin may be of importance to clinical microbiology and have therapeutic applications.Keywords: Antibacterial, Halichondria okadai, Inhibition zone, Lectin.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 22883469 Long-Term Monitoring and Seasonal Analysis of PM10-Bound Benzo(a)pyrene in the Ambient Air of Northwestern Hungary
Authors: Zs. Csanádi, A. Szabó Nagy, J. Szabó, J. Erdős
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Atmospheric aerosols have several important environmental impacts and health effects in point of air quality. Monitoring the PM10-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) could have important environmental significance and health protection aspects. Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is the most relevant indicator of these PAH compounds. In Hungary, the Hungarian Air Quality Network provides air quality monitoring data for several air pollutants including BaP, but these data show only the annual mean concentrations and maximum values. Seasonal variation of BaP concentrations comparing the heating and non-heating periods could have important role and difference as well. For this reason, the main objective of this study was to assess the annual concentration and seasonal variation of BaP associated with PM10 in the ambient air of Northwestern Hungary seven different sampling sites (six urban and one rural) in the sampling period of 2008–2013. A total of 1475 PM10 aerosol samples were collected in the different sampling sites and analyzed for BaP by gas chromatography method. The BaP concentrations ranged from undetected to 8 ng/m3 with the mean value range of 0.50-0.96 ng/m3 referring to all sampling sites. Relatively higher concentrations of BaP were detected in samples collected in each sampling site in the heating seasons compared with non-heating periods. The annual mean BaP concentrations were comparable with the published data of the other Hungarian sites.Keywords: Air quality, benzo(a)pyrene, PAHs, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14093468 Introductory Design Optimisation of a Machine Tool using a Virtual Machine Concept
Authors: Johan Wall, Johan Fredin, Anders Jönsson, Göran Broman
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Designing modern machine tools is a complex task. A simulation tool to aid the design work, a virtual machine, has therefore been developed in earlier work. The virtual machine considers the interaction between the mechanics of the machine (including structural flexibility) and the control system. This paper exemplifies the usefulness of the virtual machine as a tool for product development. An optimisation study is conducted aiming at improving the existing design of a machine tool regarding weight and manufacturing accuracy at maintained manufacturing speed. The problem can be categorised as constrained multidisciplinary multiobjective multivariable optimisation. Parameters of the control and geometric quantities of the machine are used as design variables. This results in a mix of continuous and discrete variables and an optimisation approach using a genetic algorithm is therefore deployed. The accuracy objective is evaluated according to international standards. The complete systems model shows nondeterministic behaviour. A strategy to handle this based on statistical analysis is suggested. The weight of the main moving parts is reduced by more than 30 per cent and the manufacturing accuracy is improvement by more than 60 per cent compared to the original design, with no reduction in manufacturing speed. It is also shown that interaction effects exist between the mechanics and the control, i.e. this improvement would most likely not been possible with a conventional sequential design approach within the same time, cost and general resource frame. This indicates the potential of the virtual machine concept for contributing to improved efficiency of both complex products and the development process for such products. Companies incorporating such advanced simulation tools in their product development could thus improve its own competitiveness as well as contribute to improved resource efficiency of society at large.Keywords: Machine tools, Mechatronics, Non-deterministic, Optimisation, Product development, Virtual machine
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19773467 Application of Synthetic Monomers Grafted Xanthan Gum for Rhodamine B Removal in Aqueous Solution
Authors: T. Moremedi, L. Katata-Seru, S. Sardar, A. Bandyopadhyay, E. Makhado, M. Joseph Hato
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The rapid industrialisation and population growth have led to a steady fall in freshwater supplies worldwide. As a result, water systems are affected by modern methods upon use due to secondary contamination. The application of novel adsorbents derived from natural polymer holds a great promise in addressing challenges in water treatment. In this study, the UV irradiation technique was used to prepare acrylamide (AAm) monomer, and acrylic acid (AA) monomer grafted xanthan gum (XG) copolymer. Furthermore, the factors affecting rhodamine B (RhB) adsorption from aqueous media, such as pH, dosage, concentration, and time were also investigated. The FTIR results confirmed the formation of graft copolymer by the strong vibrational bands at 1709 cm-1 and 1612 cm-1 for AA and AAm, respectively. Additionally, more irregular, porous and wrinkled surface observed from SEM of XG-g-AAm/AA indicated copolymerization interaction of monomers. The optimum conditions for removing RhB dye with a maximum adsorption capacity of 313 mg/g at 25 0C from aqueous solution were pH approximately 5, initial dye concentration = 200 ppm, adsorbent dose = 30 mg. Also, the detailed investigation of the isothermal and adsorption kinetics of RhB from aqueous solution showed that the adsorption of the dye followed a Freundlich model (R2 = 0.96333) and pseudo-second-order kinetics. The results further indicated that this absorbent based on XG had the universality to remove dye through the mechanism of chemical adsorption. The outstanding adsorption potential of the grafted copolymer could be used to remove cationic dyes from aqueous solution as a low-cost product.
Keywords: Xanthan gum, adsorbents, rhodamine B, Freundlich model.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6703466 'Performance-Based' Seismic Methodology and Its Application in Seismic Design of Reinforced Concrete Structures
Authors: Jelena R. Pejović, Nina N. Serdar
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This paper presents an analysis of the “Performance-Based” seismic design method, in order to overcome the perceived disadvantages and limitations of the existing seismic design approach based on force, in engineering practice. Bearing in mind, the specificity of the earthquake as a load and the fact that the seismic resistance of the structures solely depends on its behaviour in the nonlinear field, traditional seismic design approach based on force and linear analysis is not adequate. “Performance-Based” seismic design method is based on nonlinear analysis and can be used in everyday engineering practice. This paper presents the application of this method to eight-story high reinforced concrete building with combined structural system (reinforced concrete frame structural system in one direction and reinforced concrete ductile wall system in other direction). The nonlinear time-history analysis is performed on the spatial model of the structure using program Perform 3D, where the structure is exposed to forty real earthquake records. For considered building, large number of results were obtained. It was concluded that using this method we could, with a high degree of reliability, evaluate structural behavior under earthquake. It is obtained significant differences in the response of structures to various earthquake records. Also analysis showed that frame structural system had not performed well at the effect of earthquake records on soil like sand and gravel, while a ductile wall system had a satisfactory behavior on different types of soils.
Keywords: Ductile wall, frame system, nonlinear time-history analysis, performance-based methodology, RC building.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15003465 Public-Private Partnership Projects in Canada: A Case Study Approach
Authors: Samuel Carpintero
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Public-private partnerships (PPP) arrangements have been extensively used in Canada, where the participation of private companies in financing and managing infrastructure projects has increased significantly in the last decade, particularly in the transportation sector. This paper analyses the evolution of the PPP market for transportation projects in Canada and examines the participation of Spanish developers in this market, which have been particularly successful in winning PPP contracts during the last decade.Keywords: PPP, concession, infrastructure, construction.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 26453464 Development and Performance Evaluation of a Gladiolus Planter in Field for Planting Corms
Authors: T. P. Singh, Vijay Gautam
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Gladiolus is an important cash crop and is grown mainly for its elegant spikes. Traditionally the gladiolus corms are planted manually which is very tedious, time consuming and labor intensive operation. So far, there is no planter available for planting of gladiolus corms. With a view to mechanize the planting operation of this horticultural crop, a prototype of 4-row gladiolus planter was developed and its performance was evaluated in-situ condition. Cupchain type metering device was used to place each single gladiolus corm in furrow at required spacing while planting. Three levels of corm spacing viz 15, 20 and 25 cm and four levels of forward speed viz 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 km/h was taken as evaluation parameter for the planter. The performance indicators namely corm spacing in each row, coefficient of uniformity, missing index, multiple index, quality of feed index, number of corms per meter length, mechanical damage to the corms etc. were determined during the field test. The data was statistically analyzed using Completely Randomized Design (CRD) for testing the significance of the parameters. The result indicated that planter was able to drop the corms at required nominal spacing with minor variations. The highest deviation from the mean corm spacing was observed as 3.53 cm with maximum coefficient of variation as 13.88%. The highest missing and quality of feed indexes were observed as 6.33% and 97.45% respectively with no multiples. The performance of the planter was observed better at lower forward speed and wider corm spacing. The field capacity of the planter was found as 0.103 ha/h with an observed field efficiency of 76.57%.Keywords: Coefficient of uniformity, corm spacing, gladiolus planter, mechanization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21553463 First and Second Analysis on the Reheat Organic Rankine Cycle
Authors: E. Moradimaram, H. Sayehvand
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In recent years the increasing use of fossil fuels has led to various environmental problems including urban pollution, ozone layer depletion and acid rains. Moreover, with the increased number of industrial centers and higher consumption of these fuels, the end point of the fossil energy reserves has become more evident. Considering the environmental pollution caused by fossil fuels and their limited availability, renewable sources can be considered as the main substitute for non-renewable resources. One of these resources is the Organic Rankine Cycles (ORCs). These cycles while having high safety, have low maintenance requirements. Combining the ORCs with other systems, such as ejector and reheater will increase overall cycle efficiency. In this study, ejector and reheater are used to improve the thermal efficiency (ηth), exergy efficiency (η_ex) and net output power (w_net); therefore, the ORCs with reheater (RORCs) are proposed. A computational program has been developed to calculate the thermodynamic parameters required in Engineering Equations Solver (EES). In this program, the analysis of the first and second law in RORC is conducted, and a comparison is made between them and the ORCs with Ejector (EORC). R245fa is selected as the working fluid and water is chosen as low temperature heat source with a temperature of 95 °C and a mass transfer rate of 1 kg/s. The pressures of the second evaporator and reheater are optimized in terms of maximum exergy efficiency. The environment is at 298.15 k and at 101.325 kpa. The results indicate that the thermodynamic parameters in the RORC have improved compared to EORC.
Keywords: Organic rankine cycle, organic rankine cycle with reheater, organic rankine cycle with ejector, exergy efficiency.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 9873462 Investigating Climate Change Trend Based on Data Simulation and IPCC Scenario during 2010-2030 AD: Case Study of Fars Province
Authors: Leila Rashidian, Abbas Ebrahimi
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The development of industrial activities, increase in fossil fuel consumption, vehicles, destruction of forests and grasslands, changes in land use, and population growth have caused to increase the amount of greenhouse gases especially CO2 in the atmosphere in recent decades. This has led to global warming and climate change. In the present paper, we have investigated the trend of climate change according to the data simulation during the time interval of 2010-2030 in the Fars province. In this research, the daily climatic parameters such as maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation and number of sunny hours during the 1977-2008 time interval for synoptic stations of Shiraz and Abadeh and during 1995-2008 for Lar stations and also the output of HADCM3 model in 2010-2030 time interval have been used based on the A2 propagation scenario. The results of the model show that the average temperature will increase by about 1 degree centigrade and the amount of precipitation will increase by 23.9% compared to the observational data. In conclusion, according to the temperature increase in this province, the amount of precipitation in the form of snow will be reduced and precipitations often will occur in the form of rain. This 1-degree centigrade increase during the season will reduce production by 6 to 10% because of shortening the growing period of wheat.Keywords: Climate change, Lars.WG, HADCM3 model, Fars province, climatic parameters, A2 scenario.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 11753461 A New Approach Defining Angular DMD Using Near Field Aperturing
Authors: S. Al-Sowayan, K. L. Lear
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A new technique to quantify the differential mode delay (DMD) in multimode fiber (MMF) is been presented. The technique measures DMD based on angular launch and measurements of the difference in modal delay using variable apertures at the fiber face. The result of the angular spatial filtering revealed less excitation of higher order modes when the laser beam is filtered at higher angles. This result would indicate that DMD profiles would experience a data pattern dependency.
Keywords: Fiber measurements, Fiber optic communications
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16403460 An Image Matching Method for Digital Images Using Morphological Approach
Authors: Pinaki Pratim Acharjya, Dibyendu Ghoshal
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Image matching methods play a key role in deciding correspondence between two image scenes. This paper presents a method for the matching of digital images using mathematical morphology. The proposed method has been applied to real life images. The matching process has shown successful and promising results.
Keywords: Digital image, gradients, image matching, mathematical morphology.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 29353459 Robust ANOVA: An Illustrative Study in Horticultural Crop Research
Authors: Dinesh Inamadar, R. Venugopalan, K. Padmini
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An attempt has been made in the present communication to elucidate the efficacy of robust ANOVA methods to analyse horticultural field experimental data in the presence of outliers. Results obtained fortify the use of robust ANOVA methods as there was substantiate reduction in error mean square, and hence the probability of committing Type I error, as compared to the regular approach.
Keywords: Outliers, robust ANOVA, horticulture, Cook distance, Type I error.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 23153458 Statistical Screening of Medium Components on Ethanol Production from Cashew Apple Juice using Saccharomyces diasticus
Authors: Karuppaiya Maruthai, Viruthagiri Thangavelu, Manikandan Kanagasabai
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In the present study, effect of critical medium components (a total of fifteen components) on ethanol production from waste cashew apple juice (CAJ) using yeast Saccharomyces diasticus was studied. A statistical response surface methodology (RSM) based Plackett-Burman Design (PBD) was used for the design of experiments. The design contains a total of 32 experimental trails. The effect of medium components on ethanol was studied at two different levels such as low concentration level (-) and high concentration levels (+). The dependent variables selected in this study were ethanol concentration (g/L) and cellmass concentration (g/L). Data obtained from RSM on ethanol production were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA). In general, initial substrate concentration significantly influenced the microbial growth and product formation. Of the medium components evaluated, CAJ concentration, yeast extract, (NH4)2SO4, and malt extract showed significant effect on ethanol fermentation. A second-order polynomial model was used to predict the experimental data and the model fitted the data with a high correlation coefficient (R2 > 0.98). Maximum ethanol (15.3 g/L) and biomass (6.4 g/L) concentrations were obtained at the optimum medium composition and at optimum condition (temperature-30°C; initial pH-6.8) after 72 h fermentation using S.diasticus.
Keywords: cashew apple juice, ethanol, fermentation, yeast, response surface methodology
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 27183457 Transcritical CO2 Heat Pump Simulation Model and Validation for Simultaneous Cooling and Heating
Authors: Jahar Sarkar
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In the present study, a steady-state simulation model has been developed to evaluate the system performance of a transcritical carbon dioxide heat pump system for simultaneous water cooling and heating. Both the evaporator (including both two-phase and superheated zone) and gas cooler models consider the highly variable heat transfer characteristics of CO2 and pressure drop. The numerical simulation model of transcritical CO2 heat pump has been validated by test data obtained from experiments on the heat pump prototype. Comparison between the test results and the model prediction for system COP variation with compressor discharge pressure shows a modest agreement with a maximum deviation of 15% and the trends are fairly similar. Comparison for other operating parameters also shows fairly similar deviation between the test results and the model prediction. Finally, the simulation results are presented to study the effects of operating parameters such as, temperature of heat exchanger fluid at the inlet, discharge pressure, compressor speed on system performance of CO2 heat pump, suitable in a dairy plant where simultaneous cooling at 4oC and heating at 73oC are required. Results show that good heat transfer properties of CO2 for both two-phase and supercritical region and efficient compression process contribute a lot for high system COPs.Keywords: CO2 heat pump, dairy system, experiment, simulation model, validation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18833456 Mean Codeword Lengths and Their Correspondence with Entropy Measures
Authors: R.K.Tuli
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The objective of the present communication is to develop new genuine exponentiated mean codeword lengths and to study deeply the problem of correspondence between well known measures of entropy and mean codeword lengths. With the help of some standard measures of entropy, we have illustrated such a correspondence. In literature, we usually come across many inequalities which are frequently used in information theory. Keeping this idea in mind, we have developed such inequalities via coding theory approach.Keywords: Codeword, Code alphabet, Uniquely decipherablecode, Mean codeword length, Uncertainty, Noiseless channel
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17073455 Some Complexiton Type Solutions of the (3+1)-Dimensional Jimbo-Miwa Equation
Authors: Mohammad Taghi Darvishi, Mohammad Najafi
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By means of the extended homoclinic test approach (shortly EHTA) with the aid of a symbolic computation system such as Maple, some complexiton type solutions for the (3+1)-dimensional Jimbo-Miwa equation are presented.
Keywords: Jimbo-Miwa equation, painleve analysis, Hirota's bilinear form, computerized symbolic computation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19053454 Non-Local Behavior of a Mixed-Mode Crack in a Functionally Graded Piezoelectric Medium
Authors: Nidhal Jamia, Sami El-Borgi
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In this paper, the problem of a mixed-Mode crack embedded in an infinite medium made of a functionally graded piezoelectric material (FGPM) with crack surfaces subjected to electro-mechanical loadings is investigated. Eringen’s non-local theory of elasticity is adopted to formulate the governing electro-elastic equations. The properties of the piezoelectric material are assumed to vary exponentially along a perpendicular plane to the crack. Using Fourier transform, three integral equations are obtained in which the unknown variables are the jumps of mechanical displacements and electric potentials across the crack surfaces. To solve the integral equations, the unknowns are directly expanded as a series of Jacobi polynomials, and the resulting equations solved using the Schmidt method. In contrast to the classical solutions based on the local theory, it is found that no mechanical stress and electric displacement singularities are present at the crack tips when nonlocal theory is employed to investigate the problem. A direct benefit is the ability to use the calculated maximum stress as a fracture criterion. The primary objective of this study is to investigate the effects of crack length, material gradient parameter describing FGPMs, and lattice parameter on the mechanical stress and electric displacement field near crack tips.
Keywords: Functionally graded piezoelectric material, mixed-mode crack, non-local theory, Schmidt method.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 10083453 Modeling Approach to the Specific Tactical Activities
Authors: Ivana Mokrá
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The contribution deals with current or potential approaches to the modeling and optimization of tactical activities. This issue takes on importance in recent times, particularly with the increasing trend of digitized battlefield, the development of C4ISR systems and intention to streamline the command and control process at the lowest levels of command. From fundamental and philosophically point of view, this new approaches seek to significantly upgrade and enhance the decision-making process of the tactical commanders.
Keywords: Computer decision support, C4ISTAR, ISR, DSS, OTU
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 12763452 ILMI Approach for Robust Output Feedback Control of Induction Machine
Authors: Abdelwahed Echchatbi, Adil Rizki, Ali Haddi, Nabil Mrani, Noureddine Elalami
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In this note, the robust static output feedback stabilisation of an induction machine is addressed. The machine is described by a non homogenous bilinear model with structural uncertainties, and the feedback gain is computed via an iterative LMI (ILMI) algorithm.Keywords: Induction machine, Static output feedback, robust stabilisation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18843451 Analytical Prediction of Seismic Response of Steel Frames with Superelastic Shape Memory Alloy
Authors: Mohamed Omar
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Superelastic Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) is accepted when it used as connection in steel structures. The seismic behaviour of steel frames with SMA is being assessed in this study. Three eightstorey steel frames with different SMA systems are suggested, the first one of which is braced with diagonal bracing system, the second one is braced with nee bracing system while the last one is which the SMA is used as connection at the plastic hinge regions of beams. Nonlinear time history analyses of steel frames with SMA subjected to two different ground motion records have been performed using Seismostruct software. To evaluate the efficiency of suggested systems, the dynamic responses of the frames were compared. From the comparison results, it can be concluded that using SMA element is an effective way to improve the dynamic response of structures subjected to earthquake excitations. Implementing the SMA braces can lead to a reduction in residual roof displacement. The shape memory alloy is effective in reducing the maximum displacement at the frame top and it provides a large elastic deformation range. SMA connections are very effective in dissipating energy and reducing the total input energy of the whole frame under severe seismic ground motion. Using of the SMA connection system is more effective in controlling the reaction forces at the base frame than other bracing systems. Using SMA as bracing is more effective in reducing the displacements. The efficiency of SMA is dependant on the input wave motions and the construction system as well.Keywords: Finite element analysis, seismic response, shapesmemory alloy, steel frame, superelasticity
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18513450 Effects of Process Parameters on the Yield of Oil from Coconut Fruit
Authors: Ndidi F. Amulu, Godian O. Mbah, Maxwel I. Onyiah, Callistus N. Ude
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Analysis of the properties of coconut (Cocos nucifera) and its oil was evaluated in this work using standard analytical techniques. The analyses carried out include proximate composition of the fruit, extraction of oil from the fruit using different process parameters and physicochemical analysis of the extracted oil. The results showed the percentage (%) moisture, crude lipid, crude protein, ash and carbohydrate content of the coconut as 7.59, 55.15, 5.65, 7.35 and 19.51 respectively. The oil from the coconut fruit was odourless and yellowish liquid at room temperature (30oC). The treatment combinations used (leaching time, leaching temperature and solute: solvent ratio) showed significant differences (P<0.05) in the yield of oil from coconut flour. The oil yield ranged between 36.25%-49.83%. Lipid indices of the coconut oil indicated the acid value (AV) as 10.05Na0H/g of oil, free fatty acid (FFA) as 5.03%, saponification values (SV) as 183.26mgKOH-1g of oil, iodine value (IV) as 81.00 I2/g of oil, peroxide value (PV) as 5.00 ml/ g of oil and viscosity (V) as 0.002. A standard statistical package minitab version 16.0 program was used in the regression analysis and analysis of variance (ANOVA). The statistical software mentioned above was also used to generate various plots such as single effect plot, interactions effect plot and contour plot. The response or yield of oil from the coconut flour was used to develop a mathematical model that correlates the yield to the process variables studied. The maximum conditions obtained that gave the highest yield of coconut oil were leaching time of 2hrs, leaching temperature of 50oC and solute/solvent ratio of 0.05g/ml.
Keywords: Coconut, oil-extraction, optimization, physicochemical, proximate.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 26543449 Accuracy of Autonomy Navigation of Unmanned Aircraft Systems through Imagery
Authors: Sidney A. Lima, Hermann J. H. Kux, Elcio H. Shiguemori
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The Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) usually navigate through the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) associated with an Inertial Navigation System (INS). However, GNSS can have its accuracy degraded at any time or even turn off the signal of GNSS. In addition, there is the possibility of malicious interferences, known as jamming. Therefore, the image navigation system can solve the autonomy problem, because if the GNSS is disabled or degraded, the image navigation system would continue to provide coordinate information for the INS, allowing the autonomy of the system. This work aims to evaluate the accuracy of the positioning though photogrammetry concepts. The methodology uses orthophotos and Digital Surface Models (DSM) as a reference to represent the object space and photograph obtained during the flight to represent the image space. For the calculation of the coordinates of the perspective center and camera attitudes, it is necessary to know the coordinates of homologous points in the object space (orthophoto coordinates and DSM altitude) and image space (column and line of the photograph). So if it is possible to automatically identify in real time the homologous points the coordinates and attitudes can be calculated whit their respective accuracies. With the methodology applied in this work, it is possible to verify maximum errors in the order of 0.5 m in the positioning and 0.6º in the attitude of the camera, so the navigation through the image can reach values equal to or higher than the GNSS receivers without differential correction. Therefore, navigating through the image is a good alternative to enable autonomous navigation.
Keywords: Autonomy, navigation, security, photogrammetry, remote sensing, spatial resection, UAS.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 13323448 Unsteady Rayleigh-Bénard Convection of Nanoliquids in Enclosures
Authors: P. G. Siddheshwar, B. N. Veena
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Rayleigh-B´enard convection of a nanoliquid in shallow, square and tall enclosures is studied using the Khanafer-Vafai-Lightstone single-phase model. The thermophysical properties of water, copper, copper-oxide, alumina, silver and titania at 3000 K under stagnant conditions that are collected from literature are used in calculating thermophysical properties of water-based nanoliquids. Phenomenological laws and mixture theory are used for calculating thermophysical properties. Free-free, rigid-rigid and rigid-free boundary conditions are considered in the study. Intractable Lorenz model for each boundary combination is derived and then reduced to the tractable Ginzburg-Landau model. The amplitude thus obtained is used to quantify the heat transport in terms of Nusselt number. Addition of nanoparticles is shown not to alter the influence of the nature of boundaries on the onset of convection as well as on heat transport. Amongst the three enclosures considered, it is found that tall and shallow enclosures transport maximum and minimum energy respectively. Enhancement of heat transport due to nanoparticles in the three enclosures is found to be in the range 3% - 11%. Comparison of results in the case of rigid-rigid boundaries is made with those of an earlier work and good agreement is found. The study has limitations in the sense that thermophysical properties are calculated by using various quantities modelled for static condition.Keywords: Enclosures, free-free, rigid-rigid and rigid-free boundaries, Ginzburg-Landau model, Lorenz model.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 8593447 Monitoring the Railways by Means of C-OTDR Technology
Authors: Andrey V. Timofeev
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This paper presents development results of the method of seismoacoustic activity monitoring based on usage vibrosensitive properties of optical fibers. Analysis of Rayleigh backscattering radiation parameters changes, which take place due to microscopic seismoacoustic impacts on the optical fiber, allows to determine seismoacoustic emission sources positions and to identify their types. Results of using this approach are successful for complex monitoring of railways.
Keywords: C-OTDR systems, monitoring of railways, Rayleigh backscattering.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 28963446 The Ombudsman: Different Terminologies Same Missions
Authors: Khodr Fakih
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The Ombudsman is a procedural mechanism that provides a different approach of dispute resolution. The ombudsman primarily deals with specific grievances from the public against governmental injustice and misconduct. The ombudsman theory is considered an important instrument to any democratic government. This is true since it improves the transparency of the governmental activities in a world in which executive power are rising. Many countries have adopted the concept of Ombudsman but under different terminologies. This paper will provide the different types of Ombudsman and the common activities/processes of fulfilling their mandates.
Keywords: Administration, Citizens, Government, Mediator, Ombudsman, Presidential Mediator.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18443445 Intrapreneurship as a Unique Competitive Advantage
Authors: Dr. Christos S. Nicolaidis, Georgia C. Kosta
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Intrapreneurship, a term used to describe entrepreneurship within existing organizations, has been acknowledged in international literature and practice as a vital element of economic and organizational growth, success and competitiveness and can be considered as a unique competitive advantage. The purpose of the paper is, first, to provide a comprehensive analysis of the concept of intrapreneurship, and, second, to highlight the need for a different approach in the research on the field of intrapreneurship. Concluding, the paper suggests directions for future research.Keywords: Intrapreneurship, entrepreneurship, uniquecompetitive advantage, competitiveness
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 39813444 Application of Argumentation for Improving the Classification Accuracy in Inductive Concept Formation
Authors: Vadim Vagin, Marina Fomina, Oleg Morosin
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This paper contains the description of argumentation approach for the problem of inductive concept formation. It is proposed to use argumentation, based on defeasible reasoning with justification degrees, to improve the quality of classification models, obtained by generalization algorithms. The experiment’s results on both clear and noisy data are also presented.Keywords: Argumentation, justification degrees, inductive concept formation, noise, generalization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16223443 Changing the Way South Africa Think about Parking Provision at Tertiary Institutions
Authors: M. C. Venter, G. Hitge, S. C. Krygsman, J. Thiart
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For decades, South Africa has been planning transportation systems from a supply, rather than a demand side, perspective. In terms of parking, this relates to requiring the minimum parking provision that is enforced by city officials. Newer insight is starting to indicate that South Africa needs to re-think this philosophy in light of a new policy environment that desires a different outcome. Urban policies have shifted from reliance on the private car for access, to employing a wide range of alternative modes. Car dominated travel is influenced by various parameters, of which the availability and location of parking plays a significant role. The question is therefore, what is the right strategy to achieve the desired transport outcomes for SA. The focus of this paper is used to assess this issue with regard to parking provision, and specifically at a tertiary institution. A parking audit was conducted at the Stellenbosch campus of Stellenbosch University, monitoring occupancy at all 60 parking areas, every hour during business hours over a five-day period. The data from this survey was compared with the prescribed number of parking bays according to the Stellenbosch Municipality zoning scheme (requiring a minimum of 0.4 bays per student). The analysis shows that by providing 0.09 bays per student, the maximum total daily occupation of all the parking areas did not exceed an 80% occupation rate. It is concluded that the prevailing parking standards are not supportive of the new urban and transport policy environment, but that it is extremely conservative from a practical demand point of view.
Keywords: Parking provision, parking requirements, travel behaviour, travel demand management.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6923442 Multiple Criteria Decision Making Analysis for Selecting and Evaluating Fighter Aircraft
Authors: C. Ardil, A. M. Pashaev, R.A. Sadiqov, P. Abdullayev
Abstract:
In this paper, multiple criteria decision making analysis technique, is presented for ranking and selection of a set of determined alternatives - fighter aircraft - which are associated with a set of decision factors. In fighter aircraft design, conflicting decision criteria, disciplines, and technologies are always involved in the design process. Multiple criteria decision making analysis techniques can be helpful to effectively deal with such situations and make wise design decisions. Multiple criteria decision making analysis theory is a systematic mathematical approach for dealing with problems which contain uncertainties in decision making. The feasibility and contributions of applying the multiple criteria decision making analysis technique in fighter aircraft selection analysis is explored. In this study, an integrated framework incorporating multiple criteria decision making analysis technique in fighter aircraft analysis is established using entropy objective weighting method. An improved integrated multiple criteria decision making analysis method is utilized to aggregate the multiple decision criteria into one composite figure of merit, which serves as an objective function in the decision process. Therefore, it is demonstrated that the suitable multiple criteria decision making analysis method with decision solution provides an effective objective function for the decision making analysis. Considering that the inherent uncertainties and the weighting factors have crucial decision impacts on the fighter aircraft evaluation, seven fighter aircraft models for the multiple design criteria in terms of the weighting factors are constructed. The proposed multiple criteria decision making analysis model is based on integrated entropy index procedure, and additive multiple criteria decision making analysis theory. Hence, the applicability of proposed technique for fighter aircraft selection problem is considered. The constructed multiple criteria decision making analysis model can provide efficient decision analysis approach for uncertainty assessment of the decision problem. Consequently, the fighter aircraft alternatives are ranked based their final evaluation scores, and sensitivity analysis is conducted.
Keywords: Fighter Aircraft, Fighter Aircraft Selection, Multiple Criteria Decision Making, Multiple Criteria Decision Making Analysis, MCDMA
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6393441 Producing Graphical User Interface from Activity Diagrams
Authors: Ebitisam K. Elberkawi, Mohamed M. Elammari
Abstract:
Graphical User Interface (GUI) is essential to programming, as is any other characteristic or feature, due to the fact that GUI components provide the fundamental interaction between the user and the program. Thus, we must give more interest to GUI during building and development of systems. Also, we must give a greater attention to the user who is the basic corner in the dealing with the GUI. This paper introduces an approach for designing GUI from one of the models of business workflows which describe the workflow behavior of a system, specifically through Activity Diagrams (AD).
Keywords: Activity Diagram, Graphical User Interface.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2830