Search results for: categorical data.
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 7453

Search results for: categorical data.

3283 An Analysis of the Relationship between Manufacturing Growth and Economic Growth in South Africa: A Cointegration Approach

Authors: Johannes T. Tsoku, Teboho J. Mosikari, Diteboho Xaba, Thatoyaone Modise

Abstract:

This paper examines the relationship between manufacturing growth and economic growth in South Africa using quarterly data ranging from 2001 to 2014. The paper employed the Johansen cointegration to test the Kaldor’s hypothesis. The Johansen cointegration results revealed that there is a long run relationship between GDP, manufacturing, service and employment. The Granger causality results revealed that there is a unidirectional causality running from manufacturing growth to GDP growth. The overall findings of the study confirm that Kaldor’s first law of growth is applicable in South African economy. Therefore, investment strategies and policies should be alignment towards promoting growth in the manufacturing sector in order to boost the economic growth of South Africa.

Keywords: Cointegration, economic growth, Kaldor’s law, manufacturing growth.

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3282 Kinetic Study of Gluconic Acid Batch Fermentation by Aspergillus niger

Authors: Akbarningrum Fatmawati, Rudy Agustriyanto, Lindawati

Abstract:

Gluconic acid is one of interesting chemical products in industries such as detergents, leather, photographic, textile, and especially in food and pharmaceutical industries. Fermentation is an advantageous process to produce gluconic acid. Mathematical modeling is important in the design and operation of fermentation process. In fact, kinetic data must be available for modeling. The kinetic parameters of gluconic acid production by Aspergillus niger in batch culture was studied in this research at initial substrate concentration of 150, 200 and 250 g/l. The kinetic models used were logistic equation for growth, Luedeking-Piret equation for gluconic acid formation, and Luedeking-Piret-like equation for glucose consumption. The Kinetic parameters in the model were obtained by minimizing non linear least squares curve fitting.

Keywords: Aspergillus niger, fermentation, gluconic acid, kinetic.

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3281 Laminar Impinging Jet Heat Transfer for Curved Plates

Authors: A. M. Tahsini, S. Tadayon Mousavi

Abstract:

The purpose of the present study is to analyze the effect of the target plate-s curvature on the heat transfer in laminar confined impinging jet flows. Numerical results from two dimensional compressible finite volume solver are compared between three different shapes of impinging plates: Flat, Concave and Convex plates. The remarkable result of this study proves that the stagnation Nusselt number in laminar range of Reynolds number based on the slot width is maximum in convex surface and is minimum in concave plate. These results refuse the previous data in literature stating the amount of the stagnation Nusselt number is greater in concave surface related to flat plate configuration.

Keywords: Concave, Convex, Heat transfer, Impinging jet, Laminar flow.

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3280 Journey to Cybercrime and Crime Opportunity: Quantitative Analysis of Cyber Offender Spatial Decision Making

Authors: Sinchul Back, Sun Ho Kim, Jennifer LaPrade, Ilju Seong

Abstract:

Due to the advantage of using the Internet, cybercriminals can reach target(s) without border controls. Prior research on criminology and crime science has largely been void of empirical studies on journey-to-cybercrime and crime opportunity. Thus, the purpose of this study is to understand more about cyber offender spatial decision making associated with crime opportunity factors (i.e., co-offending, offender-stranger). Data utilized in this study were derived from 306 U.S. Federal court cases of cybercrime. The findings of this study indicated that there was a positive relationship between co-offending and journey-to-cybercrime, whereas there was no link between offender-stranger and journey-to-cybercrime. Also, the results showed that there was no relationship between cybercriminal sex, age, and journey-to-cybercrime. The policy implications and limitations of this study are discussed.

Keywords: Co-offending, crime opportunity, journey-to-cybercrime, offender-stranger.

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3279 Female Labor Force Participation in Third World Countries: An Empirical Analysis

Authors: Anam Azam, Muhammad Rafiq

Abstract:

The study identified the socio-economic and demographic factors of both married and unmarried females in third world countries. Almost all the countries have same problems but we have selected Pakistan as a sample country. The main purpose of this study was to examine which factors forced women to participate in labor market. So the best technique of data collection was survey of both married and unmarried females between the ages of 20 to 49. Two models (probit and logit) were used to analyze the factors which effect on FLFP. The result showed that some factors e.g. age; education and marital status have significant effect on FLFP. The findings showed that educated women and those who belong to joint families are more participate because of financial pressure.

Keywords: Education, Financial status, Family pressure Labor Market participation.

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3278 The Fluid Limit of the Critical Processor Sharing Tandem Queue

Authors: Amal Ezzidani, Abdelghani Ben Tahar, Mohamed Hanini

Abstract:

A sequence of finite tandem queue is considered for this study. Each one has a single server, which operates under the egalitarian processor sharing discipline. External customers arrive at each queue according to a renewal input process and having a general service times distribution. Upon completing service, customers leave the current queue and enter to the next. Under mild assumptions, including critical data, we prove the existence and the uniqueness of the fluid solution. For asymptotic behavior, we provide necessary and sufficient conditions for the invariant state and the convergence to this invariant state. In the end, we establish the convergence of a correctly normalized state process to a fluid limit characterized by a system of algebraic and integral equations.

Keywords: Fluid Limit, fluid model, measure valued process, processor sharing, tandem queue.

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3277 Low Leakage MUX/XOR Functions Using Symmetric and Asymmetric FinFETs

Authors: Farid Moshgelani, Dhamin Al-Khalili, Côme Rozon

Abstract:

In this paper, FinFET devices are analyzed with emphasis on sub-threshold leakage current control. This is achieved through proper biasing of the back gate, and through the use of asymmetric work functions for the four terminal FinFET devices. We are also examining different configurations of multiplexers and XOR gates using transistors of symmetric and asymmetric work functions. Based on extensive characterization data for MUX circuits, our proposed configuration using symmetric devices lead to leakage current and delay improvements of 65% and 47% respectively compared to results in the literature. For XOR gates, a 90% improvement in the average leakage current is achieved by using asymmetric devices. All simulations are based on a 25nm FinFET technology using the University of Florida UFDG model.

Keywords: FinFET, logic functions, asymmetric workfunction devices, back gate biasing, sub-threshold leakage current.

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3276 Similarity Measure Functions for Strategy-Based Biometrics

Authors: Roman V. Yampolskiy, Venu Govindaraju

Abstract:

Functioning of a biometric system in large part depends on the performance of the similarity measure function. Frequently a generalized similarity distance measure function such as Euclidian distance or Mahalanobis distance is applied to the task of matching biometric feature vectors. However, often accuracy of a biometric system can be greatly improved by designing a customized matching algorithm optimized for a particular biometric application. In this paper we propose a tailored similarity measure function for behavioral biometric systems based on the expert knowledge of the feature level data in the domain. We compare performance of a proposed matching algorithm to that of other well known similarity distance functions and demonstrate its superiority with respect to the chosen domain.

Keywords: Behavioral Biometrics, Euclidian Distance, Matching, Similarity Measure.

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3275 Removal of Chromium from Aqueous Solution using Synthesized Polyaniline in Acetonitrile

Authors: Majid Riahi Samani, Seyed Mehdi Borghei

Abstract:

Absorptive characteristics of polyaniline synthesized in mixture of water and acetonitrile in 50/50 volume ratio was studied. Synthesized polyaniline in powder shape is used as an adsorbent to remove toxic hexavalent chromium from aqueous solutions. Experiments were conducted in batch mode with different variables such as agitation time, solution pH and initial concentration of hexavalent chromium. Removal mechanism is the combination of surface adsorption and reduction. The equilibrium time for removal of Cr(T) and Cr(VI) was about 2 and 10 minutes respectively. The optimum pH for total chromium removal occurred at pH 7 and maximum hexavalent chromium removal took place under acidic condition at pH 3. Investigating the isothermal characteristics showed that the equilibrium adsorption data fitted both Freundlich-s and Langmuir-s isotherms. The maximum adsorption of chromium was calculated 36.1 mg/g for polyaniline

Keywords: Polyaniline, Chromium, acetonitrile, Adsorption

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3274 Smart Technology for Hygrothermal Performance of Low Carbon Material Using an Artificial Neural Network Model

Authors: Manal Bouasria, Mohammed-Hichem Benzaama, Valérie Pralong, Yassine El Mendili

Abstract:

Reducing the quantity of cement in cementitious composites can help to reduce the environmental effect of construction materials. Byproducts such as ferronickel slags (FNS), fly ash (FA), and waste as Crepidula fornicata shells (CR) are promising options for cement replacement. In this work, we investigated the relevance of substituting cement with FNS-CR and FA-CR on the mechanical properties of mortar and on the thermal properties of concrete. Foraging intervals ranging from 2 days to 28 days, the mechanical properties are obtained by 3-point bending and compression tests. The chosen mix is used to construct a prototype in order to study the material’s hygrothermal performance. The data collected by the sensors placed on the prototype were utilized to build an artificial neural network.

Keywords: Artificial neural network, cement, circular economy, concrete, byproducts.

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3273 Observation of the Correlations between Pair Wise Interaction and Functional Organization of the Proteins, in the Protein Interaction Network of Saccaromyces Cerevisiae

Authors: N. Tuncbag, T. Haliloglu, O. Keskin

Abstract:

Understanding the cell's large-scale organization is an interesting task in computational biology. Thus, protein-protein interactions can reveal important organization and function of the cell. Here, we investigated the correspondence between protein interactions and function for the yeast. We obtained the correlations among the set of proteins. Then these correlations are clustered using both the hierarchical and biclustering methods. The detailed analyses of proteins in each cluster were carried out by making use of their functional annotations. As a result, we found that some functional classes appear together in almost all biclusters. On the other hand, in hierarchical clustering, the dominancy of one functional class is observed. In brief, from interaction data to function, some correlated results are noticed about the relationship between interaction and function which might give clues about the organization of the proteins.

Keywords: Pair-wise protein interactions, DIP database, functional correlations, biclustering.

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3272 Gross Motor Skills of Children with Mild Intellectual Disabilities

Authors: Pavel Zikl, Nikola Holoubková, Hana Karásková, Tereza B. Veselíková

Abstract:

The article presents the research results focused on comparing the level of gross motor skills in children with mild intellectual disabilities and intact children. The data collection used the standard test (Test of Gross Motor Development). The research sample consisted of a total of 114 students with an average age of 10 years. The results present the differences between the two groups of students in locomotor skills and object control skills. The presented results can serve as a basis for better targeting of special-pedagogical support for children with mild intellectual disabilities and as a basis for innovation of the curriculum for this group of children, as well as a basis for further research activities in this area.

Keywords: Gross motor, mild intellectual disability, Test of Gross Motor Development.

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3271 Supportability Analysis in LCI Environment

Authors: Dragan Vasiljevic, Ana Horvat

Abstract:

Starting from the basic pillars of the supportability analysis this paper queries its characteristics in LCI (Life Cycle Integration) environment. The research methodology contents a review of modern logistics engineering literature with the objective to collect and synthesize the knowledge relating to standards of supportability design in e-logistics environment. The results show that LCI framework has properties which are in fully compatibility with the requirement of simultaneous logistics support and productservice bundle design. The proposed approach is a contribution to the more comprehensive and efficient supportability design process. Also, contributions are reflected through a greater consistency of collected data, automated creation of reports suitable for different analysis, as well as the possibility of their customization according with customer needs. In addition to this, convenience of this approach is its practical use in real time. In a broader sense, LCI allows integration of enterprises on a worldwide basis facilitating electronic business.

Keywords: E-logistics, integrated product development, standards, supportability analysis.

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3270 Prevalence Study among University Students in Belarus: To What Extent Do Foreigners Experience Alcohol Problems?

Authors: M. O. Welcome, Y. E. Razvodovsky, V. A. Pereverzev

Abstract:

There is a paucity of data on the prevalence of alcohol use and related problems among foreign students in Belarus. We therefore screen for the prevalence of alcohol related problems among the general foreign students- population in Minsk, Belarus. Participants were 135 male university foreign students (average age – 21) from three major universities in Minsk, Belarus. All respondents were administered questionnaire, containing the AUDIT, CAGE, MAST and other alcohol related questions. Overall, 62.2% (n=84) alcohol users and 31.1% (n=42) problem drinkers were identified on the AUDIT. There was a significant increase (from 39.3% to 60.7%) of the total alcohol users after arrival in Belarus (¤ç2 = 7.714, p<0.02). This study shows that the prevalence of alcohol related problems is high among the foreign students- population in Minsk, Belarus.

Keywords: Alcohol related problems, Male foreign students, Prevalence.

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3269 Reduced Order Modeling of Natural Gas Transient Flow in Pipelines

Authors: M. Behbahani-Nejad, Y. Shekari

Abstract:

A reduced order modeling approach for natural gas transient flow in pipelines is presented. The Euler equations are considered as the governing equations and solved numerically using the implicit Steger-Warming flux vector splitting method. Next, the linearized form of the equations is derived and the corresponding eigensystem is obtained. Then, a few dominant flow eigenmodes are used to construct an efficient reduced-order model. A well-known test case is presented to demonstrate the accuracy and the computational efficiency of the proposed method. The results obtained are in good agreement with those of the direct numerical method and field data. Moreover, it is shown that the present reduced-order model is more efficient than the conventional numerical techniques for transient flow analysis of natural gas in pipelines.

Keywords: Eigenmode, Natural Gas, Reduced Order Modeling, Transient Flow.

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3268 Causal Modeling of the Glucose-Insulin System in Type-I Diabetic Patients

Authors: J. Fernandez, N. Aguilar, R. Fernandez de Canete, J. C. Ramos-Diaz

Abstract:

In this paper, a simulation model of the glucose-insulin system for a patient undergoing diabetes Type 1 is developed by using a causal modeling approach under system dynamics. The OpenModelica simulation environment has been employed to build the so called causal model, while the glucose-insulin model parameters were adjusted to fit recorded mean data of a diabetic patient database. Model results under different conditions of a three-meal glucose and exogenous insulin ingestion patterns have been obtained. This simulation model can be useful to evaluate glucose-insulin performance in several circumstances, including insulin infusion algorithms in open-loop and decision support systems in closed-loop.

Keywords: Causal modeling, diabetes, glucose-insulin system, diabetes, causal modeling, OpenModelica software.

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3267 The Impact of Drama Education on Creativity Development at Preschool Children

Authors: Vladimíra Hornáčková

Abstract:

This paper points out at the importance of creativity development in children of preschool age and analyses certain conditions and pedagogical principles which should be respected during the development of creativity in kindergartens. Research survey focuses on the development of creativity reflection at children in kindergartens at preschool age and based on a test of creativity it compares creativity of children in experimental and control groups. The goal is to find out if there are any differences among children in experimental and control classrooms in kindergartens; wherein experimental groups, there is preschool education with the use of drama education while in control groups there is not. On the basis of certain aspects, the gained data is compared through descriptive methods and correlations. Research results refer to reserves in creativity development in modern pre-primary education in the context of implemented and expected changes in didactic approach in the education of kindergartens.

Keywords: Preschool child, drama in education, research, test of creativity.

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3266 Design and Implementation a New Energy Efficient Clustering Algorithm using Genetic Algorithm for Wireless Sensor Networks

Authors: Moslem Afrashteh Mehr

Abstract:

Wireless Sensor Networks consist of small battery powered devices with limited energy resources. once deployed, the small sensor nodes are usually inaccessible to the user, and thus replacement of the energy source is not feasible. Hence, One of the most important issues that needs to be enhanced in order to improve the life span of the network is energy efficiency. to overcome this demerit many research have been done. The clustering is the one of the representative approaches. in the clustering, the cluster heads gather data from nodes and sending them to the base station. In this paper, we introduce a dynamic clustering algorithm using genetic algorithm. This algorithm takes different parameters into consideration to increase the network lifetime. To prove efficiency of proposed algorithm, we simulated the proposed algorithm compared with LEACH algorithm using the matlab

Keywords: Wireless Sensor Networks, Clustering, Geneticalgorithm, Energy Consumption

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3265 QSI Dynamical Fetch Policy for SMT

Authors: Shu-Chiao Yang, Jong-Jiann Shieh

Abstract:

A Simultaneous Multithreading (SMT) Processor is capable of executing instructions from multiple threads in the same cycle. SMT in fact was introduced as a powerful architecture to superscalar to increase the throughput of the processor. Simultaneous Multithreading is a technique that permits multiple instructions from multiple independent applications or threads to compete limited resources each cycle. While the fetch unit has been identified as one of the major bottlenecks of SMT architecture, several fetch schemes were proposed by prior works to enhance the fetching efficiency and overall performance. In this paper, we propose a novel fetch policy called queue situation identifier (QSI) which counts some kind of long latency instructions of each thread each cycle then properly selects which threads to fetch next cycle. Simulation results show that in best case our fetch policy can achieve 30% on speedup and also can reduce the data cache level 1 miss rate.

Keywords: SMT, QSI, DL1 miss rate.

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3264 Treatment of Acid Mine Drainage Using Un- Activated Bentonite and Limestone

Authors: Thembelihle Nkonyane, Freeman Ntuli, Edison Muzenda

Abstract:

The use of un-activated bentonite, and un-activated bentonite blended with limestone for the treatment of acid mine drainage (AMD) was investigated. Batch experiments were conducted in a 5 L PVC reactor. Un-activated bentonite on its own did not effectively neutralize and remove heavy metals from AMD. The final pH obtained was below 4 and the metal removal efficiency was below 50% for all the metals when bentonite solid loadings of 1, 5 and 10% were used. With un-activated bentonite (1%) blended with 1% limestone, the final pH obtained was approximately 7 and metal removal efficiencies were greater than 60% for most of the metals. The Langmuir isotherm gave the best fit for the experimental data giving correlation coefficient (R2) very close to 1. Thus, it was concluded that un-activated bentonite blended with limestone is suitable for potential applications in removing heavy metals and neutralizing AMD.

Keywords: acid mine drainage, bentonite, limestone, heavy metal removal.

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3263 Designing Social Media into Higher Education Courses

Authors: Thapanee Seechaliao

Abstract:

This research paper presents guiding on how to design social media into higher education courses. The research methodology used a survey approach. The research instrument was a questionnaire about guiding on how to design social media into higher education courses. Thirty-one lecturers completed the questionnaire. The data were scored by frequency and percentage. The research results were the lecturers’ opinions concerning the designing social media into higher education courses as follows: 1) Lecturers deem that the most suitable learning theory is Collaborative Learning. 2) Lecturers consider that the most important learning and innovation Skill in the 21st century is communication and collaboration skills. 3) Lecturers think that the most suitable evaluation technique is authentic assessment. 4) Lecturers consider that the most appropriate portion used as blended learning should be 70% in the classroom setting and 30% online.

Keywords: Instructional design, social media, courses, higher education.

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3262 Thrust Vectoring Control of Supersonic Flow Through an Orifice Injector

Authors: Ibrahim Mnafeg, Azgal Abichou, Lotfi Beji

Abstract:

Traditional mechanical control systems in thrust vectoring are efficient in rocket thrust guidance but their costs and their weights are excessive. The fluidic injection in the nozzle divergent constitutes an alternative procedure to achieve the goal. In this paper, we present a 3D analytical model for fluidic injection in a supersonic nozzle integrating an orifice. The fluidic vectoring uses a sonic secondary injection in the divergent. As a result, the flow and interaction between the main and secondary jet has built in order to express the pressure fields from which the forces and thrust vectoring are deduced. Under various separation criteria, the present analytical model results are compared with the existing numerical and experimental data from the literature.

Keywords: Flow separation, Fluidic thrust vectoring, Nozzle, Secondary jet, Shock wave.

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3261 2D Numerical Analysis of Sao Paulo Tunnel

Authors: A.H. Akhaveissy

Abstract:

Nonlinear finite element method and Serendipity eight nodes element are used for determining of ground surface settlement due to tunneling. Linear element with elastic behavior is used for modeling of lining. Modified Generalized plasticity model with nonassociated flow rule is applied for analysis of a tunnel in Sao Paulo – Brazil. The tunnel had analyzed by Lades- model with 16 parameters. In this work modified Generalized Plasticity is used with 10 parameters, also Mohr-Coulomb model is used to analysis the tunnel. The results show good agreement with observed results of field data by modified Generalized Plasticity model than other models. The obtained result by Mohr-Coulomb model shows less settlement than other model due to excavation.

Keywords: Non-associated flow rule, Generalized plasticity, tunnel excavation, Excavation method.

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3260 M-Learning Curriculum Design for Secondary School: A Needs Analysis

Authors: Muhammad Ridhuan Tony Lim Abdullah, Saedah Siraj

Abstract:

The learning society has currently transformed from 'wired society' to become 'mobile society' which is facilitated by wireless network. To suit to this new paradigm, m-learning was given birth and rapidly building its prospect to be included in the future curriculum. Research and studies on m-learning spruced up in numerous aspects but there is still scarcity in studies on curriculum design of m-learning. This study is a part of an ongoing bigger study probing into the m-learning curriculum for secondary schools. The paper reports on the first phase of the study which aims to probe into the needs of curriculum design for m-learning at the secondary school level and the researcher adopted the needs analysis method. Data accrued from responses on survey questionnaires based on Lickert-point scale were analyzed statistically. The findings from this preliminary study serve as a basis for m-learning curriculum development for secondary schools.

Keywords: curriculum design, e-learning, future curriculum, m-learning

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3259 Ballast Water Management Triad: Administration, Ship Owner and the Seafarer

Authors: Rajoo Balaji, Omar Yaakob

Abstract:

The Ballast Water Convention requires less than 5% of the world tonnage for ratification. Consequently, ships will have to comply with the requirements. Compliance evaluation and enforcement will become mandatory. Ship owners have to invest in treatment systems and shipboard personnel have to operate them and ensure compliance. The monitoring and enforcement will be the responsibilities of the Administrations. Herein, a review of the current status of the Ballast Water Management and the issues faced by these are projected. Issues range from efficacy and economics of the treatment systems to sampling and testing. Health issues of chemical systems, paucity of data for decision support etc., are other issues. It is emphasized that management of ballast water must be extended to ashore and sustainable solutions must be researched upon. An exemplar treatment system based on ship’s waste heat is also suggested.

Keywords: Ballast water management, Compliance evaluation, Compliance enforcement, Sustainability.

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3258 Effects of Engine Parameters and Fuel Compositions on Ignition Timing and Emission Characteristics of HCCI Engine

Authors: Fridhi Hadia, Soua Wadhah, Hidouri Ammar, Omri Ahmed

Abstract:

In this research, the effects of the engine parameters like compression ratios and steam injection on igniting timing and emission characteristics have been investigated numerically. The in-cylinder temperature and pressure at four different compression ratios have been compared with numerical results, and they show a good agreement with the published data. Two different fuels have been used in this study: Isooctane (IC8H18), and ethanol (C2H5OH). The increasing of the compression ratio (CR) advances the ignition timing, decreases the burn duration and increases the temperature and the pressure. The injection of water vapor lower than 40% decreased the peak temperature and slowed the combustion rate which leads to a lower NOx emission.

Keywords: Compression ratio, emission, HCCI engine, ignition timing, steam injection.

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3257 Hydrological Modeling of Watersheds Using the Only Corresponding Competitor Method: The Case of M’Zab Basin, South East Algeria

Authors: Oulad Naoui Noureddine, Cherif ELAmine, Djehiche Abdelkader

Abstract:

Water resources management includes several disciplines; the modeling of rainfall-runoff relationship is the most important discipline to prevent natural risks. There are several models to study rainfall-runoff relationship in watersheds. However, the majority of these models are not applicable in all basins of the world.  In this study, a new stochastic method called The Only Corresponding Competitor method (OCC) was used for the hydrological modeling of M’ZAB   Watershed (South East of Algeria) to adapt a few empirical models for any hydrological regime.  The results obtained allow to authorize a certain number of visions, in which it would be interesting to experiment with hydrological models that improve collectively or separately the data of a catchment by the OCC method.

Keywords: Empirical model, modeling, OCC, rainfall-runoff relationship.

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3256 Development and Evaluation of a Dynamic Cardiac Phantom for use in Nuclear Medicine

Authors: Marcos A. Dullius, Ramon C. Fernandes, Divanízia N. Souza

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to develop a dynamic cardiac phantom for quality control in myocardial scintigraphy. The dynamic heart phantom constructed only contained the left ventricle, made of elastic material (latex), comprising two cavities: one internal and one external. The data showed a non-significant variation in the values of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) obtained by varying the heart rate. It was also possible to evaluate the ejection fraction (LVEF) through different arrays of image acquisition and to perform an intercomparison of LVEF by two different scintillation cameras. The results of the quality control tests were satisfactory, showing that they can be used as parameters in future assessments. The new dynamic heart phantom was demonstrated to be effective for use in LVEF measurements. Therefore, the new heart simulator is useful for the quality control of scintigraphic cameras.

Keywords: sheart, nuclear medicine, phantom

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3255 Content-based Retrieval of Medical Images

Authors: Lilac A. E. Al-Safadi

Abstract:

With the advance of multimedia and diagnostic images technologies, the number of radiographic images is increasing constantly. The medical field demands sophisticated systems for search and retrieval of the produced multimedia document. This paper presents an ongoing research that focuses on the semantic content of radiographic image documents to facilitate semantic-based radiographic image indexing and a retrieval system. The proposed model would divide a radiographic image document, based on its semantic content, and would be converted into a logical structure or a semantic structure. The logical structure represents the overall organization of information. The semantic structure, which is bound to logical structure, is composed of semantic objects with interrelationships in the various spaces in the radiographic image.

Keywords: Semantic Indexing, Content-Based Retrieval, Radiographic Images, Data Model

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3254 Terrain Classification for Ground Robots Based on Acoustic Features

Authors: Bernd Kiefer, Abraham Gebru Tesfay, Dietrich Klakow

Abstract:

The motivation of our work is to detect different terrain types traversed by a robot based on acoustic data from the robot-terrain interaction. Different acoustic features and classifiers were investigated, such as Mel-frequency cepstral coefficient and Gamma-tone frequency cepstral coefficient for the feature extraction, and Gaussian mixture model and Feed forward neural network for the classification. We analyze the system’s performance by comparing our proposed techniques with some other features surveyed from distinct related works. We achieve precision and recall values between 87% and 100% per class, and an average accuracy at 95.2%. We also study the effect of varying audio chunk size in the application phase of the models and find only a mild impact on performance.

Keywords: Terrain classification, acoustic features, autonomous robots, feature extraction.

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