Abstract: Chemical industry project management involves
complex decision making situations that require discerning abilities
and methods to make sound decisions. Project managers are faced
with decision environments and problems in projects that are
complex. In this work, case study is Research and Development
(R&D) project selection. R&D is an ongoing process for forward
thinking technology-based chemical industries. R&D project
selection is an important task for organizations with R&D project
management. It is a multi-criteria problem which includes both
tangible and intangible factors. The ability to make sound decisions
is very important to success of R&D projects. Multiple-criteria
decision making (MCDM) approaches are major parts of decision
theory and analysis. This paper presents all of MCDM approaches
for use in R&D project selection. It is hoped that this work will
provide a ready reference on MCDM and this will encourage the
application of the MCDM by chemical engineering management.
Abstract: As part of national epidemiological survey on bovine
viral diarrhea virus (BVDV), a total of 274 dejecta samples were
collected from 14 cattle farms in 8 areas of Xinjiang Uygur
Autonomous Region in northwestern China. Total RNA was extracted
from each sample, and 5--untranslated region (UTR) of BVDV
genome was amplified by using two-step reverse
transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The PCR products
were subsequently sequenced to study the genetic variations of BVDV
in these areas. Among the 274 samples, 33 samples were found
virus-positive. According to sequence analysis of the PCR products,
the 33 samples could be arranged into 16 groups. All the sequences,
however, were highly conserved with BVDV Osloss strains. The virus
possessed theses sequences belonged to BVDV-1b subtype by
phylogenetic analysis. Based on these data, we established a typing
tree for BVDV in these areas. Our results suggested that BVDV-1b
was a predominant subgenotype in northwestern China and no
correlation between the genetic and geographical distances could be
observed above the farm level.
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: IETF defines mobility support in IPv6, i.e. MIPv6, to
allow nodes to remain reachable while moving around in the IPv6
internet. When a node moves and visits a foreign network, it is still
reachable through the indirect packet forwarding from its home
network. This triangular routing feature provides node mobility but
increases the communication latency between nodes. This deficiency
can be overcome by using a Binding Update (BU) scheme, which let
nodes keep up-to-date IP addresses and communicate with each other
through direct IP routing. To further protect the security of BU, a
Return Routability (RR) procedure was developed. However, it has
been found that RR procedure is vulnerable to many attacks. In this
paper, we will propose a lightweight RR procedure based on
geometric computing. In consideration of the inherent limitation of
computing resources in mobile node, the proposed scheme is
developed to minimize the cost of computations and to eliminate the
overhead of state maintenance during binding updates. Compared with
other CGA-based BU schemes, our scheme is more efficient and
doesn-t need nonce tables in nodes.
Abstract: High quality requirements analysis is one of the most
crucial activities to ensure the success of a software project, so that
requirements verification for software system becomes more and more
important in Requirements Engineering (RE) and it is one of the most
helpful strategies for improving the quality of software system.
Related works show that requirement elicitation and analysis can be
facilitated by ontological approaches and semantic web technologies.
In this paper, we proposed a hybrid method which aims to verify
requirements with structural and formal semantics to detect
interactions. The proposed method is twofold: one is for modeling
requirements with the semantic web language OWL, to construct a
semantic context; the other is a set of interaction detection rules which
are derived from scenario-based analysis and represented with
semantic web rule language (SWRL). SWRL based rules are working
with rule engines like Jess to reason in semantic context for
requirements thus to detect interactions. The benefits of the proposed
method lie in three aspects: the method (i) provides systematic steps
for modeling requirements with an ontological approach, (ii) offers
synergy of requirements elicitation and domain engineering for
knowledge sharing, and (3)the proposed rules can systematically assist
in requirements interaction detection.
Abstract: There are many debates now regarding undervalued
and overvalued currencies currently traded on the world financial
market. This paper contributes to these debates from a theoretical
point of view. We present the three most commonly used methods of
estimating the equilibrium real effective exchange rate (REER):
macroeconomic balance approach, external sustainability approach
and equilibrium real effective exchange rate approach in the reduced
form. Moreover, we discuss key concepts of the calculation of the
real exchange rate (RER) based on applied explanatory variables:
nominal exchange rates, terms of trade and tradable and non-tradable
goods. Last but not least, we discuss the three main driving forces
behind real exchange rates movements which include terms of trade,
relative productivity growth and the interest rate differential.
Abstract: Coverage is one of the main research interests in wireless sensor networks (WSN), it is used to determine the quality of service (QoS) of the networks. Therefore this paper aims to review the common strategies use in solving coverage problem in WSN. The strategies studied are used during deployment phase where the coverage is calculated based on the placement of the sensors on the region of interest (ROI). The strategies reviewed are categorized into three groups based on the approaches used, namely; force based, grid based or computational geometry based approach.
Abstract: In this paper the concept of Q-fuzzification of ideals of Γ-semigroups has been introduced and some important properties have been investigated. A characterization of regular Γ-semigroup in terms of Q-fuzzy ideals has been obtained. Operator semigroups of a Γ-semigroup has been made to work by obtaining various relationships between Q-fuzzy ideals of a Γ-semigroup and that of its operator semigroups.
Abstract: The behavior of Radial Basis Function (RBF) Networks greatly depends on how the center points of the basis functions are selected. In this work we investigate the use of instance reduction techniques, originally developed to reduce the storage requirements of instance based learners, for this purpose. Five Instance-Based Reduction Techniques were used to determine the set of center points, and RBF networks were trained using these sets of centers. The performance of the RBF networks is studied in terms of classification accuracy and training time. The results obtained were compared with two Radial Basis Function Networks: RBF networks that use all instances of the training set as center points (RBF-ALL) and Probabilistic Neural Networks (PNN). The former achieves high classification accuracies and the latter requires smaller training time. Results showed that RBF networks trained using sets of centers located by noise-filtering techniques (ALLKNN and ENN) rather than pure reduction techniques produce the best results in terms of classification accuracy. The results show that these networks require smaller training time than that of RBF-ALL and higher classification accuracy than that of PNN. Thus, using ALLKNN and ENN to select center points gives better combination of classification accuracy and training time. Our experiments also show that using the reduced sets to train the networks is beneficial especially in the presence of noise in the original training sets.
Abstract: Herein, the organic semiconductor methyl orange
(MO), is investigated for the first time for its electronic applications.
For this purpose, Al/MO/n-Si heterojunction is fabricated through
economical cheap and simple “drop casting” technique. The currentvoltage
(I-V) measurements of the device are made at room
temperature under dark conditions. The I-V characteristics of
Al/MO/n-Si junction exhibits asymmetrical and rectifying behavior
that confirms the formation of diode. The diode parameters such as
rectification ratio (RR), turn on voltage (Vturn on), reverse saturation
current (I0), ideality factor (n), barrier height ( b
f ), series resistance
(Rs) and shunt resistance (Rsh) are determined from I-V curves using
Schottky equations. These values of these parameters are also
extracted and verified by applying Cheung’s functions. The
conduction mechanisms are explained from the forward bias I-V
characteristics using the power law.
Abstract: This paper investigates the development of weld zone
in Resistance Spot Welding (RSW) which focuses on weld nugget and Heat Affected Zone (HAZ). The effects of four factors namely
weld current, weld time, electrode force and hold time were studied using a general 24 factorial design augmented by five centre points. The results of the analysis showed that all selected factors except
hold time exhibit significant effect on weld nugget radius and HAZ size. Optimization of the welding parameters (weld current, weld
time and electrode force) to normalize weld nugget and to minimize
HAZ size was then conducted using Central Composite Design (CCD) in Response Surface Methodology (RSM) and the optimum
parameters were determined. A regression model for radius of weld nugget and HAZ size was developed and its adequacy was evaluated.
The experimental results obtained under optimum operating conditions were then compared with the predicted values and were
found to agree satisfactorily with each other
Abstract: This study aims at providing empirical evidence on a
comparison of two equity valuation models: (1) the dividend discount
model (DDM) and (2) the residual income model (RIM), in
estimating equity values of Thai firms during 1995-2004. Results
suggest that DDM and RIM underestimate equity values of Thai
firms and that RIM outperforms DDM in predicting cross-sectional
stock prices. Results on regression of cross-sectional stock prices on
the decomposed DDM and RIM equity values indicate that book
value of equity provides the greatest incremental explanatory power,
relative to other components in DDM and RIM terminal values,
suggesting that book value distortions resulting from accounting
procedures and choices are less severe than forecast and
measurement errors in discount rates and growth rates.
We also document that the incremental explanatory power of book
value of equity during 1998-2004, representing the information
environment under Thai Accounting Standards reformed after the
1997 economic crisis to conform to International Accounting
Standards, is significantly greater than that during 1995-1996,
representing the information environment under the pre-reformed
Thai Accounting Standards. This implies that the book value
distortions are less severe under the 1997 Reformed Thai Accounting
Standards than the pre-reformed Thai Accounting Standards.
Abstract: The present work represents an investigation of the
hydrolysis of hull-less pumpkin (Cucurbita Pepo L.) oil cake protein
isolate (PuOC PI) by pepsin. To examine the effectiveness and
suitability of pepsin towards PuOC PI the kinetic parameters for
pepsin on PuOC PI were determined and then, the hydrolysis process
was studied using Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The
hydrolysis was carried out at temperature of 30°C and pH 3.00. Time
and initial enzyme/substrate ratio (E/S) at three levels were selected
as the independent parameters. The degree of hydrolysis, DH, was
mesuared after 20, 30 and 40 minutes, at initial E/S of 0.7, 1 and 1.3
mA/mg proteins. Since the proposed second-order polynomial model
showed good fit with the experimental data (R2 = 0.9822), the
obtained mathematical model could be used for monitoring the
hydrolysis of PuOC PI by pepsin, under studied experimental
conditions, varying the time and initial E/S. To achieve the highest
value of DH (39.13 %), the obtained optimum conditions for time
and initial E/S were 30 min and 1.024 mA/mg proteins.
Abstract: Response surface methodology (RSM) is a very
efficient tool to provide a good practical insight into developing new
process and optimizing them. This methodology could help
engineers to raise a mathematical model to represent the behavior of
system as a convincing function of process parameters.
Through this paper the sequential nature of the RSM surveyed for process
engineers and its relationship to design of experiments (DOE), regression
analysis and robust design reviewed. The proposed four-step procedure in
two different phases could help system analyst to resolve the parameter
design problem involving responses. In order to check accuracy of the
designed model, residual analysis and prediction error sum of squares
(PRESS) described.
It is believed that the proposed procedure in this study can resolve a
complex parameter design problem with one or more responses. It can be
applied to those areas where there are large data sets and a number of
responses are to be optimized simultaneously. In addition, the proposed
procedure is relatively simple and can be implemented easily by using
ready-made standard statistical packages.
Abstract: Earth reinforcing techniques have become useful and economical to solve problems related to difficult grounds and provide satisfactory foundation performance. In this context, this paper uses radial basis function neural network (RBFNN) for predicting the bearing pressure of strip footing on reinforced granular bed overlying weak soil. The inputs for the neural network models included plate width, thickness of granular bed and number of layers of reinforcements, settlement ratio, water content, dry density, cohesion and angle of friction. The results indicated that RBFNN model exhibited more than 84 % prediction accuracy, thereby demonstrating its application in a geotechnical problem.
Abstract: An attempt was made for availability of wastewater reuse/reclamation for irrigation purposes using phytoremediation “the low cost and less technology", using six local aquatic macrophytes “e.g. T. angustifolia, B. maritimus, Ph. australis, A. donax, A. plantago-aquatica and M. longifolia (Linn)" as biological waste purifiers. Outdoor experiments/designs were conducted from May 03, 2007 till October 15, 2008, close to one of the main sewage channels of Sulaimani City/Iraq*. All processes were mainly based on conventional wastewater treatment processes, besides two further modifications were tested, the first was sand filtration pots, implanted by individual species of experimental macrophytes and the second was constructed wetlands implanted by experimental macrophytes all together. Untreated and treated wastewater samples were analyzed for their key physico-chemical properties (only heavy metals Fe, Mn, Zn and Cu with particular reference to removal efficiency by experimental macrophytes are highlighted in this paper). On the other hand, vertical contents of heavy metals were also evaluated from both pots and the cells of constructed wetland. After 135 days, macrophytes were harvested and heavy metals were analyzed in their biomass (roots/shoots) for removal efficiency assessment (i.e. uptake/ bioaccumulation rate). Results showed that; removal efficiency of all studied heavy metals was much higher in T. angustifolia followed by Ph. Australis, B. maritimus and A. donax in triple experiment sand pots. Constructed wetland experiments have revealed that; the more replicated constructed wetland cells the highest heavy metal removal efficiency was indicated.
Abstract: Mobile Ad hoc networks (MANETs) are collections
of wireless mobile nodes dynamically reconfiguring and collectively
forming a temporary network. These types of networks assume
existence of no fixed infrastructure and are often useful in battle-field
tactical operations or emergency search-and-rescue type of
operations where fixed infrastructure is neither feasible nor practical.
They also find use in ad hoc conferences, campus networks and
commercial recreational applications carrying multimedia traffic. All
of the above applications of MANETs require guaranteed levels of
performance as experienced by the end-user. This paper focuses on
key challenges in provisioning predetermined levels of such Quality
of Service (QoS). It also identifies functional areas where QoS
models are currently defined and used. Evolving functional areas
where performance and QoS provisioning may be applied are also
identified and some suggestions are provided for further research in
this area. Although each of the above functional areas have been
discussed separately in recent research studies, since these QoS
functional areas are highly correlated and interdependent, a
comprehensive and comparative analysis of these areas and their
interrelationships is desired. In this paper we have attempted to
provide such an overview.
Abstract: In the territories where high-intensity
earthquakes are frequent is paid attention to the solving of the
seismic problems. In the paper are described two
computational model variants based on finite element method
of the construction with different subsoil simulation (rigid or
elastic subsoil) is used. For simulation and calculations
program system based on method final elements ANSYS was
used. Seismic responses calculations of residential building
structure were effected on loading characterized by
accelerogram for comparing with the responses spectra
method.
Abstract: Selective harmonic elimination-pulse width modulation techniques offer a tight control of the harmonic spectrum of a given voltage waveform generated by a power electronic converter along with a low number of switching transitions. Traditional optimization methods suffer from various drawbacks, such as prolonged and tedious computational steps and convergence to local optima; thus, the more the number of harmonics to be eliminated, the larger the computational complexity and time. This paper presents a novel method for output voltage harmonic elimination and voltage control of PWM AC/AC voltage converters using the principle of hybrid Real-Coded Genetic Algorithm-Pattern Search (RGA-PS) method. RGA is the primary optimizer exploiting its global search capabilities, PS is then employed to fine tune the best solution provided by RGA in each evolution. The proposed method enables linear control of the fundamental component of the output voltage and complete elimination of its harmonic contents up to a specified order. Theoretical studies have been carried out to show the effectiveness and robustness of the proposed method of selective harmonic elimination. Theoretical results are validated through simulation studies using PSIM software package.
Abstract: The process of laser absorption in the skin during
laser irradiation was a critical point in medical application
treatments. Delivery the correct amount of laser light is a critical
element in photodynamic therapy (PDT). More amounts of laser
light able to affect tissues in the skin and small amount not able to
enhance PDT procedure in skin. The knowledge of the skin tone
laser dependent distribution of 635 nm radiation and its penetration
depth in skin is a very important precondition for the investigation of
advantage laser induced effect in (PDT) in epidermis diseases
(psoriasis). The aim of this work was to estimate an optimum effect
of diode laser (635 nm) on the treatment of epidermis diseases in
different color skin. Furthermore, it is to improve safety of laser in
PDT in epidermis diseases treatment. Advanced system analytical
program (ASAP) which is a new approach in investigating the PDT,
dependent on optical properties of different skin color was used in
present work. A two layered Realistic Skin Model (RSM); stratum
corneum and epidermal with red laser (635 nm, 10 mW) were used
for irradiative transfer to study fluence and absorbance in different
penetration for various human skin colors. Several skin tones very
fair, fair, light, medium and dark are used to irradiative transfer. This
investigation involved the principles of laser tissue interaction when
the skin optically injected by a red laser diode. The results
demonstrated that the power characteristic of a laser diode (635 nm)
can affect the treatment of epidermal disease in various color skins.
Power absorption of the various human skins were recorded and
analyzed in order to find the influence of the melanin in PDT
treatment in epidermal disease. A two layered RSM show that the
change in penetration depth in epidermal layer of the color skin has a
larger effect on the distribution of absorbed laser in the skin; this is
due to the variation of the melanin concentration for each color.