Abstract: Micro-alloyed steel components are used in
automotive industry for the necessity to make the manufacturing
process cycles shorter when compared to conventional steel by
eliminating heat treatment cycles, so an important saving of costs and
energy can be reached by reducing the number of operations. Microalloying
elements like vanadium, niobium or titanium have been
added to medium carbon steels to achieve grain refinement with or
without precipitation strengthening along with uniform
microstructure throughout the matrix. Present study reports the
applicability of medium carbon vanadium micro-alloyed steel in hot
forging. Forgeability has been determined with respect to different
cooling rates, after forging in a hydraulic press at 50% diameter
reduction in temperature range of 900-11000C. Final microstructures,
hardness, tensile strength, and impact strength have been evaluated.
The friction coefficients of different lubricating conditions, viz.,
graphite in hydraulic oil, graphite in furnace oil, DF 150 (Graphite,
Water-Based) die lubricant and dry or without any lubrication were
obtained from the ring compression test for the above micro-alloyed
steel. Results of ring compression tests indicate that graphite in
hydraulic oil lubricant is preferred for free forging and dry lubricant
is preferred for die forging operation. Exceptionally good forgeability
and high resistance to fracture, especially for faster cooling rate has
been observed for fine equiaxed ferrite-pearlite grains, some amount
of bainite and fine precipitates of vanadium carbides and
carbonitrides. The results indicated that the cooling rate has a
remarkable effect on the microstructure and mechanical properties at
room temperature.
Abstract: Fluid viscous damping systems are well suited for
many air vehicles subjected to shock and vibration. These damping
system work with the principle of viscous fluid throttling through the
orifice to create huge pressure difference between compression and
rebound chamber and obtain the required damping force. One
application of such systems is its use in aircraft door system to
counteract the door’s velocity and safely stop it. In exigency
situations like crash or emergency landing where the door doesn’t
open easily, possibly due to unusually tilting of fuselage or some
obstacles or intrusion of debris obstruction to move the parts of the
door, such system can be combined with other systems to provide
needed force to forcefully open the door and also securely stop it
simultaneously within the required time i.e. less than 8 seconds. In
the present study, a hydraulic system called snubber along with other
systems like actuator, gas bottle assembly which together known as
emergency power assist system (EPAS) is designed, built and
experimentally studied to check the magnitude of angular velocity,
damping force and time required to effectively open the door.
Whenever needed, the gas pressure from the bottle is released to
actuate the actuator and at the same time pull the snubber’s piston to
operate the emergency opening of the door. Such EPAS installed in
the suspension arm of the aircraft door is studied explicitly changing
parameters like orifice size, oil level, oil viscosity and bypass valve
gap and its spring of the snubber at varying temperature to generate
the optimum design case. Comparative analysis of the EPAS at
several cases is done and conclusions are made. It is found that
during emergency condition, the system opening time and angular
velocity, when snubber with 0.3mm piston and shaft orifice and
bypass valve gap of 0.5 mm with its original spring is used, shows
significant improvement over the old ones.
Abstract: The effects of basil and/or chamomile seed
supplementation on the growth of Hubbard broiler chicks were
evaluated. The antioxidant effects of these supplements were also
assessed. 120 1-day-old broiler chicks were randomly divided into
four equal groups. The control group (group 1) was fed a basal diet
(BD) without supplementation. Groups 2, 3, and 4 were fed the BD
supplemented with 10g basil, 10g chamomile, and 5g basil plus 5g
chamomile per kg of food, respectively. Basil supplementation alone
or in combination with chamomile non-significantly (P≥0.05)
increased final body weight (3.2% and 0.3%, respectively) and
weight gain (3.5% and 3.6%, respectively) over the experimental
period. Chamomile supplementation alone non-significantly (P≥0.05)
reduced final body weight and weight gain over the experimental
period by 1.7% and 1.7%, respectively. In comparison to the control
group, herbal seed supplementation reduced feed intake and
improved the feed conversion and protein efficiency ratios. In
general, basil seed supplementation stimulated chicken growth and
improved the feed efficiency more effectively than chamomile seed
supplementation. The antioxidant activities of basil and/or chamomile
supplementation were examined in the thymus, bursa, and spleen. In
chickens that received supplements, the level of malondialdehyde
was significantly decreased, whereas the activities of glutathione,
superoxide dismutase, and catalase were significantly increased
(P
Abstract: Sound exposure effects have been investigated by
broadcasting a group of broilers with sound of Quran verses (Group
B) whereas the other group is the control broilers (Group C). The
growth rate comparisons in terms of weight and raw meat texture
measured by shear force have been investigated. Twenty-seven
broilers were randomly selected from each group on Day 24 and
weight measurement was carried out every week till the harvest day
(Day 39).Group B showed a higher mean weight on Day 24 (1.441 ±
0.013 kg) than Group C. Significant difference in the weight on Day
39 existed for Group B compared to Group C (p < 0.05). However,
there was no significant (p >0.05) difference of shear force in the
same muscles (breast and drumstick raw meat) of both groups but the
shear force of the breast meat for Group B and C broilers was lower
(p < 0.05) than that of their drumstick meat. Thus, broadcasting the
sound of Quran verses in the coop can be applied to improve the
growth rate of broilers for producing better quality poultry.
Abstract: Waxapple (Syzygium samarngense Merr.et Perry) is an
important tropical fruit in Taiwan. The famous producing area is
located on the coast in Pingtung County. Land subsidence and climate
change will tend to soil alkalization more seriously. This study was to
evaluate the effects of NaCl in waxapple seedlings. NaCl salinity
reduced waxapple shoot growth; it may due to reducing relative water
content in leaf and new shoot. Leaf Cl and Na concentration were
increased but K, Ca, and Mg content had no significant difference after
irrigated with NaCl for six weeks. In roots, Na and Cl content increase
significantly with 90 mM NaCl treatment, but K, Ca, and Mg content
was reduced. 30-90mM Nacl treatment do not effect K/Na, Ca/Na and
Mg/Na ratio, but decrease significantly in 90mM treatment in roots.
The leaf and root electrolyte leakage were significantly affected by 90
mM NaCl treatment. Suggesting 90mM was optimum concentration
for sieve out other tolerance waxapples verities.
Abstract: Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) represent a promising
technology for simultaneous bioelectricity generation and wastewater
treatment. Catalysts are significant portions of the cost of microbial
fuel cell cathodes. Many materials have been tested as aqueous
cathodes, but air-cathodes are needed to avoid energy demands for
water aeration. The sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) rate at
air cathode necessitates efficient electrocatalyst such as carbon
supported platinum catalyst (Pt/C) which is very costly. Manganese
oxide (MnO2) was a representative metal oxide which has been
studied as a promising alternative electrocatalyst for ORR and has
been tested in air-cathode MFCs. However the single MnO2 has poor
electric conductivity and low stability. In the present work, the MnO2
catalyst has been modified by doping Pt nanoparticle. The goal of the
work was to improve the performance of the MFC with minimum Pt
loading. MnO2 and Pt nanoparticles were prepared by hydrothermal
and sol gel methods, respectively. Wet impregnation method was
used to synthesize Pt/MnO2 catalyst. The catalysts were further used
as cathode catalysts in air-cathode cubic MFCs, in which anaerobic
sludge was inoculated as biocatalysts and palm oil mill effluent
(POME) was used as the substrate in the anode chamber. The asprepared
Pt/MnO2 was characterized comprehensively through field
emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), X-Ray diffraction
(XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and cyclic
voltammetry (CV) where its surface morphology, crystallinity,
oxidation state and electrochemical activity were examined,
respectively. XPS revealed Mn (IV) oxidation state and Pt (0)
nanoparticle metal, indicating the presence of MnO2 and Pt.
Morphology of Pt/MnO2 observed from FESEM shows that the
doping of Pt did not cause change in needle-like shape of MnO2
which provides large contacting surface area. The electrochemical
active area of the Pt/MnO2 catalysts has been increased from 276 to
617 m2/g with the increase in Pt loading from 0.2 to 0.8 wt%. The
CV results in O2 saturated neutral Na2SO4 solution showed that
MnO2 and Pt/MnO2 catalysts could catalyze ORR with different
catalytic activities. MFC with Pt/MnO2 (0.4 wt% Pt) as air cathode
catalyst generates a maximum power density of 165 mW/m3, which
is higher than that of MFC with MnO2 catalyst (95 mW/m3). The
open circuit voltage (OCV) of the MFC operated with MnO2 cathode
gradually decreased during 14 days of operation, whereas the MFC
with Pt/MnO2 cathode remained almost constant throughout the
operation suggesting the higher stability of the Pt/MnO2 catalyst.
Therefore, Pt/MnO2 with 0.4 wt% Pt successfully demonstrated as an
efficient and low cost electrocatalyst for ORR in air cathode MFC with higher electrochemical activity, stability and hence enhanced
performance.
Abstract: This work reports the potential of using Palm Kernel
(PK) ash and shell as a partial substitute for Portland Cement (PC)
and coarse aggregate in the development of mortar and concrete. PK
ash and shell are agro-waste materials from palm oil mills, the
disposal of PK ash and shell is an environmental problem of concern.
The PK ash has pozzolanic properties that enables it as a partial
replacement for cement and also plays an important role in the
strength and durability of concrete, its use in concrete will alleviate
the increasing challenges of scarcity and high cost of cement. In order
to investigate the PC replacement potential of PK ash, three types of
PK ash were produced at varying temperature (350-750C) and they
were used to replace up to 50% PC. The PK shell was used to replace
up to 100% coarse aggregate in order to study its aggregate
replacement potential. The testing programme included material
characterisation, the determination of compressive strength, tensile
splitting strength and chemical durability in aggressive sulfatebearing
exposure conditions. The 90 day compressive results showed
a significant strength gain (up to 26.2 N/mm2). The Portland cement
and conventional coarse aggregate has significantly higher influence
in the strength gain compared to the equivalent PK ash and PK shell.
The chemical durability results demonstrated that after a prolonged
period of exposure, significant strength losses in all the concretes
were observed. This phenomenon is explained, due to lower change
in concrete morphology and inhibition of reaction species and the
final disruption of the aggregate cement paste matrix.
Abstract: The development of the United Arab Emirates (UAE)
into a regional trade, tourism, finance and logistics hub has
transformed its real estate markets. However, speculative activity and
price volatility remain concerns. UAE residential market values
(MV) are exposed to fluctuations in capital flows and migration
which, in turn, are affected by geopolitical uncertainty, oil price
volatility and global investment market sentiment. Internally, a
complex interplay between administrative boundaries, land tenure,
building quality and evolving location characteristics fragments UAE
residential property markets. In short, the UAE Residential Valuation
System (UAE-RVS) confronts multiple challenges to collect, filter
and analyze relevant information in complex and dynamic spatial and
capital markets. A robust (RVS) can mitigate the risk of unhelpful
volatility, speculative excess or investment mistakes. The research
outlines the institutional, ontological, dynamic and epistemological
issues at play. We highlight the importance of system capabilities,
valuation standard salience and stakeholders trust.
Abstract: Qatar, a Gulf country highly dependent on its oil and
gas revenues – is looking to innovate, diversify, and ultimately reach
its aim of creating a knowledge economy to prepare for its post-oil
era. One area that the country is investing in is Contemporary Art,
and world renowned artists such as Damien Hirst and Richard Serra –
have been commissioned to design site-specific art for the public
spaces of the city of Doha as well as in more remote desert locations.
This research discusses the changing presence, role and context of
public art in Doha, both from a historical and cultural overview, and
the different forms and media as well as the typologies of urban and
public spaces in which the art is installed. It examines the process of
implementing site-specific artworks, looking at questions of scale,
history, social meaning and formal aesthetics. The methodologies
combine theoretical research on the understanding of public art and
its role and placement in public space, as well as empirical research
on contemporary public art projects in Doha, based on documentation
and interviews and as well as site and context analysis of the urban or
architectural spaces within which the art is situated. Surveys and
interviews – using social media - in different segments of the
contemporary Qatari society, including all nationalities and social
groups, are used to measure and qualify the impacts and effects on
the population.
Abstract: Generally the natural environment is made up of air,
water and soil. The release of emission of industrial waste into
anyone of the components of the environment causes pollution.
Industrial pollution significantly threatens the inherent right of
people, to the enjoyment of a safe and secure environment. The aim
of this paper is to assess the effect of environmental pollution and
health risks of residents living near Ewekoro cement factory. The
research made use of IKONOS imagery for Geographical
Information System (GIS) to buffer and extract buildings that are less
than 1km to the factory, within 1km to 5km and above 5km to the
factory. Also questionnaire was used to elicit information on the
socio-economic factors, effect of environmental pollution on
residents and measures adopted to control industrial pollution on the
residents. Findings show that most buildings that fall between less
than 1km and 1km to 5km to the factory have high health risk in the
study area. The study recommended total relocation for the residents
of the study area to reduce health risk problems.
Abstract: An experiment was conducted to determine the effect
of pollination on seed quality of rapeseed in Chitwan, Nepal during
2012-2013. The experiment was designed in Randomized Complete
Block with four replications and five treatments. The rapeseed plots
were caged with mosquito nets at 10% flowering except natural
pollination. Two-framed colonies of Apis mellifera L. and Apis
cerana F. were introduced separately for pollination, and control plot
caged without pollinators. The highest germination percent was
observed on Apis cerana F. pollinated plot seeds (90.50%
germination) followed by Apis mellifera L. pollinated plots (87.25 %)
and lowest on control plots (42.00% germination) seeds. Similarly,
seed test weight of Apis cerana F. pollinated plots (3.22 gm/ 1000
seed) and Apis mellifera L. pollinated plots (2.93 gm/1000 seed) were
and lowest on control plots (2.26 gm/ 1000 seed) recorded. Likewise,
oil content was recorded highest on pollinated by Apis cerana F.
(36.1%) followed by pollinated by Apis mellifera L. (35.4%) and
lowest on control plots (32.8%). This study clearly indicated
pollination increases the seed quality of rapeseed and therefore,
management of honeybee is necessary for producing higher quality of
rapeseed under Chitwan condition.
Abstract: The concentration levels of six heavy metals (Cd, Cr,
Fe, Ni, Pb and Zn) and two mineral elements (Ca and Mg) were
determined in soil samples collected from the vicinity of two auto
mechanic workshops in Sabon-Gari, Kaduna state, Nigeria, using
Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS), in order to compare the
gradation of their concentrations with distance and depth of soil from
the workshop sites. At site 1, concentrations of Lead, Chromium, Iron
and Zinc were generally found to be above the World Health
Organization limits, while those of Nickel and Cadmium fell within
the limits. Iron had the highest concentration with a range of 176.274
ppm to 489.127 ppm at depths of 5 cm to 15 cm and a distance range
of 5 m to 15 m, while the concentration of cadmium was least with a
range of 0.001 ppm to 0.008 ppm at similar depth and distance
ranges. In addition, there was more of calcium (11.521 ppm to
121.709 ppm), in all the samples, than magnesium (11.293 ppm to
21.635 ppm). Similar results were obtained for site II. The
concentrations of all the metals analyzed showed a downward
gradient with increase in depth and distance from both workshop sites
except for iron and zinc at site 2. The immediate and remote
implications of these findings on the biota are discussed.
Abstract: The study examined the effect of Bonny Light whole
crude oil (WC) and its water soluble fraction (WSF) on the activities
of antioxidant enzymes (catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase
(SOD)) and crude mitochondria ATPases in the radicle of
germinating bean (Vigna unguiculata). The percentage germination,
level of lipid peroxidation, antioxidant enzyme and mitochondria
Ca2+ and Mg2+ ATPase activities were measured in the radicle of
bean after 7, 14 and 21 days post germination. Viable bean seeds
were planted in soils contaminated with 10ml, 25ml and 50ml of
whole crude oil (WC) and its water soluble fraction (WSF) to obtain
2, 5 and 10% v/w crude oil contamination. There was dose dependent
reduction of the number of bean seeds that germinated in the
contaminated soils compared with control (p
Abstract: The Standard Penetration Test (SPT) is the most
common in situ test for soil investigations. On the other hand, the
Cone Penetration Test (CPT) is considered one of the best
investigation tools. Due to the fast and accurate results that can be
obtained it complaints the SPT in many applications like field
explorations, design parameters, and quality control assessments.
Many soil index and engineering properties have been correlated to
both of SPT and CPT. Various foundation design methods were
developed based on the outcome of these tests. Therefore it is vital to
correlate these tests to each other so that either one of the tests can be
used in the absence of the other, especially for preliminary evaluation
and design purposes.
The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the
relationships between the SPT and CPT for different type of sandy
soils in Florida. Data for this research were collected from number of
projects sponsored by the Florida Department of Transportation
(FDOT), six sites served as the subject of SPT-CPT correlations. The
correlations were established between the cone resistance (qc), sleeve
friction (fs) and the uncorrected SPT blow counts (N) for various
soils.
A positive linear relationship was found between qc, fs and N for
various sandy soils. In general, qc versus N showed higher
correlation coefficients than fs versus N. qc/N ratios were developed
for different soil types and compared to literature values, the results
of this research revealed higher ratios than literature values.
Abstract: The present paper summarizes the analysis of the
request for consultation of information and data on industrial
emissions made publicly available on the web site of the Ministry of
Environment, Land and Sea on integrated pollution prevention and
control from large industrial installations, the so called “AIA Portal”.
As a matter of fact, a huge amount of information on national
industrial plants is already available on internet, although it is usually
proposed as textual documentation or images.
Thus, it is not possible to access all the relevant information
through interoperability systems and also to retrieval relevant
information for decision making purposes as well as rising of
awareness on environmental issue.
Moreover, since in Italy the number of institutional and private
subjects involved in the management of the public information on
industrial emissions is substantial, the access to the information is
provided on internet web sites according to different criteria; thus, at
present it is not structurally homogeneous and comparable.
To overcome the mentioned difficulties in the case of the
Coordinating Committee for the implementation of the Agreement
for the industrial area in Taranto and Statte, operating before the
IPPC permit granting procedures of the relevant installation located
in the area, a big effort was devoted to elaborate and to validate data
and information on characterization of soil, ground water aquifer and
coastal sea at disposal of different subjects to derive a global
perspective for decision making purposes. Thus, the present paper
also focuses on main outcomes matured during such experience.
Abstract: Bio-composites derived from plant fiber and/or bioderived
polymer, are likely more ecofriendly and demonstrate
competitive performance with petroleum based composites. In this
research, the bio phenol-formaldehyde (bio-PF) was used as a matrix
and oil palm empty fruit bunch fiber (EFB) as reinforcement. The
matrix was synthesized via liquefaction and condensation to enhance
the combination of phenol and formaldehyde, during the process.
Then, the bio-PF was mixed with different percentage of EFB (5%,
10%, 15% and 20%) and molded at 180oC. The samples that viewed
under scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed an excellent
wettability and interaction between EFB and matrix. Samples of 10%
EFB gave the optimum properties of impact and hardness meanwhile
sample 15% of EFB gave the highest reading of flexural modulus
(MOE) and flexural strength (MOR). For thermal stability analysis, it
was found that the weight loss and the activation energy (Ea) of the
bio-composites samples were decreased as the filler content
increased.
Abstract: Eucalyptus species are well reputed for their
traditional use in Asia as well as in other parts of the world; therefore,
the present study was designed to investigate the antimicrobial and
antioxidant activities associated with essential oils from different
Eucalyptus species. Essential oils from the leaves of six Eucalyptus
species, including: Eucalyptus woodwardi, Eucalyptus stricklandii,
Eucalyptus salubris, Eucalyptus sargentii, Eucalyptus torquata and
Eucalyptus wandoo were separated by hydrodistillation and dried
over anhydrous sodium sulphate. DPPH, ferric reducing antioxidant
power, and hydroxyl radical scavenging activity assays were carried
out to evaluate the antioxidant potential of the oils. The results
indicate that examined oils exhibit substantial antioxidant activities
relative to ascorbic acid. Previously, these oils were evaluated for
their antimicrobial activities, against wide range of bacterial and
fungal strains, and they were shown to possess significant
antimicrobial activities. In this study, further investigation into the
growth kinetics of oil-treated microbial cultures was conducted. The
results clearly demonstrate that the microbial growth was markedly
inhibited when treated with sub-MIC concentrations of the oils.
Taken together, the results obtained indicate a high potential of the
examined essential oils as bioactive oils, for nutraceutical and
medical applications, possessing significant antioxidant and anti
microbial activities.
Abstract: The California Bearing Ratio (CBR) has been
acknowledged as an important parameter to characterize the bearing
capacity of earth structures, such as earth dams, road embankments,
airport runways, bridge abutments and pavements. Technically, the
CBR test can be carried out in the laboratory or in the field. The CBR
test is time-consuming and is infrequently performed due to the
equipment needed and the fact that the field moisture content keeps
changing over time. Over the years, many correlations have been
developed for the prediction of CBR by various researchers,
including the dynamic cone penetrometer, undrained shear strength
and Clegg impact hammer. This paper reports and discusses some of
the results from a study on the prediction of CBR. In the current
study, the CBR test was performed in the laboratory on some finegrained
subgrade soils collected from various locations in Victoria.
Based on the test results, a satisfactory empirical correlation was
found between the CBR and the physical properties of the
experimental soils.
Abstract: In this study, composites were fabricated from oil
palm empty fruit bunch fiber and poly(lactic) acid by extrusion
followed by injection moulding. Surface of the fiber was pre-treated
by ultrasound in an alkali medium and treatment efficiency was
investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis and
Fourier transforms infrared spectrometer (FTIR). Effect of fiber
treatment on composite was characterized by tensile strength (TS),
tensile modulus (TM) and impact strength (IS). Furthermore,
biostrong impact modifier was incorporated into the treated fiber
composite to improve its impact properties. Mechanical testing
showed an improvement of up to 23.5% and 33.6% respectively for
TS and TM of treated fiber composite above untreated fiber
composite. On the other hand incorporation of impact modifier led to
enhancement of about 20% above the initial IS of the treated fiber
composite.
Abstract: The continuous decline of petroleum and natural gas
reserves and non linear rise of oil price has brought about a
realisation of the need for a change in our perpetual dependence on
the fossil fuel. A day to day increased consumption of crude and
petroleum products has made a considerable impact on our foreign
exchange reserves. Hence, an alternate resource for the conversion of
energy (both liquid and gas) is essential for the substitution of
conventional fuels. Biomass is the alternate solution for the present
scenario. Biomass can be converted into both liquid as well as
gaseous fuels and other feedstocks for the industries.