Search results for: surface properties
579 Influence of Ambiguity Cluster on Quality Improvement in Image Compression
Authors: Safaa Al-Ali, Ahmad Shahin, Fadi Chakik
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Image coding based on clustering provides immediate access to targeted features of interest in a high quality decoded image. This approach is useful for intelligent devices, as well as for multimedia content-based description standards. The result of image clustering cannot be precise in some positions especially on pixels with edge information which produce ambiguity among the clusters. Even with a good enhancement operator based on PDE, the quality of the decoded image will highly depend on the clustering process. In this paper, we introduce an ambiguity cluster in image coding to represent pixels with vagueness properties. The presence of such cluster allows preserving some details inherent to edges as well for uncertain pixels. It will also be very useful during the decoding phase in which an anisotropic diffusion operator, such as Perona-Malik, enhances the quality of the restored image. This work also offers a comparative study to demonstrate the effectiveness of a fuzzy clustering technique in detecting the ambiguity cluster without losing lot of the essential image information. Several experiments have been carried out to demonstrate the usefulness of ambiguity concept in image compression. The coding results and the performance of the proposed algorithms are discussed in terms of the peak signal-tonoise ratio and the quantity of ambiguous pixels.Keywords: Ambiguity Cluster, Anisotropic Diffusion, Fuzzy Clustering, Image Compression.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1558578 Investigation of Various Physical and Physiological Properties of Elite Male Ethiopian Distance Runners
Authors: Getaye F. Gelaw
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The purpose of this study was to investigate the key physical and physiological characteristics of 16 elite male Ethiopian national team distance runners, who have an average age of 28.1 ± 4.3 years, a height of 175.0 ± 5.6 cm, a weight of 59.1 ± 3.9 kg, a BMI of 19.6 ± 1.5, and training age of 10.1 ± 5.1 yrs. The average weekly distance is 196.3 ± 13.8 km, the average 10,000 m time is 27:14 ± 0.5 min sec, the average half marathon time is 59:30 ± 0.6 min sec, the average marathon time is 2:04:20 ± 2.7 hr min ss. In addition, the average Cooper test (12-minute run test) is 4525.4 ± 139.7 meters, and the average VO2 max is 90.8 ± 3.1 ml/kg/m. All athletes have a high profile and compete on the international label, and according to the World Athletics athletes' ranking system in 2021, 56.3% of the 16 participants were platinum label status, while the remaining 43.7% were gold label status-completed an incremental treadmill test for the assessment of VO2peak, submaximal running, lactate threshold and test during which they ran continuously at 21 km/h. The laboratory determined VO2peak was 91.4 ± 1.7 mL/kg/min with anaerobic threshold of 74.2 ± 1.6 mL/min/kg and VO2 max 81%. The speed at the Anaerobic Threshold (AT) is 15.9 ± 0.6 kmh and the altitude is 4.0%. The Respiratory Compensation Point (RCP) was reached at 88.7 ± 1.1 mL/min/kg and 97% of VO2 max. On RCP, the speed is 17.6 ± 0.4 km/h and the altitude/slope are 5.5%, and the speed at Maximum effort is 19.5 ± 1.5 and the elevation is 6.0%. The data also suggest that Ethiopian distance top athletes have considerably higher VO2 max values than those found in earlier research.
Keywords: Long-distance running, Ethiopians, VO2 max, World Athletics, Anthropometric.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 236577 Role of Dispersion of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes on Compressive Strength of Cement Paste
Authors: Jyoti Bharj, Sarabjit Singh, Subhash Chander, Rabinder Singh
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The outstanding mechanical properties of Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have generated great interest for their potential as reinforcements in high performance cementitious composites. The main challenge in research is the proper dispersion of carbon nanotubes in the cement matrix. The present work discusses the role of dispersion of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) on the compressive strength characteristics of hydrated Portland IS 1489 cement paste. Cement-MWCNT composites with different mixing techniques were prepared by adding 0.2% (by weight) of MWCNTs to Portland IS 1489 cement. Rectangle specimens of size approximately 40mm × 40mm ×160mm were prepared and curing of samples was done for 7, 14, 28 and 35days. An appreciable increase in compressive strength with both techniques; mixture of MWCNTs with cement in powder form and mixture of MWCNTs with cement in hydrated form 7 to 28 days of curing time for all the samples was observed.
Keywords: Carbon Nanotubes, Portland Cement, Composite, Compressive Strength.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3117576 Methyltrioctylammonium Chloride as a Separation Solvent for Binary Mixtures: Evaluation Based on Experimental Activity Coefficients
Authors: B. Kabane, G. G. Redhi
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An ammonium based ionic liquid (methyltrioctylammonium chloride) [N8 8 8 1] [Cl] was investigated as an extraction potential solvent for volatile organic solvents (in this regard, solutes), which includes alkenes, alkanes, ketones, alkynes, aromatic hydrocarbons, tetrahydrofuran (THF), alcohols, thiophene, water and acetonitrile based on the experimental activity coefficients at infinite THF measurements were conducted by the use of gas-liquid chromatography at four different temperatures (313.15 to 343.15) K. Experimental data of activity coefficients obtained across the examined temperatures were used in order to calculate the physicochemical properties at infinite dilution such as partial molar excess enthalpy, Gibbs free energy and entropy term. Capacity and selectivity data for selected petrochemical extraction problems (heptane/thiophene, heptane/benzene, cyclohaxane/cyclohexene, hexane/toluene, hexane/hexene) were computed from activity coefficients data and compared to the literature values with other ionic liquids. Evaluation of activity coefficients at infinite dilution expands the knowledge and provides a good understanding related to the interactions between the ionic liquid and the investigated compounds.
Keywords: Separation, activity coefficients, ionic liquid, methyltrioctylammonium chloride, capacity.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 713575 A Finite Element/Finite Volume Method for Dam-Break Flows over Deformable Beds
Authors: Alia Alghosoun, Ashraf Osman, Mohammed Seaid
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A coupled two-layer finite volume/finite element method was proposed for solving dam-break flow problem over deformable beds. The governing equations consist of the well-balanced two-layer shallow water equations for the water flow and a linear elastic model for the bed deformations. Deformations in the topography can be caused by a brutal localized force or simply by a class of sliding displacements on the bathymetry. This deformation in the bed is a source of perturbations, on the water surface generating water waves which propagate with different amplitudes and frequencies. Coupling conditions at the interface are also investigated in the current study and two mesh procedure is proposed for the transfer of information through the interface. In the present work a new procedure is implemented at the soil-water interface using the finite element and two-layer finite volume meshes with a conservative distribution of the forces at their intersections. The finite element method employs quadratic elements in an unstructured triangular mesh and the finite volume method uses the Rusanove to reconstruct the numerical fluxes. The numerical coupled method is highly efficient, accurate, well balanced, and it can handle complex geometries as well as rapidly varying flows. Numerical results are presented for several test examples of dam-break flows over deformable beds. Mesh convergence study is performed for both methods, the overall model provides new insight into the problems at minimal computational cost.Keywords: Dam-break flows, deformable beds, finite element method, finite volume method, linear elasticity, Shallow water equations.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 893574 Harnessing Nigeria's Forestry Potential for Structural Applications: Structural Reliability of Nigerian Grown Opepe Timber
Authors: J. I. Aguwa, S. Sadiku, M. Abdullahi
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This study examined the structural reliability of the Nigerian grown Opepe timber as bridge beam material. The strength of a particular specie of timber depends so much on some factors such as soil and environment in which it is grown. The steps involved are collection of the Opepe timber samples, seasoning/preparation of the test specimens, determination of the strength properties/statistical analysis, development of a computer programme in FORTRAN language and finally structural reliability analysis using FORM 5 software. The result revealed that the Nigerian grown Opepe is a reliable and durable structural bridge beam material for span of 5000mm, depth of 400mm, breadth of 250mm and end bearing length of 150mm. The probabilities of failure in bending parallel to the grain, compression perpendicular to the grain, shear parallel to the grain and deflection are 1.61 x 10-7, 1.43 x 10-8, 1.93 x 10-4 and 1.51 x 10-15 respectively. The paper recommends establishment of Opepe plantation in various Local Government Areas in Nigeria for structural applications such as in bridges, railway sleepers, generation of income to the nation as well as creating employment for the numerous unemployed youths.Keywords: Bending and deflection, Bridge beam, Compression, Nigerian Opepe, Shear, Structural reliability.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1240573 Ambient Vibration Testing of Existing Buildings in Madinah
Authors: Tarek M. Alguhane, Ayman H. Khalil, M. N. Fayed, Ayman M. Ismail
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The elastic period has a primary role in the seismic assessment of buildings. Reliable calculations and/or estimates of the fundamental frequency of a building and its site are essential during analysis and design process. Various code formulas based on empirical data are generally used to estimate the fundamental frequency of a structure. For existing structures, in addition to code formulas and available analytical tools such as modal analyses, various methods of testing including ambient and forced vibration testing procedures may be used to determine dynamic characteristics. In this study, the dynamic properties of the 32 buildings located in the Madinah of Saudi Arabia were identified using ambient motions recorded at several, spatially-distributed locations within each building. Ambient vibration measurements of buildings have been analyzed and the fundamental longitudinal and transverse periods for all tested buildings are presented. The fundamental mode of vibration has been compared in plots with codes formulae (Saudi Building Code, EC8, and UBC1997). The results indicate that measured periods of existing buildings are shorter than that given by most empirical code formulas. Recommendations are given based on the common design and construction practice in Madinah city.
Keywords: Ambient vibration, Fundamental period, RC buildings, Infill walls.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2319572 Sensory Characterization of Cookies with Chestnut Flour
Authors: Ljubica Dokić, Ivana Nikolić, Dragana Šoronja–Simović, Biljana Pajin, Nils Juul
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In this work sensory characteristics of cookies with different amount of chestnut flour were determined by sensory and instrumental methods. The wheat flour for cookies was substituted with chestnut flour in three different levels (20, 40 and 60%) and the dough moisture was 22%. The control sample was with 100% of wheat flour. Sensory quality of the cookies was described using quantity descriptive method (QDA) by six trained members of descriptive panel. Instrumental evaluation included texture characterization by texture analyzer, the color measurements (CIE L*a*b* system) and determination by videometer.
The samples with 20% of chestnut flour were with highest ponderated score for overall sensory impression (17.6), which is very close to score for control sample (18). Increase in amount of chestnut flour caused decrease in scores for all sensory properties, thus overall sensory score decreased also. Compared to control sample and with increase in amount of chestnut flour, instrumental determination of the samples confirmed the sensory analysis results. The hardness of the cookies increased, as well as the values of red a* and yellow (b*) component coordinate, but the values for lightness (L*) decreased. Also the values, evaluated by videometer at defined wavelength, were the highest for control cookies and decreased with increase in amount of chestnut flour.
Keywords: Cookies, chestnut flour, sensory characteristics.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2803571 Thresholding Approach for Automatic Detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilms from Fluorescence in situ Hybridization Images
Authors: Zonglin Yang, Tatsuya Akiyama, Kerry S. Williamson, Michael J. Franklin, Thiruvarangan Ramaraj
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Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen that forms surface-associated microbial communities (biofilms) on artificial implant devices and on human tissue. Biofilm infections are difficult to treat with antibiotics, in part, because the bacteria in biofilms are physiologically heterogeneous. One measure of biological heterogeneity in a population of cells is to quantify the cellular concentrations of ribosomes, which can be probed with fluorescently labeled nucleic acids. The fluorescent signal intensity following fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis correlates to the cellular level of ribosomes. The goals here are to provide computationally and statistically robust approaches to automatically quantify cellular heterogeneity in biofilms from a large library of epifluorescent microscopy FISH images. In this work, the initial steps were developed toward these goals by developing an automated biofilm detection approach for use with FISH images. The approach allows rapid identification of biofilm regions from FISH images that are counterstained with fluorescent dyes. This methodology provides advances over other computational methods, allowing subtraction of spurious signals and non-biological fluorescent substrata. This method will be a robust and user-friendly approach which will enable users to semi-automatically detect biofilm boundaries and extract intensity values from fluorescent images for quantitative analysis of biofilm heterogeneity.
Keywords: Image informatics, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, biofilm, FISH, computer vision, data visualization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1151570 Generalization of Clustering Coefficient on Lattice Networks Applied to Criminal Networks
Authors: Christian H. Sanabria-Montaña, Rodrigo Huerta-Quintanilla
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A lattice network is a special type of network in which all nodes have the same number of links, and its boundary conditions are periodic. The most basic lattice network is the ring, a one-dimensional network with periodic border conditions. In contrast, the Cartesian product of d rings forms a d-dimensional lattice network. An analytical expression currently exists for the clustering coefficient in this type of network, but the theoretical value is valid only up to certain connectivity value; in other words, the analytical expression is incomplete. Here we obtain analytically the clustering coefficient expression in d-dimensional lattice networks for any link density. Our analytical results show that the clustering coefficient for a lattice network with density of links that tend to 1, leads to the value of the clustering coefficient of a fully connected network. We developed a model on criminology in which the generalized clustering coefficient expression is applied. The model states that delinquents learn the know-how of crime business by sharing knowledge, directly or indirectly, with their friends of the gang. This generalization shed light on the network properties, which is important to develop new models in different fields where network structure plays an important role in the system dynamic, such as criminology, evolutionary game theory, econophysics, among others.Keywords: Clustering coefficient, criminology, generalized, regular network d-dimensional.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1613569 Effect of Plant Growth Promoting Bacteria Inoculation, Addition of Biochar, and Mineral N Fertilization on Mycorrhizal Colonization
Authors: Irina Mikajlo, Jaroslav Záhora, Helena Dvořáčková, Jaroslav Hynšt, Jakub Elbl
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Strong anthropogenic impact has uncontrolled consequences on the nature of the soil. Hence, up-to-date sustainable methods of soil state improvement are essential. Investigators provide the evidence that biochar can positively effects physical, chemical, and biological soil properties and the abundance of mycorrhizal fungi which are in the focus of this study. The main aim of the present investigation is to demonstrate the effect of two types of plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB) inoculums along with the beech wood biochar and mineral N additives on mycorrhizal colonization. Experiment has been set up in laboratory conditions with containers filled with arable soil from the protection zone of the main water source “Brezova nad Svitavou”. Lactuca sativa (lettuce) has been selected as a model plant. Based on the obtained data, it can be concluded that mycorrhizal colonization increased as the result of combined influence of biochar and PGPB inoculums amendment. In addition, correlation analyses showed that the numbers of main groups of cultivated bacteria were dependent on the degree of mycorrhizal colonization.Keywords: Arbuscular mycorrhiza, biochar, PGPB inoculum, soil microorganisms.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2585568 Effect of Scale on Slab Heat Transfer in a Walking Beam Type Reheating Furnace
Authors: Man Young Kim
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In this work, the effects of scale on thermal behavior of the slab in a walking-beam type reheating furnace is studied by considering scale formation and growth in a furnace environment. Also, mathematical heat transfer model to predict the thermal radiation in a complex shaped reheating furnace with slab and skid buttons is developed with combined nongray WSGGM and blocked-off solution procedure. The model can attack the heat flux distribution within the furnace and the temperature distribution in the slab throughout the reheating furnace process by considering the heat exchange between the slab and its surroundings, including the radiant heat transfer among the slabs, the skids, the hot combustion gases and the furnace wall as well as the gas convective heat transfer in the furnace. With the introduction of the mathematical formulations validation of the present numerical model is conducted by calculating two example problems of blocked-off and nongray gas radiative heat transfer. After discussing the formation and growth of the scale on the slab surface, slab heating characteristics with scale is investigated in terms of temperature rise with time.
Keywords: Reheating Furnace, Scale, Steel Slab, Radiative Heat Transfer, WSGGM.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 4352567 Rheological Characterisation of Collagen Gels from Marine Resources of Black Sea and Chlohexidine Salt for using in Dental Medicine
Authors: Sirbu R., Negreanu-Pirjol T., Leca M., Bechir A., Maris M., Maris D.
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In the paper we presented the possibility of application collagen gels with active principle-s from marine algae extract and chlorhexidine salt in dental medicine. The hydro-alcoholic extracts from marine algae have been used as they have been obtained. The extracts from marine algae and chlorhexidine salt (digluconate) are incorporated in type I non-denatured fibrillar collagen matrixes. In order to obtain therapeutic effects at nanostructure level, it is important to know the rheological characteristics of the relevant mixtures of collagen gels and extracts from marine algae selected for use. In this survey we have studied mixtures made of non-denatured fibrillar collagen hydro-gels where different concentrations of marine algae have been incorporated. Based on the data obtained for the shearing tensions, we have traced the rheograms – the diagrams for shearing tensions depending on the shearing speed values – from which we have calculated the apparent viscosities as ratios between shearing tension and speed values, which have been figured in relation to the shearing speed values, with a view to levelling dependency.Keywords: rheological properties, fibrillar collagen hydro-gel, marine algae, chlorhexidine salt, dental medicine
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2056566 Stress Analysis of the Ceramics Heads with Different Sizes under the Destruction Tests
Authors: V. Fuis, P. Janicek, T. Navrat
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The global solved problem is the calculation of the parameters of ceramic material from a set of destruction tests of ceramic heads of total hip joint endoprosthesis. The standard way of calculation of the material parameters consists in carrying out a set of 3 or 4 point bending tests of specimens cut out from parts of the ceramic material to be analysed. In case of ceramic heads, it is not possible to cut out specimens of required dimensions because the heads are too small (if the cut out specimens were smaller than the normalised ones, the material parameters derived from them would exhibit higher strength values than those which the given ceramic material really has). A special destruction device for heads destruction was designed and the solved local problem is the modification of this destructive device based on the analysis of tensile stress in the head for two different values of the depth of the conical hole in the head. The goal of device modification is a shift of the location with extreme value of σ1max from the region of head’s hole bottom to its opening. This modification will increase the credibility of the obtained material properties of bioceramics, which will be determined from a set of head destructions using the Weibull weakest link theory.
Keywords: Ceramic heads, depth of the conical hole, destruction test, material parameters, principal stress, total hip joint endoprosthesis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1834565 Mixing Behaviors of Shear-Thinning Fluids in Serpentine-Channel Micromixers
Authors: Rei-Tang Tsai, Chih-Yang Wu, Chia-Yuan Chang, Ming-Ying Kuo
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This study aims to investigate the mixing behaviors of deionized (DI) water and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) solutions in C-shaped serpentine micromixers over a wide range of flow conditions. The flow of CMC solutions exhibits shear-thinning behaviors. Numerical simulations are performed to investigate the effects of the mean flow speed, fluid properties and geometry parameters on flow and mixing in the micromixers with the serpentine channel of the same overall channel length. From the results, we can find the following trends. When convection dominates fluid mixing, the curvature-induced vortices enhance fluid mixing effectively. The mixing efficiency of a micromixer consisting of semicircular C-shaped repeating units with a smaller centerline radius is better than that of a micromixer consisting of major segment repeating units with a larger centerline radius. The viscosity of DI water is less than the overall average apparent viscosity of CMC solutions, and so the effect of curvature-induced vortices on fluid mixing in DI water is larger than that in CMC solutions for the cases with the same mean flow speed.Keywords: Microfluidics, mixing, non-Newtonian fluids, curved channel, vortex.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1926564 Frictional Effects on the Dynamics of a Truncated Double-Cone Gravitational Motor
Authors: Barenten Suciu
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In this work, effects of the friction and truncation on the dynamics of a double-cone gravitational motor, self-propelled on a straight V-shaped horizontal rail, are evaluated. Such mechanism has a variable radius of contact, and, on one hand, it is similar to a pulley mechanism that changes the potential energy into the kinetic energy of rotation, but on the other hand, it is similar to a pendulum mechanism that converts the potential energy of the suspended body into the kinetic energy of translation along a circular path. Movies of the self- propelled double-cones, made of S45C carbon steel and wood, along rails made of aluminum alloy, were shot for various opening angles of the rails. Kinematical features of the double-cones were estimated through the slow-motion processing of the recorded movies. Then, a kinematical model is derived under assumption that the distance traveled by the contact points on the rectilinear rails is identical with the distance traveled by the contact points on the truncated conical surface. Additionally, a dynamic model, for this particular contact problem, was proposed and validated against the experimental results. Based on such model, the traction force and the traction torque acting on the double-cone are identified. One proved that the rolling traction force is always smaller than the sliding friction force; i.e., the double-cone is rolling without slipping. Results obtained in this work can be used to achieve the proper design of such gravitational motor.
Keywords: Truncated double-cone, friction, rolling and sliding, dynamic model, gravitational motor.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1333563 The Relationship between Fugacity and Stress Intensity Factor for Corrosive Environment in Presence of Hydrogen Embrittlement
Authors: A. R. Shahani, E. Mahdavi, M. Amidpour
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Hydrogen diffusion is the main problem for corrosion fatigue in corrosive environment. In order to analyze the phenomenon, it is needed to understand their behaviors specially the hydrogen behavior during the diffusion. So, Hydrogen embrittlement and prediction its behavior as a main corrosive part of the fractions, needed to solve combinations of different equations mathematically. The main point to obtain the equation, having knowledge about the source of causing diffusion and running the atoms into materials, called driving force. This is produced by either gradient of electrical or chemical potential. In this work, we consider the gradient of chemical potential to obtain the property equation. In diffusion of atoms, some of them may be trapped but, it could be ignorable in some conditions. According to the phenomenon of hydrogen embrittlement, the thermodynamic and chemical properties of hydrogen are considered to justify and relate them to fracture mechanics. It is very important to get a stress intensity factor by using fugacity as a property of hydrogen or other gases. Although, the diffusive behavior and embrittlement event are common and the same for other gases but, for making it more clear, we describe it for hydrogen. This considering on the definite gas and describing it helps us to understand better the importance of this relation.
Keywords: Hydrogen embrittlement, Fracture mechanics, Thermodynamic, Stress intensity factor.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1947562 Intelligent System and Renewable Energy: A Farming Platform in Precision Agriculture
Authors: Ryan B. Escorial, Elmer A. Maravillas, Chris Jordan G. Aliac
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This study presents a small-scale water pumping system utilizing a fuzzy logic inference system attached to a renewable energy source. The fuzzy logic controller was designed and simulated in MATLAB fuzzy logic toolbox to examine the properties and characteristics of the input and output variables. The result of the simulation was implemented in a microcontroller, together with sensors, modules, and photovoltaic cells. The study used a grand rapid variety of lettuce, organic substrates, and foliar for observation of the capability of the device to irrigate crops. Two plant boxes intended for manual and automated irrigation were prepared with each box having 48 heads of lettuce. The observation of the system took 22-31 days, which is one harvest period of the crop. Results showed a 22.55% increase in agricultural productivity compared to manual irrigation. Aside from reducing human effort, and time, the smart irrigation system could help lessen some of the shortcomings of manual irrigations. It could facilitate the economical utilization of water, reducing consumption by 25%. The use of renewable energy could also help farmers reduce the cost of production by minimizing the use of diesel and gasoline.
Keywords: Fuzzy logic controller, intelligent system, precision agriculture, renewable energy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2267561 Large Strain Compression-Tension Behavior of AZ31B Rolled Sheet in the Rolling Direction
Authors: A. Yazdanmehr, H. Jahed
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Being made with the lightest commercially available industrial metal, Magnesium (Mg) alloys are of interest for light-weighting. Expanding their application to different material processing methods requires Mg properties at large strains. Several room-temperature processes such as shot and laser peening and hole cold expansion need compressive large strain data. Two methods have been proposed in the literature to obtain the stress-strain curve at high strains: 1) anti-buckling guides and 2) small cubic samples. In this paper, an anti-buckling fixture is used with the help of digital image correlation (DIC) to obtain the compression-tension (C-T) of AZ31B-H24 rolled sheet at large strain values of up to 10.5%. The effect of the anti-bucking fixture on stress-strain curves is evaluated experimentally by comparing the results with those of the compression tests of cubic samples. For testing cubic samples, a new fixture has been designed to increase the accuracy of testing cubic samples with DIC strain measurements. Results show a negligible effect of anti-buckling on stress-strain curves, specifically at high strain values.
Keywords: Large strain, compression-tension, loading-unloading, Mg alloys.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 772560 An Authentic Algorithm for Ciphering and Deciphering Called Latin Djokovic
Authors: Diogen Babuc
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The question that is a motivation of writing is how many devote themselves to discovering something in the world of science where much is discerned and revealed, but at the same time, much is unknown. The insightful elements of this algorithm are the ciphering and deciphering algorithms of Playfair, Caesar, and Vigen`ere. Only a few of their main properties are taken and modified, with the aim of forming a specific functionality of the algorithm called Latin Djokovic. Specifically, a string is entered as input data. A key k is given, with a random value between the values a and b = a+3. The obtained value is stored in a variable with the aim of being constant during the run of the algorithm. In correlation to the given key, the string is divided into several groups of substrings, and each substring has a length of k characters. The next step involves encoding each substring from the list of existing substrings. Encoding is performed using the basis of Caesar algorithm, i.e. shifting with k characters. However, that k is incremented by 1 when moving to the next substring in that list. When the value of k becomes greater than b + 1, it will return to its initial value. The algorithm is executed, following the same procedure, until the last substring in the list is traversed. Using this polyalphabetic method, ciphering and deciphering of strings are achieved. The algorithm also works for a 100-character string. The x character is not used when the number of characters in a substring is incompatible with the expected length. The algorithm is simple to implement, but it is questionable if it works better than the other methods, from the point of view of execution time and storage space.
Keywords: Ciphering and deciphering, Authentic Algorithm, Polyalphabetic Cipher, Random Key, methods comparison.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 175559 Influence of Alccofine on Semi-Light Weight Concrete under Accelerated Curing and Conventional Curing Regimes
Authors: P. Parthiban, J. Karthikeyan
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This paper deals with the performance of semi-light weight concrete, prepared by using wood ash pellets as coarse aggregates which were improved by partial replacement of cement with alccofine. Alccofine is a mineral admixture which contains high glass content obtained through the process of controlled granulation. This is finer than cement which carries its own pozzolanic property. Therefore, cement could be replaced by alccofine as 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30%, 35%, 40%, 45%, 50%, 55%, 60%, 65%, and 70% to enhance the strength and durability properties of concrete. High range water reducing admixtures (HRWA) were used in these mixes which were dosed up to 1.5% weight of the total cementitious content (alccofine & cement). It also develops the weaker transition zone into more impermeable layer. Specimens were subjected in both the accelerated curing method as well as conventional curing method. Experimental results were compared and reported, in that the maximum compressive strength of 32.6 MPa was achieved on 28th day with 30% replacement level in a density of 2200 kg/m3 to a conventional curing, while in the accelerated curing, maximum compressive strength was achieved at 40% replacement level. Rapid chloride penetration test (RCPT) output results for the conventional curing method at 0% and 70% give 3296.7 and 545.6 coulombs.
Keywords: Alccofine, compressive strength, RCPT, wood ash pellets.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 651558 Early Diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease Using a Combination of Images Processing and Brain Signals
Authors: E. Irankhah, M. Zarif, E. Mazrooei Rad, K. Ghandehari
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Alzheimer's prevalence is on the rise, and the disease comes with problems like cessation of treatment, high cost of treatment, and the lack of early detection methods. The pathology of this disease causes the formation of protein deposits in the brain of patients called plaque amyloid. Generally, the diagnosis of this disease is done by performing tests such as a cerebrospinal fluid, CT scan, MRI, and spinal cord fluid testing, or mental testing tests and eye tracing tests. In this paper, we tried to use the Medial Temporal Atrophy (MTA) method and the Leave One Out (LOO) cycle to extract the statistical properties of the three Fz, Pz, and Cz channels of ERP signals for early diagnosis of this disease. In the process of CT scan images, the accuracy of the results is 81% for the healthy person and 88% for the severe patient. After the process of ERP signaling, the accuracy of the results for a healthy person in the delta band in the Cz channel is 81% and in the alpha band the Pz channel is 90%. In the results obtained from the signal processing, the results of the severe patient in the delta band of the Cz channel were 89% and in the alpha band Pz channel 92%.
Keywords: Alzheimer's disease, image and signal processing, medial temporal atrophy, LOO Cycle.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2026557 Evaluation of Shear Strength Parameters of Rudsar Sandy Soil Stabilized with Waste Rubber Chips
Authors: R. Ziaie Moayed, M. Hamidzadeh
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The use of waste rubber chips not only can be of great importance in terms of the environment, but also can be used to increase the shear strength of soils. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the variation of the internal friction angle of liquefiable sandy soil using waste rubber chips. For this purpose, the geotechnical properties of unmodified and modified soil samples by waste lining rubber chips have been evaluated and analyzed by performing the triaxial consolidated drained test. In order to prepare the laboratory specimens, the sandy soil in part of Rudsar shores in Gilan province, north of Iran with high liquefaction potential has been replaced by two percent of waste rubber chips. Samples have been compressed until reaching the two levels of density of 15.5 and 16.7 kN/m3. Also, in order to find the optimal length of chips in sandy soil, the rectangular rubber chips with the widths of 0.5 and 1 cm and the lengths of 0.5, 1, and 2 cm were used. The results showed that the addition of rubber chips to liquefiable sandy soil greatly increases the shear resistance of these soils. Also, it can be seen that decreasing the width and increasing the length-to-width ratio of rubber chips has a direct impact on the shear strength of the modified soil samples with rubber chips.
Keywords: Improvement, shear strength, internal friction angle, sandy soil, rubber chip.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 652556 New Nonlinear Filtering Strategies for Eliminating Short and Long Tailed Noise in Images with Edge Preservation Properties
Authors: E. Srinivasan, D. Ebenezer
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Midpoint filter is quite effective in recovering the images confounded by the short-tailed (uniform) noise. It, however, performs poorly in the presence of additive long-tailed (impulse) noise and it does not preserve the edge structures of the image signals. Median smoother discards outliers (impulses) effectively, but it fails to provide adequate smoothing for images corrupted with nonimpulse noise. In this paper, two nonlinear techniques for image filtering, namely, New Filter I and New Filter II are proposed based on a nonlinear high-pass filter algorithm. New Filter I is constructed using a midpoint filter, a highpass filter and a combiner. It suppresses uniform noise quite well. New Filter II is configured using an alpha trimmed midpoint filter, a median smoother of window size 3x3, the high pass filter and the combiner. It is robust against impulse noise and attenuates uniform noise satisfactorily. Both the filters are shown to exhibit good response at the image boundaries (edges). The proposed filters are evaluated for their performance on a test image and the results obtained are included.Keywords: Image filters, Midpoint filter, Nonlinear filters, Nonlinear highpass filter, Order-statistic filters, Rank-order filters.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1439555 Fluidized-Bed Combustion of Biomass with Elevated Alkali Content: A Comparative Study between Two Alternative Bed Materials
Authors: P. Ninduangdee, V. I. Kuprianov
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Palm kernel shell is an important bioenergy resource in Thailand. However, due to elevated alkali content in biomass ash, this oil palm residue shows high tendency to bed agglomeration in a fluidized-bed combustion system using conventional bed material (silica sand). In this study, palm kernel shell was burned in the conical fluidized-bed combustor (FBC) using alumina and dolomite as alternative bed materials to prevent bed agglomeration. For each bed material, the combustion tests were performed at 45kg/h fuel feed rate with excess air within 20–80%. Experimental results revealed rather weak effects of the bed material type but substantial influence of excess air on the behavior of temperature, O2, CO, CxHy, and NO inside the reactor, as well as on the combustion efficiency and major gaseous emissions of the conical FBC. The optimal level of excess air ensuring high combustion efficiency (about 98.5%) and acceptable level of the emissions was found to be about 40% when using alumina and 60% with dolomite. By using these alternative bed materials, bed agglomeration can be prevented when burning the shell in the proposed conical FBC. However, both bed materials exhibited significant changes in their morphological, physical and chemical properties in the course of the time.
Keywords: Palm kernel shell, fluidized-bed combustion, alternative bed materials, combustion and emission performance, bed agglomeration prevention.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3020554 The Data Processing Electronics of the METIS Coronagraph aboard the ESA Solar Orbiter Mission
Authors: M. Focardi, M. Pancrazzi, M. Uslenghi, G. Nicolini, E. Magli, F. Landini, M. Romoli, A. Bemporad, E. Antonucci, S. Fineschi, G. Naletto, P. Nicolosi, D. Spadaro, V. Andretta
Abstract:
METIS is the Multi Element Telescope for Imaging and Spectroscopy, a Coronagraph aboard the European Space Agency-s Solar Orbiter Mission aimed at the observation of the solar corona via both VIS and UV/EUV narrow-band imaging and spectroscopy. METIS, with its multi-wavelength capabilities, will study in detail the physical processes responsible for the corona heating and the origin and properties of the slow and fast solar wind. METIS electronics will collect and process scientific data thanks to its detectors proximity electronics, the digital front-end subsystem electronics and the MPPU, the Main Power and Processing Unit, hosting a space-qualified processor, memories and some rad-hard FPGAs acting as digital controllers.This paper reports on the overall METIS electronics architecture and data processing capabilities conceived to address all the scientific issues as a trade-off solution between requirements and allocated resources, just before the Preliminary Design Review as an ESA milestone in April 2012.Keywords: Solar Coronagraph, Data Processing Electronics, VIS and UV/EUV Detectors, LEON Processor, Rad-hard FPGAs
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2542553 Metallurgy of Friction Welding of Porous Stainless Steel-Solid Iron Billets
Authors: S. D. El Wakil
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The research work reported here was aimed at investigating the feasibility of joining high-porosity stainless steel discs and wrought iron bars by friction welding. The sound friction-welded joints were then subjected to a metallurgical investigation and an analysis of failure resulting from tensile loading. Discs having 50 mm diameter and 10 mm thickness were produced by loose sintering of stainless steel powder at a temperature of 1350 oC in an argon atmosphere for one hour. Minor machining was then carried out to control the dimensions of the discs, and the density of each disc could then be determined. The level of porosity was calculated and was found to be about 40% in all of those discs. Solid wrought iron bars were also machined to facilitate tensile testing of the joints produced by friction welding. Using our previously gained experience, the porous stainless steel disc and the wrought iron tube were successfully friction welded. SEM was employed to examine the fracture surface after a tensile test of the joint in order to determine the type of failure. It revealed that the failure did not occur in the joint, but rather in the in the porous metal in the area adjacent to the joint. The load carrying capacity was actually determined by the strength of the porous metal and not by that of the welded joint. Macroscopic and microscopic metallographic examinations were also performed and showed that the welded joint involved a dense heat-affected zone where the porous metal underwent densification at elevated temperature, explaining and supporting the findings of the SEM study.
Keywords: Fracture of friction-welded joints, metallurgy of friction welding, solid-porous structures, strength of joint.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1142552 Cold Spray Deposition of SS316L Powders on Al5052 Substrates and Their Potential Using for Biomedical Applications
Authors: B. Dikici, I. Ozdemir, M. Topuz
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The corrosion behaviour of 316L stainless steel coatings obtained by cold spray method was investigated in this study. 316L powders were deposited onto Al5052 aluminum substrates. The coatings were produced using nitrogen (N2) process gas. In order to further improve the corrosion and mechanical properties of the coatings, heat treatment was applied at 250 and 750 °C. The corrosion performances of the coatings were compared using the potentiodynamic scanning (PDS) technique under in-vitro conditions (in Ringer’s solution at 37 °C). In addition, the hardness and porosity tests were carried out on the coatings. Microstructural characterization of the coatings was carried out by using scanning electron microscopy attached with energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM-EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique. It was found that clean surfaces and a good adhesion were achieved for particle/substrate bonding. The heat treatment process provided both elimination of the anisotropy in the coating and resulting in healing-up of the incomplete interfaces between the deposited particles. It was found that the corrosion potential of the annealed coatings at 750 °C was higher than that of commercially 316 L stainless steel. Moreover, the microstructural investigations after the corrosion tests revealed that corrosion preferentially starts at inter-splat boundaries.
Keywords: 316L, biomaterials, cold spray, heat treatment.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2289551 Preliminary Studies of MWCNT/PVDF Polymer Composites
Authors: Esther Lorrayne M. Pereira, Adriana Souza M. Batista, Fabíola A. S. Ribeiro, Adelina P. Santos, Clascídia A. Furtado, Luiz O. Faria
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The combination of multi–walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with polymers offers an attractive route to reinforce the macromolecular compounds as well as the introduction of new properties based on morphological modifications or electronic interactions between the two constituents. As they are only a few nanometers in dimension, it offers ultra-large interfacial area per volume between the nano-element and polymer matrix. Nevertheless, the use of MWCNTs as a rough material in different applications has been largely limited by their poor processability, insolubility, and infusibility. Studies concerning the nanofiller reinforced polymer composites are justified in an attempt to overcome these limitations. This work presents one preliminary study of MWCNTs dispersion into the PVDF homopolymer. For preparation, the composite components were diluted in n,n-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) with mechanical agitation assistance. After complete dilution, followed by slow evaporation of the solvent at 60°C, the samples were dried. Films of about 80 μm were obtained. FTIR and UV-Vis spectroscopic techniques were used to characterize the nanocomposites. The appearance of absorption bands in the FTIR spectra of nanofilled samples, when compared to the spectrum of pristine PVDF samples, are discussed and compared with the UV-Vis measurements.Keywords: Composites materials, FTIR, MWNTs, PVDF, UVVis.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1896550 Preparation and Characterization of Maltodextrin Microcapsules Containing Walnut Green Husk Extract
Authors: Fatemeh Cheraghali, Saeedeh Shojaee-Aliabadi, Seyede Marzieh Hosseini, Leila Mirmoghtadaie
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In recent years, the field of natural antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds is one of the main research topics in the food industry. Application of agricultural residues is mainly cheap, and available resources are receiving increased attention. Walnut green husk is one of the agricultural residues that is considered as natural compounds with biological properties because of phenolic compounds. In this study, maltodextrin 10% was used for microencapsulation of walnut green husk extract. At first, the extract was examined to consider extraction yield, total phenolic compounds, and antioxidant activation. The results showed the extraction yield of 81.43%, total phenolic compounds of 3997 [mg GAE/100 g], antioxidant activity [DPPH] of 84.85% for walnut green husk extract. Antioxidant activity is about 75%-81% and by DPPH. At the next stage, microencapsulation was done by spry-drying method. The microencapsulation efficiency was 72%-79%. The results of SEM tests confirmed this microencapsulation process. In addition, microencapsulated and free extract was more effective on gram-positive bacteria’s rather than the gram-negative ones. According to the study, walnut green husk can be used as a cheap antioxidant and antimicrobial compounds due to sufficient value of phenolic compounds.
Keywords: Biopolymer, microencapsulation, Spray-drying, Walnut green husk.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 817