Search results for: mineral composition.

Authors: Jayendra Krishna, Laxmi Srivastava

Abstract:

Power flow (PF) study, which is performed to determine the power system static states (voltage magnitudes and voltage angles) at each bus to find the steady state operating condition of a system, is very important and is the most frequently carried out study by power utilities for power system planning, operation and control. In this paper, a counterpropagation neural network (CPNN) is proposed to solve power flow problem under different loading/contingency conditions for computing bus voltage magnitudes and angles of the power system. The counterpropagation network uses a different mapping strategy namely counterpropagation and provides a practical approach for implementing a pattern mapping task, since learning is fast in this network. The composition of the input variables for the proposed neural network has been selected to emulate the solution process of a conventional power flow program. The effectiveness of the proposed CPNN based approach for solving power flow is demonstrated by computation of bus voltage magnitudes and voltage angles for different loading conditions and single line-outage contingencies in IEEE 14-bus system.

Keywords: Admittance matrix, counterpropagation neural network, line outage contingency, power flow

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2399

Authors: Faizan Ahmad, Lau Kok Keong, Azmi Mohd. Shariff

Abstract:

The upgrading of low quality crude natural gas (NG) is attracting interest due to high demand of pipeline-grade gas in recent years. Membrane processes are commercially proven technology for the removal of impurities like carbon dioxide from NG. In this work, cross flow mathematical model has been suggested to be incorporated with ASPEN HYSYS as a user defined unit operation in order to design the membrane system for CO2/CH4 separation. The effect of operating conditions (such as feed composition and pressure) and membrane selectivity on the design parameters (methane recovery and total membrane area required for the separation) has been studied for different design configurations. These configurations include single stage (with and without recycle) and double stage membrane systems (with and without permeate or retentate recycle). It is shown that methane recovery can be improved by recycling permeate or retentate stream as well as by using double stage membrane systems. The ASPEN HYSYS user defined unit operation proposed in the study has potential to be applied for complex membrane system design and optimization.

Keywords: CO2/CH4 Separation, Membrane Process, Membrane modeling, Natural Gas Processing

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3817

Authors: Siyu Wang, Anthony Ward

Abstract:

Emotional intelligence (EI) is a well-established personal characteristic. It has been viewed as a critical factor which can influence an individual's academic achievement, ability to work and potential to succeed. When working in a group, EI is fundamentally connected to the group members' interaction and ability to work as a team. The ability of a group member to intelligently perceive and understand own emotions (Intrapersonal EI), to intelligently perceive and understand other members' emotions (Interpersonal EI), and to intelligently perceive and understand emotions between different groups (Cross-boundary EI) can be considered as Group emotional intelligence (Group EI). In this research, a more representative Group EI measurement approach, which incorporates the information of the composition of a group and an individual’s role in that group, is proposed. To demonstrate the claim of being more representative Group EI measurement approach, this study adopts a multi-method research design, involving a combination of both qualitative and quantitative techniques to establish a metric of Group EI. From the results, it can be concluded that by introducing the weight coefficient of each group member on group work into the measurement of Group EI, Group EI will be more representative and more capable of understanding what happens during teamwork than previous approaches.

Keywords: Emotional intelligence, EI, Group EI, multi-method research, teamwork.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 582

Authors: A.Chetaine, A. Benchrif, H. Amsil, V. Kuznetsov, Y. Shimazu

Abstract:

The evaluation of unit cell neutronic parameters and lifetime for some innovant reactors without on sit-refuling will be held in this work. the behavior of some small and medium reactors without on site refueling with triso and cermet fuel. For the FBNR long life except we propose to change the enrichment of the Cermet MFE to 9%. For the AFPR reactor we can see that the use of the Cermet MFE can extend the life of this reactor but to maintain the same life period for AFPR-SC we most use burnup poison to have the same slope for Kinf (Burnup). PFPWR50 cell behaves almost in same way using both fuels Cermet and TRISO. So we can conclude that PFPWR50 reactor, with CERMET Fuel, is kept among the long cycle reactors and with the new configuration we avoid subcriticality at the beginning of cycle. The evaluation of unit cell neutronic parameters reveals a good agreement with the goal of BWR-PB concept. It is found out that the Triso fuel assembly lifetime can be extended for a reasonably long period without being refueled, approximately up to 48GWd/t burnup. Using coated particles fuels with the Cermet composition can be more extended the fuel assembly life time, approximately 52 GWd/t.

Keywords: Cermet., Trisot, without on site refueling.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1341

Authors: Manpreet Singh, Keerat Kaur, Bhavdeep Singh

Abstract:

With the hardware technology advancing, the cost of storing is decreasing. Thus there is an urgent need for new techniques and tools that can intelligently and automatically assist us in transferring this data into useful knowledge. Different techniques of data mining are developed which are helpful for handling these large size databases [7]. Data mining is also finding its role in the field of biotechnology. Pedigree means the associated ancestry of a crop variety. Genetic diversity is the variation in the genetic composition of individuals within or among species. Genetic diversity depends upon the pedigree information of the varieties. Parents at lower hierarchic levels have more weightage for predicting genetic diversity as compared to the upper hierarchic levels. The weightage decreases as the level increases. For crossbreeding, the two varieties should be more and more genetically diverse so as to incorporate the useful characters of the two varieties in the newly developed variety. This paper discusses the searching and analyzing of different possible pairs of varieties selected on the basis of morphological characters, Climatic conditions and Nutrients so as to obtain the most optimal pair that can produce the required crossbreed variety. An algorithm was developed to determine the genetic diversity between the selected wheat varieties. Cluster analysis technique is used for retrieving the results.

Keywords: Genetic diversity, pedigree, nutrients.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1766

Authors: André C. Silva, Izabela L. A. Moraes, Elenice M. S. Silva, Carlos M. Silva Filho

Abstract:

In Brazil, most soils are acidic and low in essential nutrients required for the growth and development of plants, making fertilizers essential for agriculture. As the biggest producer of soy in the world and a major producer of coffee, sugar cane and citrus fruits, Brazil is a large consumer of phosphate. Brazilian’s phosphate ores are predominantly from igneous rocks showing a complex mineralogy, associated with carbonites and oxides, typically iron, silicon and barium. The adopted industrial concentration circuit for this type of ore is a mix between magnetic separation (both low and high field) to remove the magnetic fraction and a froth flotation circuit composed by a reverse flotation of apatite (barite’s flotation) followed by direct flotation circuit (rougher, cleaner and scavenger circuit). Since the 70’s fatty acids obtained from vegetable oils are widely used as lower-cost collectors in apatite froth flotation. This is a very effective approach to the apatite family of minerals, being that this type of collector is both selective and efficient (high recovery). This paper presents Jatropha curcas L. oil (JCO) as a renewable and sustainable source of fatty acids with high selectivity in froth flotation of apatite. JCO is considerably rich in fatty acids such as linoleic, oleic and palmitic acid. The experimental campaign involved 216 tests using a modified Hallimond tube and two different minerals (apatite and quartz). In order to be used as a collector, the oil was saponified. The results found were compared with the synthetic collector, Fotigam 5806 produced by Clariant, which is composed mainly by soy oil. JCO showed the highest selectivity for apatite flotation with cold saponification at pH 8 and concentration of 2.5 mg/L. In this case, the mineral recovery was around 95%.

Keywords: Froth flotation, Jatropha curcas L., microflotation, selectivity.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1106

Authors: Hendriëtte van der Walt, Lesley Chown, Richard Harris, Ndabenhle Sosibo, Robert Tshikhudo

Abstract:

The use of magnetic and magnetic/gold core/shell nanoparticles in biotechnology or medicine has shown good promise due to their hybrid nature which possesses superior magnetic and optical properties. Some of these potential applications include hyperthermia treatment, bio-separations, diagnostics, drug delivery and toxin removal. Synthesis refinement to control geometric and magnetic/optical properties, and finding functional surfactants for biomolecular attachment, are requirements to meet application specifics. Various high-temperature preparative methods were used for the synthesis of iron oxide and gold-coated iron oxide nanoparticles. Different surface functionalities, such as 11-aminoundecanoic and 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid, were introduced on the surface of the particles to facilitate further attachment of biomolecular functionality and drug-like molecules. Nanoparticle thermal stability, composition, state of aggregation, size and morphology were investigated and the results from techniques such as Fourier Transform-Infra Red spectroscopy (FT-IR), Ultraviolet visible spectroscopy (UV-vis), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and thermal analysis are discussed.

Keywords: Core/shell, Iron oxide, Gold coating, Nanoparticles.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2912

Authors: M. Bahgat, H. Hanafy, H. Al-Tassan

Abstract:

Cluster formation is an essential phenomenon during direct reduction processes at shaft furnaces. Decreasing the reducing temperature to avoid this problem can cause a significant drop in throughput. In order to prevent sticking of pellets, a coating material basically inactive under the reducing conditions prevailing in the shaft furnace, should be applied to cover the outer layer of the pellets. In the present work, steel dust is used as coating material for iron ore pellets to explore dust coating effectiveness and determines the best coating conditions. Steel dust coating is applied for iron ore pellets in various concentrations. Dust slurry concentrations of 5.0-30% were used to have a coated steel dust amount of 1.0-5.0 kg per ton iron ore. Coated pellets with various concentrations were reduced isothermally in weight loss technique with simulated gas mixture to the composition of reducing gases at shaft furnaces. The influences of various coating conditions on the reduction behavior and the morphology were studied. The optimum reduced samples were comparatively applied for sticking index measurement. It was found that the optimized steel dust coating condition that achieve higher reducibility with lower sticking index was 30% steel dust slurry concentration with 3.0 kg steel dust/ton ore.

Keywords: Ironmaking, coating, steel dust, reduction.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 891

Authors: Mikhail Vladimirovich Deryabin, Morten Willatzen

Abstract:

In this work, we address theoretically the influence of red and white Gaussian noise for electronic energies and eigenstates of cylindrically shaped quantum dots. The stochastic effect can be imagined as resulting from crystal-growth statistical fluctuations in the quantum-dot material composition. In particular we obtain analytical expressions for the eigenvalue shifts and electronic envelope functions in the k . p formalism due to stochastic variations in the confining band-edge potential. It is shown that white noise in the band-edge potential leaves electronic properties almost unaffected while red noise may lead to changes in state energies and envelopefunction amplitudes of several percentages. In the latter case, the ensemble-averaged envelope function decays as a function of distance. It is also shown that, in a stochastic system, constant ensembleaveraged envelope functions are the only bounded solutions for the infinite quantum-wire problem and the energy spectrum is completely discrete. In other words, the infinite stochastic quantum wire behaves, ensemble-averaged, as an atom.

Keywords: cylindrical quantum dots, electronic eigen energies, red and white Gaussian noise, ensemble averaging effects.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1490

Authors: Nurhani Kasuan, Zakariah Yusuf, Mohd Nasir Taib, Mohd Hezri Fazalul Rahiman, Nazurah Tajuddin, Mohd Azri Abdul Aziz

Abstract:

This paper presents a hybrid fuzzy-PD plus PID (HFPP) controller and its application to steam distillation process for essential oil extraction system. Steam temperature is one of the most significant parameters that can influence the composition of essential oil yield. Due to parameter variations and changes in operation conditions during distillation, a robust steam temperature controller becomes nontrivial to avoid the degradation of essential oil quality. Initially, the PRBS input is triggered to the system and output of steam temperature is modeled using ARX model structure. The parameter estimation and tuning method is adopted by simulation using HFPP controller scheme. The effectiveness and robustness of proposed controller technique is validated by real time implementation to the system. The performance of HFPP using 25 and 49 fuzzy rules is compared. The experimental result demonstrates the proposed HFPP using 49 fuzzy rules achieves a better, consistent and robust controller compared to PID when considering the test on tracking the set point and the effects due to disturbance.

Keywords: Fuzzy Logic controller, steam temperature, steam distillation, real time control.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2804

Authors: A. Bárbara Cattozatto Fortunato, D. de Lucca Soave, E. Pinheiro de Mello, M. Piasentini Oliva, V. Tavares de Moraes, G. Wolf Lebrão, D. Fernandes Parra, S. Marraccini Giampietri Lebrão

Abstract:

Due to increasing environmental pressure for biodegradable products, especially in polymeric materials, in order to meet the demands of the biological cycles of the circular economy, new materials have been developed as a sustainability strategy. This study proposes a composite material developed from the biodegradable polymer PLA Ecovio® (polylactic acid - PLA) with natural sisal fibers, where the soybean ester was used as a plasticizer, which can aid in adhesion between the materials and fibers, making the most attractive final composite from an environmental point of view. The composites were obtained by extrusion. The materials tests were produced and submitted to biodegradation tests. Through the biodegradation tests, it can be seen that the biodegradable polymer composition with 5% sisal fiber presented about 12.4% more biodegradability compared to the polymer without fiber addition. It has also been found that the plasticizer was not a compatible with fibers and the polymer. Finally, fibers help to anticipate the decomposition process of the material when subjected to conditions of a landfill. Therefore, its intrinsic properties are not affected during its use, only the biodegradation process begins after its exposure to landfill conditions.

Keywords: Biocomposites, sisal, polylactic acid, PLA.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 803

Authors: Megha Rao, Søren H. Jensen, Xiufu Sun, Anke Hagen, Mogens B. Mogensen

Abstract:

Solid oxide electrolysis cells have an immense potential in converting CO₂ and H₂O into syngas during co-electrolysis operation. The produced syngas can be further converted into hydrocarbons. This kind of technology is called power-to-gas or power-to-liquid. To produce hydrocarbons via this route, durability of the cells is still a challenge, which needs to be further investigated in order to improve the cells. In this work, various nickel-yttria stabilized zirconia (Ni-YSZ) fuel electrode supported or YSZ electrolyte supported cells, cerium gadolinium oxide (CGO) barrier layer, and an oxygen electrode are investigated for durability under co-electrolysis conditions in both galvanostatic and potentiostatic conditions. While changing the gas on the oxygen electrode, keeping the fuel electrode gas composition constant, a change in the gas concentration arc was observed by impedance spectroscopy. Measurements of open circuit potential revealed the presence of leaks in the setup. It is speculated that the change in concentration impedance may be related to the leaks. Furthermore, the cells were also tested under pressurized conditions to find an inter-play between the leak rate and the pressure. A mathematical modeling together with electrochemical and microscopy analysis is presented.

Keywords: Co-electrolysis, solid oxide electrolysis cells, leaks, durability, gas concentration.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 841

Authors: G. Disciglio, F. Lops, A. Carlucci, G. Gatta, A. Tarantino, E. Tarantino

Abstract:

Phelipanche ramosa is the most damaging obligate flowering parasitic weed on wide species of cultivated plants. The semi-arid regions of the world are considered the main centers of this parasitic plant that causes heavy infestation. This is due to its production of high numbers of seeds (up to 200,000) that remain viable for extended periods (up to 20 years). In this study, 13 treatments for the control of Phelipanche were carried out, which included agronomic, chemical, and biological treatments and the use of resistant plant methods. In 2014, a trial was performed at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Foggia (southern Italy), on processing tomato (cv ‘Docet’) grown in pots filled with soil taken from a field that was heavily infested by P. ramosa). The tomato seedlings were transplanted on May 8, 2014, into a sandy-clay soil (USDA). A randomized block design with 3 replicates (pots) was adopted. During the growing cycle of the tomato, at 70, 75, 81 and 88 days after transplantation, the number of P. ramosa shoots emerged in each pot was determined. The tomato fruit were harvested on August 8, 2014, and the quantitative and qualitative parameters were determined. All of the data were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using the JMP software (SAS Institute Inc. Cary, NC, USA), and for comparisons of means (Tukey's tests). The data show that each treatment studied did not provide complete control against P. ramosa. However, the virulence of the attacks was mitigated by some of the treatments tried: radicon biostimulant, compost activated with Fusarium, mineral fertilizer nitrogen, sulfur, enzone, and the resistant tomato genotype. It is assumed that these effects can be improved by combining some of these treatments with each other, especially for a gradual and continuing reduction of the “seed bank” of the parasite in the soil.

Keywords: Control methods, Phelipanche ramosa, tomato crop.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3016

Authors: Boroňová I., Bernasovská J., Kľoc J., Tomková Z., Petrejčíková E., Gabriková D., Mačeková S.

Abstract:

Osteoporosis is a complex health disease characterized by low bone mineral density, which is determined by an interaction of genetics with metabolic and environmental factors. Current research in genetics of osteoporosis is focused on identification of responsible genes and polymorphisms. TNFRSF11B gene plays a key role in bone remodeling. The aim of this study was to investigate the genotype and allele distribution of A163G (rs3102735) osteoprotegerin gene promoter and G1181C (rs2073618) osteoprotegerin first exon polymorphisms in the group of 180 unrelated postmenopausal women with diagnosed osteoporosis and 180 normal controls. Genomic DNA was isolated from peripheral blood leukocytes using standard methodology. Genotyping for presence of different polymorphisms was performed using the Custom Taqman®SNP Genotyping assays. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was tested for each SNP in the groups of participants using the chi-square (χ²) test. The distribution of investigated genotypes in the group of patients with osteoporosis were as follows: AA (66.7%), AG (32.2%), GG (1.1%) for A163G polymorphism; GG (19.4%), CG (44.4%), CC (36.1%) for G1181C polymorphism. The distribution of genotypes in normal controls were follows: AA (71.1%), AG (26.1%), GG (2.8%) for A163G polymorphism; GG (22.2%), CG (48.9%), CC (28.9%) for G1181C polymorphism. In A163G polymorphism the variant G allele was more common among patients with osteoporosis: 17.2% versus 15.8% in normal controls. Also, in G1181C polymorphism the phenomenon of more frequent occurrence of C allele in the group of patients with osteoporosis was observed (58.3% versus 53.3%). Genotype and allele distributions showed no significant differences (A163G: χ²=0.270, p=0.605; χ²=0.250, p=0.616; G1181C: χ²= 1.730, p=0.188; χ²=1.820, p=0.177). Our results represents an initial study, further studies of more numerous file and associations studies will be carried out. Knowing the distribution of genotypes is important for assessing the impact of these polymorphisms on various parameters associated with osteoporosis. Screening for identification of “at-risk” women likely to develop osteoporosis and initiating subsequent early intervention appears to be most effective strategy to substantially reduce the risks of osteoporosis.

Keywords: Osteoporosis, Real-time PCR method, SNP polymorphisms.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2213

Authors: Siti Mutmainah, Slamet Sugiri

Abstract:

Organizations are increasingly relying upon teamwork; however, little is known about the best fit among incentive system, team composition, and group performance. To further explore this issue this study examines whether the congruence between incentive system and locus of control (LoC) affects team performance. To reconcile opposite lines of argument in literature regarding the best incentive system for a team, this paper uses the social identity perspective and person-environment (P-E) fit theory to understand behavior in a group process. A laboratory experiment with postgraduate students is conducted to test the hypotheses. One hundred and five accounting students were assigned to three-person work groups, where they completed an independent task under one of two types of incentive—individual and group incentive systems—after their LoC was measured. The findings confirm the hypothesis. Group incentive results in an enhanced team performance. Team performance is better when there is congruence between incentive system and LoC. Group incentive system combined with external LoC results in the best performance, while individual incentive system results in a better team performance when combined with internal LoC. The result suggests that a cooperative process enables ‘ordinary people’ to obtain extraordinary results.

Keywords: Incentive system, locus of control, person-environment fit, social identity perspective, team performance.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1116

Authors: C. A. C. Castro, D. C. Urashima, E. P. Silva, P. M. L.Silva

Abstract:

Since 1920, the industry has almost completely changed the rivets production techniques for the manufacture of permanent welding join production of structures and manufacture of other products. The welding arc is the process more widely used in industries. This is accomplished by the heat of an electric arc which melts the base metal while the molten metal droplets are transferred through the arc to the welding pool, protected from the atmosphere by a gas curtain. The GMAW (Gas metal arc welding) process is influenced by variables such as: current, polarity, welding speed, electrode: extension, position, moving direction; type of joint, welder's ability, among others. It is remarkable that the knowledge and control of these variables are essential for obtaining satisfactory quality welds, knowing that are interconnected so that changes in one of them requiring changes in one or more of the other to produce the desired results. The optimum values are affected by the type of base metal, the electrode composition, the welding position and the quality requirements. Thus, this paper proposes a new methodology, adding the variable vibration through a mechanism developed for GMAW welding, in order to improve the mechanical and metallurgical properties which does not affect the ability of the welder and enables repeatability of the welds made. For confirmation metallographic analysis and mechanical tests were made.

Keywords: HAZ, GMAW, vibration, welding.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1774

Authors: M. Tazky, R. Hela, P. Novosad, L. Osuska

Abstract:

This paper deals with the possibility of safe incorporation fluidised bed combustion fly ash (waste material) into cement matrix together with next commonly used secondary raw material, which is high-temperature fly ash. Both of these materials have a very high pozzolanic ability, and the right combination could bring important improvements in both the physico-mechanical properties and the better durability of a cement composite. This paper tries to determine the correct methodology for designing green concrete by using modern methods measuring rheology of fresh concrete and following hydration processes. The use of fluidised bed combustion fly ash in cement composite production as an admixture is not currently common, but there are some real possibilities for its potential. The most striking negative aspect is its chemical composition which supports the development of new product formation, influencing the durability of the composite. Another disadvantage is the morphology of grains, which have a negative effect on consistency. This raises the question of how this waste can be used in concrete production to emphasize its positive properties and eliminate negatives. The focal point of the experiment carried out on cement pastes was particularly on the progress of hydration processes, aiming for the possible acceleration of pozzolanic reactions of both types of fly ash.

Keywords: High-temperature fly ash, fluidised bed combustion fly ash, pozzolanic, CaO (calcium oxide), rheology.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 739

Authors: F. Rahnamay Roodposhti, S. A. Nabavi Chashmi

Abstract:

The role of corporate governance is to reduce the divergence of interests between shareholders and managers. The role of corporate governance is more useful when managers have an incentive to deviate from shareholders- interests. One example of management-s deviation from shareholders- interests is the management of earnings through the use of accounting accruals. This paper examines the association between corporate governance internal mechanisms ownership concentration, board independence, the existence of CEO-Chairman duality and earnings management. Firm size and leverage are control variables. The population used in this study comprises firms listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE) between 2004 and 2008, the sample comprises 196 firms. Panel Data method is employed as technique to estimate the model. We find that there is negative significant association between ownership concentration and board independence manage earnings with earnings management, there is negative significant association between the existence of CEO-Chairman duality and earnings management. This study also found a positive significant association between control variable (firm size and leverage) and earnings management.

Keywords: Earnings management, board independence, ownership concentration, corporate governance.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3873

Authors: Usha N. Murthy, Rekha H. B., Mahaveer Devoor

Abstract:

The introduction of more stringent pollution regulations, in relation to financial and social pressures for sustainable development, has pressed toward limiting the volumes of industrial and domestic effluents discharged into the environment - as well as to increase the efforts within research and development of new or more efficient wastewater treatment technologies. Considering both discharge volume and effluent composition, wastewater generated by the textile industry is rated as the most polluting among all industrial sectors. The pollution load is mainly due to spent dye baths, which are composed of unreacted dyes, dispersing agents, surfactants, salts and organics. In the present investigation, the textile dye wastewater was characterized by high color, chemical oxygen demand (COD), total dissolved solids (TDS) and pH. Electrochemical oxidation process for four plate electrodes was carried out at five different current intensities, out of which 0.14A has achieved maximum percentage removal of COD with 75% and 83% of color. The COD removal rate in kg COD/h/m² decreases with increase in the current intensity. The energy consumption increases with increase in the current intensity. Hence, textile dye wastewater can be effectively pretreated by electrochemical oxidation method where the process limits objectionable color while leaving the COD associated with organics left for natural degradation thus causing a sustainable reduction in pollution load.

Keywords: Electrochemical treatment, COD, color.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2358

Authors: M. Qwamizadeh, K. Zhou, Z. Zhang, YW. Zhang

Abstract:

Typical load-bearing biological materials like bone, mineralized tendon and shell, are biocomposites made from both organic (collagen) and inorganic (biomineral) materials. This amazing class of materials with intrinsic internally designed hierarchical structures show superior mechanical properties with regard to their weak components from which they are formed. Extensive investigations concentrating on static loading conditions have been done to study the biological materials failure. However, most of the damage and failure mechanisms in load-bearing biological materials will occur whenever their structures are exposed to dynamic loading conditions. The main question needed to be answered here is: What is the relation between the layout and architecture of the load-bearing biological materials and their dynamic behavior? In this work, a staggered model has been developed based on the structure of natural materials at nanoscale and Finite Element Analysis (FEA) has been used to study the dynamic behavior of the structure of load-bearing biological materials to answer why the staggered arrangement has been selected by nature to make the nanocomposite structure of most of the biological materials. The results showed that the staggered structures will efficiently attenuate the stress wave rather than the layered structure. Furthermore, such staggered architecture is effectively in charge of utilizing the capacity of the biostructure to resist both normal and shear loads. In this work, the geometrical parameters of the model like the thickness and aspect ratio of the mineral inclusions selected from the typical range of the experimentally observed feature sizes and layout dimensions of the biological materials such as bone and mineralized tendon. Furthermore, the numerical results validated with existing theoretical solutions. Findings of the present work emphasize on the significant effects of dynamic behavior on the natural evolution of load-bearing biological materials and can help scientists to design bioinspired materials in the laboratories.

Keywords: Load-bearing biological materials, nanostructure, staggered structure, stress wave decay.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2038

Authors: Rana Th. A. Al-Rubaye, Burcin Atilgan, Richard J. Holmes, Arthur A. Garforth

Abstract:

Structured catalysts formed from the growth of zeolites on substrates is an area of increasing interest due to the increased efficiency of the catalytic process, and the ability to provide superior heat transfer and thermal conductivity for both exothermic and endothermic processes. However, the generation of structured catalysts represents a significant challenge when balancing the relationship variables between materials properties and catalytic performance, with the Na2O, H2O and Al2O3 gel composition paying a significant role in this dynamic, thereby affecting the both the type and range of application. The structured catalyst films generated as part of this investigation have been characterised using a range of techniques, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), Electron microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA), with the transition from oxide-on-alloy wires to hydrothermally synthesised uniformly zeolite coated surfaces being demonstrated using both SEM and XRD. The robustness of the coatings has been ascertained by subjecting these to thermal cycling (ambient to 550oC), with the results indicating that the synthesis time and gel compositions have a crucial effect on the quality of zeolite growth on the FeCrAlloy wires. Finally, the activity of the structured catalyst was verified by a series of comparison experiments with standard zeolite Y catalysts in powdered pelleted forms.

Keywords: FeCrAlloy, Structured catalyst, and Zeolite Y.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2413

Authors: Asma M. Milad, Mohammad B. Kassim, Wan R. Daud

Abstract:

Highly ordered TiO2 nanotube (TNT) arrays were fabricated onto a pre-treated titanium foil by anodic oxidation with a voltage of 20V in phosphoric acid/sodium fluoride electrolyte. A pretreatment of titanium foil involved washing with acetone, isopropanol, ethanol and deionized water. Carbon doped TiO2 nanotubes (C-TNT) was fabricated 'in-situ' with the same method in the presence of polyvinyl alcohol and urea as carbon sources. The affects of polyvinyl alcohol concentration and oxidation time on the composition, morphology and structure of the C-TN were studied by FE-SEM, EDX and XRD techniques. FESEM images of the nanotubes showed uniform arrays of C-TNTs. The density and microstructures of the nanotubes were greatly affected by the content of PVA. The introduction of the polyvinyl alcohol into the electrolyte increases the amount of C content inside TiO2 nanotube arrays uniformly. The influence of carbon content on the photo-current of C-TNT was investigated and the I-V profiles of the nanotubes were established. The preliminary results indicated that the 'in-situ' doping technique produced a superior quality nanotubes compared to post doping techniques.

Keywords: Anodization, photoelectrochemical cell, 'in-situ', post doping, thin film, and titania nanotube arrays.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2565

Authors: Charalambos C. Cleanthous, Ryan Sain, Tabitha Black, Stephen Vera, Suzanne Milton

Abstract:

A concern when administering questionnaires is whether the participant is providing information that is accurate. The results may be invalid because the person is trying to present oneself in an unrealistic positive manner referred to as ‘faking good’, or in an unrealistic negative manner known as ‘faking bad’. The Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR) was used to assess commercial pilots’ responses on the two subscales of the BIDR: impression management (IM) and self-deceptive enhancement (SDE) that result in high or low scores. Thus, the BIDR produces four valid profiles: IM low and SDE low, IM high and SDE low, IM low and SDE high, and IM high and SDE high. The various profiles were used to compare the respondents’ answers to crew resource management (CRM) items developed from the USA Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) guidelines for CRM composition and training. Of particular interest were the results on the IM subscale. The comparisons between those scoring high (lying or faking) versus those low on the IM suggest that there were significant differences regarding their views of the various dimensions of CRM. One of the more disconcerting conclusions is that the high IM scores suggest that the pilots were trying to impress rather than honestly answer the questions regarding their CRM training and practice.

Keywords: USA commercial pilots, crew resource management, faking, social desirability.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 901

Authors: Apoorva Vinod, Archana Mathur, Snehanshu Saha

Abstract:

Though there exists a plethora of Activation Functions (AFs) used in single and multiple hidden layer Neural Networks (NN), their behavior always raised curiosity, whether used in combination or singly. The popular AFs – Sigmoid, ReLU, and Tanh – have performed prominently well for shallow and deep architectures. Most of the time, AFs are used singly in multi-layered NN, and, to the best of our knowledge, their performance is never studied and analyzed deeply when used in combination. In this manuscript, we experiment on multi-layered NN architecture (both on shallow and deep architectures; Convolutional NN and VGG16) and investigate how well the network responds to using two different AFs (Sigmoid-Tanh, Tanh-ReLU, ReLU-Sigmoid) used alternately against a traditional, single (Sigmoid-Sigmoid, Tanh-Tanh, ReLU-ReLU) combination. Our results show that on using two different AFs, the network achieves better accuracy, substantially lower loss, and faster convergence on 4 computer vision (CV) and 15 Non-CV (NCV) datasets. When using different AFs, not only was the accuracy greater by 6-7%, but we also accomplished convergence twice as fast. We present a case study to investigate the probability of networks suffering vanishing and exploding gradients when using two different AFs. Additionally, we theoretically showed that a composition of two or more AFs satisfies Universal Approximation Theorem (UAT).

Keywords: Activation Function, Universal Approximation function, Neural Networks, convergence.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 100

Authors: Shanawaz Patil, Mohamed Haneef, K. S. Narayanaswamy

Abstract:

In the recent years, aluminum metal matrix composites were most widely used, which are finding wide applications in various field such as automobile, aerospace defense etc., due to their outstanding mechanical properties like low density, light weight, exceptional high levels of strength, stiffness, wear resistance, high temperature resistance, low coefficient of thermal expansion and good formability. In the present work, an effort is made to study the effect of heat treatment on mechanical properties of aluminum 7075 alloy reinforced with constant weight percentage of naturally occurring mineral beryl and varying weight percentage of graphene. The hybrid composites are developed with 0.5 wt. %, 1wt.%, 1.5 wt.% and 2 wt.% of graphene and 6 wt.% of beryl  by stir casting liquid metallurgy route. The cast specimens of unreinforced aluminum alloy and hybrid composite samples were prepared for heat treatment process and subjected to solutionizing treatment (T6) at a temperature of 490±5 ^oC for 8 hours in a muffle furnace followed by quenching in boiling water. The microstructure analysis of as cast and heat treated hybrid composite specimens are examined by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The tensile test and hardness test of unreinforced aluminum alloy and hybrid composites are examined. The wear behavior is examined by pin-on disc apparatus. The results of as cast specimens and heat treated specimens were compared. The heat treated Al7075-Beryl-Graphene hybrid composite had better properties and significantly improved the ultimate tensile strength, hardness and reduced wear loss when compared to aluminum alloy and  as cast hybrid composites.

Keywords: Beryl, graphene, heat treatment, mechanical properties.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 989

Authors: S. A. Nta, M. J. Ayotamuno, I. J. Udom

Abstract:

The work presents result of laboratory analysis of the effects of landfill leachate on engineering properties of test soil. The soil used for the present study was a sandy loam soil and acidic in nature. It was collected at a depth of 0.9 m. The landfill leachate used was collected from a hole dug some meters away from dumped solid waste and analyzed to identify the pollutants and its effect on engineering properties of the test soil. The test soil applied with landfill leachate was collected at 0.25 and 0.50 m radial distances at a depth of 0.15, 0.30, 0.45 and 0.60 m from the point of application of leachate after 50 days were the application of the leachate end and 80 days from the start of the experiment for laboratory analysis. Engineering properties such as particle size distribution, specific gravity, optimum moisture content, maximum dry density, unconfined compressive strength, liquid limit, plastic limit and shrinkage limit were considered. The concentration of various chemicals at 0.25 and 0.50 radial distances and 0.15, 0.30, 0.45 and 0.6 m depth from the point of application of leachate were different. This study founds the effect of landfill leachate on the engineering properties of soil. It can be concluded that, the type of soil, chemical composition of the leachate, infiltration rate, aquifers, ground water table etc., will have a major role on the area of influence zone of the pollutants in a landfill.

Keywords: Engineering properties of test soil, landfill leachate, Municipal solid waste.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 584

Authors: Camilo Aldana, Sara Cabra, Carlos A. Ospina, Fredy Carvajal, Fernando Rodríguez

Abstract:

It has been proven that early establishment of microbial flora in digestive tract of ruminants, has a beneficial effect on their health condition and productivity. A probiotic compound, made from five bacteria isolated from adult bovine cattle, was dosed to 15 Holstein newborn calves in order to measure its capacity of improving body weight gain and reduce diarrhea incidence. The test was performed in the municipality of Cajicá (Colombia), at 2580 m.a.s.l., throughout rainy season, with environmental temperature that oscillated between 4 to 25 °C. Five calves were allotted to control (no addition of probiotic). Treatments 1, and 2 (5 calves per group) received 10 ml Probiotic mix 1 and 2, respectively. Probiotic mixes 1 and 2 where similar in microbial composition but different in production process. Probiotics were added to the morning milk and dosed on a daily basis by a month and then on a weekly basis for three additional months. Diarrhea incidence was measured by observance of number of animals affected in each group; each animal was weighed up on a daily basis for obtaining weight gain and rumen fluid samples were extracted with oro-esophageal catheter for determining level of fiber and grain consumption.

Keywords: Calve, diarrhea, probiotic, rumen microorganisms.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2308

Authors: Mohanad El-Harbawi, Nurul Amirah Hanim Bt. Umar, Norizan Ali, Yoshimitsu Uemura

Abstract:

Study of fire and explosion is very important mainly in oil and gas industries due to several accidents which have been reported in the past and present. In this work, we have investigated the flammability of bio oil vapour mixtures. This mixture may contribute to fire during the storage and transportation process. Bio oil sample derived from Palm Kernell shell was analysed using Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) to examine the composition of the sample. Mole fractions of 12 selected components in the liquid phase were obtained from the GC-FID data and used to calculate mole fractions of components in the gas phase via modified Raoult-s law. Lower Flammability Limits (LFLs) and Upper Flammability Limits (UFLs) for individual components were obtained from published literature. However, stoichiometric concentration method was used to calculate the flammability limits of some components which their flammability limit values are not available in the literature. The LFL and UFL values for the mixture were calculated using the Le Chatelier equation. The LFLmix and UFLmix values were used to construct a flammability diagram and subsequently used to determine the flammability of the mixture. The findings of this study can be used to propose suitable inherently safer method to prevent the flammable mixture from occurring and to minimizing the loss of properties, business, and life due to fire accidents in bio oil productions.

Keywords: Gas chromatography, compositions, lower and upper flammability limits (LFL & UFL), flammability diagram.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 3388

Authors: Chun-Ying Lee, Kuan-Hui Cheng, Mei-Wen Wu

Abstract:

The nickel-manganese (Ni-Mn) alloy coating prepared from DC electrodeposition process in sulphamate bath was studied. The effects of process parameters, such as current density and electrolyte composition, on the cathodic current efficiency, microstructure, internal stress and mechanical properties were investigated. Because of its crucial effect on the application to the electroforming of microelectronic components, the development of low internal stress coating with high leveling power was emphasized. It was found that both the coating’s manganese content and the cathodic current efficiency increased with the raise in current density. In addition, the internal stress of the deposited coating showed compressive nature at low current densities while changed to tensile one at higher current densities. Moreover, the metallographic observation, X-ray diffraction measurement, and polarization curve measurement were conducted. It was found that the Ni-Mn coating consisted of nano-sized columnar grains and the maximum hardness of the coating was associated with (111) preferred orientation in the microstructure. The grain size was refined along with the increase in the manganese content of the coating, which accordingly, raised its hardness and resistance to annealing softening. In summary, the Ni-Mn coating prepared at lower current density of 1-2 A/dm2 had low internal stress, high leveling power, and better corrosion resistance.

Keywords: DC plating, internal stress, leveling power, Ni-Mn coating.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1986

Authors: Constantin Pehoiu

Abstract:

The scientific perspective, the practice area of physical education and sports activities improve power capacity in all its forms of expression, being a generator of the research topics. Today theories that strength training athletes and slow down development progress will affect the strength and flexibility are discredited. On the other hand there are sectors and / or samples whose results are sports of the way higher manifestation of power as a result of the composition of the force and velocity, being based in this respect on the systematic and continuous development of both bio-motric capacities said. Training of force for children was and is controversial. Teama de accidentări sau a stopării premature a procesului de creştere a făcut ca în trecut copiii să fie ţinuţi departe de lucrul cu diferite greutăţi.Fear of injury or premature stop the growth process in the past made the children to be kept away from working with different weights. Recent studies have shown that the risk of accidents is relatively small and the strength training can help prevent them. For example, most accidents occur at the level of athletics ligaments and tendons. From this point of view, it can be said that a progressive intervention of force training, optimal design, will help enhancing their process, such as athlete much better prepared to meet training requests and competitions. Preparation of force provides a solid basis for further phases in the highest performance.

Keywords: Detente, education, effort will, power.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1377