Search results for: Green Construction

Authors: D. Sarkar, M. Pal, A. K. Sarkar

Abstract:

Asphaltic concrete for pavement construction in India are produced by using crushed stone, gravels etc. as aggregate. In north-Eastern region of India, there is a scarcity of stone aggregate. Therefore the road engineers are always in search of an optional material as aggregate which can replace the regularly used material. The purpose of this work was to evaluate the utilization of substandard or marginal aggregates in flexible pavement construction. The investigation was undertaken to evaluate the effects of using lower quality aggregates such as over burnt brick aggregate on the preparation of asphalt concrete for flexible pavements. The scope of this work included a review of available literature and existing data, a laboratory evaluation organized to determine the effects of marginal aggregates and potential techniques to upgrade these substandard materials, and a laboratory evaluation of these upgraded marginal aggregate asphalt mixtures. Over burnt brick aggregates are water susceptible and can leads to moisture damage. Moisture damage is the progressive loss of functionality of the material owing to loss of the adhesion bond between the asphalt binder and the aggregate surface. Hence zycosoil as an anti striping additive were evaluated in this study. This study summarizes the results of the laboratory evaluation carried out to investigate the properties of asphalt concrete prepared with zycosoil modified over burnt brick aggregate. Marshall specimen were prepared with stone aggregate, zycosoil modified stone aggregate, over burnt brick aggregate and zycosoil modified over burnt brick aggregate. Results show that addition of zycosoil with stone aggregate increased stability by 6% and addition of zycosoil with over burnt brick aggregate increased stability by 30%.

Keywords: Asphalt Concrete, Over Burnt Brick Aggregate, Marshall Stability, Zycosoil.

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Authors: Viviane Nascimento, Dania Mehmod

Abstract:

Introduction: The Coronavirus (COVID-19) disease was firstly reported in Asia at the end of 2019 and became a pandemic at the beginning of 2020. It resulted in a significant impact over the global economy and the health care systems around the world. The immediate measure adopted worldwide to contain the virus was mainly the lockdown and curfews. This certainly had an important impact on expats workers due to the financial insecurity, culture barrier and distance from the family. Saudi Arabia has one of the largest flows of foreign workers in the world and expats are the majority of the workforce. The aim of this essay was assessing the psychological impact of COVID-19 in non-health care expats living in Saudi Arabia. Methods: The study was conducted in a construction company in Riyadh with non-health care employees. The cross-sectional study protocol was approved by the company's executive management. Employees who verbally agreed to participate in the study were asked to anonymously answer a questionnaire validated for behavioral research (DASS-21). In addition, a second questionnaire was created to assess feelings and emotions. Results: More than a third of participants screened positive for one or more psychological symptoms (depression, anxiety and stress) on the DASS-21 scale. Moreover, it was observed an increase on negative feelings on the additional questionnaire. Conclusion: This study reveals an increase on negative feelings and psychological symptoms among non-health care migrant workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. In light of this, it is crucial to understand the emotional effects caused by the pandemic on migrant workers in order to create supportive and informative strategies minimizing the emotional impact on this vulnerable group.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, Saudi Arabia, psychological effects, migrant workers.

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Authors: J. Y. Woo, J. Lee, N. Kim, C.-S. Han

Abstract:

This paper reports on the enhanced photoluminescence (PL) of nanocomposites through the layered structuring of phosphor and quantum dot (QD). Green phosphor of Sr2SiO4:Eu, red QDs of CdSe/CdS/CdZnS/ZnS core-multishell, and thermo-curable resin were used for this study. Two kinds of composite (layered and mixed) were prepared, and the schemes for optical energy transfer between QD and phosphor were suggested and investigated based on PL decay characteristics. It was found that the layered structure is more effective than the mixed one in the respects of PL intensity, PL decay and thermal loss. When this layered nanocomposite (QDs on phosphor) is used to make white light emitting diode (LED), the brightness is increased by 37 %, and the color rendering index (CRI) value is raised to 88.4 compared to the mixed case of 80.4.

Keywords: Quantum Dot, Nanocomposites, Photoluminescence, Light Emitting Diode

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Authors: O.B. Ozipek, E. Bozdag, E. Sunbuloglu, A. Abdullahoglu, E. Belen, E. Celikkanat

Abstract:

In textile industry, besides the conventional textile products, technical textile goods, that have been brought external functional properties into, are being developed for technical textile industry. Especially these products produced with weaving technology are widely preferred in areas such as sports, geology, medical, automotive, construction and marine sectors. These textile products are exposed to various stresses and large deformations under typical conditions of use. At this point, sufficient and reliable data could not be obtained with uniaxial tensile tests for determination of the mechanical properties of such products due to mainly biaxial stress state. Therefore, the most preferred method is a biaxial tensile test method and analysis. These tests and analysis is applied to fabrics with different functional features in order to establish the textile material with several characteristics and mechanical properties of the product. Planar biaxial tensile test, cylindrical inflation and bulge tests are generally required to apply for textile products that are used in automotive, sailing and sports areas and construction industry to minimize accidents as long as their service life. Airbags, seat belts and car tires in the automotive sector are also subject to the same biaxial stress states, and can be characterized by same types of experiments. In this study, in accordance with the research literature related to the various biaxial test methods are compared. Results with discussions are elaborated mainly focusing on the design of a biaxial test apparatus to obtain applicable experimental data for developing a finite element model. Sample experimental results on a prototype system are expressed.

Keywords: Biaxial Stress, Bulge Test, Cylindrical Inflation, Fabric Testing, Planar Tension.

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Authors: Yomna Amr Ahmed Lotfi Koraim, Dalia Moati Rasmi Elkhateeb

Abstract:

Vertical landscape is introduced in this study as an alternative innovative technology for urban sustainable developments for its diverse environmental, economic, and psycho-social advantages. The main aim is to investigate the social acceptance of vertical landscape in Cairo, Egypt. The study objectives were to explore the perceptions of residents concerning this certain phenomenon and their opinions about its implementation. Survey questionnaires were administrated to 60 male and female residents from the Greater Cairo area. Despite the various concerns expressed about the application of vertical landscape, there was a clear majority of approval about its suitability. This is quite encouraging for the prospect of vertical landscape implementation in Cairo, Egypt.

Keywords: Vertical landscape, green facades, social acceptance, sustainable urban development.

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Authors: M. Nassereddine, J. Rizk, M. Nagrial

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Green house effect has becomes a serious concern in many countries due to the increase consumption of the fossil fuel. There have been many studies to find an alternative power source. Wind energy found to be one of the most useful solutions to help in overcoming the air pollution and global. There is no agreed solution to conversion of wind energy to electrical energy. In this paper, the advantages of using a Switched Reluctance Generator (SRG) for wind energy applications. The theoretical study of the self excitation of a SRG and the determination of the variable parameters in a SRG design are discussed. The design parameters for the maximum power output of the SRG are computed using Matlab simulation. The designs of the circuit to control the variable parameters in a SRG to provide the maximum power output are also discussed.

Keywords: Switched Reluctance Generator, Wind Power, Electrical Machines.

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Authors: Stefano Degrassi, Marco Raciti Castelli, Ernesto Benini

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Since the European renewable energy directives set the target for 22.1% of electricity generation to be supplied by 2010 [1], there has been increased interest in using green technologies also within the urban enviroment. The most commonly considered installations are solar thermal and solar photovoltaics. Nevertheless, as observed by Bahaj et al. [2], small scale turbines can reduce the built enviroment related CO2 emissions. Thus, in the last few years, an increasing number of manufacturers have developed small wind turbines specifically designed for the built enviroment. The present work focuses on the integration into architectural systems of such installations and presents a survey of successful case studies.

Keywords: Wind turbines, architectural integration, wind resources, urban areas, built enviroment, renewable technologies.

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Authors: Alexandra Oliveros, Miguel Sotaquirá

Abstract:

DNA microarray technology is widely used by geneticists to diagnose or treat diseases through gene expression. This technology is based on the hybridization of a tissue-s DNA sequence into a substrate and the further analysis of the image formed by the thousands of genes in the DNA as green, red or yellow spots. The process of DNA microarray image analysis involves finding the location of the spots and the quantification of the expression level of these. In this paper, a tool to perform DNA microarray image analysis is presented, including a spot addressing method based on the image projections, the spot segmentation through contour based segmentation and the extraction of relevant information due to gene expression.

Keywords: Contour segmentation, DNA microarrays, edge detection, image processing, segmentation, spot addressing.

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Authors: Salah Aljbour, Hiroshi Yamada, Tomohiko Tagawa

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A microchannel with two inlets and two outlets was tested as a potential reactor to carry out two-phase catalytic phase transfer reaction with phase separation at the exit of the microchannel. The catalytic phase transfer reaction between benzyl chloride and sodium sulfide was chosen as a model reaction. The effect of operational time on the conversion was studied. By utilizing a multiphase parallel flow inside the microchannel reactor with the aid of a guideline structure, the catalytic phase reaction followed by phase separation could be ensured. The organic phase could be separated completely from one exit and part of the aqueous phase was separated purely and could be reused with slightly affecting the catalytic phase transfer reaction.

Keywords: Green engineering, microchannel reactor, multiphase reaction, process intensification.

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Authors: Marialuisa Gennari, Giancarlo Tamanza, Ilaria Montanari

Abstract:

Identity development in adolescence is characterized by many risks and challenges, and becomes even more complex by the situation of migration and deafness. In particular, the condition of the second generation of migrant adolescents involves the comparison between the family context in which everybody speaks a language and deals with a specific culture (usually parents’ and relatives’ original culture), the social context (school, peer groups, sports groups), where a foreign language is spoken and a new culture is faced, and finally in the context of the “deaf” world. It is a dialectic involving unsolved differences that have to be treated in a discontinuous process, which will give complex outcomes and chances depending on the process of elaboration of the themes of growth and development, culture and deafness. This paper aims to underline the problems and opportunities for each issue which immigrant deaf adolescents must deal with. In particular, it will highlight the importance of a multifactorial approach for the analysis of personal resources (both intra-psychic and relational); the level of integration of the family of origin in the migration context; the elaboration of the migration event, and finally, the tractability of the condition of deafness. Some psycho-educational support objectives will be also highlighted for the identity development of deaf immigrant adolescents, with particular emphasis on the construction of the adolescents’ useful abilities to decode complex emotions, to develop self-esteem and to get critical thoughts about the inevitable attempts to build their identity. Remarkably, and of importance, the construction of flexible settings which support adolescents in a supple, “decentralized” way in order to avoid the regressive defenses that do not allow for the development of an authentic self.

Keywords: Immigrant deaf adolescents, identity development, personal and social challenges, psycho-educational support.

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Authors: Afonso, S. C., Fernandes, P. O., Monte, A. P.

Abstract:

Modern times call organizations to have an active role in the social arena, through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The objective of this research was to test the hypothesis that there is a positive relation between social performance and economic performance, and if there is a positive correlation between social performance and financial-economic performance. To test these theories a measure of social performance, based on the Green Book of Commission of the European Community, was used in a group of nineteen Portuguese top companies, listed on the PSI 20 index, through a period of five years, since 2005 to 2009. A clusters analysis was applied to group companies by their social performance and to compare and correlate their economic performance. Results indicate that companies that had a better social performance are not the ones who had a better economic performance, and suggest that the middle path might provide a good relation CSR-Economic performance, as a basis to a sustainable development.

Keywords: Corporate Social Responsibility, Economic Performance, Win-Win relationship

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Authors: Batin Latif Aylak, Bernd Noche

Abstract:

Overhead conveyor systems satisfy by their simple
construction, wide application range and their full compatibility with
other manufacturing systems, which are designed according to
international standards. Ultra-light overhead conveyor systems are
rope-based conveying systems with individually driven vehicles. The
vehicles can move automatically on the rope and this can be realized
by energy and signals. Crossings are realized by switches. Overhead
conveyor systems are particularly used in the automotive industry but
also at post offices. Overhead conveyor systems always must be
integrated with a logistical process by finding the best way for a
cheaper material flow and in order to guarantee precise and fast
workflows. With their help, any transport can take place without
wasting ground and space, without excessive company capacity, lost
or damaged products, erroneous delivery, endless travels and without
wasting time. Ultra-light overhead conveyor systems provide optimal
material flow, which produces profit and saves time. This article
illustrates the advantages of the structure of the ultra-light overhead
conveyor systems in logistics applications and explains the steps of
their system design. After an illustration of the steps, currently
available systems on the market will be shown by means of their
technical characteristics. Due to their simple construction, demands
to an ultra-light overhead conveyor system will be illustrated.

Keywords: Logistics, material flow, overhead conveyor.

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Authors: Lim Chen Kim, Tan Kian Lam, Chan Yi Chee

Abstract:

This research presents a multi-modal simulation in the reconstruction of the past and the construction of present in digital cultural heritage on mobile platform. In bringing the present life, the virtual environment is generated through a presented scheme for rapid and efficient construction of 360° panoramic view. Then, acoustical heritage model and crowd model are presented and improvised into the 360° panoramic view. For the reconstruction of past life, the crowd is simulated and rendered in an old trading port. However, the keystone of this research is in a virtual walkthrough that shows the virtual present life in 2D and virtual past life in 3D, both in an environment of virtual heritage sites in George Town through mobile device. Firstly, the 2D crowd is modelled and simulated using OpenGL ES 1.1 on mobile platform. The 2D crowd is used to portray the present life in 360° panoramic view of a virtual heritage environment based on the extension of Newtonian Laws. Secondly, the 2D crowd is animated and rendered into 3D with improved variety and incorporated into the virtual past life using Unity3D Game Engine. The behaviours of the 3D models are then simulated based on the enhancement of the classical model of Boid algorithm. Finally, a demonstration system is developed and integrated with the models, techniques and algorithms of this research. The virtual walkthrough is demonstrated to a group of respondents and is evaluated through the user-centred evaluation by navigating around the demonstration system. The results of the evaluation based on the questionnaires have shown that the presented virtual walkthrough has been successfully deployed through a multi-modal simulation and such a virtual walkthrough would be particularly useful in a virtual tour and virtual museum applications.

Keywords: Boid algorithm, crowd simulation, mobile platform, Newtonian laws, virtual heritage.

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Authors: Min Goo Lee, Yong Kuk Park, Kyung Kwon Jung, Jun Jae Yoo

Abstract:

This paper describes the smart energy monitoring system with a wireless sensor network for monitoring of electrical usage in smart house. Proposed system is composed of wireless plugs and energy control wallpad server. The wireless plug integrates an AC power socket, a relay to switch the socket ON/OFF, a Hall effect sensor to sense current of load appliance and a Kmote. The Kmote is a wireless communication interface based on TinyOS. We evaluated wireless plug in a laboratory, analyzed and presented energy consumption data from electrical appliances for 3 months in home.

Keywords: smart house, energy monitoring, wireless plug, wireless sensor network, current consumption.

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Authors: F. Behrouzi, A. Maimun, M. Nakisa

Abstract:

The growth of population, rising fossil fuel prices (limited and decreasing day by day), pollution problem due to use of fossil fuels and increasing electrical demand are important factors that encourage the use of green and renewable energy technologies. Among the different renewable energy technologies, hydro power generation (large and small scale) is the prime choice in terms of contribution to the world's electricity generation by using water current turbines. Currently, researchers mainly focused on design and development of different kind of turbines to capture hydropower to generate electricity as clean and reliable energy. This paper is a review of the status of research on water current turbines carried out to generate electricity from hydrokinetic energy especially in places where there is no electricity, but there is access to flowing water.

Keywords: Turbines, Renewable Energy, Hydropower.

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Authors: Philip Semaha, Zhongfang Lei, Ziwen Zhao, Sen Liu, Zhenya Zhang, Kazuya Shimizu

Abstract:

The increasing generation of saline wastewater through various industrial activities is becoming a global concern for activated sludge (AS) based biological treatment which is widely applied in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). As for the AS process, an increase in wastewater salinity has negative impact on its overall performance. The advent of conventional aerobic granular sludge (AGS) or bacterial AGS biotechnology has gained much attention because of its superior performance. The development of algal-bacterial AGS could enhance better nutrients removal, potentially reduce aeration cost through symbiotic algae-bacterial activity, and thus, can also reduce overall treatment cost. Nonetheless, the potential of salt stress to decrease biomass growth, microbial activity and nutrient removal exist. Up to the present, little information is available on saline wastewater treatment by algal-bacterial AGS. To the authors’ best knowledge, a comparison of the two AGS systems has not been done to evaluate nutrients removal capacity in the context of salinity increase. This study sought to figure out the impact of salinity on the algal-bacterial AGS system in comparison to bacterial AGS one, contributing to the application of AGS technology in the real world of saline wastewater treatment. In this study, the salt concentrations tested were 0 g/L, 1 g/L, 5 g/L, 10 g/L and 15 g/L of NaCl with 24-hr artificial illuminance of approximately 97.2 µmol m¯²s¯¹, and mature bacterial and algal-bacterial AGS were used for the operation of two identical sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) with a working volume of 0.9 L each, respectively. The results showed that salinity increase caused no apparent change in the color of bacterial AGS; while for algal-bacterial AGS, its color was progressively changed from green to dark green. A consequent increase in granule diameter and fluffiness was observed in the bacterial AGS reactor with the increase of salinity in comparison to a decrease in algal-bacterial AGS diameter. However, nitrite accumulation peaked from 1.0 mg/L and 0.4 mg/L at 1 g/L NaCl in the bacterial and algal-bacterial AGS systems, respectively to 9.8 mg/L in both systems when NaCl concentration varied from 5 g/L to 15 g/L. Almost no ammonia nitrogen was detected in the effluent except at 10 g/L NaCl concentration, where it averaged 4.2 mg/L and 2.4 mg/L, respectively, in the bacterial and algal-bacterial AGS systems. Nutrients removal in the algal-bacterial system was relatively higher than the bacterial AGS in terms of nitrogen and phosphorus removals. Nonetheless, the nutrient removal rate was almost 50% or lower. Results show that algal-bacterial AGS is more adaptable to salinity increase and could be more suitable for saline wastewater treatment. Optimization of operation conditions for algal-bacterial AGS system would be important to ensure its stably high efficiency in practice.

Keywords: Algal-bacterial aerobic granular sludge, bacterial aerobic granular sludge, nutrients removal, saline wastewater, sequencing batch reactor.

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Authors: Chinchira Bunchutrakun

Abstract:

The purposes of the study are to investigate the problems that the translators encountered when translating English idioms into Thai and study the strategies they applied in solving the problems. The original English version and the Thai translated version of each of two works of fiction were purposively selected for the study. The first was Mr. Maybe, written by Jane Green and translated by Montharat Songphao. The second was The Trials of Tiffany Trott, written by Isabel Wolff and translated by Jitraporn Notoda. Thirty idioms of two translated works of fiction were, then, analyzed. Questionnaires and interviews with the translators of each novel were conducted to obtain the best possible information.

The results indicated that the only type of problem that occurred was cultural problems, and these were solved differently by the two translators

Keywords: Translation, idiom translation, fiction translation, problem-solution strategies.

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Authors: Kaznah Alshammari, Thomas Beach, Yacine Rezgui

Abstract:

Technological advances in the construction sector are helping to make smart cities a reality by means of Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS). CPS integrate information and the physical world through the use of Information Communication Technologies (ICT). An increasingly common goal in the built environment is to integrate Building Information Models (BIM) with Internet of Things (IoT) and sensor technologies using CPS. Future advances could see the adoption of digital twins, creating new opportunities for CPS using monitoring, simulation and optimisation technologies. However, researchers often fail to fully consider the security implications. To date, it is not widely possible to assimilate BIM data and cybersecurity concepts and, therefore, security has thus far been overlooked. This paper reviews the empirical literature concerning IoT applications in the built environment and discusses real-world applications of the IoT intended to enhance construction practices, people’s lives and bolster cybersecurity. Specifically, this research addresses two research questions: (a) How suitable are the current IoT and CPS security stacks to address the cybersecurity threats facing digital twins in the context of smart buildings and districts? and (b) What are the current obstacles to tackling cybersecurity threats to the built environment CPS? To answer these questions, this paper reviews the current state-of-the-art research concerning digital twins in the built environment, the IoT, BIM, urban cities and cybersecurity. The results of the findings of this study confirmed the importance of using digital twins in both IoT and BIM. Also, eight reference zones across Europe have gained special recognition for their contributions to the advancement of IoT science. Therefore, this paper evaluates the use of digital twins in CPS to arrive at recommendations for expanding BIM specifications to facilitate IoT compliance, bolster cybersecurity and integrate digital twin and city standards in the smart cities of the future.

Keywords: BIM, cybersecurity, digital twins, IoT, urban cities.

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Authors: Samuel Carpintero

Abstract:

Public-private partnerships (PPP) arrangements have been extensively used in Canada, where the participation of private companies in financing and managing infrastructure projects has increased significantly in the last decade, particularly in the transportation sector. This paper analyses the evolution of the PPP market for transportation projects in Canada and examines the participation of Spanish developers in this market, which have been particularly successful in winning PPP contracts during the last decade.

Keywords: PPP, concession, infrastructure, construction.

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Authors: Tadeusz Pieczonka, Jan Kazior

Abstract:

The influence of SiC powder addition on densification of Al-SiC compacts during sintering in different atmospheres was investigated. It was performed in a dilatometer in flowing nitrogen, nitrogen/hydrogen (95/5 by volume) and argon. Fine, F500 grade of SiC powder was used. Mixtures containing 10 and 30 vol.% of SiC reinforcement were prepared in a Turbula mixer. Green compacts of about 82% of theoretical density were made of each mixture. For comparison, compacts made of pure aluminum powder were also investigated. It was shown that nitrogen is the best sintering atmosphere because only in this atmosphere did shrinkage take place. Its amount is lowered by ceramic powder addition, i.e. the more SiC the less densification occurs. Additionally, the formation of clusters, enhanced in compacts containing 30 vol.% SiC, is also responsible for limiting the shrinkage. Microstructural examinations of sintered composites revealed that sintering of compacts occurs in the presence of the liquid phase exclusively in nitrogen.

Keywords: Al-SiC composites, densification, sintering atmosphere.

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Authors: V. Tereshchenko, V. Muravitskiy

Abstract:

We consider the methods of construction simple polygons for a set S of n points and applying them for searching the minimal area polygon. In this paper we propose the approximate algorithm, which generates the simple polygonalizations of a fixed set of points and finds the minimal area polygon, in O (n3) time and using O(n2) memory.

Keywords: simple polygon, approximate algorithm, minimal area polygon, polygonalizations

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Authors: Azmi Mohd Shariff, Ghulam Murshid, K.K. Lau, Mohammad Azmi Bustam, Faizan Ahamd

Abstract:

Carbon dioxide is one of the major green house gases. It is removed from different streams using amine absorption process. Sterically hindered amines are suggested as good CO2 absorbers. Solubility of carbon dioxide (CO2) was measured in aqueous solutions of 2-Amino-2-methyl-1-propanol (AMP) at temperatures 30 oC, 40 oC and 60 oC. The effect of pressure and temperature was studied over various concentrations of AMP. It has been found that pressure has positive effect on CO2 solubility where as solubility decreased with increasing temperature. Absorption performance of AMP increased with increasing pressure. Solubility of aqueous AMP was compared with mo-ethanolamine (MEA) and the absorption capacity of aqueous solutions of AMP was found to be better.

Keywords: Global warming, Carbon dioxide, Amine, Solubility

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Authors: J. Novak, A. Kohoutkova, V. Kristek, J. Vodicka, M. Sramek

Abstract:

While the use of cast-in-place concrete for an airfield and highway pavement overlay is very common, the application of precast concrete elements is very limited today. The main reasons consist of high production costs and complex structural behavior. Despite that, several precast concrete systems have been developed and tested with the aim to provide a system with rapid construction. The contribution deals with the reinforcement design of a hexagonal element developed for a proposed airfield pavement system. The sub-base course of the system is composed of compacted recycled concrete aggregates and fiber reinforced concrete with recycled aggregates place on top of it. The selected element belongs to a group of precast concrete elements which are being considered for the construction of a surface course. Both high costs of full-scale experiments and the need to investigate various elements force to simulate their behavior in a numerical analysis software by using finite element method instead of performing expensive experiments. The simulation of the selected element was conducted on a nonlinear model in order to obtain such results which could fully compensate results from experiments. The main objective was to design reinforcement of the precast concrete element subject to quasi-static loading from airplanes with respect to geometrical imperfections, manufacturing imperfections, tensile stress in reinforcement, compressive stress in concrete and crack width. The obtained findings demonstrate that the position and the presence of imperfection in a pavement highly affect the stress distribution in the precast concrete element. The precast concrete element should be heavily reinforced to fulfill all the demands. Using under-reinforced concrete elements would lead to the formation of wide cracks and cracks permanently open.

Keywords: Imperfection, numerical simulation, pavement, precast concrete element, reinforcement design, stress analysis.

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Authors: Jun Luo

Abstract:

In this paper, the smallest such integer k is called by the index (of nilpotence) of B such that Bk = 0. In this paper, we study sign patterns allowing nilpotence of index k and obtain four methods to construct sign patterns allowing nilpotence of index at most k, which generalizes some recent results.

Keywords: Sign pattern, Nilpotence, Jordan block.

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Authors: Manolo Dulva Hina, Clement Thierry, Assia Soukane, Amar Ramdane-Cherif

Abstract:

In this paper, we presented our innovative way of determining the driving context for a driving assistance system. We invoke the fusion of all parameters that describe the context of the environment, the vehicle and the driver to obtain the driving context. We created a training set that stores driving situation patterns and from which the system consults to determine the driving situation. A machine-learning algorithm predicts the driving situation. The driving situation is an input to the fission process that yields the action that must be implemented when the driver needs to be informed or assisted from the given the driving situation. The action may be directed towards the driver, the vehicle or both. This is an ongoing work whose goal is to offer an alternative driving assistance system for safe driving, green driving and comfortable driving. Here, ontologies are used for knowledge representation.

Keywords: Cognitive driving, intelligent transportation system, multimodal system, ontology, machine learning.

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Authors: Azam Bayat, Aref Khalkhali, Ali Reza Mahjoub

Abstract:

In this research, a type of drug supplement was synthesized by a green route. This organic biomaterial was named Nutrition Bio-Shield Superfood (NBS). Due to the destructive effects of various infectious diseases, their increasing prevalence and the lack of appropriate medication for treatment, the present study aimed to evaluate antimicrobial properties of the NBS dietary supplement. In the study of the simple effect of concentrations on the inhibitory diameter of the growth of the common bacteria involved in infectious diseases of the human body, the highest diameter of the halo was related to the concentration of 100 mg/ml and the least of them was the concentration of 12.5 mg/ml dietary supplement. In general, the NBS drug supplement increases the level of immunity in human body.

Keywords: Drug supplement, biomaterial, antimicrobial, human body.

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Authors: M. Nekri, A. Khelladi

Abstract:

The world wide web network is a network with a complex topology, the main properties of which are the distribution of degrees in power law, A low clustering coefficient and a weak average distance. Modeling the web as a graph allows locating the information in little time and consequently offering a help in the construction of the research engine. Here, we present a model based on the already existing probabilistic graphs with all the aforesaid characteristics. This work will consist in studying the web in order to know its structuring thus it will enable us to modelize it more easily and propose a possible algorithm for its exploration.

Keywords: Clustering coefficient, preferential attachment, small world, Web community.

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Authors: Vicente F. P. Aleixo, Augusto C. F. Saraiva, Jordan Del Nero

Abstract:

The production of devices in nanoscale with specific molecular rectifying function is one of the most significant goals in state-of-art technology. In this work we show by ab initio quantum mechanics calculations coupled with non-equilibrium Green function, the design of an organic two-terminal device. These molecular structures have molecular source and drain with several bridge length (from five up to 11 double bonds). Our results are consistent with significant features as a molecular rectifier and can be raised up as: (a) it can be used as bi-directional symmetrical rectifier; (b) two devices integrated in one (FET with one operational region, and Thyristor thiristor); (c) Inherent stability due small intrinsic capacitance under forward/reverse bias. We utilize a scheme for the transport mechanism based on previous properties of ¤Ç bonds type that can be successfully utilized to construct organic nanodevices.

Keywords: ab initio, Carotenoid, Charge Transfer, Nanodevice

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Authors: Mykola S. Shestavin

Abstract:

A strategy for the creation of a Virtual Interactive Platform (or Networking Platform) to combine the four web-baseness of expert systems on the transfer and diffusion of low-carbon technologies. It used the concept of “Open Innovation” and “Triple Helix” with regard to theories of “Green Growth” and “Carbon Footprint”. Interpreters expert systems operate on the basis of models of the “Predator-Prey” for the process of transfer and diffusion of technologies, taking into account the features caused by the need to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Keywords: Climate Change, Expert Systems, Low-Carbon Technology, Open Innovation, Virtual Interactive Platform.

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Authors: P.P. Diale, E. Muzenda, T.S. Matambo, D. Glasser, D. Hildebrandt, J. Zimba

Abstract:

A vast array of biological materials, especially algae have received increasing attention for heavy metal removal. Algae have been proven to be cheaper, more effective for the removal of metallic elements in aqueous solutions. A fresh water algal strain was isolated from Zoo Lake, Johannesburg, South Africa and identified as Desmodesmus sp. This paper investigates the efficacy of Desmodesmus sp.in removing heavy metals contaminating the Wonderfonteinspruit Catchment Area (WCA) water bodies. The biosorption data fitted the pseudo-second order and Langmuir isotherm models. The Langmuir maximum uptakes gave the sequence: Mn2+>Ni2+>Fe2+. The best results for kinetic study was obtained in concentration 120 ppm for Fe3+ and Mn2+, whilst for Ni2+ was at 20 ppm, which is about the same concentrations found in contaminated water in the WCA (Fe3+115 ppm, Mn2+ 121 ppm and Ni2+ 26.5 ppm).

Keywords: Biosorption, Green algae, Heavy metals, Remediation.

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