An Evaluation of TIG Welding Parametric Influence on Tensile Strength of 5083 Aluminium Alloy

Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) welding is a high quality welding process used to weld the thin metals and their alloy. 5083 Aluminium alloys play an important role in engineering and metallurgy field because of excellent corrosion properties, ease of fabrication and high specific strength coupled with best combination of toughness and formability. TIG welding technique is one of the precise and fastest processes used in aerospace, ship and marine industries. TIG welding process is used to analyze the data and evaluate the influence of input parameters on tensile strength of 5083 Al-alloy specimens with dimensions of 100mm long x 15mm wide x 5mm thick. Welding current (I), gas flow rate (G) and welding speed (S) are the input parameters which effect tensile strength of 5083 Al-alloy welded joints. As welding speed increased, tensile strength increases first till optimum value and after that both decreases by increasing welding speed further. Results of the study show that maximum tensile strength of 129 MPa of weld joint are obtained at welding current of 240 Amps, gas flow rate of 7 Lt/min and welding speed of 98 mm/min. These values are the optimum values of input parameters which help to produce efficient weld joint that have good mechanical properties as a tensile strength.

Best Proximity Point Theorems for MT-K and MT-C Rational Cyclic Contractions in Metric Spaces

The purpose of this paper is to present a best proximity point theorems through rational expression for a combination of contraction condition, Kannan and Chatterjea nonlinear cyclic contraction in what we call MT-K and MT-C rational cyclic contraction. Some best proximity point theorems for a mapping satisfy these conditions have been established in metric spaces. We also give some examples to support our work.

Localization of Anatomical Landmarks in Head CT Images for Image to Patient Registration

The use of anatomical landmarks as a basis for image to patient registration is appealing because the registration may be performed retrospectively. We have previously proposed the use of two anatomical soft tissue landmarks of the head, the canthus (corner of the eye) and the tragus (a small, pointed, cartilaginous flap of the ear), as a registration basis for an automated CT image to patient registration system, and described their localization in patient space using close range photogrammetry. In this paper, the automatic localization of these landmarks in CT images, based on their curvature saliency and using a rule based system that incorporates prior knowledge of their characteristics, is described. Existing approaches to landmark localization in CT images are predominantly semi-automatic and primarily for localizing internal landmarks. To validate our approach, the positions of the landmarks localized automatically and manually in near isotropic CT images of 102 patients were compared. The average difference was 1.2mm (std = 0.9mm, max = 4.5mm) for the medial canthus and 0.8mm (std = 0.6mm, max = 2.6mm) for the tragus. The medial canthus and tragus can be automatically localized in CT images, with performance comparable to manual localization, based on the approach presented.

Improved MARS Ciphering Using a Metamorphic-Enhanced Function

MARS is a shared-key (symmetric) block cipher algorithm supporting 128-bit block size and a variable key size of between 128 and 448 bits. MARS has a several rounds of cryptographic core that is designed to take advantage of the powerful results for improving security/performance tradeoff over existing ciphers. In this work, a new function added to improve the ciphering process it is called, Meta-Morphic function. This function use XOR, Rotating, Inverting and No-Operation logical operations before and after encryption process. The aim of these operations is to improve MARS cipher process and makes a high confusion criterion for the Ciphertext.

Buzan Mind Mapping: An Efficient Technique for Note-Taking

Buzan mind mapping is an efficient system of note-taking that makes revision a fun thing to do for students. Tony Buzan has been teaching children all over the world for the past thirty years and has proved that mind maps are the magic formula in the classroom for everyone. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the importance of Buzan mind mapping as a note-taking technique for the secondary school students. This paper also examines the mind mapping technique, advantages and disadvantages of hand-drawn mind maps. Samples of students’ mind maps were presented and discussed.

Phase-Averaged Analysis of Three-Dimensional Vorticity in the Wake of Two Yawed Side-By-Side Circular Cylinders

Thewake flow behind two yawed side-by-sidecircular  cylinders is investigated using athree-dimensional vorticity probe.  Four yaw angles (α), namely, 0°, 15°, 30° and 45° and twocylinder  spacing ratios T*  of 1.7 and 3.0 were tested. For T*  = 3.0, there exist  two vortex streets and the cylinders behave as independent and  isolated ones. The maximum contour value of the coherent streamwise  vorticity ~* ωx  is only about 10% of that of the spanwise vorticity ~* ωz .  With the increase of α,  ~* ωx  increases whereas ~* ωz  decreases. At α =  45°, ~* ωx  is about 67% of ~* ωz .For T* = 1.7, only a single peak is  detected in the energy spectrum. The spanwise vorticity contours have  an organized pattern only at α = 0°. The maximum coherent vorticity  contours of ~* ω x  and ~* ωz  for T*  = 1.7 are about 30% and 7% of those  for T*  = 3.0.The independence principle (IP)in terms of Strouhal  numbers is applicable in both wakes when α< 40°.  

Thinned Elliptical Cylindrical Antenna Array Synthesis Using Particle Swarm Optimization

This paper describes optimal thinning of an Elliptical  Cylindrical Array (ECA) of uniformly excited isotropic antennas  which can generate directive beam with minimum relative Side Lobe  Level (SLL). The Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) method, which  represents a new approach for optimization problems in  electromagnetic, is used in the optimization process. The PSO is used  to determine the optimal set of ‘ON-OFF’ elements that provides a  radiation pattern with maximum SLL reduction. Optimization is done  without prefixing the value of First Null Beam Width (FNBW). The  variation of SLL with element spacing of thinned array is also  reported. Simulation results show that the number of array elements  can be reduced by more than 50% of the total number of elements in  the array with a simultaneous reduction in SLL to less than -27dB.  

Effect of Jet Diameter on Surface Quenching at Different Spatial Locations

An experimental investigation has been carried out to study the cooling of a hot horizontal Stainless Steel surface of 3 mm thickness, which has 800±10 C initial temperature. A round water jet of 22 ± 1 oC temperature was injected over the hot surface through straight tube type nozzles of 2.5- 4.8 mm diameter and 250 mm length. The experiments were performed for the jet exit to target surface spacing of 4 times of jet diameter and jet Reynolds number of 5000 -24000. The effect of change in jet Reynolds number on the surface quenching has been investigated form the stagnation point to 16 mm spatial location.  

Disparity of Learning Styles and Cognitive Abilities in Vocational Education

This study is conducted to investigate the disparity of between learning styles and cognitive abilities specifically in Vocational Education.  Felder and Silverman Learning Styles Model (FSLSM) was applied to measure the students’ learning styles while the content in Building Construction Subject consists; knowledge, skills and problem solving were taken into account in constructing the elements of cognitive abilities. Building Construction is one of the vocational courses offered in Vocational Education structure. There are four dimension of learning styles proposed by Felder and Silverman intended to capture student learning preferences with regards to processing either active or reflective, perception based on sensing or intuitive, input of information used visual or verbal and understanding information represent with sequential or global learner. Felder-Solomon Learning Styles Index was developed based on FSLSM and the questions were used to identify what type of student learning preferences. The index consists 44 item-questions characterize for learning styles dimension in FSLSM. The achievement test was developed to determine the students’ cognitive abilities. The quantitative data was analyzed in descriptive and inferential statistic involving Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA). The study discovered students are tending to be visual learners and each type of learner having significant difference whereas cognitive abilities there are different finding for each type of learners in knowledge, skills and problem solving. This study concludes the gap between type of learner and the cognitive abilities in few illustrations and it explained how the connecting made. The finding may help teachers to facilitate students more effectively and to boost the student’s cognitive abilities.

Analysis of Meteorological Drought Using Standardized Precipitation Index – A Case Study of Puruliya District, West Bengal, India

Drought is universally acknowledged as a phenomenon associated with scarcity of water. The Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) expresses the actual rainfall as standardized departure from rainfall probability distribution function. In this study severity and spatial pattern of meteorological drought was analyzed in the Puruliya District, West Bengal, India using multi-temporal SPI. Daily gridded data for the period 1971-2005 from 4 rainfall stations surrounding the study area were collected from IMD, Pune, and used in the analysis. Geographic Information System (GIS) was used to generate drought severity maps for the different time scales and months of the year. Temporal SPI graphs show that the maximum SPI value (extreme drought) occurs in station 3 in the year 1993. Mild and moderate droughts occur in the central portion of the study area. Severe and extreme droughts were mostly found in the northeast, northwest and the southwest part of the region.

Spark Breakdown Voltage and Surface Degradation of Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Electrode Surfaces

Silicon substrates coated with multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were experimentally investigated to determine spark breakdown voltages relative to uncoated surfaces, the degree of surface degradation associated with the spark discharge, and techniques to minimize the surface degradation. The results may be applicable to instruments or processes that use MWCNT as a means of increasing local electric field strength and where spark breakdown is a possibility that might affect the devices’ performance or longevity. MWCNTs were shown to reduce the breakdown voltage of a 1mm gap in air by 30-50%. The relative decrease in breakdown voltage was maintained over gap distances of 0.5 to 2mm and gauge pressures of 0 to 4 bar. Degradation of the MWCNT coated surfaces was observed. Several techniques to improve durability were investigated. These included: chromium and gold-palladium coatings, tube annealing, and embedding clusters of MWCNT in a ceramic matrix.

Influence of Composition and Austempering Temperature on Machinability of Austempered Ductile Iron

Present investigations involve a systematic study on the machinability of austempered ductile irons (ADI) developed from four commercially viable ductile irons alloyed with different contents of 0, 0.1, 0.3 and 0.6 wt.% of Ni. The influence of Ni content, amount of retained austenite and hardness of ADI on machining behavior has been conducted systematically. Austempering heat treatment was carried out for 120 minutes at four temperatures- 270oC, 320oC, 370oC or 420oC, after austenitization at 900oC for 120 min. Milling tests were performed and machinability index, cutting forces and surface roughness measurements were used to evaluate the machinability. Higher cutting forces, lower machinability index and the poorer surface roughness of the samples austempered at lower temperatures indicated that austempering at higher temperatures resulted in better machinability. The machinability of samples austempered at 420oC, which contained higher fractions of retained austenite, was superior to that of samples austempered at lower temperatures, indicating that hardness is an important factor in assessing machinability in addition to high carbon austenite content. The ADI with 0.6% Ni, austempered at 420°C for 120 minutes, demonstrated best machinability.

Predicting Dispersion Coefficient in Free-Flowing Zones of Rivers by Genetic Programming

Transient storage zones along the flow paths of rivers have great influence on the dispersion of pollutants that are either accidentally or otherwise led into them. The speed with which these pollution clouds get transported and dispersed downstream is, to a large extent, explained by the longitudinal dispersion coefficients in the free-flowing zones of rivers (Kf). In the present work, a new empirical expression for Kf has been derived employing genetic programming (GP) on published dispersion data. The proposed expression uses few hydraulic and geometric characteristics of a river that are readily available to field engineers. Based on various performance indices, the proposed expression is found superior to other existing expression for Kf.

Description of Unsteady Flows in the Cuboid Container

This part of study deals with description of unsteady isothermal melt flow in the container with cuboid shape. This melt flow is driven by rotating magnetic field. Input data (instantaneous velocities, grid coordinates and Lorentz forces) were obtained from in-house CFD code (called NS-FEM3D) which uses DDES method of computing. Description of the flow was performed by contours of Lorentz forces and caused velocity field. Taylor magnetic numbers of the flow were used 1.10^6, 5.10^6 and 1.10^7, flow was in 3D turbulent flow regime.

Biomass and Productivity Studies of Up-Land and Low-Land Vegetation in the Neglected Margin of a Tropical Lake

Present paper deals with an evaluation of magnitude of changes in biomass and net primary productivity at ‘Gujar Tal’ sloppy lake margin at Jaunpur in tropical semi-arid region of eastern U.P. (India). The study site abandoned or neglected lands (50 ×125 m) was divided into two zones, i.e. upper zone (up-land) and lower zone (low-land). Maximum biomass in the upper zone of dominant weed Desmostachya bipinnata (L.) Stapf. was 207.47 g m-2 and ‘rest weeds’ was 457.45 g m-2 both in the month of September. In contrast, the peak biomass value in the lower zone of dominant weed Oryza rufipogon Griff. was 1571.44 g m-2 in October and ‘rest weeds’ 270.65 g m-2 in February. Among the two zones, the peak total community biomass was observed 1655.62 g m-2 (October) in the lower zone while its peak value for the upper zone 457.45 g m-2 (September) was comparatively low. Maximum percentage contribution of dominant weeds (D. bipinnata and O. rufipogon) in the respective upper and lower zones and ‘rest weeds’ in both the zones varied in different months in the total community biomass. The peak net primary productivity of dominant weed (D. bipinnata) was 2.09g m-2 day-1 (September) and ‘rest weeds’ was 2.37 g m-2 day-1 (August) in the upper zone, while the lower zone for O. rufipogon was 5.25 g m-2 day-1 (June) as this zone was inundated later and ‘rest weeds’ was 2.08 g m-2 day-1 (January, 2009). The annual net production of total community at site I was highest, 409.58 g m-2 yr-1 in the upper zone followed by 395.58 g m-2 per eight month in the lower zone as this zone was flooded with water during rainy season. The site significance of variations in biomass in relation to plant species was tested by analysis of variance. It was significant between months in all the two zones (p

Performance Analysis of Adaptive OFDM Pre and Post-FTT Beamforming System

In mobile communication systems, performance and capacity are affected by multi-path fading, delay spread and Co-Channel Interference (CCI). For this reason Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) and adaptive antenna array are used is required. The goal of the OFDM is to improve the system performance against Inter-Symbol Interference (ISI). An array of adaptive antennas has been employed to suppress CCI by spatial technique. To suppress CCI in OFDM systems two main schemes the pre-FFT and the post-FFT have been proposed. In this paper, through a system level simulation, the behavior of the pre-FFT and post-FFT beamformers for OFDM system has been investigated based on two algorithms namely, Least Mean Squares (LMS) and Recursive Least Squares (RLS). The performance of the system is also discussed in multipath fading channel system specified by 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE).

Parallel Text Processing: Alignment of Indonesian to Javanese Language

Parallel text alignment is proposed as a way of aligning bahasa Indonesia to words in Javanese. Since the one-to-one word translator does not have the facility to translate pragmatic aspects of Javanese, the parallel text alignment model described uses a phrase pair combination. The algorithm aligns the parallel text automatically from the beginning to the end of each sentence. Even though the results of the phrase pair combination outperform the previous algorithm, it is still inefficient. Recording all possible combinations consume more space in the database and time consuming. The original algorithm is modified by applying the edit distance coefficient to improve the data-storage efficiency. As a result, the data-storage consumption is 90% reduced as well as its learning period (42s).

A Geometrical Perspective on the Insulin Evolution

We study the molecular evolution of insulin from metric geometry point of view. In mathematics, and in particular in geometry, distances and metrics between objects are of fundamental importance. Using a weaker notion than the classical distance, namely the weighted quasi-metrics, one can study the geometry of biological sequences (DNA, mRNA, or proteins) space. We analyze from geometrical point of view a family of 60 insulin homologous sequences ranging on a large variety of living organisms from human to the nematode C. elegans. We show that the distances between sequences provide important information about the evolution and function of insulin.

Concrete Recycling in Egypt for Construction Applications: A technical and Financial Feasibility Model

The construction industry is a very dynamic field. Every day new technologies and methods are developed to fasten the process and increase its efficiency. Hence, if a project uses fewer resources it will be more efficient. This paper examines the recycling of concrete construction and demolition (C&D) waste to reuse it as aggregates in on-site applications for construction projects in Egypt and possibly in the Middle East. The study focuses on a stationary plant setting. The machinery set-up used in the plant is analyzed technically and financially. The findings are gathered and grouped to obtain a comprehensive cost-benefit financial model to demonstrate the feasibility of establishing and operating a concrete recycling plant. Furthermore, a detailed business plan including the time and hierarchy is proposed. 

Evolution of Cord Absorbed Dose during of Larynx Cancer Radiotherapy, with 3D Treatment Planning and Tissue Equivalent Phantom

Radiation doses to tissues and organs were measured using the anthropomorphic phantom as an equivalent to the human body. When high-energy X-rays are externally applied to treat laryngeal cancer, the absorbed dose at the laryngeal lumen is lower than given dose because of air space, which it should pass through, before reaching the lesion. Specially, in case of high-energy X-rays, the loss of dose is considerable. Three-dimensional absorbed dose distributions have been computed for high-energy photon radiation therapy of laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers, using a coaxial pair of opposing lateral beams in fixed positions. Treatment plans obtained under various conditions of irradiation.