Search results for: volume rate.
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 32931

Search results for: volume rate.

8601 Applying the Crystal Model Approach on Light Nuclei for Calculating Radii and Density Distribution

Authors: A. Amar

Abstract:

A new model namely, the crystal model, has been modified to calculate radius and density distribution of light nuclei up to 8Be. The crystal model has been modified according to solid state physics which uses the analogy between nucleon distribution and atoms distribution in the crystal. The model has analytical analysis to calculate the radius where the density distribution of light nuclei has been obtained from the analogy of crystal lattice. The distribution of nucleons over crystal has been discussed in general form. The equation used to calculate binding energy was taken from the solid-state model of repulsive and attractive force. The numbers of the protons were taken to control repulsive force where the atomic number was responsible for the attractive force. The parameter has been calculated from the crystal model was found to be proportional to the radius of the nucleus. The density distribution of light nuclei was taken as a summation of two clusters distribution as in 6Li=alpha+deuteron configuration. A test has been done on the data obtained for radius and density distribution using double folding for d+6,7Li with M3Y nucleon-nucleon interaction. Good agreement has been obtained for both radius and density distribution of light nuclei. The model failed to calculate the radius of 9Be, so modifications should be done to overcome discrepancy.

Keywords: nuclear lattice, crystal model, light nuclei, nuclear density distributions

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8600 The Influence of Clayey Pellet Size on Adsorption Efficiency of Metal Ions Removal from Waste Printing Developer

Authors: Kiurski S. Jelena, Ranogajec G. Jonjaua, Oros B. Ivana, Kecić S. Vesna

Abstract:

The adsorption efficiency of fired clayey pellets of 5 and 8 mm diameter size for Cu(II) and Zn(II) ion removal from a waste printing developer was studied. In order to investigate the influence of contact time, adsorbent mass and pellet size on the adsorption efficiency the batch mode was carried out. Faster uptake of copper ion was obtained with the fired clay pellets of 5 mm diameter size within 30 minutes. The pellets of 8 mm diameter size showed the higher equilibrium time (60 to 75 minutes) for copper and zinc ion. The results pointed out that adsorption efficiency increases with the increase of adsorbent mass. The maximal efficiency is different for Cu(II) and Zn(II) ion due to the pellet size. Therefore, the fired clay pellets of 5 mm diameter size present an effective adsorbent for Cu(II) ion removal (adsorption efficiency is 63.6%), whereas the fired clay pellets of 8 mm diameter size are the best alternative for Zn(II) ion removal (adsorption efficiency is 92.8%) from a waste printing developer.

Keywords: Adsorption efficiency, clayey pellet, metal ions, waste printing developer.

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8599 Implementation of a New Neural Network Function Block to Programmable Logic Controllers Library Function

Authors: Hamid Abdi, Abolfazl Salami, Abolfazl Ahmadi

Abstract:

Programmable logic controllers are the main controllers in the today's industries; they are used for several applications in industrial control systems and there are lots of examples exist from the PLC applications in industries especially in big companies and plants such as refineries, power plants, petrochemical companies, steel companies, and food and production companies. In the PLCs there are some functions in the function library in software that can be used in PLC programs as basic program elements. The aim of this project are introducing and implementing a new function block of a neural network to the function library of PLC. This block can be applied for some control applications or nonlinear functions calculations after it has been trained for these applications. The implemented neural network is a Perceptron neural network with three layers, three input nodes and one output node. The block can be used in manual or automatic mode. In this paper the structure of the implemented function block, the parameters and the training method of the network are presented by considering the especial method of PLC programming and its complexities. Finally the application of the new block is compared with a classic simulated block and the results are presented.

Keywords: Programmable Logic Controller, PLC Programming, Neural Networks, Perception Network, Intelligent Control.

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8598 Numerical Studies on the Performance of Finned-Tube Heat Exchanger

Authors: Praveen Kumar S P, Bong-Su Sin, Kwon-Hee Lee

Abstract:

Finned-tube heat exchangers are predominantly used in space conditioning systems, as well as other applications requiring heat exchange between two fluids. The design of finned-tube heat exchangers requires the selection of over a dozen design parameters by the designer such as tube pitch, tube diameter, tube thickness, etc… Finned-tube heat exchangers are common devices; however, their performance characteristics are complicated. In this paper numerical studies have been carried out to analyze the performances of finned tube heat exchanger (without fins considered for experimental purpose) by predicting the characteristics of temperature difference and pressure drop. In this study, a design considering 5 design variables and also maximizing the temperature difference and pressure drop was suggested by applying DOE. During this process, L18 orthogonal array was adopted. Parametric analytical studies have been carried out using ANOVA to determine the relative importance of each variable with respect to the temperature difference and the pressure drop. Following the results, the final design was suggested by predicting the optimum design therefore confirming the optimized condition.

Keywords: Heat Exchanger, Fluid Analysis, Heat Transfer, Design of Experiment (DOE), Analysis of Variance (ANOVA).

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8597 Understanding the Influence on Drivers’ Recommendation and Review-Writing Behavior in the P2P Taxi Service

Authors: Liwen Hou

Abstract:

The booming mobile business has been penetrating the taxi industry worldwide with P2P (peer to peer) taxi services, as an emerging business model, transforming the industry. Parallel with other mobile businesses, member recommendations and online reviews are believed to be very effective with regard to acquiring new users for P2P taxi services. Based on an empirical dataset of the taxi industry in China, this study aims to reveal which factors influence users’ recommendations and review-writing behaviors. Differing from the existing literature, this paper takes the taxi driver’s perspective into consideration and hence selects a group of variables related to the drivers. We built two models to reflect the factors that influence the number of recommendations and reviews posted on the platform (i.e., the app). Our models show that all factors, except the driver’s score, significantly influence the recommendation behavior. Likewise, only one factor, passengers’ bad reviews, is insignificant in generating more drivers’ reviews. In the conclusion, we summarize the findings and limitations of the research.

Keywords: Online recommendation, P2P taxi service, review-writing, word of mouth.

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8596 Genetic Algorithm Parameters Optimization for Bi-Criteria Multiprocessor Task Scheduling Using Design of Experiments

Authors: Sunita Dhingra, Satinder Bal Gupta, Ranjit Biswas

Abstract:

Multiprocessor task scheduling is a NP-hard problem and Genetic Algorithm (GA) has been revealed as an excellent technique for finding an optimal solution. In the past, several methods have been considered for the solution of this problem based on GAs. But, all these methods consider single criteria and in the present work, minimization of the bi-criteria multiprocessor task scheduling problem has been considered which includes weighted sum of makespan & total completion time. Efficiency and effectiveness of genetic algorithm can be achieved by optimization of its different parameters such as crossover, mutation, crossover probability, selection function etc. The effects of GA parameters on minimization of bi-criteria fitness function and subsequent setting of parameters have been accomplished by central composite design (CCD) approach of response surface methodology (RSM) of Design of Experiments. The experiments have been performed with different levels of GA parameters and analysis of variance has been performed for significant parameters for minimisation of makespan and total completion time simultaneously.

Keywords: Multiprocessor task scheduling, Design of experiments, Genetic Algorithm, Makespan, Total completion time.

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8595 Exploiting Machine Learning Techniques for the Enhancement of Acceptance Sampling

Authors: Aikaterini Fountoulaki, Nikos Karacapilidis, Manolis Manatakis

Abstract:

This paper proposes an innovative methodology for Acceptance Sampling by Variables, which is a particular category of Statistical Quality Control dealing with the assurance of products quality. Our contribution lies in the exploitation of machine learning techniques to address the complexity and remedy the drawbacks of existing approaches. More specifically, the proposed methodology exploits Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) to aid decision making about the acceptance or rejection of an inspected sample. For any type of inspection, ANNs are trained by data from corresponding tables of a standard-s sampling plan schemes. Once trained, ANNs can give closed-form solutions for any acceptance quality level and sample size, thus leading to an automation of the reading of the sampling plan tables, without any need of compromise with the values of the specific standard chosen each time. The proposed methodology provides enough flexibility to quality control engineers during the inspection of their samples, allowing the consideration of specific needs, while it also reduces the time and the cost required for these inspections. Its applicability and advantages are demonstrated through two numerical examples.

Keywords: Acceptance Sampling, Neural Networks, Statistical Quality Control.

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8594 Effects of External and Internal Focus of Attention in Motor Learning of Children Cerebral Palsy

Authors: Morteza Pourazar, Fatemeh Mirakhori, Fazlolah Bagherzadeh, Rasool Hemayattalab

Abstract:

The purpose of study was to examine the effects of external and internal focus of attention in the motor learning of children with cerebral palsy. The study involved 30 boys (7 to 12 years old) with CP type 1 who practiced throwing beanbags. The participants were randomly assigned to the internal focus, external focus, and control groups, and performed six blocks of 10-trial with attentional focus reminders during a practice phase and no reminders during retention and transfer tests. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) with repeated measures on the last factor was used. The results show that significant main effects were found for time and group. However, the interaction of time and group was not significant. Retention scores were significantly higher for the external focus group. The external focus group performed better than other groups; however, the internal focus and control groups’ performance did not differ. The study concluded that motor skills in Spastic Hemiparetic Cerebral Palsy (SHCP) children could be enhanced by external attention.

Keywords: Cerebral Palsy, external attention, internal attention, throwing task.

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8593 Efficient Semi-Systolic Finite Field Multiplier Using Redundant Basis

Authors: Hyun-Ho Lee, Kee-Won Kim

Abstract:

The arithmetic operations over GF(2m) have been extensively used in error correcting codes and public-key cryptography schemes. Finite field arithmetic includes addition, multiplication, division and inversion operations. Addition is very simple and can be implemented with an extremely simple circuit. The other operations are much more complex. The multiplication is the most important for cryptosystems, such as the elliptic curve cryptosystem, since computing exponentiation, division, and computing multiplicative inverse can be performed by computing multiplication iteratively. In this paper, we present a parallel computation algorithm that operates Montgomery multiplication over finite field using redundant basis. Also, based on the multiplication algorithm, we present an efficient semi-systolic multiplier over finite field. The multiplier has less space and time complexities compared to related multipliers. As compared to the corresponding existing structures, the multiplier saves at least 5% area, 50% time, and 53% area-time (AT) complexity. Accordingly, it is well suited for VLSI implementation and can be easily applied as a basic component for computing complex operations over finite field, such as inversion and division operation.

Keywords: Finite field, Montgomery multiplication, systolic array, cryptography.

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8592 Mannequin Evaluation of 3D-Printed Intermittent Oro-Esophageal Tube Guide for Dysphagia

Authors: Yujin Jeong, Youkyung Son, Myounghwan Choi, Sanghyub Lee, Sangyeol Lee, Changho Hwang, Kyo-in Koo

Abstract:

Dysphasia is difficulty in swallowing food because of oral cavity impairments induced by stroke, muscle damage, tumor. Intermittent oro-esophageal (IOE) tube feeding is one of the well-known feeding methods for the dysphasia patients. However, it is hard to insert at the proper position in esophagus. In this study, we design and fabricate the IOE tube guide using 3-dimensional (3D) printer. The printed IOE tube is tested in a mannequin (Airway Management Trainer, Co., Ltd., Copenhagen, Denmark) mimicking human’s esophagus. The gag reflex point is measured as the design point in the mannequin. To avoid the gag reflex, we design various shapes of IOE tube guide. One structure is separated into three parts; biting part, part through oral cavity, connecting part to oro-esophageal. We designed 6 types of IOE tube guide adjusting length and angle of these three parts. To evaluate the IOE tube guide, it is inserted in the mannequin, and through the inserted guide, an endoscopic camera successfully arrived at the oro-esophageal. We had planned to apply this mannequin-based design experience to patients in near future.

Keywords: Dysphagia, feeding method, IOE tube guide, 3-D printer.

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8591 Automatic Translation of Ada-ECATNet Using Rewriting Logic

Authors: N. Boudiaf

Abstract:

One major difficulty that faces developers of concurrent and distributed software is analysis for concurrency based faults like deadlocks. Petri nets are used extensively in the verification of correctness of concurrent programs. ECATNets are a category of algebraic Petri nets based on a sound combination of algebraic abstract types and high-level Petri nets. ECATNets have 'sound' and 'complete' semantics because of their integration in rewriting logic and its programming language Maude. Rewriting logic is considered as one of very powerful logics in terms of description, verification and programming of concurrent systems We proposed previously a method for translating Ada-95 tasking programs to ECATNets formalism (Ada-ECATNet) and we showed that ECATNets formalism provides a more compact translation for Ada programs compared to the other approaches based on simple Petri nets or Colored Petri nets. We showed also previously how the ECATNet formalism offers to Ada many validation and verification tools like simulation, Model Checking, accessibility analysis and static analysis. In this paper, we describe the implementation of our translation of the Ada programs into ECATNets.

Keywords: Ada tasking, Analysis, Automatic Translation, ECATNets, Maude, Rewriting Logic.

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8590 Obstacles as Switches between Different Cardiac Arrhythmias

Authors: Daniel Olmos-Liceaga

Abstract:

Ventricular fibrillation is a very important health problem as is the cause of most of the sudden deaths in the world. Waves of electrical activity are sent by the SA node, propagate through the cardiac tissue and activate the mechanisms of cell contraction, and therefore are responsible to pump blood to the body harmonically. A spiral wave is an abnormal auto sustainable wave that is responsible of certain types of arrhythmias. When these waves break up, give rise to the fibrillation regime, in which there is a complete loss in the coordination of the contraction of the heart muscle. Interaction of spiral waves and obstacles is also of great importance as it is believed that the attachment of a spiral wave to an obstacle can provide with a transition of two different arrhythmias. An obstacle can be partially excitable or non excitable. In this talk, we present a numerical study of the interaction of meandering spiral waves with partially and non excitable obstacles and focus on the problem where the obstacle plays a fundamental role in the switch between different spiral regimes, which represent different arrhythmic regimes. Particularly, we study the phenomenon of destabilization of spiral waves due to the presence of obstacles, a phenomenon not completely understood (This work will appear as a Chapter in a Book named Cardiac Arrhytmias by INTECH under the name "Spiral Waves, Obstacles and Cardiac Arrhythmias", ISBN 979-953-307-050-5.).

Keywords: Arrhythmias, Cardiac tissue, Obstacles, Spiral waves

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8589 Experimental Modal Analysis of Reinforced Concrete Square Slabs

Authors: M. S. Ahmed, F. A. Mohammad

Abstract:

The aim of this paper is to perform experimental modal analysis (EMA) of reinforced concrete (RC) square slabs. EMA is the process of determining the modal parameters (Natural Frequencies, damping factors, modal vectors) of a structure from a set of frequency response functions FRFs (curve fitting). Although, experimental modal analysis (or modal testing) has grown steadily in popularity since the advent of the digital FFT spectrum analyzer in the early 1970’s, studying all types of members and materials using such method have not yet been well documented. Therefore, in this work, experimental tests were conducted on RC square slab specimens of dimensions 600mm x 600mmx 40mm. Experimental analysis was based on freely supported boundary condition. Moreover, impact testing as a fast and economical means of finding the modes of vibration of a structure was used during the experiments. In addition, Pico Scope 6 device and MATLAB software were used to acquire data, analyze and plot Frequency Response Function (FRF). The experimental natural frequencies which were extracted from measurements exhibit good agreement with analytical predictions. It is showed that EMA method can be usefully employed to investigate the dynamic behavior of RC slabs.

Keywords: Natural frequencies, Mode shapes, Modal analysis, RC slabs.

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8588 Shape Optimization of Impeller Blades for a Bidirectional Axial Flow Pump using Polynomial Surrogate Model

Authors: I. S. Jung, W. H. Jung, S. H. Baek, S. Kang

Abstract:

This paper describes the shape optimization of impeller blades for a anti-heeling bidirectional axial flow pump used in ships. In general, a bidirectional axial pump has an efficiency much lower than the classical unidirectional pump because of the symmetry of the blade type. In this paper, by focusing on a pump impeller, the shape of blades is redesigned to reach a higher efficiency in a bidirectional axial pump. The commercial code employed in this simulation is CFX v.13. CFD result of pump torque, head, and hydraulic efficiency was compared. The orthogonal array (OA) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) techniques and surrogate model based optimization using orthogonal polynomial, are employed to determine the main effects and their optimal design variables. According to the optimal design, we confirm an effective design variable in impeller blades and explain the optimal solution, the usefulness for satisfying the constraints of pump torque and head.

Keywords: Bidirectional axial flow pump, Impeller blade, CFD, Analysis of variance, Polynomial surrogate model

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8587 Intrabody Communication Using Different Ground Configurations in Digital Door Lock

Authors: Daewook Kim, Gilwon Yoon

Abstract:

Intrabody communication (IBC) is a new way of transferring data using human body as a medium. Minute current can travel though human body without any harm. IBC can remove electrical wires for human area network. IBC can be also a secure communication network system unlike wireless networks which can be accessed by anyone with bad intentions. One of the IBC systems is based on frequency shift keying modulation where individual data are transmitted to the external devices for the purpose of secure access such as digital door lock. It was found that the quality of IBC data transmission was heavily dependent on ground configurations of electronic circuits. Reliable IBC transmissions were not possible when both of the transmitter and receiver used batteries as circuit power source. Transmission was reliable when power supplies were used as power source for both transmitting and receiving sites because the common ground was established through the grounds of instruments such as power supply and oscilloscope. This was due to transmission dipole size and the ground effects of floor and AC power line. If one site used battery as power source and the other site used the AC power as circuit power source, transmission was possible.

Keywords: Frequency shift keying, Ground, Intrabody, Communication, door lock.

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8586 Impact of Music on Brain Function during Mental Task using Electroencephalography

Authors: B. Geethanjali, K. Adalarasu, R. Rajsekaran

Abstract:

Music has a great effect on human body and mind; it can have a positive effect on hormone system. Objective of this study is to analysis the effect of music (carnatic, hard rock and jazz) on brain activity during mental work load using electroencephalography (EEG). Eight healthy subjects without special musical education participated in the study. EEG signals were acquired at frontal (Fz), parietal (Pz) and central (Cz) lobes of brain while listening to music at three experimental condition (rest, music without mental task and music with mental task). Spectral powers features were extracted at alpha, theta and beta brain rhythms. While listening to jazz music, the alpha and theta powers were significantly (p < 0.05) high for rest as compared to music with and without mental task in Cz. While listening to Carnatic music, the beta power was significantly (p < 0.05) high for with mental task as compared to rest and music without mental task at Cz and Fz location. This finding corroborates that attention based activities are enhanced while listening to jazz and carnatic as compare to Hard rock during mental task.

Keywords: Music, Brain Function, Electroencephalography (EEG), Mental Task, Features extraction parameters

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8585 An Investigation into the Impact of the Relocation of Tannery Industry on Water Quality Parameters of Urban River Buriganga

Authors: Md Asif Imrul, Maria Rafique, M. Habibur Rahman

Abstract:

The study deals with an investigation into the impact of the relocation of tannery industry on water quality parameters of Buriganga. For this purpose, previous records have been collected from authentic data resources and for the attainment of present values, several samples were collected from three major locations of the Buriganga River during summer and winter seasons in 2018 to determine the distribution and variation of water quality parameters. Samples were collected six ft below the river water surface. Analysis indicates slightly acidic to slightly alkaline (6.8-7.49) in nature. Bio-Chemical Oxygen Demand, Total Dissolved Solids, Total Solids (TS) & Total Suspended Solids (TSS) have been found greater in summer. On the other hand, Dissolved Oxygen is found greater in rainy seasons. Relocation shows improvement in water quality parameters. Though the improvement related to relocation of tannery industry is not adequate to turn the water body to be an inhabitable place for aquatic lives.

Keywords: Buriganga river, river pollution, tannery industry, water quality parameters.

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8584 Several Aspects of the Conceptual Framework of Financial Reporting

Authors: Nadezhda Kvatashidze

Abstract:

The conceptual framework of International Financial Reporting Standards determines the basic principles of accounting. The said principles have multiple applications, with professional judgments being one of those. Recognition and assessment of the information contained in financial reporting, especially so the somewhat uncertain events and transactions and/or the ones regarding which there is no standard or interpretation are based on professional judgments. Professional judgments aim at the formulation of expert assumptions regarding the specifics of the circumstances and events to be entered into the report based on the conceptual framework terms and principles. Experts have to make a choice in favor of one of the aforesaid and simulate the situations applying multi-variant accounting estimates and judgment. In making the choice, one should consider all the factors, which may help represent the information in the best way possible. Professional judgment determines the relevance and faithful representation of the presented information, which makes it more useful for the existing and potential investors. In order to assess the prospected net cash flows, the information must be predictable and reliable. The publication contains critical analysis of the aforementioned problems. The fact that the International Financial Reporting Standards are developed continuously makes the issue all the more important and that is another point discussed in the study.

Keywords: Conceptual Framework for financial reporting, Qualitative characteristics of financial information, Professional judgement, Cost constraints, Financial reporting.

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8583 Semi-Automatic Analyzer to Detect Authorial Intentions in Scientific Documents

Authors: Kanso Hassan, Elhore Ali, Soule-dupuy Chantal, Tazi Said

Abstract:

Information Retrieval has the objective of studying models and the realization of systems allowing a user to find the relevant documents adapted to his need of information. The information search is a problem which remains difficult because the difficulty in the representing and to treat the natural languages such as polysemia. Intentional Structures promise to be a new paradigm to extend the existing documents structures and to enhance the different phases of documents process such as creation, editing, search and retrieval. The intention recognition of the author-s of texts can reduce the largeness of this problem. In this article, we present intentions recognition system is based on a semi-automatic method of extraction the intentional information starting from a corpus of text. This system is also able to update the ontology of intentions for the enrichment of the knowledge base containing all possible intentions of a domain. This approach uses the construction of a semi-formal ontology which considered as the conceptualization of the intentional information contained in a text. An experiments on scientific publications in the field of computer science was considered to validate this approach.

Keywords: Information research, text analyzes, intentionalstructure, segmentation, ontology, natural language processing.

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8582 The Factors Influencing Successful Implementation of E-Commerce within SMEs Businesses

Authors: Supattra Kanchanopast

Abstract:

The purpose of this research was to identify factors that influenced the success of e-commerce implementation within SMEs businesses. In order to achieve the objectives of this research, the researcher collected data from random firms in Thailand, both the users and those who are not using the e-commerce. The data was comprised of the results of 310 questionnaires, as well as 10 interviews with owner/managers of businesses who are currently using e-commerce successfully. The data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics, which included frequency, percentages, mean, and the standard deviation of pertinent factors. Independent t-test and one-way ANOVA test were also used. The findings of this research revealed that 50% of all the firms surveyed had e-commerce website, whereas, over 20% of all firms surveyed had developing an ecommerce strategy. The result findings also indicate that organizational factors, technological factors and environment factors as significant factors effecting success of e-commerce implementation in SMEs. From the hypotheses testing, the findings revealed that the different level of support use ecommerce by owner/manager had different success in e-commerce implementation. Moreover, the difference in e-commerce management approach affected the success in terms of higher total sales for the business or higher number of retained or returning customers.

Keywords: Electronic commerce, Implementation of ECommerce, small and medium sized enterprises, SMEs, Website, success factors.

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8581 The Role of Product Involvement Level in Consumer Tendency toward Online Review

Authors: Khashayar Jafari Kaliji

Abstract:

The paper aims to clarify the relationship between product involvement level and consumer tendency toward online review. It proposes the products in two classes and examines the level of user attention and significant difference between attribute-based areas and experience-based areas in each category. It uses an eye-tracking experiment to simulate the experience of online shopping behavior in order to view the consumers' shopping behavior. Thus, a scenario was designed, and 23 participants were asked step by step to purchase some products and add them to their shopping cart. The fixation durations are used to examine the amount of visual attention of the user in each area of interest (AOI) determined considering two classes of high involvement and low involvement products, and paired sample T-test was used to examine the effect of the product’s types on the online review content. The study results explained that users of high involvement products consider the attribute-based points more highly than the experience-based points.

Keywords: High-involvement products, low-involvement products, attribute-based review, experience-based review, eye tracking, fixation duration.

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8580 Usage of Channel Coding Techniques for Peak-to-Average Power Ratio Reduction in Visible Light Communications Systems

Authors: P.L.D.N.M. de Silva, S.G. Edirisinghe, R. Weerasuriya

Abstract:

High Peak-to-Average Power Ratio (PAPR) is a concern of Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) based Visible Light Communication (VLC) systems. Discrete Fourier Transform spread (DFT-s) OFDM is an alternative single carrier modulation scheme which would address this concern. Employing channel coding techniques is another mechanism to reduce the PAPR. In this study, the improvement which can be harnessed by hybridizing these two techniques for VLC system is being studied. Within the study, efficient techniques such as Hamming coding and Convolutional coding have been studied. Thus, we present the impact of the hybrid of DFT-s OFDM and Channel coding (Hamming coding and Convolutional coding) on PAPR in VLC systems, using MATLAB simulations.

Keywords: Convolutional Coding, Discrete Fourier Transform spread Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (DFT-s OFDM), Hamming Coding, Peak-to-Average Power Ratio (PAPR), Visible Light Communications (VLC).

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8579 The Construction of a Probiotic Lactic Acid Bacterium Expressing Acid-Resistant Phytase Enzyme

Authors: R. Majidzadeh Heravi, M. Sankian, H. Kermanshahi, M. R. Nassiri, A. Heravi Moussavi, S. A. Lari, A. R. Varasteh

Abstract:

The use of probiotics engineered to express specific enzymes has been the subject of considerable attention in poultry industry because of increased nutrient availability and reduced cost of enzyme supplementation. Phytase enzyme is commonly added to poultry feed to improve digestibility and availability of phosphorus from plant sources. To construct a probiotic with potential of phytate degradation, phytase gene (appA) from E. coli was cloned and transformed into two probiotic bacteria Lactobacillus salivarius and Lactococcus lactis. L. salivarous showed plasmid instability, unable to express the gene. The expression of appA gene in L. lactis was analyzed by detecting specific RNA and zymography assay. Phytase enzyme was isolated from cellular extracts of recombinant L. lactis, showing a 46 kDa band upon the SDS-PAGE analysis. Zymogram also confirmed the phytase activity of the 46 kDa band corresponding to the enzyme. An enzyme activity of 4.9U/ml was obtained in cell extracts of L. lactis. The growth of native and recombinant L. lactis was similar in the presence of two concentrations of ox bile.

Keywords: Lactobacillus salivarus, Lactococcus lactis, recombinant, phytase, poultry.

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8578 The Impact of Open Defecation on Fecal-Oral Infections: A Case Study in Burat and Ngaremara Wards of Isiolo County, Kenya

Authors: Kimutai Joan Jepkorir, Moturi Wilkister Nyaora

Abstract:

The practice of open defecation can be devastating for human health as well as the environment, and this practice persistence could be due to ingrained habits that individuals continue to engage in despite having a better alternative. Safe disposal of human excreta is essential for public health protection. This study sought to find if open defecation relates to fecal-oral infections in Burat and Ngaremara Wards in Isiolo County. This was achieved through conducting a cross-sectional study. Simple random sampling technique was used to select 385 households that were used in the study. Data collection was done by use of questionnaires and observation checklists. The result show that 66% of the respondents disposed-off fecal matter in a safe manner, whereas 34% disposed-off fecal matter in unsafe manner through open defecation. The prevalence proportions per 1000 of diarrhea and intestinal worms among children under-5 years of age were 142 and 21, respectively. The prevalence proportions per 1000 of diarrhea and typhoid among children over-5 years of age were 20 and 20, respectively.

Keywords: Fecal-oral infections, open defecation, prevalence proportion, sanitation.

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8577 Investigation of Passive Solutions of Thermal Comfort in Housing Aiming to Reduce Energy Consumption

Authors: Josiane R. Pires, Marco A. S. González, Bruna L. Brenner, Luciana S. Roos

Abstract:

The concern with sustainability brought the need for optimization of the buildings to reduce consumption of natural resources. Almost 1/3 of energy demanded by Brazilian housings is used to provide thermal solutions. AEC sector may contribute applying bioclimatic strategies on building design. The aim of this research is to investigate the viability of applying some alternative solutions in residential buildings. The research was developed with computational simulation on single family social housing, examining envelope type, absorptance, and insolation. The analysis of the thermal performance applied both Brazilian standard NBR 15575 and degree-hour method, in the scenery of Porto Alegre, a southern Brazilian city. We used BIM modeling through Revit/Autodesk and used Energy Plus to thermal simulation. The payback of the investment was calculated comparing energy savings and building costs, in a period of 50 years. The results shown that with the increment of envelope’s insulation there is thermal comfort improvement and energy economy, with a pay-back period of 24 to 36 years, in some cases.

Keywords: Civil construction, design, thermal performance, energy, economic analysis.

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8576 Groundwater Quality and the Sources of Pollution in Baghan Watershed, Iran

Authors: Abolfazl Moeini, Elahe Alizadeh Paeenafrakaty

Abstract:

The protection of groundwater resources is the great important many semiarid and arid environments. Baghan watershed is located in the north of Kangan in the Boshehr province in Iran. The groundwater resources have a vital role in supplying agricultural, drinking, domestic and industrial water demand in Baghan watershed. For our investigation into the water quality we collected 30 samples to chemical and physical analysis. The result showed the marl and evaporation deposits that contain anhydrite and gypsum is the main source of groundwater pollution, and one part of the groundwater was polluted by oil and gas industrial. Another part of the groundwater was contaminated by urban waste water. The electrical conductivity and captions and anions increased around of towns and gas refinery. Although the negative impact of untreated domestic wastewater is relatively low but the results showed strongly the negative impact of wastewater refinery is very considerable. This negative impact increased in downstream due to shallow aquifer. Additionally, the agents that adversely affect the quality of groundwater come from a variety of sources, including geology, domestic wastewater and the Jam refinery in Baghan watershed.

Keywords: Baghan watershed, Chemical quality, Groundwater, Pollution sources.

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8575 A DMB-TCA Simulation Method for On-Road Traffic Travel Demand Impact Analysis

Authors: Zundong Zhang, Limin Jia, Zhao Tian, Yanfang Yang

Abstract:

Travel Demands influence micro-level traffic behavior, furthermore traffic states. In order to evaluate the effect of travel demands on traffic states, this paper introduces the Demand- Motivation-Behaviors (DMB) micro traffic behavior analysis model which denotes that vehicles behaviors are determines by motivations that relies on traffic demands from the perspective of behavior science. For vehicles, there are two kinds of travel demands: reaching travel destinations from orientations and meeting expectations of travel speed. To satisfy travel demands, the micro traffic behaviors are delivered such as car following behavior, optional and mandatory lane changing behaviors. Especially, mandatory lane changing behaviors depending on travel demands take strong impact on traffic states. In this paper, we define the DMB-based cellular automate traffic simulation model to evaluate the effect of travel demands on traffic states under the different δ values that reflect the ratio of mandatory lane-change vehicles.

Keywords: Demand-Motivation-Behavior, Mandatory Lane Changing, Traffic Cellular Automata.

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8574 Improved Automated Classification of Alcoholics and Non-alcoholics

Authors: Ramaswamy Palaniappan

Abstract:

In this paper, several improvements are proposed to previous work of automated classification of alcoholics and nonalcoholics. In the previous paper, multiplayer-perceptron neural network classifying energy of gamma band Visual Evoked Potential (VEP) signals gave the best classification performance using 800 VEP signals from 10 alcoholics and 10 non-alcoholics. Here, the dataset is extended to include 3560 VEP signals from 102 subjects: 62 alcoholics and 40 non-alcoholics. Three modifications are introduced to improve the classification performance: i) increasing the gamma band spectral range by increasing the pass-band width of the used filter ii) the use of Multiple Signal Classification algorithm to obtain the power of the dominant frequency in gamma band VEP signals as features and iii) the use of the simple but effective knearest neighbour classifier. To validate that these two modifications do give improved performance, a 10-fold cross validation classification (CVC) scheme is used. Repeat experiments of the previously used methodology for the extended dataset are performed here and improvement from 94.49% to 98.71% in maximum averaged CVC accuracy is obtained using the modifications. This latest results show that VEP based classification of alcoholics is worth exploring further for system development.

Keywords: Alcoholic, Multilayer-perceptron, Nearest neighbour, Gamma band, MUSIC, Visual evoked potential.

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8573 Combustion and Emission of a Compression Ignition Engine Fueled with Diesel and Hydrogen-Methane Mixture

Authors: J. H. Zhou, C. S. Cheung, C. W. Leung

Abstract:

The present study conducted experimental investigation on combustion and emission characteristics of compression ignition engine using diesel as pilot fuel and methane, hydrogen and methane/hydrogen mixture as gaseous fuels at 1800 rev min-1. The effect of gaseous fuel on peak cylinder pressure and heat release is modest at low to medium loads. At high load, the high combustion temperature and high quantity of pilot fuel contribute to better combustion efficiency for all kinds of gaseous fuels and increases the peak cylinder pressure. Enrichment of hydrogen in methane gradually increases the peak cylinder pressure. The brake thermal efficiency increases with higher hydrogen fraction at lower loads. Hydrogen addition in methane contributed to a proportional reduction of CO/CO2/HC emission without penalty of NOx. For particulate emission, methane and hydrogen, could both suppress the particle emission. 30% hydrogen fraction in methane is observed to be best in reducing the particulate emission.

Keywords: Combustion characteristics, diesel engine, emissions, methane/hydrogen mixture.

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8572 Synthesis and Characterization of Nickel and Sulphur Sensitized Zinc Oxide Structures

Authors: Ella C. Linganiso, Bonex W. Mwakikunga, Trilock Singh, Sanjay Mathur, Odireleng M. Ntwaeaborwa

Abstract:

The use of nanostructured semiconducting material to catalyze degradation of environmental pollutants still receives much attention to date. One of the desired characteristics for pollutant degradation under ultra-violet visible light is the materials with extended carrier charge separation that allows for electronic transfer between the catalyst and the pollutants. In this work, zinc oxide n-type semiconductor vertically aligned structures were fabricated on silicon (100) substrates using the chemical bath deposition method. The as-synthesized structures were treated with nickel and sulphur. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy were used to characterize the phase purity, structural dimensions and elemental composition of the obtained structures respectively. Photoluminescence emission measurements showed a decrease in both the near band edge emission as well as the defect band emission upon addition of nickel and sulphur with different concentrations. This was attributed to increased charger-carrier-separation due to the presence of Ni-S material on ZnO surface, which is linked to improved charge transfer during photocatalytic reactions.

Keywords: Carrier-charge-separation, nickel, sulphur, zinc oxide, photoluminescence.

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