Abstract: Solid state fermentation of cassava peel with emphasis on protein enrichment using Trichoderma viride was evaluated. The effect of five variables: moisture content, pH, particle size (p), nitrogen source and incubation temperature; on the true protein and total sugars of cassava peel was investigated. The optimum fermentation period was established to be 8 days. Total sugars were 5-fold higher at pH 6 relative to pH 4 and 7-fold higher when cassava peels were fermented at 30oC relative to 25oC as well as using ammonium sulfate as the nitrogen source relative to urea or a combination of both. Total sugars ranged between 123.21mg/g at 50% initial moisture content to 374mg/g at 60% and from 190.59mg/g with particle size range of 2.00>p>1.41mm to 310.10mg/g with 4.00>p>3.35mm.True protein ranged from 229.70 mg/g at pH 4 to 284.05 mg/g at pH 6; from 200.87 mg/g with urea as nitrogen source and to 254.50mg/g with ammonium sulfate; from 213.82mg/g at 50% initial moisture content to 254.50mg/g at 60% moisture content, from 205.75mg/g in cassava peel with 5.6>p> 4.75mm to 268.30 in cassava peel with particle size 4.00>p>3.35mm, from 207.57mg/g at 25oC to 254.50mg/g at 30oC Cassava peel with particle size 4.00>p>3.35 mm and initial moisture content of 60% at pH 6.0, 30oC incubation temperature with ammonium sulfate (10g N / kg substrate) was most suitable for protein enrichment with Trichoderma viride. Crude protein increased from 4.21 % in unfermented cassava peel samples to 10.43 % in fermented samples.
Abstract: The characteristics of fluid flow and phase separation
in an oil-water separator were numerically analysed as part of the
work presented herein. Simulations were performed for different
velocities and droplet diameters, and the way this parameters can
influence the separator geometry was studied.
The simulations were carried out using the software package
Fluent 6.2, which is designed for numerical simulation of fluid flow
and mass transfer. The model consisted of a cylindrical horizontal
separator. A tetrahedral mesh was employed in the computational
domain. The condition of two-phase flow was simulated with the
two-fluid model, taking into consideration turbulence effects using
the k-ε model.
The results showed that there is a strong dependency of phase
separation on mixture velocity and droplet diameter. An increase in
mixture velocity will bring about a slow down in phase separation
and as a consequence will require a weir of greater height. An
increase in droplet diameter will produce a better phase separation.
The simulations are in agreement with results reported in literature
and show that CFD can be a useful tool in studying a horizontal oilwater
separator.
Abstract: This paper shows a simple and effective approach to
the design and implementation of Industrial Information Systems
(IIS) oriented to control the characteristics of each individual product manufactured in a production line and also their manufacturing conditions. The particular products considered in this work are large steel strips that are coiled just after their manufacturing. However, the approach is directly applicable to coiled strips in other industries, like
paper, textile, aluminum, etc. These IIS provide very detailed information of each manufactured product, which complement the general information managed by the ERP system of the production line. In spite of the high importance of this type of IIS to guarantee and improve the quality of the products manufactured in many industries, there are very few works about them in the technical literature. For this reason, this paper represents an important contribution to the development of this type of IIS, providing guidelines for their design, implementation and exploitation.
Abstract: Iron oxide nanoparticle was synthesized by reactive-precipitation method followed by high speed centrifuge and phase transfer in order to stabilized nanoparticles in the solvent. Particle size of SPIO was 8.2 nm by SEM, and the hydraulic radius was 17.5 nm by dynamic light scattering method. Coercivity and saturated magnetism were determined by VSM (vibrating sample magnetometer), coercivity of nanoparticle was lower than 10 Hc, and the saturated magnetism was higher than 65 emu/g. Stabilized SPIO was then transferred to aqueous phase by reacted with excess amount of poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG) silane. After filtration and dialysis, the SPIO T2 contrast agent was ready to use. The hydraulic radius of final product was about 70~100 nm, the relaxation rates R2 (1/T2) measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was larger than 200(sec-1).
Abstract: We have devised a thermal carpet cloak theoretically
and implemented in silicon using layered metamaterial. The layered
metamaterial is composed of single crystalline silicon and its phononic
crystal. The design is based on a coordinate transformation. We
demonstrate the result with numerical simulation. Great cloaking
performance is achieved as a thermal insulator is well hidden under the
thermal carpet cloak. We also show that the thermal carpet cloak can
even the temperature on irregular surface. Using thermal carpet cloak
to manipulate the heat conduction is effective because of its low
complexity.
Abstract: This paper introduces a tool that is being developed for the expression of information security policy controls that govern electronic healthcare records. By reference to published findings, the paper introduces the theory behind the use of knowledge management for automatic and consistent security policy assertion using the formalism called the Secutype; the development of the tool and functionality is discussed; some examples of Secutypes generated by the tool are provided; proposed integration with existing medical record systems is described. The paper is concluded with a section on further work and critique of the work achieved to date.
Abstract: In this paper we describe a computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) system for automated detection of pulmonary nodules in computed-tomography (CT) images. After extracting the pulmonary parenchyma using a combination of image processing techniques, a region growing method is applied to detect nodules based on 3D geometric features. We applied the CAD system to CT scans collected in a screening program for lung cancer detection. Each scan consists of a sequence of about 300 slices stored in DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) format. All malignant nodules were detected and a low false-positive detection rate was achieved.
Abstract: The biomarker for colorectal cancer (CRC) is CEACAM-6 antigen (C6AG). Therefore, this study aims to develop a novel, simple and low-cost CEACAM-6 antigen immumosensor (C6AG-IMS), based on electrical impedance measurement, for precise determination of C6AG. A low-cost screen-printed graphite electrode was constructed and used as the sensor, with CEACAM-6 antibody (C6AB) immobilized on it. The procedures of sensor fabrication and antibody immobilization are simple and low-cost. Measurement of the electrical impedance at a definite frequency ranges (0.43 – 1.26 MHz) showed that the C6AG-IMS has an excellent linear (r2>0.9) response range (8.125 – 65 pg/mL), covering the normal physiological and pathological ranges of blood C6AG levels. Also, the C6AG-IMS has excellent reliability and validity, with the intraclass correlation coefficient being 0.97. In conclusion, a novel, simple, low-cost and reliable C6AG-IMS was designed and developed, being able to accurately determine blood C6AG levels in the range of pathological and normal physiological regions. The C6AG-IMS can provide a point-of-care and immediate screening results to the user at home.
Abstract: The concurrent era is characterised by strengthened interactions among financial markets and increased capital mobility globally. In this frames we examine the effects the international financial integration process has on the European bond markets. We perform a comparative study of the interactions of the European and international bond markets and exploit Cointegration analysis results on the elimination of stochastic trends and the decomposition of the underlying long run equilibria and short run causal relations. Our investigation provides evidence on the relation between the European integration process and that of globalisation, viewed through the bond markets- sector. Additionally the structural formulation applied, offers significant implications of the findings. All in all our analysis offers a number of answers on crucial queries towards the European bond markets integration process.
Abstract: Flows over a harmonically oscillating NACA 0012
airfoil are simulated here using a two-dimensional, unsteady,
incompressibleNavier-Stokes solver.Both pure-plunging and
pitching-plunging combined oscillations are considered at a Reynolds
number of 5000. Special attention is paid to the vortex shedding and
interaction mechanism of the motions. For all the simulations
presented here, the reduced frequency (k) is fixed at a value of 2.5
and plunging amplitude (h) is selected to be in the range of 0.2-0.5.
The simulation results show that the interaction mechanism between
the leading and trailing edge vortices has a decisive effect on the
values of the resulting thrust and propulsive efficiency.
Abstract: Sickness absence represents a major economic and
social issue. Analysis of sick leave data is a recurrent challenge to analysts because of the complexity of the data structure which is
often time dependent, highly skewed and clumped at zero. Ignoring these features to make statistical inference is likely to be inefficient
and misguided. Traditional approaches do not address these problems. In this study, we discuss model methodologies in terms of statistical techniques for addressing the difficulties with sick leave data. We also introduce and demonstrate a new method by performing a longitudinal assessment of long-term absenteeism using
a large registration dataset as a working example available from the Helsinki Health Study for municipal employees from Finland during the period of 1990-1999. We present a comparative study on model
selection and a critical analysis of the temporal trends, the occurrence
and degree of long-term sickness absences among municipal employees. The strengths of this working example include the large
sample size over a long follow-up period providing strong evidence in supporting of the new model. Our main goal is to propose a way to
select an appropriate model and to introduce a new methodology for analysing sickness absence data as well as to demonstrate model
applicability to complicated longitudinal data.
Abstract: This paper describes a computer-aided design for
design of the concave globoidal cam with cylindrical rollers and
swinging follower. Four models with different modeling methods are
made from the same input data. The input data are angular input and
output displacements of the cam and the follower and some other
geometrical parameters of the globoidal cam mechanism. The best
cam model is the cam which has no interference with the rollers
when their motions are simulated in assembly conditions. The
angular output displacement of the follower for the best cam is also
compared with that of in the input data to check errors. In this study,
Pro/ENGINEER® Wildfire 2.0 is used for modeling the cam,
simulating motions and checking interference and errors of the
system.
Abstract: the research was conducted using the self report of
shoplifters who apprehended in the supermarket while stealing. 943
shoplifters in three years were interviewed right after the stealing act
and before calling the police. The aim of the study is to know the
shoplifting characteristics in Saudi Arabia, including the trait of
shoplifters and the situation of the supermarkets where the stealing
takes place. The analysis based on the written information about each
thief as the documentary research method. Descriptive statistics as
well as some inferential statistics were employed. The result shows
that there are differences between genders, age groups, occupations,
time of the day, days of the week, months, way of stealing, individual
or group of thieves and other supermarket situations in the type of
items stolen, total price and the count of items. The result and the
recommendation will serve as a guide for retailers where, when and
who to look at to prevent shoplifting.
Abstract: A novel thermo-sensitive superabsorbent hydrogel
with salt- and pH-responsiveness properties was obtained by grafting
of mixtures of acrylic acid (AA) and N-isopropylacrylamide
(NIPAM) monomers onto kappa-carrageenan, kC, using ammonium
persulfate (APS) as a free radical initiator in the presence of
methylene bisacrylamide (MBA) as a crosslinker. Infrared
spectroscopy was carried out to confirm the chemical structure of the
hydrogel. Moreover, morphology of the samples was examined by
scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The effect of MBA
concentration and AA/NIPAM weight ratio on the water absorbency
capacity has been investigated. The swelling variations of hydrogels
were explained according to swelling theory based on the hydrogel
chemical structure. The hydrogels exhibited salt-sensitivity and
cation exchange properties. The temperature- and pH-reversibility
properties of the hydrogels make the intelligent polymers as good
candidates for considering as potential carriers for bioactive agents,
e.g. drugs.
Abstract: This paper proposes a smart design strategy for a sequential detector to reliably detect the primary user-s signal, especially in fast fading environments. We study the computation of the log-likelihood ratio for coping with a fast changing received signal and noise sample variances, which are considered random variables. First, we analyze the detectability of the conventional generalized log-likelihood ratio (GLLR) scheme when considering fast changing statistics of unknown parameters caused by fast fading effects. Secondly, we propose an efficient sensing algorithm for performing the sequential probability ratio test in a robust and efficient manner when the channel statistics are unknown. Finally, the proposed scheme is compared to the conventional method with simulation results with respect to the average number of samples required to reach a detection decision.
Abstract: Rule Discovery is an important technique for mining knowledge from large databases. Use of objective measures for discovering interesting rules lead to another data mining problem, although of reduced complexity. Data mining researchers have studied subjective measures of interestingness to reduce the volume of discovered rules to ultimately improve the overall efficiency of KDD process. In this paper we study novelty of the discovered rules as a subjective measure of interestingness. We propose a hybrid approach that uses objective and subjective measures to quantify novelty of the discovered rules in terms of their deviations from the known rules. We analyze the types of deviation that can arise between two rules and categorize the discovered rules according to the user specified threshold. We implement the proposed framework and experiment with some public datasets. The experimental results are quite promising.
Abstract: Metal stamping die design is a complex, experiencebased
and time-consuming task. Various artificial intelligence (AI)
techniques are being used by worldwide researchers for stamping die
design to reduce complexity, dependence on human expertise and
time taken in design process as well as to improve design efficiency.
In this paper a comprehensive review of applications of AI
techniques in manufacturability evaluation of sheet metal parts, die
design and process planning of metal stamping die is presented.
Further the salient features of major research work published in the
area of metal stamping are presented in tabular form and scope of
future research work is identified.
Abstract: A motion protection system is designed for a parallel
motion platform with subsided cabin. Due to its complex structure,
parallel mechanism is easy to encounter interference problems
including link length limits, joints limits and self-collision. Thus a
virtual spring algorithm in operational space is developed for the
motion protection system to avoid potential damages caused by
interference. Simulation results show that the proposed motion
protection system can effectively eliminate interference problems and
ensure safety of the whole motion platform.
Abstract: An advanced Monte Carlo simulation method, called Subset Simulation (SS) for the time-dependent reliability prediction for underground pipelines has been presented in this paper. The SS can provide better resolution for low failure probability level with efficient investigating of rare failure events which are commonly encountered in pipeline engineering applications. In SS method, random samples leading to progressive failure are generated efficiently and used for computing probabilistic performance by statistical variables. SS gains its efficiency as small probability event as a product of a sequence of intermediate events with larger conditional probabilities. The efficiency of SS has been demonstrated by numerical studies and attention in this work is devoted to scrutinise the robustness of the SS application in pipe reliability assessment. It is hoped that the development work can promote the use of SS tools for uncertainty propagation in the decision-making process of underground pipelines network reliability prediction.
Abstract: Transesterification of candlenut (aleurites moluccana)
oil with methanol using potassium hydroxide as catalyst was
studied. The objective of the present investigation was to produce
the methyl ester for use as biodiesel. The operation variables
employed were methanol to oil molar ratio (3:1 – 9:1), catalyst
concentration (0.50 – 1.5 %) and temperature (303 – 343K). Oil
volume of 150 mL, reaction time of 75 min were fixed as common
parameters in all the experiments. The concentration of methyl ester
was evaluated by mass balance of free glycerol formed which was
analyzed by using periodic acid. The optimal triglyceride conversion
was attained by using methanol to oil ratio of 6:1, potassium
hydroxide as catalyst was of 1%, at room temperature. Methyl ester
formed was characterized by its density, viscosity, cloud and pour
points. The biodiesel properties had properties similar to those of
diesel oil, except for the viscosity that was higher.