Abstract: The acid attack on cement mortars modified with rubber aggregates and EVA polymer binder was studied. Mortar specimens were prepared using a type CEM I 42.5 Portland cement and siliceous sand, as well as by substituting 25% of sand with shredded used automobile tires, and by adding EVA polymer in two percentages (5% and 10% of cement mass). Some specimens were only air cured, at laboratory conditions, and their compressive strength and water absorption were determined. The rest specimens were stored in acid solutions (HCl, H2SO4, HNO3) after 28 days of initial curing, and stored at laboratory temperature. Compressive strength tests, mass measurements and visual inspection took place for 28 days. Compressive strength and water absorption of the air-cured specimens were significantly decreased when rubber aggregates are used. The addition of EVA polymer further reduced water absorption, while had no important impact on strength. Compressive strength values were affected in a greater extent by hydrochloric acid solution, followed by sulfate and nitric acid solutions. The addition of EVA polymer decreased compressive strength loss for the specimens with rubber aggregates stored in hydrochloric and nitric acid solutions. The specimens without polymer binder showed similar mass loss, which was higher in sulfate acid solution followed by hydrochloric and nitric acid solutions. The use of EVA polymer delayed mass loss, while its content did not affect it significantly.
Abstract: Modulus of elasticity is one of the important
parameters of construction materials, which considerably influence
their deformation properties and which can also be determined by
means of non-destructive test methods like ultrasonic pulse method.
However, measurement results of ultrasonic pulse methods are
influenced by various factors, one of which is the natural frequency
of the transducers. The paper states knowledge about influence of
natural frequency of the transducers (54; 82 and 150kHz) on
ultrasonic pulse velocity and dynamic modulus of elasticity (Young's
Dynamic modulus of elasticity). Differences between ultrasonic pulse
velocity and dynamic modulus of elasticity were found with the same
smallest dimension of test specimen in the direction of sounding and
density their value decreases as the natural frequency of transducers
grew.
Abstract: Business Processes (BPs) are the key instrument to
understand how companies operate at an organizational level, taking
an as-is view of the workflow, and how to address their issues by
identifying a to-be model. In last year’s, the BP Model and Notation
(BPMN) has become a de-facto standard for modeling processes.
However, this standard does not incorporate explicitly the Problem-
Solving (PS) knowledge in the Process Modeling (PM) results. Thus,
such knowledge cannot be shared or reused. To narrow this gap is
today a challenging research area. In this paper we present a
framework able to capture the PS knowledge and to improve a
workflow. This framework extends the BPMN specification by
incorporating new general-purpose elements. A pilot scenario is also
presented and discussed.
Abstract: This paper presents a study on the effect of
second-order slip on forced convection through a long isoflux heated
or cooled planar microchannel. The fully developed solutions of flow
and thermal fields are analytically obtained on the basis of the
second-order Maxwell-Burnett slip and local heat flux boundary
conditions. Results reveal that when the average flow velocity
increases or the wall heat flux amount decreases, the role of thermal
creep becomes more insignificant, while the effect of second-order slip
becomes larger. The second-order term in the Deissler slip boundary
condition is found to contribute a positive velocity slip and then to lead
to a lower pressure drop as well as a lower temperature rise for the
heated-wall case or to a higher temperature rise for the cooled-wall
case. These findings are contrary to predictions made by the
Karniadakis slip model.
Abstract: Medical Image fusion plays a vital role in medical
field to diagnose the brain tumors which can be classified as benign
or malignant. It is the process of integrating multiple images of the
same scene into a single fused image to reduce uncertainty and
minimizing redundancy while extracting all the useful information
from the source images. Fuzzy logic is used to fuse two brain MRI
images with different vision. The fused image will be more
informative than the source images. The texture and wavelet features
are extracted from the fused image. The multilevel Adaptive Neuro
Fuzzy Classifier classifies the brain tumors based on trained and
tested features. The proposed method achieved 80.48% sensitivity,
99.9% specificity and 99.69% accuracy. Experimental results
obtained from fusion process prove that the use of the proposed
image fusion approach shows better performance while compared
with conventional fusion methodologies.
Abstract: The problem of estimating a proportion has important
applications in the field of economics, and in general, in many areas
such as social sciences. A common application in economics is
the estimation of the headcount index. In this paper, we define the
general headcount index as a proportion. Furthermore, we introduce
a new quantitative method for estimating the headcount index. In
particular, we suggest to use the logistic regression estimator for the
problem of estimating the headcount index. Assuming a real data set,
results derived from Monte Carlo simulation studies indicate that the
logistic regression estimator can be more accurate than the traditional
estimator of the headcount index.
Abstract: The aim of this research is to explore how pupils in art classes can use creative digital art tools to redesign Tamazight fonts, in order to develop children’s artistic creativity, enable them to learn about a new culture, and to help the teacher assess the creativity of pupils in the art class. It can also help students to improve their talents in drawing. The study could relate to research in Libya among the Amazigh people (better known as Berber) and possibly the development of Tamazight fonts with new uses in art. The research involved students aged 9-10 years old working with digital art tools, and was designed to explore the potential of digital technology by discovering suitable tools and techniques to develop children’s artistic performance using Tamazight fonts. The project also sought to show the aesthetic aspects of these characters and to stimulate the artistic creativity of these young people.
Abstract: Construction industry in Greece consumes annually
more than 25 million tons of natural aggregates originating mainly
from quarries. At the same time, more than 2 million tons of
construction and demolition waste are deposited every year, usually
without control, therefore increasing the environmental impact of this
sector. A potential alternative for saving natural resources and
minimize landfilling, could be the recycling and re-use of Concrete
and Demolition Waste (CDW) in concrete production. Moreover, in
order to conform to the European legislation, Greece is obliged to
recycle non-hazardous construction and demolition waste to a
minimum of 70% by 2020. In this paper characterization of recycled
materials - commercially and laboratory produced, coarse and fine,
Recycled Concrete Aggregates (RCA) - has been performed. Namely,
X-Ray Fluorescence and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis were used
for chemical and mineralogical analysis respectively. Physical
properties such as particle density, water absorption, sand equivalent
and resistance to fragmentation were also determined. This study,
first time made in Greece, aims at outlining the differences between
RCA and natural aggregates and evaluating their possible influence
in concrete performance. Results indicate that RCA’s chemical
composition is enriched in Si, Al, and alkali oxides compared to
natural aggregates. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses results
indicated the presence of calcite, quartz and minor peaks of mica and
feldspars. From all the evaluated physical properties of coarse RCA,
only water absorption and resistance to fragmentation seem to have a
direct influence on the properties of concrete. Low Sand Equivalent
and significantly high water absorption values indicate that fine
fractions of RCA cannot be used for concrete production unless
further processed. Chemical properties of RCA in terms of water
soluble ions are similar to those of natural aggregates. Four different
concrete mixtures were produced and examined, replacing natural
coarse aggregates with RCA by a ratio of 0%, 25%, 50% and 75%
respectively. Results indicate that concrete mixtures containing
recycled concrete aggregates have a minor deterioration of their
properties (3-9% lower compression strength at 28 days) compared to
conventional concrete containing the same cement quantity.
Abstract: In this paper, a new method for multi criteria decision making is represented whichspecifies a trajectory satisfying desired criteria including minimization of time. A rescue robot is defined to perform certain tasks before the arrival of rescue team, including evaluation of the probability of explosion in the area, detecting human-beings, and providing preliminary aidsin case of identifying signs of life, so that the security of the surroundings will have enhanced significantly for the individuals inside the disaster zone as well as the rescue team. The main idea behind our technique is using the Program Evaluation and Review Technique analysis along with Critical Path Method and use the Multi Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) method to decidewhich set of activities must be performed first. Since the disastrous event in one area may be well contagious to others, it is one of the robot's priorities to evaluate the relative adversity of the situation, using the above methods and prioritize its mission.
Abstract: Distributed generation units (DGs) are grid-connected or stand-alone electric generation units located within the electric distribution system at or near the end user. It is generally accepted that centralized electric power plants will remain the major source of the electric power supply for the near future. DGs, however, can complement central power by providing incremental capacity to the utility grid or to an end user. This paper presents an efficient power dispatching model for hybrid wind-Solar power generation system, to satisfy some essential requirements, such as dispersed electric power demand, electric power quality and reducing generation cost and so on. In this paper, presented some elements of the main parts in the hybrid system; and then made fundamental dispatching strategies according to different situations; then pointed out four improving measures to improve genetic algorithm, such as: modify the producing way of selection probability, improve the way of crossover, protect excellent chromosomes, and change mutation range and so on. Finally, propose a technique for solving the unit's commitment for dispatching problem based on an improved genetic algorithm.
Abstract: The research aims to approximate the amount of daily rainfall by using a pixel value data approach. The daily rainfall maps from the Thailand Meteorological Department in period of time from January to December 2013 were the data used in this study. The results showed that this approach can approximate the amount of daily rainfall with RMSE=3.343.
Abstract: The MyD88 is an evolutionarily conserved host-expressed adaptor protein that is essential for proper TLR/ IL1R immune-response signaling. A previously identified complete cDNA (1626 bp) of OfMyD88 comprised an ORF of 867 bp encoding a protein of 288 amino acids (32.9 kDa). The gDNA (3761 bp) of OfMyD88 revealed a quinquepartite genome organization composed of 5 exons (with the sizes of 310, 132, 178, 92 and 155 bp) separated by 4 introns. All the introns displayed splice signals consistent with the consensus GT/AG rule. A bipartite domain structure with two domains namely death domain (24-103) coded by 1st exon, and TIR domain (151-288) coded by last 3 exons were identified through in silico analysis. Moreover, homology modeling of these two domains revealed a similar quaternary folding nature between human and rock bream homologs. A comprehensive comparison of vertebrate MyD88 genes showed that they possess a 5-exonic structure.In this structure, the last three exons were strongly conserved, and this suggests that a rigid structure has been maintained during vertebrate evolution.A cluster of TATA box-like sequences were found 0.25 kb upstream of cDNA starting position. In addition, putative 5'-flanking region of OfMyD88 was predicted to have TFBS implicated with TLR signaling, including copies of NFkB1, APRF/ STAT3, Sp1, IRF1 and 2 and Stat1/2. Using qPCR technique, a ubiquitous mRNA expression was detected in liver and blood. Furthermore, a significantly up-regulated transcriptional expression of OfMyD88 was detected in head kidney (12-24 h; >2-fold), spleen (6 h; 1.5-fold), liver (3 h; 1.9-fold) and intestine (24 h; ~2-fold) post-Fla challenge. These data suggest a crucial role for MyD88 in antibacterial immunity of teleosts.
Abstract: In order to study the performance of dynamic positioning system during S-lay operations, dynamic positioning system is simulated with the hull-stinger-pipe coupling effect. The roller of stinger is simulated by the generalized elastic contact theory. The stinger is composed of Morrison members. Force on pipe is calculated by lumped mass method. Time domain of fully coupled barge model is analyzed combining with PID controller, Kalman filter and allocation of thrust using Sequential Quadratic Programming method. It is also analyzed that the effect of hull wave frequency motion on pipe-stinger coupling force and dynamic positioning system. Besides, it is studied that how S-lay operations affect the dynamic positioning accuracy. The simulation results are proved to be available by checking pipe stress with API criterion. The effect of heave and yaw motion cannot be ignored on hull-stinger-pipe coupling force and dynamic positioning system. It is important to decrease the barge’s pitch motion and lay pipe in head sea in order to improve safety of the S-lay installation and dynamic positioning.
Abstract: In this paper analysis of an infinite beam resting on tensionless extensible geosynthetic reinforced granular bed overlying soft soil strata under moving load with constant velocity is presented. The beam is subjected to a concentrated load moving with constant velocity. The upper reinforced granular bed is modeled by a rough elastic membrane embedded in Pasternak shear layer overlying a series of compressible nonlinear Winkler springs representing the under-lied very poor soil. The tensionless extensible geosynthetic layer has been assumed to deform such that at interface the geosynthetic and the soil have some deformation. Nonlinear behavior of granular fill and the very poor soil has been considered in the analysis by means of hyperbolic constitutive relationships. Detailed parametric study has been conducted to study the influence of various parameters on the response of soil foundation system under consideration by means of deflection and bending moment in the beam and tension mobilized in the geosynthetic layer. This study clearly observed that the comparisons of tension and tensionless foundation and magnitude of applied load, relative compressibility of granular fill and ultimate resistance of poor soil has significant influence on the response of soil foundation system.
Abstract: This study presented the investigation of the influence of the tool holder interface stiffness on the dynamic characteristics of a spindle tool system. The interface stiffness was produced by drawbar force on the tool holder, which tends to affect the spindle dynamics. In order to assess the influence of interface stiffness on the vibration characteristic of spindle unit, we first created a three dimensional finite element model of a high speed spindle system integrated with tool holder. The key point for the creation of FEM model is the modeling of the rolling interface within the angular contact bearings and the tool holder interface. The former can be simulated by a introducing a series of spring elements between inner and outer rings. The contact stiffness was calculated according to Hertz contact theory and the preload applied on the bearings. The interface stiffness of the tool holder was identified through the experimental measurement and finite element modal analysis. Current results show that the dynamic stiffness was greatly influenced by the tool holder system. In addition, variations of modal damping, static stiffness and dynamic stiffness of the spindle tool system were greatly determined by the interface stiffness of the tool holder which was in turn dependent on the draw bar force applied on the tool holder. Overall, this study demonstrates that identification of the interface characteristics of spindle tool holder is of very importance for the refinement of the spindle tooling system to achieve the optimum machining performance.
Abstract: New diagnostic tools are urgently needed to interrupt the transmission of tuberculosis and multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. The microscopic-observation drug-susceptibility (MODS) assay is a rapid, accurate and simple liquid culture method to detect multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). MODS were evaluated to determine a lower and same concentration of isoniazid and rifampin for detection of MDR-TB. Direct drug-susceptibility testing was performed with the use of the MODS assay. Drug-sensitive control strains were tested daily. The drug concentrations that used for both isoniazid and rifampin were at the same concentration: 0.16, 0.08 and 0.04μg per milliliter. We tested 56 M. tuberculosis clinical isolates and the control strains M. tuberculosis H37RV. All concentration showed same result. Of 53 M. tuberculosis clinical isolates, 14 were MDR-TB, 38 were susceptible with isoniazid and rifampin, 1 was resistant with isoniazid only. Drug-susceptibility testing was performed with the use of the proportion method using Mycobacteria Growth Indicator Tube (MGIT) system as reference. The result of MODS assay using lower concentration was significance (P
Abstract: Rapid industrialization results in increased use of natural resources bring along serious ecological and environmental imbalance due to the dumping of industrial wastes. Principles of sustainable construction have to be accepted with regard to the consumption of natural resources and the production of harmful emissions. Cement is a great importance raw material in the building industry and today is its large amount used in the construction of concrete pavements. Concerning raw materials cost and producing CO2 emission the replacing of cement in concrete mixtures with more sustainable materials is necessary. To reduce this environmental impact people all over the world are looking for a solution. Over a period of last ten years, the image of fly ash has completely been changed from a polluting waste to resource material and it can solve the major problems of cement use. Fly ash concretes are proposed as a potential approach for achieving substantial reductions in cement. It is known that it improves the workability of concrete, extends the life cycle of concrete roads, and reduces energy use and greenhouse gas as well as amount of coal combustion products that must be disposed in landfills.
Life cycle assessment also proved that a concrete pavement with fly ash cement replacement is considerably more environmentally friendly compared to standard concrete roads. In addition, fly ash is cheap raw material, and the costs saving are guaranteed. The strength properties, resistance to a frost or de-icing salts, which are important characteristics in the construction of concrete pavements, have reached the required standards as well. In terms of human health it can´t be stated that a concrete cover with fly ash could be dangerous compared with a cover without fly ash. Final Multi-criteria analysis also pointed that a concrete with fly ash is a clearly proper solution.
Abstract: Homemade HPC clusters are widely used in many small labs, because they are easy to build and cost-effective. Even though incremental growth is an advantage of clusters, it results in heterogeneous systems anyhow. Instead of adding new nodes to the cluster, we can extend clusters to include some other Internet servers working independently on the same LAN, so that we can make use of their idle times, especially during the night. However extension across a firewall raises some security problems with NFS. In this paper, we propose a method to solve such a problem using SSH tunneling, and suggest a modified structure of the cluster that implements it.
Abstract: Employment right is linked to the people’s livelihood
in our society. As a most important and representative part in the labor
market, the employment of public servants is always taking much
attention. But the discrimination in the employment of public servants
has always existed and, to become a controversy in our society. The
paper try to discuss this problem from four parts as follows: First, the
employment of public servants has a representative status in our labor
market. The second part is about the discrimination in the employment
of public servants. The third part is about the right of equality and its
significance. The last part is to analysis the legal predicament about
discrimination in the employment of public servants in China.
Abstract: Today, systems of management and urban planning,
attempt to reach more sustainable development through monitoring
developments, urban development and development plans.
Monitoring of changes in the urban places and sustainable urban
development accounted a base for the realization of worthy goals
urban sustainable development. The importance of women in
environmental protection programs is high enough that in 21 agenda
has been requested from all countries to allocate more shares to
women in their policies. On the other hand, urban waste landfill has
become one of the environmental concerns in modern cities. This
research assumes that the impact of women on recycling, reduction
and proper waste landfill is much more than men. For this reason,
three districts; Yousef Abad, Heshmatieh & Nezam Abad are gauged
through questionnaire and using the analytical research hypothesis
model. This research will be categorized as functional research. The
results have shown that noticing the power of women, their
participation towards realization of the development objectives and
programs can be used in solving their problems.