Search results for: spatial resolution.

Authors: S. Ali, M. Baccar

Abstract:

In this work, numerical simulations were carried out using a specific CFD code in order to study the performance of an innovative Scraped Surface Heat Exchanger (SSHE) with helical ribbons for Bingham fluids (threshold fluids). The resolution of three-dimensional form of the conservation equations (continuity, momentum and energy equations) was carried out basing on the finite volume method (FVM). After studying the effect of dimensionless numbers (axial Reynolds, rotational Reynolds and Oldroyd numbers) on the hydrodynamic and thermal behaviors within SSHE, a parametric study was developed, by varying the width of the helical ribbon, the clearance between the stator wall and the tip of the ribbon and the number of turns of the helical ribbon, in order to improve the heat transfer inside the exchanger. The effect of these geometrical numbers on the hydrodynamic and thermal behaviors was discussed.

Keywords: Heat transfer, helical ribbons, hydrodynamic behavior, parametric study, scraped surface heat exchanger, thermal behavior.

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Authors: Yin Jie, Qin Qiming, Yin Yong

Abstract:

As a tool for human spatial cognition and thinking, the map has been playing an important role. Maps are perhaps as fundamental to society as language and the written word. Economic and social development requires extensive and in-depth understanding of their own living environment, from the scope of the overall global to urban housing. This has brought unprecedented opportunities and challenges for traditional cartography . This paper first proposed the concept of scaleless-map and its basic characteristics, through the analysis of the existing multi-scale representation techniques. Then some strategies are presented for automated mapping compilation. Taking into account the demand of automated map compilation, detailed proposed the software - WJ workstation must have four technical features, which are generalization operators, symbol primitives, dynamically annotation and mapping process template. This paper provides a more systematic new idea and solution to improve the intelligence and automation of the scaleless cartography.

Keywords: scaleless-map, strategy, map generalization, automated compilation, WJ workstation.

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Authors: Tayfun Çay, Yaşar İnceyol, Abdurrahman Özbeyaz

Abstract:

Land reallocation is one of the most important steps in land consolidation projects. Many different models were proposed for land reallocation in the literature such as Fuzzy Logic, block priority based land reallocation and Spatial Decision Support Systems. A model including four parts is considered for automatic block reallocation with genetic algorithm method in land consolidation projects. These stages are preparing data tables for a project land, determining conditions and constraints of land reallocation, designing command steps and logical flow chart of reallocation algorithm and finally writing program codes of Genetic Algorithm respectively. In this study, we designed the first three steps of the considered model comprising four steps.

Keywords: Genetic algorithm, land consolidation, landholding, land reallocation.

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Authors: Stella A. Arnaouti, Demos C. Angelides, Theodoros N. Chatzigogos, Witold M. Pytel

Abstract:

The Želazny Most tailing pond is one of the largest facilities worldwide for waste disposal from the copper mines located in South-West Poland. A potential failure of the dam would allow more than 10 million cubic meters of contaminated slurry to flow to the valley, causing immense environmental problems to the surrounding area. Thus, the determination of the strength properties of the dam's soils and their variability is of utmost importance. An extensive site investigation consisting of more than 480 cone penetration tests (CPTs) with or without pore water pressure measurements were conducted within a period of 13 years to study the mechanical properties of the tailings body. The present work investigates the point variability of the soil strength parameters (effective friction angle

Keywords: Soil strength variability, friction angle spatial variability, Želazny Most tailing dam.

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Authors: Khashayar Kashani Jou, Ilnaz Fathololoomi

Abstract:

Nowadays, access to sustainable development in cities is assumed as one of the most important goals of urban managers. In the meanwhile, neighborhood as the smallest unit of urban spatial organization has a substantial effect on urban sustainability. Hence, attention to and focus on this subject is highly important in urban development plans. The objective of this study is evaluation of the status of Jahanshahr Neighborhood in Karaj city based on sustainable neighborhood development indicators. This research has been applied based on documentary method and field surveys. Also, evaluating of Jahanshahr Neighborhood of Karaj shows that it has a high level in sustainability in physical and economical dimension while a low level in cultural and social dimension. For this purpose, this neighborhood as a semi-sustainable neighborhood must take measures for development of collective spaces and efficiency of utilizing the public neighborhood spaces via collaboration of citizens and officials.

Keywords: Neighborhood, Sustainable Development, Sustainable Neighborhood Development, Jahanshahr Neighborhood.

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Authors: Elaheh Jooybar, Mohammad J. Abdekhodaie, Marcel Karperien, Pieter J. Dijkstra

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In this study, hyaluronic acid (HA) microgels were developed for the goal of protein delivery. First, a hyaluronic acid-tyramine conjugate (HA-TA) was synthesized with a degree of substitution of 13 TA moieties per 100 disaccharide units. Then, HA-TA microdroplets were produced using a water in oil emulsion method and crosslinked in the presence of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂). Loading capacity and the release kinetics of lysozyme and BSA, as model proteins, were investigated. It was shown that lysozyme, a cationic protein, can be incorporated efficiently in the HA microgels, while the loading efficiency for BSA, as a negatively charged protein, is low. The release profile of lysozyme showed a sustained release over a period of one month. The results demonstrated that the HA-TA microgels are a good carrier for spatial delivery of cationic proteins for biomedical applications.

Keywords: Microgel, inverse emulsion, protein delivery, hyaluronic acid, crosslinking.

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Authors: S. Dan'azumi, S. Shamsudin, A. A. Rahman

Abstract:

Rainfall data at fine resolution and knowledge of its characteristics plays a major role in the efficient design and operation of agricultural, telecommunication, runoff and erosion control as well as water quality control systems. The paper is aimed to study the statistical distribution of hourly rainfall depth for 12 representative stations spread across Peninsular Malaysia. Hourly rainfall data of 10 to 22 years period were collected and its statistical characteristics were estimated. Three probability distributions namely, Generalized Pareto, Exponential and Gamma distributions were proposed to model the hourly rainfall depth, and three goodness-of-fit tests, namely, Kolmogorov-Sminov, Anderson-Darling and Chi-Squared tests were used to evaluate their fitness. Result indicates that the east cost of the Peninsular receives higher depth of rainfall as compared to west coast. However, the rainfall frequency is found to be irregular. Also result from the goodness-of-fit tests show that all the three models fit the rainfall data at 1% level of significance. However, Generalized Pareto fits better than Exponential and Gamma distributions and is therefore recommended as the best fit.

Keywords: Goodness-of-fit test, Hourly rainfall, Malaysia, Probability distribution.

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Authors: Odón R. Sánchez-Ccoyllo, Elizabeth Ayma-Choque, Alan Llacza

Abstract:

Sulphur dioxide (SO₂) and surface-ozone (O₃) concentrations are associated with diseases. The objective of this research is to evaluate the effectiveness of the air-quality Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled to Chemistry (WRF-Chem) model with a horizontal resolution of 5 km x 5 km. For this purpose, the measurements of the hourly SO₂ and O₃ concentrations available in three air quality monitoring stations in Lima, Peru were used for the purpose of validating the simulations of the SO₂ and O₃ concentrations obtained with the WRF-Chem model in February 2018. For the quantitative evaluation of the simulations of these gases, statistical techniques were implemented, such as the average of the simulations; the average of the measurements; the Mean Bias (MeB); the Mean Error (MeE); and the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE). The results of these statistical metrics indicated that the simulated SO₂ and O₃ values over-predicted the SO₂ and O₃ measurements. For the SO₂ concentration, the MeB values varied from 0.58 to 26.35 µg/m³; the MeE values varied from 8.75 to 26.5 µg/m³; the RMSE values varied from 13.3 to 31.79 µg/m³; while for O₃ concentrations the statistical values of the MeB varied from 37.52 to 56.29 µg/m³; the MeE values varied from 37.54 to 56.70 µg/m³; the RMSE values varied from 43.05 to 69.56 µg/m³.

Keywords: Ground-ozone, Lima, Sulphur dioxide, WRF-Chem.

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Authors: Albert K. Chong, Jasim Ahmed Ali Al-Baghdadi, Peter B. Milburn

Abstract:

Precise capture of plantar 3D surface of the foot at the loading gait phases on rigid substrates was found to be valuable for the assessment of the physiology, health and problems of the feet. Photogrammetry, a precision 3D spatial data capture technique is suitable for this type of dynamic application. In this research, the technique is utilised to study the plantar deformation as a result of having a strip of kinesiology tape on the plantar surface during the loading phase of gait. For this pilot study, one healthy adult male subject was recruited under the University’s human research ethics guidelines for this preliminary study. The 3D plantar deformation data with and without applying the tape were analysed. The results and analyses are presented together with detailed findings.

Keywords: Gait, human plantar, loading, Kinesiology Tape.

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Authors: A. H. W. Goh, Y. S. Yong, C. H. Chan, S. J. Then, L. P. Chu, S. W. Chau, H. W. Hon

Abstract:

This paper proposes an alternative control mechanism for an interactive Pan/Tilt/Zoom (PTZ) camera control system. Instead of using a mouse or a joystick, the proposed mechanism utilizes a Nintendo Wii remote and infrared (IR) sensor bar. The Wii remote has buttons that allows the user to control the movement of a PTZ camera through Bluetooth connectivity. In addition, the Wii remote has a built-in motion sensor that allows the user to give control signals to the PTZ camera through pitch and roll movement. A stationary IR sensor bar, placed at some distance away opposite the Wii remote, enables the detection of yaw movement. In addition, the Wii remote-s built-in IR camera has the ability to detect its spatial position, and thus generates a control signal when the user moves the Wii remote. Some experiments are carried out and their performances are compared with an industry-standard PTZ joystick.

Keywords: Bluetooth, Infrared, Pan/Tilt/Zoom, PTZ Camera, Visual Surveillance, Wii Remote

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Authors: Caio Fialho

Abstract:

The automobile incentive policy in Brazil since the 1950s creates several problems in its cities, more visible in large centers such as São Paulo or Rio de Janeiro, but also strongly present in smaller cities, resulting in an increase in social and spatial inequality, together with a drop in the quality of life. The analyzed city, Campo Mourão, reflects these policies, a city that is initially planned to be compact and walkable, took other directions and currently suffers from urban mobility and social inequality in this urban environment, despite being a medium-sized city in Brazil. The research aims to understand and diagnose how these policies shaped the city and what are the results in Brazilian`s inland cities. Based on historical, bibliographical and field research in the city, the result is a diagnosis of the problem faced and how it can be reversed, in search of social equality and better quality of life.

Keywords: Urban mobility, quality of life, social equality, substantiable.

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Authors: N. Ben Ameur, M. Loulou

Abstract:

This paper study the high-level modelling and design of delta-sigma (ΔΣ) noise shapers for audio Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) so as to eliminate the in-band Signal-to-Noise- Ratio (SNR) degradation that accompany one channel mismatch in audio signal. The converter combines a cascaded digital signal interpolation, a noise-shaping single loop delta-sigma modulator with a 5-bit quantizer resolution in the final stage. To reduce sensitivity of Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC) nonlinearities of the last stage, a high pass second order Data Weighted Averaging (R2DWA) is introduced. This paper presents a MATLAB description modelling approach of the proposed DAC architecture with low distortion and swing suppression integrator designs. The ΔΣ Modulator design can be configured as a 3rd-order and allows 24-bit PCM at sampling rate of 64 kHz for Digital Video Disc (DVD) audio application. The modeling approach provides 139.38 dB of dynamic range for a 32 kHz signal band at -1.6 dBFS input signal level.

Keywords: DVD-audio, DAC, Interpolator and Interpolation Filter, Single-Loop ΔΣ Modulation, R2DWA, Clock Jitter

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Authors: Mo Zhou, Samantha Ashby, Lyn Ebert

Abstract:

In China, the changes that men experience in the perinatal period are not well researched. Men are also at risk of maladaptation to parenthood. The aim of this research is to review current studies regarding changes that Chinese men experience during transitioning to parenthood. 5 databases were employed to search relevant papers. The search found 128 articles. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 35 articles were included in this integrative review. Results showed the changes that Chinese fathers experienced during the transition to parenthood can be divided into two aspects: family relationships and mental problems. During transition to parenthood, fathers usually experienced an increase in their disappointment with marital conflict resolution and decreased sexual intimacy with their partner. Mental health declined, with fathers often feeling depressed and/or anxious during this time. Some men were diagnosed with clinical depression. The predictors of these changes included three domains: personal background (age and income), family background (gender of infant, relationship status and unplanned child) and cultural background (‘doing the month’, Confucianism, policy, social support).

Keywords: China, fathers, life change, prenatal, postpartum.

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Authors: Bolanle F. Oladejo, Victor T. Odumuyiwa, Amos A. David

Abstract:

Knowledge is attributed to human whose problemsolving behavior is subjective and complex. In today-s knowledge economy, the need to manage knowledge produced by a community of actors cannot be overemphasized. This is due to the fact that actors possess some level of tacit knowledge which is generally difficult to articulate. Problem-solving requires searching and sharing of knowledge among a group of actors in a particular context. Knowledge expressed within the context of a problem resolution must be capitalized for future reuse. In this paper, an approach that permits dynamic capitalization of relevant and reliable actors- knowledge in solving decision problem following Economic Intelligence process is proposed. Knowledge annotation method and temporal attributes are used for handling the complexity in the communication among actors and in contextualizing expressed knowledge. A prototype is built to demonstrate the functionalities of a collaborative Knowledge Management system based on this approach. It is tested with sample cases and the result showed that dynamic capitalization leads to knowledge validation hence increasing reliability of captured knowledge for reuse. The system can be adapted to various domains.

Keywords: Actors' communication, knowledge annotation, recursive knowledge capitalization, visualization.

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Authors: L. Ashok Kumar, C. Nagarajan

Abstract:

The ultrasound imaging is very popular to diagnosis the disease because of its non-invasive nature. The ultrasound imaging slowly produces low quality images due to the presence of spackle noise and wave interferences. There are several algorithms to be proposed for the segmentation of ultrasound carotid artery images but it requires a certain limit of user interaction. The pixel in an image is highly correlated so the spatial information of surrounding pixels may be considered in the process of image segmentation which improves the results further. When data is highly correlated, one pixel may belong to more than one cluster with different degree of membership. There is an important step to computerize the evaluation of arterial disease severity using segmentation of carotid artery lumen in 2D and 3D ultrasonography and in finding vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques susceptible to rupture which can cause stroke.

Keywords: IMT measurement, Image Segmentation, common carotid artery, internal and external carotid arteries, ultrasound imaging.

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Authors: Ying-Han Pang, Andrew Teoh Beng Jin, David Ngo Chek Ling

Abstract:

A cancelable palmprint authentication system proposed in this paper is specifically designed to overcome the limitations of the contemporary biometric authentication system. In this proposed system, Geometric and pseudo Zernike moments are employed as feature extractors to transform palmprint image into a lower dimensional compact feature representation. Before moment computation, wavelet transform is adopted to decompose palmprint image into lower resolution and dimensional frequency subbands. This reduces the computational load of moment calculation drastically. The generated wavelet-moment based feature representation is used to generate cancelable verification key with a set of random data. This private binary key can be canceled and replaced. Besides that, this key also possesses high data capture offset tolerance, with highly correlated bit strings for intra-class population. This property allows a clear separation of the genuine and imposter populations, as well as zero Equal Error Rate achievement, which is hardly gained in the conventional biometric based authentication system.

Keywords: Cancelable biometric authenticator, Discrete- Hashing, Moments, Palmprint.

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Authors: Xia Liu, Marek E. Bialkowski

Abstract:

This paper reports on investigations into capacity of a Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) wireless communication system employing a uniform linear array (ULA) at the transmitter and either a uniform linear array (ULA) or a uniform circular array (UCA) antenna at the receiver. The transmitter is assumed to be surrounded by scattering objects while the receiver is postulated to be free from scattering objects. The Laplacian distribution of angle of arrival (AOA) of a signal reaching the receiver is postulated. Calculations of the MIMO system capacity are performed for two cases without and with the channel estimation errors. For estimating the MIMO channel, the scaled least square (SLS) and minimum mean square error (MMSE) methods are considered.

Keywords: MIMO, channel capacity, channel estimation, ULA, UCA, spatial correlation

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Authors: Feng Xiao, Zhou Hongyu, YuCaixia

Abstract:

Based on an analysis of the current research and application of Road maintenance, geographic information system (WebGIS) and ArcGIS Server, the platform overhead construction for Road maintenance development is studied and the key issues are presented, including the organization and design of spatial data on the basis of the geodatabase technology, middleware technology, tiles cache index technology and dynamic segmentation of WebGIS. Road maintenance geographic information platform is put forward through the researching ideas of analysis of the system design. The design and application of WebGIS system are discussed on the basis of a case study of BaNan district of Chongqing highway maintenance management .The feasibility of the theories and methods are validated through the system.

Keywords: WebGIS, Tile, Road maintenance, dynamic segmentation

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Authors: Sakol Udomsiri, Masahiro Iwahashi

Abstract:

This paper proposes a new design of spatial FIR filter to automatically detect water level from a video signal of various river surroundings. A new approach in this report applies "addition" of frames and a "horizontal" edge detector to distinguish water region and land region. Variance of each line of a filtered video frame is used as a feature value. The water level is recognized as a boundary line between the land region and the water region. Edge detection filter essentially demarcates between two distinctly different regions. However, the conventional filters are not automatically adaptive to detect water level in various lighting conditions of river scenery. An optimized filter is purposed so that the system becomes robust to changes of lighting condition. More reliability of the proposed system with the optimized filter is confirmed by accuracy of water level detection.

Keywords: water level, video, filter, detection.

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Authors: Xindong An, Kai Gu

Abstract:

Urban intensification is regarded as the prevalent strategy in many cities of the world to ease the pressures of urban sprawl and deliver sustainable development through increasing the density of built form and activities. However, within the context of intensive development, planning and design control measures that help to maintain and promote the character of existing residential environments have been slow to develop. This causes the possible loss of the character of an area that makes a place unique and distinctive. The purpose of this paper is to explore the way of identifying the character of an urban area for the planning of urban landscape in the implementation of intensification. By employing the theory of urban morphology, the concept of morphological region is used for the analysis and characterisation of the spatial structure of the urban landscape in terms of ground plans, building types, and building and land utilisation. The morphological mapping of the character of urban landscape is suggested, which lays a foundation for more sensitive planning of urban landscape changes.

Keywords: Character areas, urban intensification, urban morphology, urban landscape.

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Authors: Jin-Bao Zhao, Wei Deng

Abstract:

This paper aims at developing a multilevel fuzzy decision support model for urban rail transit planning schemes in China under the background that China is presently experiencing an unprecedented construction of urban rail transit. In this study, an appropriate model using multilevel fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method is developed. In the decision process, the followings are considered as the influential objectives: traveler attraction, environment protection, project feasibility and operation. In addition, consistent matrix analysis method is used to determine the weights between objectives and the weights between the objectives- sub-indictors, which reduces the work caused by repeated establishment of the decision matrix on the basis of ensuring the consistency of decision matrix. The application results show that multilevel fuzzy decision model can perfectly deal with the multivariable and multilevel decision process, which is particularly useful in the resolution of multilevel decision-making problem of urban rail transit planning schemes.

Keywords: Urban rail transit, planning schemes, multilevel fuzzy decision support model, consistent matrix analysis

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Authors: M. Tria, M. Benidir, E. Chaumette

Abstract:

In Secondary Surveillance Radar (SSR) systems, it is more difficult to locate and recognise aircrafts in the neighbourhood of civil airports since aerial traffic becomes greater. Here, we propose to apply a recent Blind Source Separation (BSS) algorithm based on Time-Frequency Analysis, in order to separate messages sent by different aircrafts and falling in the same radar beam in reception. The above source separation method involves joint-diagonalization of a set of smoothed version of spatial Wigner-Ville distributions. The technique makes use of the difference in the t-f signatures of the nonstationary sources to be separated. Consequently, as the SSR sources emit different messages at different frequencies, the above fitted to this new application. We applied the technique in simulation to separate SSR replies. Results are provided at the end of the paper.

Keywords: Blind Source Separation, Time-Frequency Analysis, Secondary Radar

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Authors: Young-Seok Choi

Abstract:

In healthy humans, the cortical brain rhythm shows specific mu (~6-14 Hz) and beta (~18-24 Hz) band patterns in the cases of both real and imaginary motor movements. As cerebellar ataxia is associated with impairment of precise motor movement control as well as motor imagery, ataxia is an ideal model system in which to study the role of the cerebellocortical circuit in rhythm control. We hypothesize that the EEG characteristics of ataxic patients differ from those of controls during the performance of a Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) task. Ataxia and control subjects showed a similar distribution of mu power during cued relaxation. During cued motor imagery, however, the ataxia group showed significant spatial distribution of the response, while the control group showed the expected decrease in mu-band power (localized to the motor cortex).

Keywords: Brain-computer interface, EEG, modulation, ataxia.

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Authors: M. Moslehpour, S. Khorsandi

Abstract:

As transition to widespread use of IPv6 addresses has gained momentum, it has been shown to be vulnerable to certain security attacks such as those targeting Neighbor Discovery Protocol (NDP) which provides the address resolution functionality in IPv6. To protect this protocol, Secure Neighbor Discovery (SEND) is introduced. This protocol uses Cryptographically Generated Address (CGA) and asymmetric cryptography as a defense against threats on integrity and identity of NDP. Although SEND protects NDP against attacks, it is computationally intensive due to Hash2 condition in CGA. To improve the CGA computation speed, we parallelized CGA generation process and used the available resources in a trusted network. Furthermore, we focused on the influence of the existence of malicious nodes on the overall load of un-malicious ones in the network. According to the evaluation results, malicious nodes have adverse impacts on the average CGA generation time and on the average number of tries. We utilized a Trust Management that is capable of detecting and isolating the malicious node to remove possible incentives for malicious behavior. We have demonstrated the effectiveness of the Trust Management System in detecting the malicious nodes and hence improving the overall system performance.

Keywords: NDP, SEND, CGA, modifier, malicious node.

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Authors: Collins C. Ngwakwe

Abstract:

The objective of this paper is to establish a possible relationship between sustainable business practice and firm performance. Using a field survey methodology, a sample of sixty manufacturing companies in Nigeria was studied. The firms were categorised into two groups, environmentally 'responsible' and 'irresponsible' firms. An investigation was undertaken into the possible relationship between firm performance and three selected indicators of sustainable business practice: employee health and safety (EHS), waste management (WM), and community development (CD), common within the 30 'responsible' firms. Findings from empirical results reveal that the sustainable practices of the 'responsible' firms are significantly related with firm performance. In addition, sustainable practices are inversely related with fines and penalties. The paper concludes that, within the Nigerian setting at least, sustainability affects corporate performance and sustainability may be a possible tool for corporate conflict resolution as evidenced in the reduction of fines, penalties and compensations. The paper therefore recommends research into the relationship between sustainability and conflict management.

Keywords: Environmental responsibility, environmental investment, social responsibility, sustainable business, social ethics, environmental ethics.

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Authors: Sandra Ondrušová, Jaroslav Polec

Abstract:

Arbitrarily shaped video objects are an important concept in modern video coding methods. The techniques presently used are not based on image elements but rather video objects having an arbitrary shape. In this paper, spatial shape error concealment techniques to be used for object-based image in error-prone environments are proposed. We consider a geometric shape representation consisting of the object boundary, which can be extracted from the α-plane. Three different approaches are used to replace a missing boundary segment: Bézier interpolation, Bézier approximation and NURBS approximation. Experimental results on object shape with different concealment difficulty demonstrate the performance of the proposed methods. Comparisons with proposed methods are also presented.

Keywords: error concealment, shape coding, object-based image, NURBS, Bézier curves.

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Authors: Reza Mollapourasl, Majid Haghi

Abstract:

In this study, we develop local meshfree methods known as radial basis function-generated finite difference (RBF-FD) method and Hermite finite difference (RBF-HFD) method to design stencil weights and spatial discretization for Helmholtz equation. The convergence and stability of schemes are investigated numerically in three dimensions with irregular shaped domain. These localized meshless methods incorporate the advantages of the RBF method, finite difference and Hermite finite difference methods to handle the ill-conditioning issue that often destroys the convergence rate of global RBF methods. Moreover, numerical illustrations show that the proposed localized RBF type methods are efficient and applicable for problems with complex geometries. The convergence and accuracy of both schemes are compared by solving a test problem.

Keywords: Radial basis functions, Hermite finite difference, Helmholtz equation, stability.

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Authors: Erdal Akyol, Mutlu Alkan, Ali Aydin

Abstract:

Multi criteria decision analysis (MDCA) covers both data and experience. It is very common to solve the problems with many parameters and uncertainties. GIS supported solutions improve and speed up the decision process. Weighted grading as a MDCA method is employed for solving the geotechnical problems. In this study, geotechnical parameters namely soil type; SPT (N) blow number, shear wave velocity (Vs) and depth of underground water level (DUWL) have been engaged in MDCA and GIS. In terms of geotechnical aspects, the settlement suitability of the municipal area was analyzed by the method. MDCA results were compatible with the geotechnical observations and experience. The method can be employed in geotechnical oriented microzoning studies if the criteria are well evaluated.

Keywords: GIS, spatial analysis, multi criteria decision analysis, geotechnics.

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Authors: Yasser M. Moustafa, Rania E. Morsi, Mohammed Fathy

Abstract:

Multiwall carbon nanotubes, prepared by chemical vapor deposition, have an average diameter of 60-100 nm as shown by High Resolution Transmittance Electron Microscope, HR-TEM. The Multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were further characterized using X-ray Diffraction and Raman Spectroscopy. Mercury uptake capacity of MWCNTs was studied using batch adsorption method at different concentration ranges up to 150 ppm. Mercury concentration (before and after the treatment) was measured using cold vapor atomic absorption spectroscopy. The effect of time, concentration, pH and adsorbent dose were studied. MWCNT were found to perform complete absorption in the sub-ppm concentrations (parts per billion levels) while for high concentrations, the adsorption efficiency was 92% at the optimum conditions; 0.1 g of the adsorbent at 150 ppm mercury (II) solution. The adsorption of mercury on MWCNTs was found to follow the Freundlich adsorption isotherm and the pseudo-second order kinetic model.

Keywords: Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy, Hydride System, Mercury Removing, Multi Wall Carbon Nanotubes.

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Authors: A. Taoufyq, B. Bakiz, A. Benlhachemi, L. Patout, D. V. Chokouadeua, F. Guinneton, G. Nolibe, A. Lyoussi, J-R. Gavarri

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The aim of this study was to investigate the photocatalytic activity of polycrystalline phases of bismuth tungstate of formula Bi2WO6. Polycrystalline samples were elaborated using a coprecipitation technique followed by a calcination process at different temperatures (300, 400, 600 and 900°C). The obtained polycrystalline phases have been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Crystal cell parameters and cell volume depend on elaboration temperature. High-resolution electron microscopy images and image simulations, associated with X-ray diffraction data, allowed confirming the lattices and space groups Pca21. The photocatalytic activity of the as-prepared samples was studied by irradiating aqueous solutions of Rhodamine B, associated with Bi2WO6 additives having variable crystallite sizes. The photocatalytic activity of such bismuth tungstates increased as the crystallite sizes decreased. The high specific area of the photocatalytic particles obtained at 300°C seems to condition the degradation kinetics of RhB.

Keywords: Bismuth tungstate, crystallite sizes, electron microscopy, photocatalytic activity, X-ray diffraction.

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