Abstract: Demolitions of buildings have created a lot of waste
and one of it is clay bricks. The waste clay bricks were ground to
roughly cement fineness and used to partially replaced cement at
10%, 20% and 30% with w/b ratio of 0.6 and tested at 7, 28, 60, 90
and 120 days. The result shows that the compressive strength of GCB
concrete increases over age however, decreases as the level of
replacements increases. It was also found that 10% replacement of
GCB gave the highest compressive strength, however for optimum
replacement, 30% was chosen as it still attained strength of grade 30
concrete. In terms of durability performances, results show that GCB
replacement up to 30% was found to be efficient in reducing water
absorption as well as water permeability. These studies show that
GCB has the potential to be used as partial cement replacement in
making concrete.
Abstract: The ITE Project is a project that has 1800 km length
and across the Turkey's land through east to west. The project of
pipeline enters geographically from Iran to Doğubayazit (Turkey) in
the east, exits to Greece from Ipsala province of Turkey in the west.
This project is the one of the international projects in such scale that
provides the natural gas of Iran and Caspian Sea through the
European continent. In this investigation, some information will be
given about the methods used to verify the direction of the pipeline
and the technical properties of the results obtained. The cost of
project itself entirely depends on the direction of the pipeline which
would be as short as possible and the specifications of the land cover.
Production standards of 1/2000 scaled digital orthophoto and vectoral
maps as a results of the use of map production materials and methods
(such as high resolution satellite images, and digital aerial images
captured from digital aerial cameras), will also be given in this report.
According to Turkish national map production standards, TM
((Transversal Mercator, 3 degree) projection is used for large scale
map and UTM (Universal Transversal Mercator, 6 degree) is used for
small scale map production standards. Some information is also given
about the projection used in the ITE natural gas pipeline project.
Abstract: Data mining uses a variety of techniques each of which is useful for some particular task. It is important to have a deep understanding of each technique and be able to perform sophisticated analysis. In this article we describe a tool built to simulate a variation of the Kohonen network to perform unsupervised clustering and support the entire data mining process up to results visualization. A graphical representation helps the user to find out a strategy to optmize classification by adding, moving or delete a neuron in order to change the number of classes. The tool is also able to automatically suggest a strategy for number of classes optimization.The tool is used to classify macroeconomic data that report the most developed countries? import and export. It is possible to classify the countries based on their economic behaviour and use an ad hoc tool to characterize the commercial behaviour of a country in a selected class from the analysis of positive and negative features that contribute to classes formation.
Abstract: The use of power system stabilizers (PSSs) to damp
power system swing mode of oscillations is practical important. Our
purpose is to retune the power system stabilizer (PSS1A) parameters
in Unitrol D produced by ABB– was installed in 1995in Benghazi
North Power Plants (BNPPs) at General Electricity Company of
Libya (GECOL). The optimal values of the power system stabilizer
(PSS1A) parameters are determined off-line by a particle swarm
optimization technique (PSO). The objective is to damp the local and
inter-area modes of oscillations that occur following power system
disturbances. The retuned power system stabilizer (PSS1A) can cope
with large disturbance at different operating points and has enhanced
power system stability.
Abstract: Levan, an exopolysaccharide, was produced by
Microbacterium laevaniformans and its yield was characterized as a
function of concentrations of date syrup, sucrose and the fermentation
time. The optimum condition for levan production from sucrose was
at concentration of 20% sucrose for 48 h and for date syrup was 25%
for 48 h. The results show that an increase in fermentation time
caused a decrease in the levan production at all concentrations of date
syrup tested. Under these conditions after 48 h in sucrose medium,
levan production reached 48.9 g/L and for date syrup reached 10.48
g/L . The effect of pH on the yield of the purified levan was examined
and the optimum pH for levan production was determined to be 6.0.
Levan was composed mainly of fructose residues when analyzed by
TLC and FT-IR spectroscopy. Date syrup is a cheap substrate widely
available in Iran and has potential for levan production. The thermal
stability of levan was assessed by Thermo Gravimetric Analysis
(TGA) that revealed the onset of decomposition near to 49°C for the
levan produced from sucrose and 51°C for the levan from date syrup.
DSC results showed a single Tg at 98°C for levan produced from
sucrose and 206 °C for levan from date syrup.
Abstract: This paper provides an in-depth study of Wireless
Sensor Network (WSN) application to monitor and control the
swiftlet habitat. A set of system design is designed and developed
that includes the hardware design of the nodes, Graphical User
Interface (GUI) software, sensor network, and interconnectivity for
remote data access and management. System architecture is proposed
to address the requirements for habitat monitoring. Such applicationdriven
design provides and identify important areas of further work
in data sampling, communications and networking. For this
monitoring system, a sensor node (MTS400), IRIS and Micaz radio
transceivers, and a USB interfaced gateway base station of Crossbow
(Xbow) Technology WSN are employed. The GUI of this monitoring
system is written using a Laboratory Virtual Instrumentation
Engineering Workbench (LabVIEW) along with Xbow Technology
drivers provided by National Instrument. As a result, this monitoring
system is capable of collecting data and presents it in both tables and
waveform charts for further analysis. This system is also able to send
notification message by email provided Internet connectivity is
available whenever changes on habitat at remote sites (swiftlet farms)
occur. Other functions that have been implemented in this system
are the database system for record and management purposes; remote
access through the internet using LogMeIn software. Finally, this
research draws a conclusion that a WSN for monitoring swiftlet
habitat can be effectively used to monitor and manage swiftlet
farming industry in Sarawak.
Abstract: Non-viral gene carriers composed of biodegradable
polymers or lipids have been considered as a safer alternative for gene
carriers over viral vectors. We have developed multi-functional
nano-micelles for both drug and gene delivery application.
Polyethyleneimine (PEI) was modified by grafting stearic acid (SA)
and formulated to polymeric micelles (PEI-SA) with positive surface
charge for gene and drug delivery. Our results showed that PEI-SA
micelles provided high siRNA binding efficiency. In addition, siRNA
delivered by PEI-SA carriers also demonstrated significantly high
cellular uptake even in the presence of serum proteins. The
post-transcriptional gene silencing efficiency was greatly improved by
the polyplex formulated by 10k PEI-SA/siRNA. The amphiphilic
structure of PEI-SA micelles provided advantages for multifunctional
tasks; where the hydrophilic shell modified with cationic charges can
electrostatically interact with DNA or siRNA, and the hydrophobic
core can serve as payloads for hydrophobic drugs, making it a
promising multifunctional vehicle for both genetic and chemotherapy
application.
Abstract: EDF (Early Deadline First) algorithm is a very important scheduling algorithm for real- time systems . The EDF algorithm assigns priorities to each job according to their absolute deadlines and has good performance when the real-time system is not overloaded. When the real-time system is overloaded, many misdeadlines will be produced. But these misdeadlines are not uniformly distributed, which usually focus on some tasks. In this paper, we present an adaptive fuzzy control scheduling based on EDF algorithm. The improved algorithm can have a rectangular distribution of misdeadline ratios among all real-time tasks when the system is overloaded. To evaluate the effectiveness of the improved algorithm, we have done extensive simulation studies. The simulation results show that the new algorithm is superior to the old algorithm.
Abstract: In the recent past Learning Classifier Systems have
been successfully used for data mining. Learning Classifier System
(LCS) is basically a machine learning technique which combines
evolutionary computing, reinforcement learning, supervised or
unsupervised learning and heuristics to produce adaptive systems. A
LCS learns by interacting with an environment from which it
receives feedback in the form of numerical reward. Learning is
achieved by trying to maximize the amount of reward received. All
LCSs models more or less, comprise four main components; a finite
population of condition–action rules, called classifiers; the
performance component, which governs the interaction with the
environment; the credit assignment component, which distributes the
reward received from the environment to the classifiers accountable
for the rewards obtained; the discovery component, which is
responsible for discovering better rules and improving existing ones
through a genetic algorithm. The concatenate of the production rules
in the LCS form the genotype, and therefore the GA should operate
on a population of classifier systems. This approach is known as the
'Pittsburgh' Classifier Systems. Other LCS that perform their GA at
the rule level within a population are known as 'Mitchigan' Classifier
Systems. The most predominant representation of the discovered
knowledge is the standard production rules (PRs) in the form of IF P
THEN D. The PRs, however, are unable to handle exceptions and do
not exhibit variable precision. The Censored Production Rules
(CPRs), an extension of PRs, were proposed by Michalski and
Winston that exhibit variable precision and supports an efficient
mechanism for handling exceptions. A CPR is an augmented
production rule of the form: IF P THEN D UNLESS C, where
Censor C is an exception to the rule. Such rules are employed in
situations, in which conditional statement IF P THEN D holds
frequently and the assertion C holds rarely. By using a rule of this
type we are free to ignore the exception conditions, when the
resources needed to establish its presence are tight or there is simply
no information available as to whether it holds or not. Thus, the IF P
THEN D part of CPR expresses important information, while the
UNLESS C part acts only as a switch and changes the polarity of D
to ~D. In this paper Pittsburgh style LCSs approach is used for
automated discovery of CPRs. An appropriate encoding scheme is
suggested to represent a chromosome consisting of fixed size set of
CPRs. Suitable genetic operators are designed for the set of CPRs
and individual CPRs and also appropriate fitness function is proposed
that incorporates basic constraints on CPR. Experimental results are
presented to demonstrate the performance of the proposed learning
classifier system.
Abstract: In this paper, the effect of atmospheric turbulence on
bit error probability in free-space optical CDMA scheme with
Sequence Inverse Keyed (SIK) optical correlator receiver is analyzed.
Here Intensity Modulation scheme is considered for transmission.
The turbulence induced fading is described by the newly introduced
gamma-gamma pdf[1] as a tractable mathematical model for
atmospheric turbulence. Results are evaluated with Gold and Kasami
code & it is shown that Gold sequence can be used for more
efficient transmission than Kasami sequence in an atmospheric
turbulence channel.
Abstract: In this paper, a new time-delay estimation
technique based on the cross IB-energy operator [5] is
introduced. This quadratic energy detector measures how
much a signal is present in another one. The location of the
peak of the energy operator, corresponding to the maximum of
interaction between the two signals, is the estimate of the
delay. The method is a fully data-driven approach. The
discrete version of the continuous-time form of the cross IBenergy
operator, for its implementation, is presented. The
effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated on real
underwater acoustic signals arriving from targets and the
results compared to the cross-correlation method.
Abstract: This paper presents the results of the experimental
tests of the cooling performance of a 12,000-Btu/h modified air
conditioner (referred to as M-AC) that use the ground as a heat sink
of a condenser. In the tests, cooling capacity of M-AC with an
optimal length of a condensing coil as well as life expectancy of
copper coil buried underground were investigated. The lengths of
copper coil fabricated and used as condenser coil of M-AC were set
at 67, 50, 40 and 30 m whereas that of a 12,000-Btu/h conventional
split-type air conditioner (referred to as C-AC) was about 22 m. The
results showed that the ground can absorb heat rejected from a
condenser of M-AC. The coefficient of performance (COP) of C-AC
was about 2.5 whereas those of M-AC were found to be higher. It
was found that the values of COP of M-AC with condensing coils of
67, 50 and 40 m long were about 6.9, 5.5 and 3.3, respectively, while
that of 30-m-long one was found to be about 2.1. The electrical
consumptions of M-AC were found lower than that of C-AC in the
range of 11.5 – 15.5%. Additionally, life expectancy of underground
condensing coil of M-AC was found to be over 7 years.
Abstract: Human identification at a distance has recently gained
growing interest from computer vision researchers. Gait recognition
aims essentially to address this problem by identifying people based
on the way they walk [1]. Gait recognition has 3 steps. The first step
is preprocessing, the second step is feature extraction and the third
one is classification. This paper focuses on the classification step that
is essential to increase the CCR (Correct Classification Rate).
Multilayer Perceptron (MLP) is used in this work. Neural Networks
imitate the human brain to perform intelligent tasks [3].They can
represent complicated relationships between input and output and
acquire knowledge about these relationships directly from the data
[2]. In this paper we apply MLP NN for 11 views in our database and
compare the CCR values for these views. Experiments are performed
with the NLPR databases, and the effectiveness of the proposed
method for gait recognition is demonstrated.
Abstract: A Comparison and evaluation of the different
condition monitoring (CM) techniques was applied experimentally
on RC e.g. Dynamic cylinder pressure and crankshaft Instantaneous
Angular Speed (IAS), for the detection and diagnosis of valve faults
in a two - stage reciprocating compressor for a programme of
condition monitoring which can successfully detect and diagnose a
fault in machine. Leakage in the valve plate was introduced
experimentally into a two-stage reciprocating compressor. The effect
of the faults on compressor performance was monitored and the
differences with the normal, healthy performance noted as a fault
signature been used for the detection and diagnosis of faults.
The paper concludes with what is considered to be a unique
approach to condition monitoring. First, each of the two most useful
techniques is used to produce a Truth Table which details the
circumstances in which each method can be used to detect and
diagnose a fault. The two Truth Tables are then combined into a
single Decision Table to provide a unique and reliable method of
detection and diagnosis of each of the individual faults introduced
into the compressor. This gives accurate diagnosis of compressor
faults.
Abstract: 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) is a synthetic estrogen
used as a key ingredient in an oral contraceptives pill. EE2 is an
endocrine disrupting compound, high in estrogenic potency.
Although EE2 exhibits low degree of biodegradability with common
microorganisms in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), this
compound can be biotransformed by ammonia-oxidizing bacteria
(AOB) via a co-metabolism mechanism in WWTPs. This study
aimed to investigate the effect of real wastewater on
biotransformation of EE2 by AOB. A preliminary experiment on the
effect of nitrite and pH levels on abiotic transformation of EE2
suggested that the abiotic transformation occurred at only pH
Abstract: Three alumina-supported Pt-Sn catalysts have been
prepared by means of co-impregnation and characterized by XRD and
N2 adsorption. The influence of catalyst composition and reaction
conditions on the conversion and selectivity were investigated in the
hydrogenation of acetic acid in an isothermal integral fixed bed
reactor. The experiments were performed on the temperature interval
468-548 K, liquid hourly space velocity (LHSV) of 0.3-0.7h-1,
pressures between 1.0 and 5.0Mpa. A good compromise of
0.75%Pt-1.5%Sn can act as an optimized acetic acid hydrogenation
catalyst, and the conversion and selectivity can be tuned through the
variation of reaction conditions.
Abstract: In the past few years there is a change in the view of high performance applications and parallel computing. Initially such applications were targeted towards dedicated parallel machines. Recently trend is changing towards building meta-applications composed of several modules that exploit heterogeneous platforms and employ hybrid forms of parallelism. The aim of this paper is to propose a model of virtual parallel computing. Virtual parallel computing system provides a flexible object oriented software framework that makes it easy for programmers to write various parallel applications.
Abstract: The technology usages of high speed Internet leads to
establish and start new era of online education. With the
advancement of the information technology and communication
systems new opportunities have been created. This leads universities
to have various online education channels to meet the demand of
different learners- needs. One of these channels is M-learning, which
can be used to improve the online education environment. With using
such mobile technology in learning both students and instructors can
easily access educational courses anytime from anywhere. The paper
first presents literature about mobile learning and to what extent this
approach can be utilized to enhance the overall learning system. It
provides a comparison between mobile learning and traditional elearning
showing the wide array of benefits of the new generation of
technology. The possible challenges and potential advantages of Mlearning
in the online education system are also discussed.
Abstract: Mining sequential patterns from large customer transaction databases has been recognized as a key research topic in database systems. However, the previous works more focused on mining sequential patterns at a single concept level. In this study, we introduced concept hierarchies into this problem and present several algorithms for discovering multiple-level sequential patterns based on the hierarchies. An experiment was conducted to assess the performance of the proposed algorithms. The performances of the algorithms were measured by the relative time spent on completing the mining tasks on two different datasets. The experimental results showed that the performance depends on the characteristics of the datasets and the pre-defined threshold of minimal support for each level of the concept hierarchy. Based on the experimental results, some suggestions were also given for how to select appropriate algorithm for a certain datasets.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to solve the problem of protecting aerial lines from high impedance faults (HIFs) in distribution systems. This investigation successfully applies 3I0 zero sequence current to solve HIF problems. The feature extraction system based on discrete wavelet transform (DWT) and the feature identification technique found on statistical confidence are then applied to discriminate effectively between the HIFs and the switch operations. Based on continuous wavelet transform (CWT) pattern recognition of HIFs is proposed, also. Staged fault testing results demonstrate that the proposed wavelet based algorithm is feasible performance well.