Abstract: In this paper, we present a technical and an economic
assessment of several sources of renewable energy in Saudi Arabia;
mainly solar, wind, hydro and biomass. We analyze the
environmental and climatic conditions in relation to these sources
and give an overview of some of the existing clean energy
technologies. Using standardized cost and efficiency data, we carry
out a cost benefit analysis to understand the economic factors
influencing the sustainability of energy production from renewable
sources in light of the energy cost and demand in the Saudi market.
Finally, we take a look at the Saudi petroleum industry and the
existing sources of conventional energy and assess the potential of
building a successful market for renewable energy under the
constraints imposed by the flow of subsidized cheap oil. We show
that while some renewable energy resources are well suited for
distributed or grid connected generation in the kingdom, their
viability is greatly undercut by the well developed and well
capitalized oil industry.
Abstract: The paper deals with the most important changes that have occurred in business because of social media and its impact on organisations and leadership in recent years. It seeks to synthesize existing research, theories and concepts, in order to understand "social destinations", and to provide a bridge from past research to future success. Becoming a "social destination" is a strategic and tactical leadership and management issue and the paper will present the importance of destination leadership in choosing the way towards a social destination and some organisational models. It also presents some social media tools that can be used in transforming a destination into a social one. Adapting organisations to the twentyfirst century means adopting social media as a way of life and a way of business.
Abstract: Amount of dissolve oxygen in a river has a great direct affect on aquatic macroinvertebrates and this would influence on the region ecosystem indirectly. In this paper it is tried to predict dissolved oxygen in rivers by employing an easy Fuzzy Logic Modeling, Wang Mendel method. This model just uses previous records to estimate upcoming values. For this purpose daily and hourly records of eight stations in Au Sable watershed in Michigan, United States are employed for 12 years and 50 days period respectively. Calculations indicate that for long period prediction it is better to increase input intervals. But for filling missed data it is advisable to decrease the interval. Increasing partitioning of input and output features influence a little on accuracy but make the model too time consuming. Increment in number of input data also act like number of partitioning. Large amount of train data does not modify accuracy essentially, so, an optimum training length should be selected.
Abstract: This paper examined the influence of matching
students- learning preferences with the teaching methodology
adopted, on their academic performance in an accounting course in
two types of learning environment in one university in Lebanon:
classes with PowerPoint (PPT) vs. conventional classes. Learning
preferences were either for PPT or for Conventional methodology. A
statistically significant increase in academic achievement is found in
the conventionally instructed group as compared to the group taught
with PPT. This low effectiveness of PPT might be attributed to the
learning preferences of Lebanese students. In the PPT group, better
academic performance was found among students with
learning/teaching match as compared with students with
learning/teaching mismatch. Since the majority of students display a
preference for the conventional methodology, the result might
suggest that Lebanese students- performance is not optimized by PPT
in the accounting classrooms, not because of PPT itself, but because
it is not matching the Lebanese students- learning preferences in such
a quantitative course.
Abstract: The quest for alternatefuels for a CI engine has
become all the more imperative considering its importance in the
economy of a nation and from the standpoint of preserving the environment. Reported in this paper are the combustion performance and P-θ characteristics of a CI engine operating on B20 biodiesel fuel derived from Jatropha oil.Itis observed that the twin effect of advancing the injection timing and increasing the injector opening pressure (IOP) up to 220 barhas resulted in minimum brake specific
energy consumption and higherpeak pressure. It is also observed that
the crank angle of occurrence of peak pressure progressestowards top
dead center (TDC) as the timing is advanced and IOP is increased.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to perform a multidisciplinary design and analysis (MDA) of honeycomb panels used in the satellites structural design. All the analysis is based on clamped-free boundary conditions. In the present work, detailed finite element models for honeycomb panels are developed and analysed. Experimental tests were carried out on a honeycomb specimen of which the goal is to compare the previous modal analysis made by the finite element method as well as the existing equivalent approaches. The obtained results show a good agreement between the finite element analysis, equivalent and tests results; the difference in the first two frequencies is less than 4% and less than 10% for the third frequency. The results of the equivalent model presented in this analysis are obtained with a good accuracy. Moreover, investigations carried out in this research relate to the honeycomb plate modal analysis under several aspects including the structural geometrical variation by studying the various influences of the dimension parameters on the modal frequency, the variation of core and skin material of the honeycomb. The various results obtained in this paper are promising and show that the geometry parameters and the type of material have an effect on the value of the honeycomb plate modal frequency.
Abstract: MC (Management Control)& IC (Internal Control) – what is the relationship? (an empirical study into the definitions between MC and IC) based on the wider considerations of Internal Control and Management Control terms, attention is focused not only on the financial aspects but also more on the soft aspects of the business, such as culture, behaviour, standards and values. The limited considerations of Management Control are focused mainly in the hard, financial aspects of business operation. The definitions of Management Control and Internal Control are often used interchangeably and the results of this empirical study reveal that Management Control is part of Internal Control, there is no causal link between the two concepts. Based on the interpretation of the respondents, the term Management Control has moved from a broad term to a more limited term with the soft aspects of the influencing of behaviour, performance measurements, incentives and culture. This paper is an exploratory study based on qualitative research and on a qualitative matrix method analysis of the thematic definition of the terms Management Control and Internal Control.
Abstract: Compacted clay liners (CCLs) are the main materials
used in waste disposal landfills due to their low permeability. In this
study, the effect on the shear resistant of clays with inorganic salt
solutions as permeate fluid was experimentally investigated. For this
purpose, NaCl inorganic salt solution at concentrations of 2, 5, 10%
and deionized water were used. Laboratory direct shear and Vane
shear tests were conducted on three compacted clays with low,
medium and high plasticity. Results indicated that the solutions type
and its concentration affect the shear properties of the mixture. In the
light of this study, the influence magnitude of these inorganic salts in
varies concentrations in different clays were determined and more
suitable compacted clay with the compare of plasticity were found.
Abstract: The paper focuses on the enhanced stiffness modeling
of robotic manipulators by taking into account influence of the external force/torque acting upon the end point. It implements the
virtual joint technique that describes the compliance of manipulator elements by a set of localized six-dimensional springs separated by
rigid links and perfect joints. In contrast to the conventional
formulation, which is valid for the unloaded mode and small
displacements, the proposed approach implicitly assumes that the loading leads to the non-negligible changes of the manipulator posture and corresponding amendment of the Jacobian. The
developed numerical technique allows computing the static
equilibrium and relevant force/torque reaction of the manipulator for
any given displacement of the end-effector. This enables designer
detecting essentially nonlinear effects in elastic behavior of
manipulator, similar to the buckling of beam elements. It is also proposed the linearization procedure that is based on the inversion of
the dedicated matrix composed of the stiffness parameters of the
virtual springs and the Jacobians/Hessians of the active and passive
joints. The developed technique is illustrated by an application example that deals with the stiffness analysis of a parallel
manipulator of the Orthoglide family
Abstract: This paper proposes a new decision making approch
based on quantitative possibilistic influence diagrams which are
extension of standard influence diagrams in the possibilistic framework.
We will in particular treat the case where several expert
opinions relative to value nodes are available. An initial expert assigns
confidence degrees to other experts and fixes a similarity threshold
that provided possibility distributions should respect. To illustrate our
approach an evaluation algorithm for these multi-source possibilistic
influence diagrams will also be proposed.
Abstract: The objective of this paper is to analyze the
performance of a double-sided axial flux permanent magnet
brushless DC (AFPM BLDC) motor with two-phase winding.
To study the motor operation, a mathematical dynamic model
has been proposed for motor, which became the basis for
simulations that were performed using MATLAB/SIMULINK
software package. The results of simulations were presented
in form of the waveforms of selected quantities and the
electromechanical characteristics performed by the motor. The
calculation results show that the two-phase motor version
develops smooth torque and reaches high efficiency. The twophase
motor can be applied where more smooth torque is
required. Finally a study on the influence of switching angle
on motor performance shows that when advance switching
technique is used, the motor operates with the highest
efficiency.
Abstract: Wireless ad hoc nodes are freely and dynamically
self-organize in communicating with others. Each node can act as
host or router. However it actually depends on the capability of
nodes in terms of its current power level, signal strength, number
of hops, routing protocol, interference and others. In this research,
a study was conducted to observe the effect of hops count over
different network topologies that contribute to TCP Congestion
Control performance degradation. To achieve this objective, a
simulation using NS-2 with different topologies have been
evaluated. The comparative analysis has been discussed based on
standard observation metrics: throughput, delay and packet loss
ratio. As a result, there is a relationship between types of topology
and hops counts towards the performance of ad hoc network. In
future, the extension study will be carried out to investigate the
effect of different error rate and background traffic over same
topologies.
Abstract: Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology
(UTAUT) model has demonstrated the influencing factors for generic
information systems use such as tablet personal computer (TPC) and
mobile communication. However, in the context of digital library
system, there has been very little effort to determine factors affecting
the intention to use digital library based on the UTAUT model. This
paper investigates factors that are expected to influence the intention
of postgraduate students to use digital library based on modified
UTAUT model. The modified model comprises of constructs
represented by several latent variables, namely performance
expectancy (PE), effort expectancy (EE), information quality (IQ)
and service quality (SQ) and moderated by age, gender and
experience in using digital library. Results show that performance
expectancy, effort expectancy and information quality are positively
related to the intention to use digital library, while service quality is
negatively related to the intention to use digital library. Age and
gender have shown no evidence of any significant interactions, while
experience in using digital library significantly interacts with effort
expectancy and intention to use digital library. This has provided the
evidence of a moderating effect of experience in the intention to use
digital library. It is expected that this research will shed new lights
into research of acceptance and intention to use the library in a digital
environment.
Abstract: Delayed wound healing in diabetes is primarily
associated with hyperglycemia, over-expression of inflammatory
marker, oxidative stress and delayed collagen synthesis. This
unmanaged wound is producing high economic burden on the
society. Thus research is required to develop new and effective
treatment strategies to deal with this emerging issue. Our present
study incorporates the evaluation of wound healing effects of 50%
ethanol extract of Ocimum sanctum (OSE) in streptozotocin
(45mg/kg)-induced diabetic rats with concurrent wound ulcer. The
animals showing diabetes (Blood glucose level >140 and
Abstract: Over the past few years, companies in developing
countries have implemented enterprise resource planning (ERP)
systems. Regardless of the various benefits of the ERP system, its
adoption and implementation have not been without problems. Many
companies have assigned considerable organizational resources to
their ERP projects, but have encountered unexpected challenges.
Neglecting a number of important factors in ERP projects might lead
to failure instead of success. User satisfaction is among those factors
that has a major influence on ERP implementation success. So, this
paper intends to investigate the key factors that create ERP users-
satisfaction and to discover whether ERP users- satisfaction varies
among different users- profiles. The study was conducted using a
survey questionnaire which was distributed to ERP users in Iranian
organizations. A total of 384 responses were collected and analyzed.
The findings indicated that younger ERP users tend to be more
satisfied with ERP systems. Furthermore, ERP users with more
experiences in IT and also more educated users have more
satisfaction with ERP softwares. However, the study found no
satisfaction differences between men and women users.
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.
Abstract: The objective of this work is to study the influence of the properties of the substrate on the retrofit (thin repair) of damaged concrete elements, with the SCC. Fluidity, principal characteristic of the SCC, would enable it to cover and adhere to the concrete to be repaired. Two aspects of repair are considered, the bond (Adhesion) and the tensile strength and the cracking. The investigation is experimental; It was conducted over test specimens made up of ordinary concrete prepared and hardened in advance (the material to be repaired) over which a self compacting concrete layer is cast. Three alternatives of SC concrete and one ordinary concrete (comparison) were tested. It appears that the self-compacting concrete constitutes a good material for repairing. It follows perfectly the surfaces- forms to be repaired and allows a perfect bond. Fracture tests made on specimens of self-compacting concrete show a brittle behaviour. However when a small percentage of fibres is added, the resistance to cracking is very much improve.
Abstract: Deep cold rolling (DCR) and low plasticity burnishing (LPB) process are cold working processes, which easily produce a smooth and work-hardened surface by plastic deformation of surface irregularities. The present study focuses on the surface roughness and surface hardness aspects of AISI 4140 work material, using fractional factorial design of experiments. The assessment of the surface integrity aspects on work material was done, in order to identify the predominant factors amongst the selected parameters. They were then categorized in order of significance followed by setting the levels of the factors for minimizing surface roughness and/or maximizing surface hardness. In the present work, the influence of main process parameters (force, feed rate, number of tool passes/overruns, initial roughness of the work piece, ball material, ball diameter and lubricant used) on the surface roughness and the hardness of AISI 4140 steel were studied for both LPB and DCR process and the results are compared. It was observed that by using LPB process surface hardness has been improved by 167% and in DCR process surface hardness has been improved by 442%. It was also found that the force, ball diameter, number of tool passes and initial roughness of the workpiece are the most pronounced parameters, which has a significant effect on the work piece-s surface during deep cold rolling and low plasticity burnishing process.
Abstract: Fermented beverages have high expression in the
market for beverages in general, is increasingly valued in situations
where the characteristic aroma and flavor of the material that gave
rise to them are kept after processing. This study aimed to develop a
distilled beverage from passion fruit, and assess, by sensory tests and
chromatographic profile, the influence of different treatments (FM1-
spirit with pulp addiction and FM2 – spirit with bigger ratio of pulp
in must) in the setting of volatiles in the fruit drink, and performing
chemical characterization taking into account the main parameters of
quality established by the legislation. The chromatograms and the
first sensorial tests had indicated that sample FM1 possess better
characteristics of aroma, as much of how much quantitative the
qualitative point of view. However, it analyzes it sensorial end
(preference test) disclosed the biggest preference of the cloth provers
for sample FM2-2 (note 7.93), being the attributes of decisive color
and flavor in this reply, confirmed for the observed values lowest of
fixed and total acidity in the samples of treatment FM2.
Abstract: Application of wood in rural construction is diffused
all around the world since remote times. However, its inclusion in
structural design deserves strong support from broad knowledge of
material properties. The pertinent literature reveals the application of
optical methods in determining the complete field displacement on
bodies exhibiting regular as well as irregular surfaces. The use of
moiré techniques in experimental mechanics consists in analyzing the
patterns generated on the body surface before and after deformation.
The objective of this research work is to study the qualitative
deformation behavior of wooden testing specimens under specific
loading situations. The experiment setup follows the literature
description of shadow moiré methods. Results indicate strong
anisotropy influence of the generated displacement field. Important
qualitative as well as quantitative stress and strain distribution were
obtained wooden members which are applicable to rural
constructions.