Search results for: air quality assessment.

Authors: Thipwimon Chungsangunsit, Shabbir H. Gheewala, Suthum Patumsawad

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Rice husk is one of the alternative fuels for Thailand because of its high potential and environmental benefits. Nonetheless, the environmental profile of the electricity production from rice husk must be assessed to ensure reduced environmental damage. A 10 MW pilot plant using rice husk as feedstock is the study site. The environmental impacts from rice husk power plant are evaluated by using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology. Energy, material and carbon balances have been determined for tracing the system flow. Carbon closure has been used for describing of the net amount of CO2 released from the system in relation to the amount being recycled between the power plant and the CO2 adsorbed by rice husk. The transportation of rice husk to the power plant has significant on global warming, but not on acidification and photo-oxidant formation. The results showed that the impact potentials from rice husk power plant are lesser than the conventional plants for most of the categories considered; except the photo-oxidant formation potential from CO. The high CO from rice husk power plant may be due to low boiler efficiency and high moisture content in rice husk. The performance of the study site can be enhanced by improving the combustion efficiency.

Keywords: Environmental impact, Fossil fuels, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), Renewable energy, Rice husk

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Authors: Krzysztof J. Czarnocki, E. Czarnocka, K. Szaniawska

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Main goal of the research project is Scaffold Use Risk Assessment Model (SURAM) formulation, developed for the assessment of risk levels as a various construction process stages with various work trades. Finally, in 2016, the project received financing by the National Center for Research and development according to PBS3/A2/19/2015–Research Grant. The presented data, calculations and analyzes discussed in this paper were created as a result of the completion on the first and second phase of the PBS3/A2/19/2015 project. Method: One of the arms of the research project is the assessment of worker visual concentration on the sight zones as well as risky visual point inadequate observation. In this part of research, the mobile eye-tracker was used to monitor the worker observation zones. SMI Eye Tracking Glasses is a tool, which allows us to analyze in real time and place where our eyesight is concentrated on and consequently build the map of worker's eyesight concentration during a shift. While the project is still running, currently 64 construction sites have been examined, and more than 600 workers took part in the experiment including monitoring of typical parameters of the work regimen, workload, microclimate, sound vibration, etc. Full equipment can also be useful in more advanced analyses. Because of that technology we have verified not only main focus of workers eyes during work on or next to scaffolding, but we have also examined which changes in the surrounding environment during their shift influenced their concentration. In the result of this study it has been proven that only up to 45.75% of the shift time, workers’ eye concentration was on one of three work-related areas. Workers seem to be distracted by noisy vehicles or people nearby. In opposite to our initial assumptions and other authors’ findings, we observed that the reflective parts of the scaffoldings were not more recognized by workers in their direct workplaces. We have noticed that the red curbs were the only well recognized part on a very few scaffoldings. Surprisingly on numbers of samples, we have not recognized any significant number of concentrations on those curbs. Conclusion: We have found the eye-tracking method useful for the construction of the SURAM model in the risk perception and worker’s behavior sub-modules. We also have found that the initial worker's stress and work visual conditions seem to be more predictive for assessment of the risky developing situation or an accident than other parameters relating to a work environment.

Keywords: Accident assessment model, eye tracking, occupational safety, scaffolding.

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Authors: Orathai Wongmetha, Lih-Shang Ke

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The quality attributes and storage life of 'Jinhwang' mango fruit can be effectively maintained with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) application and/or chitosan coating. 'Jinhwang' mango fruit was treated with 5 μl l-1 1-MCP for 12 h, dipped with 0.5 % chitosan, 5 μl l-1 1-MCP combine with 0.5 % chitosan and untreated (control) then stored at 10oC. Mango treated with 1-MCP maintained firmness, sucrose and starch content. Chitosan coating delayed firmness loss, sucrose content and the fruit decay when compare with control. Application of 1-MCP combine with chitosan also delayed firmness loss, sucrose content and starch content during storage. Furthermore, chitosan coating and combine treatment prolonged storage life of mango up to 29 days after storage while 1-MCP extended to 28 days after storage. Therefore, using all application of chitosan coating or 1-MCP combine with chitosan or 1-MCP in mango at 10oC is a feasible technology for maintains quality and prolongs storage life in order to expand marketability and export options.

Keywords: 1-Methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), chitosan, quality, storage life

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Authors: A. Khelassi, R. Bendib

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The paper considers the effect of feed plate location on the interactions in a seven plate binary distillation column. The mathematical model of the distillation column is deduced based on the equations of mass and energy balances for each stage, detailed model for both reboiler and condenser, and heat transfer equations. The Dynamic Relative Magnitude Criterion, DRMC is used to assess the interactions in different feed plate locations for a seven plate (Benzene-Toluene) binary distillation column ( the feed plate is originally at stage 4). The results show that whenever we go far from the optimum feed plate position, the level of interaction augments.

Keywords: Distillation column, assessment of interactions, feedplate location, DRMC.

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Authors: Melodi Mbuyi Mata, Blessing Olamide Taiwo, Afolabi Ayodele David

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The purpose of this research is to create empirical models for assessing the profitability of granite aggregate production in Akure, Ondo state aggregate quarries. In addition, an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model and multivariate predicting models for granite profitability were developed in the study. A formal survey questionnaire was used to collect data for the study. The data extracted from the case study mine for this study include granite marketing operations, royalty, production costs, and mine production information. The following methods were used to achieve the goal of this study: descriptive statistics, MATLAB 2017, and SPSS16.0 software in analyzing and modeling the data collected from granite traders in the study areas. The ANN and Multi Variant Regression models' prediction accuracy was compared using a coefficient of determination (R2), Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), and mean square error (MSE). Due to the high prediction error, the model evaluation indices revealed that the ANN model was suitable for predicting generated profit in a typical quarry. More quarries in Nigeria's southwest region and other geopolitical zones should be considered to improve ANN prediction accuracy.

Keywords: National development, granite, profitability assessment, ANN models.

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Authors: M. Csete, G. Szendrö

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The last Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, stating that the greatest risk in climate change affects sustainability is now widely known and accepted. However, it has not provoked substantial reaction and attention in Hungary, while international and national efforts have also not achieved expected results so far. Still, there are numerous examples on different levels (national, regional, local, household) making considerable progress in limiting their own emissions and making steps toward mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. The local level is exceptionally important in sustainability adaptation, as local communities are often able to adapt more flexibly to changes in the natural environment.The aim of this paper is to attempt a review of the national climate policy and the local climate change strategies in Hungary considering sustainable development.

Keywords: adaptation, climate policy, mitigation, localsustainability.

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Authors: Violina R. Angelova, Sava G. Tabakov, Aleksander B. Peltekov, Krasimir I. Ivanov

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A field study was conducted to evaluate the chemical composition and quality of the Aronia fruits, as well as the possibilities of Aronia cultivation on soils contaminated with heavy metals. The experiment was performed on an agricultural field contaminated by the Non-Ferrous-Metal Works (NFMW) near Plovdiv, Bulgaria. The study included four varieties of Aronia; Aron variety, Hugin variety, Viking variety and Nero variety. The Aronia was cultivated according to the conventional technology on areas at a different distance from the source of pollution NFMW- Plovdiv (1 km, 3.5 km, and 15 km). The concentrations of macroelements, microelements, and heavy metals in Aronia fruits were determined. The dry matter content, ash, sugars, proteins, and fats were also determined. Aronia is a crop that is tolerant to heavy metals and can successfully be grown on soils contaminated with heavy metals. The increased content of heavy metals in the soil leads to less absorption of the nutrients (Ca, Mg and P) in the fruit of the Aronia. Soil pollution with heavy metals does not affect the quality of the Aronia fruit varieties.

Keywords: Aronia, chemical composition, fruits, quality.

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Authors: Abdelrasoul, Khalid Ahmed Elrabie

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The study was conducted on Sahiwal cattle bulls maintained at the Artificial Breeding Complex, NDRI, Karnal, Hayana, India, to determine the effect of exercise on the sexual behavior and semen quality. Fourteen Sahiwal bulls were classified into two groups of seven each. Group-1, bulls were exercised by walking in a bull exerciser once a week one hour before semen collection, whereas bulls in group-2 were exercised daily. Sexual behavior and semen quality traits studied were: Reaction time (RT), Dismounting time (DMT), Total time taken in mounts (TTTM), Flehmen response (FR), Erection Score (ES), Protrusion Score (PS), Intensity of thrust (ITS), Temperament Score (TS), Libido Score (LS), Semen volume, Physical appearance, Mass activity, Initial progressive motility, Non-eosinophilic spermatozoa count (NESC) and post thaw motility percent. Data were analyzed by least squares technique. Group-2 showed significantly (p < 0.01) higher value in RT (sec), DMT (sec), TTTM (sec), ES, PS, ITS, LS, semen volume, semen color density and mass activity.

Keywords: Exercise, Sahiwal bulls, semen quality, sexual behavior.

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Authors: Nurliani, Ida Rosada

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The national rice consumption keeps increasing along with raising income of the households and the rapid growth of population. However, food availability, particularly rice, is limited. Impacts of rice-field conversion have run cumulatively, as we can see on potential losses of rice and crops production, as well as work opportunity that keeps increasing year-by-year. Therefore, it requires policy recommendation to control rice-field conversion through economic, social, and ecological approaches. The research was a survey method intended to: (1) Identify internal factors; quality and productivity of the land as the cause of land conversion, (2) Identify external factors of land conversion, value of the rice-field and the competitor’s land, workforce absorption, and regulation, as well as (3) Formulate strategies in controlling rice-field conversion. Population of the research was farmers who applied land conversion at Pangkep Regency, South Sulawesi. Samples were determined using the incidental sampling method. Data analysis used productivity analysis, land quality analysis, total economic value analysis, and SWOT analysis. Results of the research showed that the quality of rice-field was low as well as productivity of the grains (unhulled-rice). So that, average productivity of the grains and quality of rice-field were low as well. Total economic value of rice-field was lower than the economic value of the embankment. Workforce absorption value on rice-field was higher than on the embankment. Strategies in controlling such rice-field conversion can be done by increasing rice-field productivity, improving land quality, applying cultivation technique of specific location, improving the irrigation lines, and socializing regulation and sanction about the transfer of land use.

Keywords: Land conversion, quality of rice-field, land economic value, strategy in controlling.

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Authors: F.Agalianos, S.Patelis , P. Kyratsis, E. Maravelakis, E.Vasarmidis, A.Antoniadis

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Laser engraving is a manufacturing method for those applications where previously Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) was the only choice. Laser engraving technology removes material layer-by-layer and the thickness of layers is usually in the range of few microns. The aim of the present work is to investigate the influence of the process parameters on the surface quality when machined by laser engraving. The examined parameters were: the pulse frequency, the beam speed and the layer thickness. The surface quality was determined by the surface roughness for every set of parameters. Experimental results on Al7075 material showed that the surface roughness strictly depends on the process parameters used.

Keywords: Laser engraving, Al7075, Yb: YAG laser, laser process parameters, material roughness.

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Authors: Irisa Murniece, Daina Karklina, Ruta Galoburda

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From food consumption surveys has been found that potato consumption comparing to other European countries is one of the highest. Hence acrylamide (AA) intake coming from fried potatoes in population might be high as well. The aim of the research was to determine acrylamide content and estimate intake of acrylamide from roasted potatoes bred and cultivated in Latvia. Five common Latvian potato varieties were selected: Lenora, Brasla, Imanta, Zile, and Madara. A two-year research was conducted during two periods: just after harvesting and after six months of storage. Time and temperature (210 ± 5°C) was recorded during frying. AA was extracted from potatoes by solid phase extraction and AA content was determined by LC-MS/MS. estimated intake of acrylamide ranges from 0.012 to 0.496μgkg-1 BW per day.

Keywords: potato, roasting, variety, acrylamide, Latvia, risk assessment.

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Authors: O. S. Ebrahim, K. O. Shawky, M. A. Badr, P. K. Jain

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This paper proposes an intelligent, supervisory, hysteresis liquid-level control with three-state energy saving mode (ESM) for induction motor (IM) in fluid transportation system (FTS) including storage tank. The IM pump drive comprises a modified star/delta switch and hydromantic coupler. Three-state ESM is defined, along with the normal running, and named analog to the computer’s ESMs as follows: Sleeping mode in which the motor runs at no load with delta stator connection, hibernate mode in which the motor runs at no load with a star connection, and motor shutdown is the third energy saver mode. Considering the motor’s thermal capacity used (TCU) and grid-compatible tariff structure, a logic flow-chart is synthesized to select the motor state at no-load for best energetic cost reduction. Fuzzy-logic (FL) based availability assessment is designed and deployed on cloud, in order to provide mobilized service for the star/delta switch and highly reliable contactors. Moreover, an artificial neural network (ANN) state estimator, based on the recurrent architecture, is constructed and learned in order to provide fault-tolerant capability for the supervisory controller. Sequential test of Wald is used for sensor fault detection. Theoretical analysis, preliminary experimental testing and computer simulations are performed to demonstrate the validity and effectiveness of the proposed control system in terms of reliability, power quality and operational cost reduction with a motivation of power factor correction.

Keywords: Artificial Neural Network, ANN, Contactor Health Assessment, Energy Saving Mode, Induction Machine, IM, Supervisory Control, Fluid Transportation, Fuzzy Logic, FL, cloud computing, pumped storage.

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Authors: Nabli L., Dhouibi H., Collart Dutilleul S., Craye E.

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The indistinctness of the manufacturing processes makes that a parts cannot be realized in an absolutely exact way towards the specifications on the dimensions. It is thus necessary to assume that the effectively realized product has to belong in a very strict way to compatible intervals with a correct functioning of the parts. In this paper we present an approach based on mixing tow different characteristics theories, the fuzzy system and Petri net system. This tool has been proposed to model and control the quality in an assembly system. A robust command of a mechanical assembly process is presented as an application. This command will then have to maintain the specifications interval of parts in front of the variations. It also illustrates how the technique reacts when the product quality is high, medium, or low.

Keywords: Petri nets, production rate, performance evaluation, tolerant system, fuzzy sets.

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Authors: Bin Mu, Site Li, Shijin Yuan

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Under the circumstance of environment deterioration, people are increasingly concerned about the quality of the environment, especially air quality. As a result, it is of great value to give accurate and timely forecast of AQI (air quality index). In order to simplify influencing factors of air quality in a city, and forecast the city’s AQI tomorrow, this study used MATLAB software and adopted the method of constructing a mathematic model of PCA-GABP to provide a solution. To be specific, this study firstly made principal component analysis (PCA) of influencing factors of AQI tomorrow including aspects of weather, industry waste gas and IAQI data today. Then, we used the back propagation neural network model (BP), which is optimized by genetic algorithm (GA), to give forecast of AQI tomorrow. In order to verify validity and accuracy of PCA-GABP model’s forecast capability. The study uses two statistical indices to evaluate AQI forecast results (normalized mean square error and fractional bias). Eventually, this study reduces mean square error by optimizing individual gene structure in genetic algorithm and adjusting the parameters of back propagation model. To conclude, the performance of the model to forecast AQI is comparatively convincing and the model is expected to take positive effect in AQI forecast in the future.

Keywords: AQI forecast, principal component analysis, genetic algorithm, back propagation neural network model.

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Authors: V. K. Ananthashayana, Jyothirmayi M.

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This paper addresses the problem of source separation in images. We propose a FastICA algorithm employing a modified Gaussian contrast function for the Blind Source Separation. Experimental result shows that the proposed Modified Gaussian FastICA is effectively used for Blind Source Separation to obtain better quality images. In this paper, a comparative study has been made with other popular existing algorithms. The peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR) and improved signal to noise ratio (ISNR) are used as metrics for evaluating the quality of images. The ICA metric Amari error is also used to measure the quality of separation.

Keywords: Amari error, Blind Source Separation, Contrast function, Gaussian function, Independent Component Analysis.

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Authors: Y. Atilgan Şengül

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Health information technologies promise higher quality, safer care and much more for both patients and professionals. Despite their promise, they are costly to develop and difficult to implement. On the other hand, user acceptance and usage determine the success of implemented information technology in healthcare. This study provides a model to understand health professionals’ perception and expectation of health information technology. Extensive literature review has been conducted to determine the main factors to be measured. A questionnaire has been designed as a measurement model and submitted to the personnel of an in vitro fertilization clinic. The respondents’ degree of agreement according to five-point Likert scale was 72% for convenient access to data and 69.4% for the importance of data security. There was a significant difference in acceptance of electronic data storage for female respondents. Also, other significant differences between professions were obtained.

Keywords: Healthcare, health informatics, medical record system, questionnaire.

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Authors: Carole A. El Raheb, Hassan K. Abdel-Salam, Ingi Elcherif

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An architect carrying the design process alone is the main reason for the deterioration of the quality of the architectural product as the complexity of the projects makes it a multi-disciplinary work; then, the Integrative Design Process (IDP) must be applied in the architectural firm especially from the early design phases to improve the product’s quality and to eliminate the ignorance of the principles of design causing the occurrence of low-grade buildings. The research explores the Integrative Design (ID) principles that fit in the architectural practice. Constraints facing this application are presented with strategies and solutions to overcome them. A survey questionnaire was conducted to collect data from a number of recognized Egyptian Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) firms that explores their opinions on using the IDP. This survey emphasizes the importance of the IDP in firms and presents the reasons preventing the firms from applying the IDP. The aim here is to investigate the potentials of integrating this approach into architectural firms emphasizing the importance of this application which ensures the realization of the project’s goal and eliminates the reduction in the project’s quality.

Keywords: Application, architectural firms, integrative design principles, integrative design process, the project quality.

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Authors: Wai Yee Lin, Masahiro Yamao

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Food control measures are critical in fostering food safety management of a nation. However, no academic study has been undertaken to assess the food control system of Myanmar up to now. The objective of this research paper was to assess the food control system with in depth examination of five key components using desktop analysis and short survey from related food safety program organizations including regulators and inspectors. Study showed that the existing food control system is conventional, mainly focusing on primary health care approach while relying on reactive measures. The achievements of food control work have been limited to a certain extent due to insufficienttechnical capacity that is needed to upgrade staffs, laboratory equipment and technical assistance etc. associated with various sectors. Assessing food control measures is the first step in the integration of food safety management, this paper could assist policy makers in providing information for enhancing the safety and quality of food produced and consumed in Myanmar.

Keywords: Food Control, Food Policy, Legislation, Management

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Authors: Rabia Bibi, Muhammad Shahzad Faisal, Khalid Iqbal, Atif Inayat

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Internet is growing rapidly and new community-based content is added by people every second. With this fast-growing community-based content, if a user requires answers of particular questions, then reviews are required from experts or community. However, it is difficult to get quality answers. The Muslim community all over the world is seeking help to get their questions and issues discussed to get answers. Online web portals of religious schools and community-based question answering sites are two big platforms to solve the issues of users. In the case of religious schools, there are experts and qualified religious scholars (mufti) who can give the expert opinion. However, the quality of community-based content cannot be guaranteed as it may not be an answer that satisfies the question of a user. Users on CQA sites may include spammers or individual criticizing the questioner instead of providing useful answers. In this paper, we research strategies to naturally distinguish the right content. As an experiment, we concentrate on Yahoo! Answers, and Quora, popular online QA sites, where questions are asked, answered, edited, and organized by a large community of users. We present the classification of data to categorize both relevant and irrelevant answers. Specifically, we demonstrate that the proposed framework can isolate quality answers from the rest with an exactness near that of people.

Keywords: Community-based question and answering, evaluation and prediction of quality answer, answer classification, Islamic content, answer ranking.

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Authors: A. Esra İdemen, Sinan M. Şener, Emrah Acar

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The technological paradigm of the disaster management field, especially in the case of governmental intervention strategies, is generally based on rapid and flexible accommodation solutions. From various technical solution patterns used to address the immediate housing needs of disaster victims, the adaptive re-use of existing buildings can be considered to be both low-cost and practical. However, there is a scarcity of analytical methods to screen, select and adapt buildings to help decision makers in cases of emergency. Following an extensive literature review, this paper aims to highlight key points and problem areas associated with the adaptive re-use of buildings within the disaster management context. In other disciplines such as real estate management, the adaptive re-use potential (ARP) of existing buildings is typically based on the prioritization of a set of technical and non-technical criteria which are then weighted to arrive at an economically viable investment decision. After a disaster, however, the assessment of the ARP of buildings requires consideration of different/additional layers of analysis which stem from general disaster management principles and the peculiarities of different types of disasters, as well as of their victims. In this paper, a discussion of the development of an adaptive re-use potential (ARP) assessment model is presented. It is thought that governmental and non-governmental decision makers who are required to take quick decisions to accommodate displaced masses following disasters are likely to benefit from the implementation of such a model.

Keywords: Adaptive re-use of buildings, assessment model, disaster management, temporary housing.

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Authors: N. Hadthamard, P. Chaumpluk, M. Buanong, P. Boonyaritthongchai, C. Wongs-Aree

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Ripe ‘Nam Dok Mai’ mango (Mangifera indica L.) is an important exported fruit of Thailand, but rapidly declined in the quality attributes mainly by infection of anthracnose and stem end rot diseases. Multilayer coating is considered as a developed technique to maintain the postharvest quality of mangoes. The utilization of alternated coating by matching oppositely electrostatic charges between 0.1% chitosan and 0.1% polystyrene sulfonate (PSS) was studied. A number of the coating layers (layer by layer) were applied on mature green ‘Nam Dok Mai No.4’ mangoes prior to storage at 25 ^oC, 65-70% relative humidity (RH). There were significant differences in some quality attributes of mangoes coated by 3½ layers, 4½ layers and 5½ layers. In comparison to coated mangoes, uncoated fruits were higher in weight loss, total soluble solids, respiration rate, ethylene production and disease incidence except the titratable acidity. Coating fruit at 3½ layers exhibited the ripening delay and reducing disease infection without off flavour. On the other hand, fruit coated with 5½ layers comprised the lowest acceptable score, caused by exhibiting disorders from fermentation at the end of storage. As a result, multilayer coating between chitosan and PSS could effectively maintain the postharvest quality of mango, but number of coating layers should be thoroughly considered.

Keywords: Multilayer, chitosan, polystyrene sulfonate, Nam Dok Mai No.4.

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Authors: Anabel Fernandez, Leandro Rodriguez-Ortiz, Rosa Rodríguez

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Due to the negative impact of fossil fuels, renewable energies are promising sources to limit global temperature rise and damage to the environment. Also, the development of technology is focused on obtaining energetic products from renewable sources. In this study, a thermodynamic model including exergy balance and a subsequent Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) were carried out for four subsystems of the integrated gasification-combustion of pinewood. Results of exergy analysis and LCA showed the process feasibility in terms of exergy efficiency and global energy efficiency of the life cycle (GEELC). Moreover, the energy return on investment (EROI) index was calculated. The global exergy efficiency resulted in 67%. For pretreatment, reaction, cleaning, and electric generation subsystems, the results were 85%, 59%, 87%, and 29%, respectively. Results of LCA indicated that the emissions from the electric generation caused the most damage to the atmosphere, water, and soil. GEELC resulted in 31.09% for the global process. This result suggested the environmental feasibility of an integrated gasification-combustion system. EROI resulted in 3.15, which determines the sustainability of the process.

Keywords: Exergy analysis, Life Cycle Assessment, LCA, renewability, sustainability.

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Authors: Sandeep Khimta, Parvinder S. Sandhu, Amanpreet Singh Brar

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The traditional software product and process metrics are neither suitable nor sufficient in measuring the complexity of software components, which ultimately is necessary for quality and productivity improvement within organizations adopting CBSE. Researchers have proposed a wide range of complexity metrics for software systems. However, these metrics are not sufficient for components and component-based system and are restricted to the module-oriented systems and object-oriented systems. In this proposed study it is proposed to find the complexity of the JavaBean Software Components as a reflection of its quality and the component can be adopted accordingly to make it more reusable. The proposed metric involves only the design issues of the component and does not consider the packaging and the deployment complexity. In this way, the software components could be kept in certain limit which in turn help in enhancing the quality and productivity.

Keywords: JavaBean Components, Complexity, Metrics, Validation.

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Authors: Manop Vorasri, Komson Jirapattarasilp, Sittichai Kaewkuekool

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The objective of this research was to study factors, which were affected on surface roughness in high speed milling of hardened tool steel. Material used in the experiment was tool steel JIS SKD 61 that hardened on 60 ±2 HRC. Full factorial experimental design was conducted on 3 factors and 3 levels (3 3 designs) with 2 replications. Factors were consisted of cutting speed, feed rate, and depth of cut. The results showed that influenced factor affected to surface roughness was cutting speed, feed rate and depth of cut which showed statistical significant. Higher cutting speed would cause on better surface quality. On the other hand, higher feed rate would cause on poorer surface quality. Interaction of factor was found that cutting speed and depth of cut were significantly to surface quality. The interaction of high cutting speed associated with low depth of cut affected to better surface quality than low cutting speed and high depth of cut.

Keywords: High-speed milling, Tool steel, SKD 61 Steel, Surface roughness, Cutting speed, Feed rate, Depth of cut

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Authors: Sheng Teng Huang, Shigeru Yoshida

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Strategic alliances generally mean the cooperation or collaboration between firms which pursue for a synergy that each member hopes the benefits from the alliances would be much more than those from individual efforts. Past researches provide us sufficient theories and considerations for alliance forming in liner shipping market. This research reviews important academic journals for the past decade regarding to the most important reasons to form the alliances. We would explain the motive of alliances and details of shipping cooperation in literature review. The paper also empirically investigates the key service quality requirements improved through alliances by using quality function deployment (QFD). Moreover, the research investigates famous shipping reports, shipping consultant websites and most recent shipping publications to find out the executive-s viewpoint of several leading carriers among top 20 to assess current shipping strategic alliance on Asia/Europe route. These comments provide meaningful managerial reasons to consider alliance formations and search if there is any gap between the theories and industrial practice. Analysis of the empirical investigation and top management-s perspective on current market situation will contribute us some meaningful managerial suggestions to evaluate these theories applied to current strategic alliances.

Keywords: Liner shipping, Strategic alliances, quality function deployment, service quality.

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Authors: J. R. Wang, W. Y. Cheng, J. S. Yeh, S. W. Chen, Y. M. Ferng, J. H. Yang, W. S. Hsu, C. Shih

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To understand the risk for dry storage concrete casks in the cask loading, transfer, and storage phase, the purpose of this research is to establish the probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) analysis methodology for dry storage concrete casks by using SAPHIRE 8 code. This analysis methodology is used to perform the study of Taiwan nuclear power plants (NPPs) dry storage system. The process of research has three steps. First, the data of the concrete casks and Taiwan NPPs are collected. Second, the PRA analysis methodology is developed by using SAPHIRE 8. Third, the PRA analysis is performed by using this methodology. According to the analysis results, the maximum risk is the multipurpose canister (MPC) drop case.

Keywords: PRA, Dry storage, concrete cask, SAPHIRE.

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Authors: M. Sankari, C. Meena

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Enhancing the quality of two dimensional signals is one of the most important factors in the fields of video surveillance and computer vision. Usually in real-life video surveillance, false detection occurs due to the presence of random noise, illumination and shadow artifacts. The detection methods based on background subtraction faces several problems in accurately detecting objects in realistic environments: In this paper, we propose a noise removal algorithm using neighborhood comparison method with thresholding. The illumination variations correction is done in the detected foreground objects by using an amalgamation of techniques like homomorphic decomposition, curvelet transformation and gamma adjustment operator. Shadow is removed using chromaticity estimator with local relation estimator. Results are compared with the existing methods and prove as high robustness in the video surveillance.

Keywords: Chromaticity Estimator, Curvelet Transformation, Denoising, Gamma correction, Homomorphic, Neighborhood Assessment.

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Authors: K. Shimola, M. Krishnaveni

Abstract:

This paper examines vulnerability assessment of water resources in a semi-arid basin using the 4-step approach. The vulnerability assessment framework is developed to study the water resources vulnerability which includes the creation of GIS-based vulnerability maps. These maps represent the spatial variability of the vulnerability index. This paper introduces the 4-step approach to assess vulnerability that incorporates a new set of indicators. The approach is demonstrated using a framework composed of a precipitation data for (1975–2010) period, temperature data for (1965–2010) period, hydrological model outputs and the water resources GIS data base. The vulnerability assessment is a function of three components such as exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity. The current water resources vulnerability is assessed using GIS based spatio-temporal information. Rainfall Coefficient of Variation, monsoon onset and end date, rainy days, seasonality indices, temperature are selected for the criterion ‘exposure’. Water yield, ground water recharge, evapotranspiration (ET) are selected for the criterion ‘sensitivity’. Type of irrigation and storage structures are selected for the criterion ‘Adaptive capacity’. These indicators were mapped and integrated in GIS environment using overlay analysis. The five sub-basins, namely Arjunanadhi, Kousiganadhi, Sindapalli-Uppodai and Vallampatti Odai, fall under medium vulnerability profile, which indicates that the basin is under moderate stress of water resources. The paper also explores prioritization of sub-basinwise adaptation strategies to climate change based on the vulnerability indices.

Keywords: Adaptive capacity, exposure, overlay analysis, sensitivity, vulnerability.

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Authors: Aline F. Marcon, Eduardo F. da Silva, Marina Bouzon

Abstract:

The impact of lean management on environmental sustainability is the research line that receives the most attention from academicians. Therefore, the social dimension of sustainable development has so far received less attention. This paper aims to evaluate the impact of intra-plant lean manufacturing practices on social sustainability indicators extracted from the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) parameters. The method is two-phased, including MCDM approach to uncover the most relevant practices regarding social performance and Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) method to reveal the structural relationship among lean practices. Professionals from the academic and industrial fields answered the questionnaires. From the results of this paper, it is possible to verify that practices such as “Safety Improvement Programs”, “Total Quality Management” and “Cross-functional Workforce” are the ones which have the most positive influence on the set of GRI social indicators.

Keywords: Indicators, ISM, lean, social, sustainability.

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Authors: Ahmed A. Hassan, Bassam Tawabini

Abstract:

In this study, the physicochemical parameters of Dhahran tap water were assessed to determine its suitability for drinking purposes. A total of 45 water samples were collected from different locations. The results indicate temperature ranges of 19.76 to 22.86 °C, pH (6.5 to 8.23), dissolved oxygen (4.21 to 8.32 mg/L), conductivity (232 to 2586 uS/cm), turbidity (0.17 to 0.37 Nephelometric Turbidity unit (NTU)), total dissolved solids (93 to 1671 mg/L), total alkalinity (4.11 to 24.04 mg/L), calcium (0.02 to 164 mg/L), magnesium (0 .6 to 77.9 mg/L), chloride (32.7 to 568.7 mg/L), nitrate (0.02 to 3 mg/L), fluoride (0.001 to 0.591 mg/L), sodium (18.4 to 232 mg/L), potassium (0.5 to 26.4 mg/L), and sulphate (2.39 to 258 mg/L). The results were compared with the drinking water standards recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). The study determined that though the levels of most of the physicochemical parameters comply with the standards, however, slight deviations exist. This is evident in the values of the physical parameters (conductivity and total dissolved solids), and the chemical parameters (sulphate, chloride, and sodium) recorded at a few sample sites.

Keywords: Physicochemical parameters, tap water, water quality, Dhahran.

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