Abstract: The introduction of degradable plastic materials into
agricultural sectors has represented a promising alternative to
promote green agriculture and environmental friendly of modern
farming practices. Major challenges of developing degradable
agricultural films are to identify the most feasible types of
degradation mechanisms, composition of degradable polymers and
related processing techniques. The incorrect choice of degradable
mechanisms to be applied during the degradation process will cause
premature losses of mechanical performance and strength. In order to
achieve controlled process of agricultural film degradation, the
compositions of degradable agricultural film also important in order
to stimulate degradation reaction at required interval of time and to
achieve sustainability of the modern agricultural practices. A set of
photodegradable polyethylene based agricultural film was developed
and produced, following the selective optimization of processing
parameters of the agricultural film manufacturing system. Example of
agricultural films application for oil palm seedlings cultivation is
presented.
Abstract: Phelipanche ramosa is the most damaging obligate
flowering parasitic weed on wide species of cultivated plants. The
semi-arid regions of the world are considered the main centers of this
parasitic plant that causes heavy infestation. This is due to its
production of high numbers of seeds (up to 200,000) that remain
viable for extended periods (up to 20 years). In this study, 13
treatments for the control of Phelipanche were carried out, which
included agronomic, chemical, and biological treatments and the use
of resistant plant methods. In 2014, a trial was performed at the
Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of
Foggia (southern Italy), on processing tomato (cv ‘Docet’) grown in
pots filled with soil taken from a field that was heavily infested by P.
ramosa). The tomato seedlings were transplanted on May 8, 2014,
into a sandy-clay soil (USDA). A randomized block design with 3
replicates (pots) was adopted. During the growing cycle of the
tomato, at 70, 75, 81 and 88 days after transplantation, the number of
P. ramosa shoots emerged in each pot was determined. The tomato
fruit were harvested on August 8, 2014, and the quantitative and
qualitative parameters were determined. All of the data were
subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) using the JMP software
(SAS Institute Inc. Cary, NC, USA), and for comparisons of means
(Tukey's tests). The data show that each treatment studied did not
provide complete control against P. ramosa. However, the virulence
of the attacks was mitigated by some of the treatments tried: radicon
biostimulant, compost activated with Fusarium, mineral fertilizer
nitrogen, sulfur, enzone, and the resistant tomato genotype. It is
assumed that these effects can be improved by combining some of
these treatments with each other, especially for a gradual and
continuing reduction of the “seed bank” of the parasite in the soil.
Abstract: The problem of toughening in brittle materials
reinforced by fibers is complex, involving all of the mechanical
properties of fibers, matrix and the fiber/matrix interface, as well as
the geometry of the fiber. Development of new numerical methods
appropriate to toughening simulation and analysis is necessary. In
this work, we have performed simulations and analysis of toughening
in brittle matrix reinforced by randomly distributed fibers by means
of the discrete elements method. At first, we put forward a
mechanical model of toughening contributed by random fibers. Then
with a numerical program, we investigated the stress, damage and
bridging force in the composite material when a crack appeared in the
brittle matrix. From the results obtained, we conclude that: (i) fibers
of high strength and low elasticity modulus are beneficial to
toughening; (ii) fibers of relatively high elastic modulus compared to
the matrix may result in substantial matrix damage due to spalling
effect; (iii) employment of high-strength synthetic fibers is a good
option for toughening. We expect that the combination of the discrete
element method (DEM) with the finite element method (FEM) can
increase the versatility and efficiency of the software developed. The
present work can guide the design of ceramic composites of high
performance through the optimization of the parameters.
Abstract: Experimental study on slicing of sapphire with fixed
abrasive diamond wire saw was conducted in this paper. The process
parameters were optimized through orthogonal experiment of three
factors and four levels. The effects of wire speed, feed speed and
tension pressure on the surface roughness were analyzed. Surface
roughness in cutting direction and feed direction were both detected.
The results show that feed speed plays the most significant role on the
surface roughness of sliced sapphire followed by wire speed and
tension pressure. The optimized process parameters are as follows:
wire speed 1.9 m/s, feed speed 0.187 mm/min and tension pressure
0.18 MPa. In the end, the results were verified by analysis of variance.
Abstract: The aim of the present study was to examine whether
increasing molybdenum (Mo) concentration affects the growth and
Mo concentration of maize (Zea mays L. cv Norma SC) and
sunflower (Helianthus annuus L. cv Arena PR) seedlings within
laboratory conditions.
In this experiment, calcareous chernozem soil was used and Mo
was supplemented into the soil as ammonium molybdate
[(NH4)6Mo7O24.4H2O] in four different concentrations as follow: 0
(control), 30, 90 and 270 mg·kg-1.
In this study, we found that molybdenum in small amount (30
mg·kg-1) affects positively on growth of maize and sunflower
seedlings, however, higher concentration of Mo reduces the dry
weights of shoots and roots. In the case of maize the highest Mo
treatment (270 mg·kg-1) and in sunflower 90 mg·kg-1 treatment
caused significant reduction in plant growth.
In addition, we observed that molybdenum contents in the roots
and shoots were very low in case of control soil but were
significantly elevated with increasing concentration of Mo treatment.
Only in case of sunflower the highest 270 mg·kg-1 Mo treatment
caused decrease in Mo concentration.
Abstract: This paper discusses the value theory in cultural
heritage and the value theory in environmental economics. Two
economic views of the value theory are compared, within the field of
cultural heritage maintenance and within the field of the environment.
The main aims are to find common features in these two differently
structured theories under the layer of differently defined terms as well
as really differing features of these two approaches; to clear the
confusion which stems from different terminology as in fact these
terms capture the same aspects of reality; and to show possible
inspiration these two perspectives can offer one another. Another aim
is to present these two value systems in one value framework. First,
important moments of the value theory from the economic
perspective are presented, leading to the marginal revolution of (not
only) the Austrian School. Then the theory of value within cultural
heritage and environmental economics are explored. Finally,
individual approaches are compared and their potential mutual
inspiration searched for.
Abstract: Significant quota of Municipal Electrical Energy
consumption is related to Decentralized Air Conditioning which is
mostly provided by evaporative coolers. So the aim is to optimize
design of air conditioners to increase their efficiencies. To achieve
this goal, results of practical standardized tests for 40 evaporative
coolers in different types collected and simultaneously results for
same coolers based on one of EER (Energy Efficiency Ratio)
modeling styles are figured out. By comparing experimental results
of different coolers standardized tests with modeling results,
preciseness of used model is assessed and after comparing gained
preciseness with international standards based on EER for cooling
capacity, aeration, and also electrical energy consumption, energy
label from A (most effective) to G (less effective) is classified; finally
needed methods to optimize energy consumption and coolers’
classification are provided.
Abstract: Long Distance Truck Drivers (LDTDs) have been
found to be a high risk group in the spread of HIV/AIDS globally;
perhaps, due to their high Sexual Risk Behaviours (SRBs).
Interventions for reducing SRBs in trucking population have not been
fully exploited. A quasi-experimental control group pretest-posttest
design was used to assess the efficacy of psycho-education and
behavioural skills training in reducing SRBs among LDTDs. Sixteen
drivers rivers were randomly assigned into either experimental or
control groups using balloting technique. Questionnaire was used as
an instrument for data collection. Repeated measures t-test and
independent t-test were used to test hypotheses. Intervention had
significant effect on the SRBs among LDTDs at post-test (t{7}=
6.01, p
Abstract: Gypsum (CaSO4.2H2O) is a mineral that is found in
large quantities in the Turkey and in the World. In this study, the
dissolution of this mineral in the diammonium hydrogen phosphate
solutions has been studied. The dissolution and dissolution kinetics of
gypsum in diammonium hydrogen phosphate solutions will be useful
for evaluating of solid wastes containing gypsum. Parameters such as
diammonium hydrogen phosphate concentration, temperature and
stirring speed affecting on the dissolution rate of the gypsum in
diammonium hydrogen phosphate solutions were investigated. In
experimental studies have researched effectiveness of the selected
parameters. The dissolution of gypsum were examined in two parts at
low and high temperatures. The experimental results were
successfully correlated by linear regression using Statistica program.
Dissolution curves were evaluated shrinking core models for solidfluid
systems. The activation energy was found to be 34.58 kJ/mol
and 44.45 kJ/mol for the low and the high temperatures. The
dissolution of gypsum was controlled by chemical reaction both low
temperatures and high temperatures.
Abstract: Incineration of municipal solid waste (MSW) is one of
the key scopes in the global clean energy strategy. A computational
fluid dynamics (CFD) model was established in order to reveal these
features of the combustion process in a fixed porous bed of MSW.
Transporting equations and process rate equations of the waste bed
were modeled and set up to describe the incineration process,
according to the local thermal conditions and waste property
characters. Gas phase turbulence was modeled using k-ε turbulent
model and the particle phase was modeled using the kinetic theory of
granular flow. The heterogeneous reaction rates were determined
using Arrhenius eddy dissipation and the Arrhenius-diffusion
reaction rates. The effects of primary air flow rate and temperature in
the burning process of simulated MSW are investigated
experimentally and numerically. The simulation results in bed are
accordant with experimental data well. The model provides detailed
information on burning processes in the fixed bed, which is otherwise
very difficult to obtain by conventional experimental techniques.
Abstract: Rice husk and kenaf filled with calcium carbonate
(CaCO3) and high density polyethylene (HDPE) composite were
prepared separately using twin-screw extruder at 50rpm. Different
filler loading up to 30 parts of rice husk particulate and kenaf fiber
were mixed with the fixed 30% amount of CaCO3 mineral filler to
produce rice husk/CaCO3/HDPE and kenaf/CaCO3/HDPE hybrid
composites. In this study, the effects of natural fiber for both rice
husk and kenaf in CaCO3/HDPE composite on physical, mechanical
and morphology properties were investigated. Field Emission
Scanning Microscope (FeSEM) was used to investigate the impact
fracture surfaces of the hybrid composite. The property analyses
showed that water absorption increased with the presence of kenaf
and rice husk fillers. Natural fibers in composite significantly
influence water absorption properties due to natural characters of
fibers which contain cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin structures.
The result showed that 10% of additional natural fibers into hybrid
composite had caused decreased flexural strength, however additional
of high natural fiber (>10%) filler loading has proved to increase its
flexural strength.
Abstract: A model was constructed to predict the amount of
solar radiation that will make contact with the surface of the earth in
a given location an hour into the future. This project was supported
by the Southern Company to determine at what specific times during
a given day of the year solar panels could be relied upon to produce
energy in sufficient quantities. Due to their ability as universal
function approximators, an artificial neural network was used to
estimate the nonlinear pattern of solar radiation, which utilized
measurements of weather conditions collected at the Griffin, Georgia
weather station as inputs. A number of network configurations and
training strategies were utilized, though a multilayer perceptron with
a variety of hidden nodes trained with the resilient propagation
algorithm consistently yielded the most accurate predictions. In
addition, a modeled direct normal irradiance field and adjacent
weather station data were used to bolster prediction accuracy. In later
trials, the solar radiation field was preprocessed with a discrete
wavelet transform with the aim of removing noise from the
measurements. The current model provides predictions of solar
radiation with a mean square error of 0.0042, though ongoing efforts
are being made to further improve the model’s accuracy.
Abstract: In this paper, a direct power control (DPC)
strategies have been investigated in order to control a high
power AC/DC converter with time variable load. This converter
is composed of a three level three phase neutral point clamped
(NPC) converter as rectifier and an H-bridge four quadrant
current control converter. In the high power application,
controller not only must adjust the desire outputs but also
decrease the level of distortions which are injected to the network
from the converter. Regarding to this reason and nonlinearity
of the power electronic converter, the conventional controllers
cannot achieve appropriate responses. In this research, the
precise mathematical analysis has been employed to design the
appropriate controller in order to control the time variable
load. A DPC controller has been proposed and simulated using
Matlab/ Simulink. In order to verify the simulation result, a real
time simulator- OPAL-RT- has been employed. In this paper,
the dynamic response and stability of the high power NPC
with variable load has been investigated and compared with
conventional types using a real time simulator. The results proved
that the DPC controller is more stable and has more precise
outputs in comparison with conventional controller.
Abstract: In the past researchers have questioned the
effectiveness of ethics training in higher education. Also, there are
observations that support the view that ethical behaviour (range of
actions)/ethical decision making models used in the past make use of
vignettes to explain ethical behaviour. The understanding remains in
the perspective that these vignettes play a limited role in determining
individual intentions and not actions. Some authors have also agreed
that there are possibilities of differences in one’s intentions and
actions. This paper makes an attempt to fill those gaps by evaluating
real actions rather than intentions. In a way this study suggests the
use of an experiential methodology to explore Berlo’s model of
communication as an action along with orchestration of various
principles. To this endeavor, an attempt was made to use
conversational analysis in the pursuance of evaluating ethical
decision making behaviour among students and middle level
managers. The process was repeated six times with the set of an
average of 15 participants. Similarities have been observed in the
behaviour of students and middle level managers that calls for
understanding that both the groups of individuals have no cognizance
of their actual actions. The deliberations derived out of conversation
were taken a step forward for meta-ethical evaluations to portray a
clear picture of ethical behaviour among participants. This study
provides insights for understanding demonstrated unconscious human
behaviour which may fortuitously be termed both ethical and
unethical.
Abstract: Rural tourism is usually associated with rural
development because it has strong linkages to rural resources; but it
remains underdeveloped compared to urban tourism. This
underdevelopment of rural tourism serves as a motivation for this
study whose aim is to examine the factors affecting the perceived
satisfaction of rural tourists. The objectives of this study are: to
identify and design theories and models on rural tourism satisfaction,
and to empirically validate these models and theories through a
survey of tourists from the Malealea Lodge which is located in the
Mafeteng District, in the Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho. Data
generated by the collection of questionnaires used by this survey was
analyzed quantitatively using descriptive statistics and correlations in
SPSS after checking the validity and the reliability of the
questionnaire. The main hypothesis behind this study is the
relationship between the demographics of rural tourists, their
motivation, and their satisfaction, as supported by existing literature;
except that motivation is measured in this study according to three
dimensions: push factors, pull factors, and perceived usefulness of
ICTs in the rural tourism experience. Findings from this study
indicate that among the demographics factors, continent of origin and
marital status influence the satisfaction of rural tourists; and their
occupation affects their perceptions on the use of ICTs in rural
tourism. Moreover, only pull factors were found to influence the
satisfaction of rural tourists.
Abstract: Traditional document representation for classification
follows Bag of Words (BoW) approach to represent the term weights.
The conventional method uses the Vector Space Model (VSM) to
exploit the statistical information of terms in the documents and they
fail to address the semantic information as well as order of the terms
present in the documents. Although, the phrase based approach
follows the order of the terms present in the documents rather than
semantics behind the word. Therefore, a semantic concept based
approach is used in this paper for enhancing the semantics by
incorporating the ontology information. In this paper a novel method
is proposed to forecast the intraday stock market price directional
movement based on the sentiments from Twitter and money control
news articles. The stock market forecasting is a very difficult and
highly complicated task because it is affected by many factors such
as economic conditions, political events and investor’s sentiment etc.
The stock market series are generally dynamic, nonparametric, noisy
and chaotic by nature. The sentiment analysis along with wisdom of
crowds can automatically compute the collective intelligence of
future performance in many areas like stock market, box office sales
and election outcomes. The proposed method utilizes collective
sentiments for stock market to predict the stock price directional
movements. The collective sentiments in the above social media have
powerful prediction on the stock price directional movements as
up/down by using Granger Causality test.
Abstract: The arm length, hand length, hand breadth and middle
finger length of 1540 right-handed industrial workers of Haryana
state was used to assess the relationship between the upper limb
dimensions and stature. Initially, the data were analyzed using basic
univariate analysis and independent t-tests; then simple and multiple
linear regression models were used to estimate stature using SPSS
(version 17). There was a positive correlation between upper limb
measurements (hand length, hand breadth, arm length and middle
finger length) and stature (p < 0.01), which was highest for hand
length. The accuracy of stature prediction ranged from ± 54.897 mm
to ± 58.307 mm. The use of multiple regression equations gave better
results than simple regression equations. This study provides new
forensic standards for stature estimation from the upper limb
measurements of male industrial workers of Haryana (India). The
results of this research indicate that stature can be determined using
hand dimensions with accuracy, when only upper limb is available
due to any reasons likewise explosions, train/plane crashes, mutilated
bodies, etc. The regression formula derived in this study will be
useful for anatomists, archaeologists, anthropologists, design
engineers and forensic scientists for fairly prediction of stature using
regression equations.
Abstract: These days customer satisfaction plays vital role in
any business. When customer searches for a product, significantly a
junk of irrelevant information is what is given, leading to customer
dissatisfaction. To provide exactly relevant information on the
searched product, we are proposing a model of KaaS (Knowledge as
a Service), which pre-processes the information using decision
making paradigm using Multi-agents.
Information obtained from various sources is taken to derive
knowledge and they are linked to Cloud to capture new idea. The
main focus of this work is to acquire relevant information
(knowledge) related to product, then convert this knowledge into a
service for customer satisfaction and deploy on cloud.
For achieving these objectives we are have opted to use multi
agents. They are communicating and interacting with each other,
manipulate information, provide knowledge, to take decisions. The
paper discusses about KaaS as an intelligent approach for Knowledge
acquisition.
Abstract: The main purpose of this paper is to determine the
applicability of the constitutional social rights in the so-called
horizontal relations, i.e. the relations between private entities.
Nowadays the constitutional rights are more and more often violated
by private entities and not only by the state. The private entities
interfere with the privacy of individuals, limit their freedom of
expression or disturb their peaceful gatherings. International
corporations subordinate individuals in a way which may limit their
constitutional rights. These new realities determine the new role of
the constitution in protecting human rights.
The paper will aim at answering two important questions. Firstly,
are the private entities obliged to respect the constitutional social
rights of other private entities and can they be liable for violation of
these rights? Secondly, how the constitutional social rights can
receive horizontal effect? Answers to these questions will have a
significant meaning for the popularisation of the practice of applying
the Constitution among the citizens as well as for the courts which
settle disputes between them.
Abstract: An artificial neural network is a mathematical model
inspired by biological neural networks. There are several kinds of
neural networks and they are widely used in many areas, such as:
prediction, detection, and classification. Meanwhile, in day to day life,
people always have to make many difficult decisions. For example,
the coach of a soccer club has to decide which offensive player
to be selected to play in a certain game. This work describes a
novel Neural Network using a combination of the General Regression
Neural Network and the Probabilistic Neural Networks to help a
soccer coach make an informed decision.