Search results for: dynamic response analysis.

Authors: P. Bhramara, V. D. Rao, K. V. Sharma , T. K. K. Reddy

Abstract:

In designing of condensers, the prediction of pressure drop is as important as the prediction of heat transfer coefficient. Modeling of two phase flow, particularly liquid – vapor flow under diabatic conditions inside a horizontal tube using CFD analysis is difficult with the available two phase models in FLUENT due to continuously changing flow patterns. In the present analysis, CFD analysis of two phase flow of refrigerants inside a horizontal tube of inner diameter, 0.0085 m and 1.2 m length is carried out using homogeneous model under adiabatic conditions. The refrigerants considered are R22, R134a and R407C. The analysis is performed at different saturation temperatures and at different flow rates to evaluate the local frictional pressure drop. Using Homogeneous model, average properties are obtained for each of the refrigerants that is considered as single phase pseudo fluid. The so obtained pressure drop data is compared with the separated flow models available in literature.

Keywords: Adiabatic conditions, CFD analysis, Homogeneousmodel and Liquid – Vapor flow.

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Authors: W. Swiderski

Abstract:

In the paper introduced the diagnostic technique making possible the research of internal structures in composite materials reinforced fibres using in different applications. The main reason of damages in structures of these materials is the changing distribution of load in constructions in the lifetime. Appearing defect is largely complicated because of the appearance of disturbing of continuity of reinforced fibres, binder cracks and loss of fibres adhesiveness from binders. Defect in composite materials is usually more complicated than in metals. At present, infrared thermography is the most effective method in non-destructive testing composite. One of IR thermography methods used in non-destructive evaluation is vibrothermography. The vibrothermography is not a new non-destructive method, but the new solution in this test is use ultrasonic waves to thermal stimulation of materials. In this paper, both modelling and experimental results which illustrate the advantages and limitations of ultrasonic IR thermography in inspecting composite materials will be presented. The ThermoSon computer program for computing 3D dynamic temperature distribuions in anisotropic layered solids with subsurface defects subject to ulrasonic stimulation was used to optimise heating parameters in the detection of subsurface defects in composite materials. The program allows for the analysis of transient heat conduction and ultrasonic wave propagation phenomena in solids. The experiments at MIAT were fulfilled by means of FLIR SC 7600 IR camera. Ultrasonic stimulation was performed with the frequency from 15 kHz to 30 kHz with maximum power up to 2 kW.

Keywords: Composite material, ultrasonic, infrared thermography, non-destructive testing.

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Authors: Xiaoqing Wang, Fang Youyuan, Zheng Yanxing, Gu Tianyang, Zong Jianjian, Tong Jinrong

Abstract:

Compared with traditional distributed environment, the net-centric environment brings on more demanding challenges for information sharing with the characteristics of ultra-large scale and strong distribution, dynamic, autonomy, heterogeneity, redundancy. This paper realizes an information sharing model and a series of core services, through which provides an open, flexible and scalable information sharing platform.

Keywords: Net-centric environment, Information sharing, Metadata registry and catalog, Cross-domain data access control.

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Authors: Hyeondal Jeong, Yoonjung Baek

Abstract:

This research examines the effects of positive psychological capital (or PsyCap) on employee’s outcomes (satisfaction, commitment, organizational citizenship behavior, innovation behavior and individual creativity). This study conducted a meta-analysis of articles published in the Republic of Korea. As a result, positive psychological capital has a positive effect on the behavior of employees. Heterogeneity was identified among the studies included in the analysis and the context factors were analyzed; the study proposes contextual factors such as team tenure. The moderating effect of team tenure was not statistically significant. The implications were discussed based on the analysis results.

Keywords: Positive psychological capital, satisfaction, commitment, OCB, creativity, meta-analysis.

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Authors: J. R. Wang, S. W. Chen, Y. Chiang, W. S. Hsu, J. H. Yang, Y. S. Tseng, C. Shih

Abstract:

In this research, the HABIT analysis methodology was established for Maanshan nuclear power plant (NPP). The Final Safety Analysis Report (FSAR), reports, and other data were used in this study. To evaluate the control room habitability under the CO₂ storage burst, the HABIT methodology was used to perform this analysis. The HABIT result was below the R.G. 1.78 failure criteria. This indicates that Maanshan NPP habitability can be maintained. Additionally, the sensitivity study of the parameters (wind speed, atmospheric stability classification, air temperature, and control room intake flow rate) was also performed in this research.

Keywords: PWR, HABIT, habitability, Maanshan.

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Authors: G. La Scalia, M. Enea, R. Micale, O. Corona, L. Settanni

Abstract:

The quality and condition of perishable products delivered to the market and their subsequent selling prices are directly affected by the care taken during harvesting and handling. Mechanical injury, in fact, occurs at all stages, from pre-harvest operations through post-harvest handling, packing and transport to the market. The main implications of this damage are the reduction of the product’s quality and economical losses related to the shelf life diminution. For most perishable products, the shelf life is relatively short and it is typically dictated by microbial growth related to the application of dynamic and static loads during transportation. This paper presents the correlation between vibration levels and microbiological growth on strawberries and woodland strawberries and detects the presence of volatile organic compounds (VOC) in order to develop an intelligent logistic unit capable of monitoring VOCs using a specific sensor system. Fresh fruits were exposed to vibrations by means of a vibrating table in a temperature-controlled environment. Microbiological analyses were conducted on samples, taken at different positions along the column of the crates. The values obtained were compared with control samples not exposed to vibrations and the results show that different positions along the column influence the development of bacteria, yeasts and filamentous fungi.

Keywords: Microbiological analysis, shelf life, transport damage, volatile organic compounds.

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Authors: Iveta Řepková

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The aim of this paper is to estimate the efficiency of the Slovak commercial banks employing the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) window analysis approach during the period 2003-2012. The research is based on unbalanced panel data of the Slovak commercial banks. Undesirable output was included into analysis of banking efficiency. It was found that most efficient banks were Postovabanka, UniCredit Bank and Istrobanka in CCR model and the most efficient banks were Slovenskasporitelna, Istrobanka and UniCredit Bank in BCC model. On contrary, the lowest efficient banks were found Privatbanka and CitiBank. We found that the largest banks in the Slovak banking market were lower efficient than medium-size and small banks. Results of the paper is that during the period 2003-2008 the average efficiency was increasing and then during the period 2010-2011 the average efficiency decreased as a result of financial crisis.

Keywords: Data Envelopment Analysis, efficiency, Slovak banking sector, window analysis.

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Authors: Zhang Yan, Yu Bin

Abstract:

Principle component analysis is often combined with the state-of-art classification algorithms to recognize human faces. However, principle component analysis can only capture these features contributing to the global characteristics of data because it is a global feature selection algorithm. It misses those features contributing to the local characteristics of data because each principal component only contains some levels of global characteristics of data. In this study, we present a novel face recognition approach using non-negative principal component analysis which is added with the constraint of non-negative to improve data locality and contribute to elucidating latent data structures. Experiments are performed on the Cambridge ORL face database. We demonstrate the strong performances of the algorithm in recognizing human faces in comparison with PCA and NREMF approaches.

Keywords: classification, face recognition, non-negativeprinciple component analysis (NPCA)

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Authors: Mircea Pastrav, Horia Constantinescu

Abstract:

The construction industry is currently trying to develop sustainable reinforced concrete structures. In trying to aid in the effort, the research presented in this paper aims to prove the efficiency of modified special hybrid moment frames composed of discretely jointed precast and post-tensioned concrete members. This aim is due to the fact that current design standards do not cover the spatial design of moment frame structures assembled by post-tensioning with special hybrid joints. This lack of standardization is coupled with the fact that previous experimental programs, available in scientific literature, deal mainly with plane structures and offer little information regarding spatial behavior. A spatial model of a modified hybrid moment frame is experimentally analyzed. The experimental results of a natural scale model test of a corner column-beams sub-structure, cut from an actual multilevel building tested to seismic type loading are presented in order to highlight the behavior of this type of structure. The test is performed under alternative cycles of imposed lateral displacements, up to a storey drift ratio of 0.035. Seismic response of the spatial model is discussed considering the acceptance criteria for reinforced concrete frame structures designed based on experimental tests, as well as some of its major sustainability features. The results obtained show an overall excellent behavior of the system. The joint detailing allows for quick and cheap repairs after an accidental event and a self-balancing behavior of the system that ensures it can be used almost immediately after an accidental event it.

Keywords: Modified hybrid joint, seismic type loading response, self-balancing structure, acceptance criteria.

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Authors: Abu Salim Mustafa

Abstract:

Rv3873 is a relatively large size protein (371 amino acids in length) and its gene is located in the immunodominant genomic region of difference (RD)1 that is present in the genome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis but deleted from the genomes of all the vaccine strains of Bacillus Calmette Guerin (BCG) and most other mycobacteria. However, when tested for cellular immune responses using peripheral blood mononuclear cells from tuberculosis patients and BCG-vaccinated healthy subjects, this protein was found to be a major stimulator of cell mediated immune responses in both groups of subjects. In order to further identify the sequence of immunodominant epitopes and explore their Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA)-restriction for epitope recognition, 24 peptides (25-mers overlapping with the neighboring peptides by 10 residues) covering the sequence of Rv3873 were synthesized chemically using fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl chemistry and tested in cell mediated immune responses. The results of these experiments helped in the identification of an immunodominant peptide P9 that was recognized by people expressing varying HLA-DR types. Furthermore, it was also predicted to be a promiscuous binder with multiple epitopes for binding to HLA-DR, HLA-DP and HLA-DQ alleles of HLA-class II molecules that present antigens to T helper cells, and to HLA-class I molecules that present antigens to T cytotoxic cells. In addition, the evaluation of peptide P9 using an immunogenicity predictor server yielded a high score (0.94), which indicated a greater probability of this peptide to elicit a protective cellular immune response. In conclusion, P9, a peptide with multiple epitopes and ability to bind several HLA class I and class II molecules for presentation to cells of the cellular immune response, may be useful as a peptide-based vaccine against tuberculosis.

Keywords: Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Rv3873, peptides, vaccine

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Authors: R. Aparna, B. B. Amberker

Abstract:

Providing authentication for the messages exchanged between group members in addition to confidentiality is an important issue in Secure Group communication. We develop a protocol for Secure Authentic Communication where we address authentication for the group communication scheme proposed by Blundo et al. which only provides confidentiality. Authentication scheme used is a multiparty authentication scheme which allows all the users in the system to send and receive messages simultaneously. Our scheme is secure against colluding malicious parties numbering fewer than k.

Keywords: Secure Group Communication, Secret key, Authentication, Authentication code, Threshold.

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Authors: H. Z. Ulukan, E. Demircioğlu, M. Erol Genevois

Abstract:

The scope of this paper and the aim of proposed model were to apply monetary Input –Output (I-O) analysis to point out the importance of reusing know-how and other requirements in order to reduce the production costs in a manufacturing process for a laptop computer. I-O approach using the monetary input-output model is employed to demonstrate the impacts of different factors in a manufacturing process. A sensitivity analysis showing the correlation between these different factors is also presented. It is expected that the recommended model would have an advantageous effect in the cost minimization process.

Keywords: Input-Output Analysis, Monetary Input-Output Model, Manufacturing Process, Laptop Computer.

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Authors: Jeeeun Kim, Sungjoo Lee

Abstract:

This research proposes a methodology for patent-citation-based technology input-output analysis by applying the patent information to input-output analysis developed for the dependencies among different industries. For this analysis, a technology relationship matrix and its components, as well as input and technology inducement coefficients, are constructed using patent information. Then, a technology inducement coefficient is calculated by normalizing the degree of citation from certain IPCs to the different IPCs (International patent classification) or to the same IPCs. Finally, we construct a Dependency Structure Matrix (DSM) based on the technology inducement coefficient to suggest a useful application for this methodology.

Keywords: Technology spillover effect, technology relationship, IO table, technology inducement coefficients, patent analysis, patent citation.

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Authors: Chunling Cong, Chris.P.Tsokos

Abstract:

The objective of the present research manuscript is to perform parametric, nonparametric, and decision tree analysis to evaluate two treatments that are being used for breast cancer patients. Our study is based on utilizing real data which was initially used in “Tamoxifen with or without breast irradiation in women of 50 years of age or older with early breast cancer" [1], and the data is supplied to us by N.A. Ibrahim “Decision tree for competing risks survival probability in breast cancer study" [2]. We agree upon certain aspects of our findings with the published results. However, in this manuscript, we focus on relapse time of breast cancer patients instead of survival time and parametric analysis instead of semi-parametric decision tree analysis is applied to provide more precise recommendations of effectiveness of the two treatments with respect to reoccurrence of breast cancer.

Keywords: decision tree, breast cancer treatments, parametricanalysis, non-parametric analysis

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Authors: Lubna Eljabu, Mohammad Etemad, Stan Matwin

Abstract:

Port authorities have many challenges in congested ports to allocate their resources to provide a safe and secure loading/unloading procedure for cargo vessels. Selecting a destination port is the decision of a vessel master based on many factors such as weather, wavelength and changes of priorities. Having access to a tool which leverages Automatic Identification System (AIS) messages to monitor vessel’s movements and accurately predict their next destination port promotes an effective resource allocation process for port authorities. In this research, we propose a method, namely, Reference Route of Trajectory (RRoT) to assist port authorities in predicting inflow and outflow traffic in their local environment by monitoring AIS messages. Our RRo method creates a reference route based on historical AIS messages. It utilizes some of the best trajectory similarity measures to identify the destination of a vessel using their recent movement. We evaluated five different similarity measures such as Discrete Frechet Distance (DFD), Dynamic Time ´ Warping (DTW), Partial Curve Mapping (PCM), Area between two curves (Area) and Curve length (CL). Our experiments show that our method identifies the destination port with an accuracy of 98.97% and an f-measure of 99.08% using Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) similarity measure.

Keywords: Spatial temporal data mining, trajectory mining, trajectory similarity, resource optimization.

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Authors: Andra Blumberga, Armands Gravelsins, Haralds Vigants, Dagnija Blumberga

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The paper discovers biotechonomy development analysis by use of system dynamics modelling. The research is connected with investigations of biomass application for production of bioproducts with higher added value. The most popular bioresource is wood, and therefore, the main question today is about future development and eco-design of products. The paper emphasizes and evaluates energy sector which is open for use of wood logs, wood chips, wood pellets and so on. The main aim for this research study was to build a framework to analyse development perspectives for wood pellet production. To reach the goal, a system dynamics model of energy wood supplies, processing, and consumption is built. Production capacity, energy consumption, changes in energy and technology efficiency, required labour source, prices of wood, energy and labour are taken into account. Validation and verification tests with available data and information have been carried out and indicate that the model constitutes the dynamic hypothesis. It is found that the more is invested into pellets production, the higher the specific profit per production unit compared to wood logs and wood chips. As a result, wood chips production is decreasing dramatically and is replaced by wood pellets. The limiting factor for pellet industry growth is availability of wood sources. This is governed by felling limit set by the government based on sustainable forestry principles.

Keywords: Bioenergy, biotechonomy, system dynamics modelling, wood pellets.

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Authors: Mevlüt Burak Dalmış, Kemal Yaman

Abstract:

In this study, flutter characteristics of cantilever rectangular plate structure under incompressible flow regime are investigated by comparing the results of commercial flutter analysis program ZAERO^© with wind tunnel tests conducted in Ankara Wind Tunnel (ART). A rectangular polycarbonate (PC) plate, 5x125x1000 mm in dimensions, is used for both numerical and experimental investigations. Analysis and test results are very compatible with each other. A comparison between two different solution methods (g and k-method) of ZAERO^© is also done. It is seen that, k-method gives closer result than the other one. However, g-method results are on conservative side and it is better to use conservative results namely g-method results. Even if the modal analysis results are used for the flutter analysis for this simple structure, a modal test should be conducted in order to validate the modal analysis results to have accurate flutter analysis results for more complicated structures.

Keywords: Flutter, plate, subsonic flow, wind tunnel.

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Authors: Babar S. Kawish, Baber Aslam, Shoab A Khan

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In this paper we show that adjusting ART in accordance with static network scenario can substantially improve the performance of AODV by reducing control overheads. We explain the relationship of control overheads with network size and request patterns of the users. Through simulation we show that making ART proportionate to network static time reduces the amount of control overheads independent of network size and user request patterns.

Keywords: AODV, ART, MANET, Route Cache, TTL.

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Authors: Faezeh Mosallat, Eric L. Bibeau, Tarek El Mekkawy

Abstract:

Parabolic solar trough systems have seen limited deployments in cold northern climates as they are more suitable for electricity production in southern latitudes. A numerical dynamic model is developed to simulate troughs installed in cold climates and validated using a parabolic solar trough facility in Winnipeg. The model is developed in Simulink and will be utilized to simulate a trigeneration system for heating, cooling and electricity generation in remote northern communities. The main objective of this simulation is to obtain operational data of solar troughs in cold climates and use the model to determine ways to improve the economics and address cold weather issues. In this paper the validated Simulink model is applied to simulate a solar assisted absorption cooling system along with electricity generation using Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) and thermal storage. A control strategy is employed to distribute the heated oil from solar collectors among the above three systems considering the temperature requirements. This modelling provides dynamic performance results using measured meteorological data recorded every minute at the solar facility location. The purpose of this modeling approach is to accurately predict system performance at each time step considering the solar radiation fluctuations due to passing clouds. Optimization of the controller in cold temperatures is another goal of the simulation to for example minimize heat losses in winter when energy demand is high and solar resources are low. The solar absorption cooling is modeled to use the generated heat from the solar trough system and provide cooling in summer for a greenhouse which is located next to the solar field. The results of the simulation are presented for a summer day in Winnipeg which includes comparison of performance parameters of the absorption cooling and ORC systems at different heat transfer fluid (HTF) temperatures.

Keywords: Absorption cooling, parabolic solar trough, remote community, organic Rankine cycle.

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Authors: R. Kara, M. Can

Abstract:

In this paper we study a food chain model with three trophic levels and Michaelis-Menten type ratio-dependent functional response. Distinctive feature of this model is the sensitive dependence of the dynamical behavior on the initial populations and parameters of the real world. The stability of the equilibrium points are also investigated.

Keywords: Food chain, Ratio dependent models, Three level models.

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Authors: Norazah Mohd Suki, Norbayah Mohd Suki

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This study proposes a conceptual model and empirically tests the relationships between customers and librarians (i.e. tangibles, responsiveness, assurance, reliability and empathy) with a dependent variable (customer satisfaction) regarding library services. The SERVQUAL instrument was administered to 100 respondents which comprises of staff and students at a public higher learning institution in the Federal Territory of Labuan, Malaysia. They were public university library users. Results revealed that all service quality dimensions tested were significant and influenced customer satisfaction of visitors to a public university library. Assurance is the most important factor that influences customer satisfaction with the services rendered by the librarian. It is imperative for the library management to take note that the top five service attributes that gained greatest attention from library visitors- perspective includes employee willingness to help customers, availability of customer representatives online for response to queries, library staff actively and promptly provide services, signs in the building are clear and library staff are friendly and courteous. This study provides valuable results concerning the determinants of the service quality and customer satisfaction of public university library services from the users' perspective.

Keywords: Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction, SERVQUAL Model, Multiple Regression Analysis

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Authors: Huan-Chieh Chiu, Hung-Shuo Wu, Chien-Hao Wang, Yu-Cheng Yang, Ching-Ya Tseng, Joe-Air Jiang

Abstract:

Power failure resulting from tower collapse due to violent seismic events might bring enormous and inestimable losses. The Chi-Chi earthquake, for example, strongly struck Taiwan and caused huge damage to the power system on September 21, 1999. Nearly 10% of extra high voltage (EHV) transmission towers were damaged in the earthquake. Therefore, seismic hazards of EHV transmission towers should be monitored and evaluated. The ultimate goal of this study is to establish a damage level assessment model for EHV transmission towers. The data of earthquakes provided by Taiwan Central Weather Bureau serve as a reference and then lay the foundation for earthquake simulations and analyses afterward. Some parameters related to the damage level of each point of an EHV tower are simulated and analyzed by the data from monitoring stations once an earthquake occurs. Through the Fourier transform, the seismic wave is then analyzed and transformed into different wave frequencies, and the data would be shown through a response spectrum. With this method, the seismic frequency which damages EHV towers the most is clearly identified. An estimation model is built to determine the damage level caused by a future seismic event. Finally, instead of relying on visual observation done by inspectors, the proposed model can provide a power company with the damage information of a transmission tower. Using the model, manpower required by visual observation can be reduced, and the accuracy of the damage level estimation can be substantially improved. Such a model is greatly useful for health and construction monitoring because of the advantages of long-term evaluation of structural characteristics and long-term damage detection.

Keywords: Smart grid, EHV transmission tower, response spectrum, damage level monitoring.

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Authors: A. Elragig, S. Townley, H. Dreiwi

Abstract:

In this paper we introduce a bacteria-leukocyte model with bacteria chemotaxsis. We assume that bacteria develop a tactic defence mechanism as a response to Leukocyte phagocytosis. We explore the effect of this tactic motion on Turing space in two parameter spaces. A fine tuning of bacterial chemotaxis shows a significant effect on developing a non-uniform steady state.

Keywords: Chemotaxis-diffusion driven instability, bacterial chemotaxis.

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Authors: P. Ondee, S. Pannarunothai

Abstract:

In Thailand, both the 1997 and the current 2007 Thai Constitutions have mentioned the establishment of independent organizations as a new mechanism to play a key role in proposing policy recommendations to national decision-makers in the interest of collective consumers. Over the last ten years, no independent organizations have yet been set up. Evidently, nobody could point out who should be key players in establishing provincial independent consumer bodies. The purpose of this study was to find definitive stakeholders in establishing and developing independent consumer bodies in a Thai context. This was a cross-sectional study between August and September 2007, using a postal questionnaire with telephone follow-up. The questionnaire was designed and used to obtain multiple stakeholder assessment of three key attributes (power, interest and influence). Study population was 153 stakeholders associated with policy decision-making, formulation and implementation processes of civil-based consumer protection in pilot provinces. The population covered key representatives from five sectors (academics, government officers, business traders, mass media and consumer networks) who participated in the deliberative forums at 10 provinces. A 49.7% response rate was achieved. Data were analyzed, comparing means of three stakeholder attributes and classification of stakeholder typology. The results showed that the provincial health officers were the definitive stakeholders as they had legal power, influence and interest in establishing and sustaining the independent consumer bodies. However, only a few key representatives of the provincial health officers expressed their own paradigm on the civil-based consumer protection. Most provincial health officers put their own standpoint of building civic participation at only a plan-implementation level. For effective policy implementation by the independent consumer bodies, the Thai government should provide budgetary support for the operation of the provincial health officers with their paradigm shift as well as their own clarified standpoint on corporate governance.

Keywords: Civic participation, civil society, consumerprotection, independent organization, policy decision-making, stakeholder analysis.

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Authors: Zeinab Ghasemi, S. Amirhassan Monadjemi, Abbas Vafaei

Abstract:

This paper presents a comparative analysis of a new unsupervised PCA-based technique for steel plates texture segmentation towards defect detection. The proposed scheme called Variance Based Component Analysis or VBCA employs PCA for feature extraction, applies a feature reduction algorithm based on variance of eigenpictures and classifies the pixels as defective and normal. While the classic PCA uses a clusterer like Kmeans for pixel clustering, VBCA employs thresholding and some post processing operations to label pixels as defective and normal. The experimental results show that proposed algorithm called VBCA is 12.46% more accurate and 78.85% faster than the classic PCA.

Keywords: Principal Component Analysis; Variance Based Component Analysis; Defect Detection; Texture Segmentation.

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Authors: Vitalice K. Oduol

Abstract:

The paper considers a single-server queue with fixedsize batch Poisson arrivals and exponential service times, a model that is useful for a buffer that accepts messages arriving as fixed size batches of packets and releases them one packet at time. Transient performance measures for queues have long been recognized as being complementary to the steady-state analysis. The focus of the paper is on the use of the functions that arise in the analysis of the transient behaviour of the queuing system. The paper exploits practical modelling to obtain a solution to the integral equation encountered in the analysis. Results obtained indicate that under heavy load conditions, there is significant disparity in the statistics between the transient and steady state values.

Keywords: batch arrivals, modelling, single-server queue, time-varying probabilities, transient analysis.

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Authors: C. M. De Marco Muscat-Fenech, A. M. Grech La Rosa

Abstract:

Although a lot of importance has been given to resistance analysis for various vessel types, explicit guidelines applied to multihull vessels have not been clearly defined.  The purpose of this investigation is to highlight the importance of the vessel’s layout in terms of three axes, the transverse (separation), the longitudinal (stagger) and the vertical (draught) with respect to resistance analysis. When a vessel has the potential to experience less resistance at a particular range of speeds a vast selection of opportunities are made available for both the commercial and leisure market.

Keywords: Multihull, Reistance, Trimaran.

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Authors: Mouna Hamed, Ammar B. Brahim

Abstract:

The objective of this work was to develop a theoretical model to study the dynamic thermal behavior of a flat plate solar collector integrated with a phase change material (PCM). The PCM acted as a heat source for the solar system during low intensity solar radiation and night. The energy balance equations for the various components of the collector as well as for the PCM were formulated and numerically solved using Matlab computational program. The effect of natural convection on heat during the melting process was taken into account by using an effective thermal conductivity. The model was used to investigate the effect of inlet water temperature, water mass flow rate, and PCM thickness on the outlet water temperature and the melt fraction during charging and discharging modes. A comparison with a collector without PCM was made. Results showed that charging and discharging processes of PCM have six stages. The adding of PCM caused a decrease in temperature during charge and an increase during discharge. The rise was most enhanced for higher inlet water temperature, PCM thickness and for lower mass flow rate. Analysis indicated that the complete melting time was shorter than the solidification time due to the high heat transfer coefficient during melting. The increases in PCM height and mass flow rate were not linear with the melting and solidification times.

Keywords: Thermal energy storage, phase change material, melting, solidification.

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Authors: Mouna Hamed, Ammar B. Brahim

Abstract:

The objective of this work was to develop a theoretical model to study the dynamic thermal behavior of a flat plate solar collector integrated with a phase change material (PCM). The PCM acted as a heat source for the solar system during low intensity solar radiation and night. The energy balance equations for the various components of the collector as well as for the PCM were formulated and numerically solved using MATLAB computational program. The effect of natural convection on heat during the melting process was taken into account by using an effective thermal conductivity. The model was used to investigate the effect of inlet water temperature, water mass flow rate, and PCM thickness on the outlet water temperature and the melt fraction during charging and discharging modes. A comparison with a collector without PCM was made. Results showed that charging and discharging processes of PCM have six stages. The adding of PCM caused a decrease in temperature during charge and an increase during discharge. The rise was most enhanced for higher inlet water temperature, PCM thickness and for lower mass flow rate. Analysis indicated that the complete melting time was shorter than the solidification time due to the high heat transfer coefficient during melting. The increases in PCM height and mass flow rate were not linear with the melting and solidification times.

Keywords: Thermal energy storage, phase change material, melting, solidification.

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Authors: Lorenzo Putzu, Cecilia Di Ruberto

Abstract:

The counting and analysis of blood cells allows the evaluation and diagnosis of a vast number of diseases. In particular, the analysis of white blood cells (WBCs) is a topic of great interest to hematologists. Nowadays the morphological analysis of blood cells is performed manually by skilled operators. This involves numerous drawbacks, such as slowness of the analysis and a nonstandard accuracy, dependent on the operator skills. In literature there are only few examples of automated systems in order to analyze the white blood cells, most of which only partial. This paper presents a complete and fully automatic method for white blood cells identification from microscopic images. The proposed method firstly individuates white blood cells from which, subsequently, nucleus and cytoplasm are extracted. The whole work has been developed using MATLAB environment, in particular the Image Processing Toolbox.

Keywords: Automatic detection, Biomedical image processing, Segmentation, White blood cell analysis.

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