Abstract: In Automotive Industry, sliding door systems that are
also used as body closures are safety members. Extreme product tests
are realized to prevent failures in design process, but these tests
realized experimentally result in high costs. Finite element analysis is
an effective tool used for design process. These analyses are used
before production of prototype for validation of design according to
customer requirement. In result of this, substantial amount of time
and cost is saved. Finite element model is created for geometries that are designed in
3D CAD programs. Different element types as bar, shell and solid,
can be used for creating mesh model. Cheaper model can be created
by selection of element type, but combination of element type that
was used in model, number and geometry of element and degrees of
freedom affects the analysis result. Sliding door system is a good
example which used these methods for this study. Structural analysis
was realized for sliding door mechanism by using FE models. As
well, physical tests that have same boundary conditions with FE
models were realized. Comparison study for these element types,
were done regarding test and analyses results then optimum
combination was achieved.
Abstract: E-retailing is the sale of goods online that takes place
over the Internet. The Internet has shrunk the entire World. World eretailing
is growing at an exponential rate in the Americas, Europe
and Asia. However, e-retailing costs require expensive investment,
such as hardware, software, and security systems. Cloud computing
technology is internet-based computing for the management and
delivery of applications and services. Cloud-based e-retailing
application models allow enterprises to lower their costs with their
effective implementation of e-retailing activities. In this paper, we
describe the concept of cloud computing and present the architecture
of cloud computing, combining the features of e-retailing. In
addition, we propose a strategy for implementing cloud computing
with e-retailing. Finally, we explain the benefits from the
architecture.
Abstract: Polymeric micro-cantilevers (Cs) are rapidly
becoming popular for MEMS applications such as chemo- and biosensing
as well as purely electromechanical applications such as
microrelays. Polymer materials present suitable physical and
chemical properties combined with low-cost mass production. Hence,
micro-cantilevers made of polymers indicate much more
biocompatibility and adaptability of rapid prototyping along with
mechanical properties. This research studies the effects of three
process and one size factors on the filling behaviour in micro cavity,
and the role of each in the replication of micro parts using different
polymer materials i.e. polypropylene (PP) SABIC 56M10 and
acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) Magnum 8434 . In particular,
the following factors are considered: barrel temperature, mould
temperature, injection speed and the thickness of micro features. The
study revealed that the barrel temperature and the injection speed are
the key factors affecting the flow length of micro features replicated
in PP and ABS. For both materials, an increase of feature sizes
improves the melt flow. However, the melt fill of micro features does
not increase linearly with the increase of their thickness.
Abstract: In most existing buildings in hot climate, cooling
loads lead to high primary energy consumption and consequently
high CO2 emissions. These can be substantially decreased with
integrated renewable energy systems. Kuwait is characterized by its
dry hot long summer and short warm winter. Kuwait receives annual
total radiation more than 5280 MJ/m2 with approximately 3347 h of
sunshine. Solar energy systems consist of PV modules and parabolic
trough collectors are considered to satisfy electricity consumption,
domestic water heating, and cooling loads of an existing building.
This paper presents the results of an extensive program of energy
conservation and energy generation using integrated photovoltaic
(PV) modules and Parabolic Trough Collectors (PTC). The program
conducted on an existing institutional building intending to convert it
into a Net-Zero Energy Building (NZEB) or near net Zero Energy
Building (nNZEB). The program consists of two phases; the first
phase is concerned with energy auditing and energy conservation
measures at minimum cost and the second phase considers the
installation of photovoltaic modules and parabolic trough collectors.
The 2-storey building under consideration is the Applied Sciences
Department at the College of Technological Studies, Kuwait. Single
effect lithium bromide water absorption chillers are implemented to
provide air conditioning load to the building. A numerical model is
developed to evaluate the performance of parabolic trough collectors
in Kuwait climate. Transient simulation program (TRNSYS) is
adapted to simulate the performance of different solar system
components. In addition, a numerical model is developed to assess
the environmental impacts of building integrated renewable energy
systems. Results indicate that efficient energy conservation can play
an important role in converting the existing buildings into NZEBs as
it saves a significant portion of annual energy consumption of the
building. The first phase results in an energy conservation of about
28% of the building consumption. In the second phase, the integrated
PV completely covers the lighting and equipment loads of the
building. On the other hand, parabolic trough collectors of optimum
area of 765 m2 can satisfy a significant portion of the cooling load,
i.e about73% of the total building cooling load. The annual avoided
CO2 emission is evaluated at the optimum conditions to assess the
environmental impacts of renewable energy systems. The total annual
avoided CO2 emission is about 680 metric ton/year which confirms
the environmental impacts of these systems in Kuwait.
Abstract: Main purpose of this study is to identify the impact of
government expenditure on economic growth in Asian Countries.
Consequently, main objective is to analyze whether government
expenditure causes economic growth in Asian countries vice versa
and then scrutinizing long-run equilibrium relationship exists
between them. The study completely based on secondary data. The
methodology being quantitative that includes econometrical
techniques of cointegration, panel fixed effects model and granger
causality in the context of panel data of Asian countries; Singapore,
Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea, Japan, China, Sri Lanka, India and
Bhutan with 44 observations in each country, totaling to 396
observations from 1970 to 2013. The model used is the random
effects panel OLS model. As with the above methodology, the study
found the fascinating outcome. At first, empirical findings exhibit a
momentous positive impact of government expenditure on Gross
Domestic Production in Asian region. Secondly, government
expenditure and economic growth indicate a long-run relationship in
Asian countries. In conclusion, there is a unidirectional causality
from economic growth to government expenditure and government
expenditure to economic growth in Asian countries. Hence the study
is validated that it is in line with the Keynesian theory and Wagner’s
law as well. Consequently, it can be concluded that role of
government would play a vital role in economic growth of Asian
Countries. However; if government expenditure did not figure out
with the economy’s needs it might be considerably inspiration the
economy in a negative way so that society bears the costs.
Abstract: This paper introduces a method to optimal design of a
hybrid Wind/Photovoltaic/Fuel cell generation system for a typical
domestic load that is not located near the electricity grid. In this
configuration the combination of a battery, an electrolyser, and a
hydrogen storage tank are used as the energy storage system. The aim
of this design is minimization of overall cost of generation scheme
over 20 years of operation. The Matlab/Simulink is applied for
choosing the appropriate structure and the optimization of system
sizing. A teaching learning based optimization is used to optimize the
cost function. An overall power management strategy is designed for
the proposed system to manage power flows among the different
energy sources and the storage unit in the system. The results have
been analyzed in terms of technical and economic. The simulation
results indicate that the proposed hybrid system would be a feasible
solution for stand-alone applications at remote locations.
Abstract: Adequate analgesia following caesarean section
decreases morbidity, hastens ambulation, improves patient outcome
and facilitates care of the newborn. Intrathecal magnesium, an
NMDA antagonist, has been shown to prolong analgesia without
significant side effects in healthy parturients. The aim of this study
was to evaluate the onset and duration of sensory and motor block,
hemodynamic effect, postoperative analgesia, and adverse effects of
magnesium or fentanyl given intrathecally with hyperbaric 0.5%
bupivacaine in patients with mild preeclampsia undergoing caesarean
section. Sixty women with mild preeclampsia undergoing elective
caesarean section were included in a prospective, double blind,
controlled trial. Patients were randomly assigned to receive spinal
anesthesia with 2 mL 0.5% hyperbaric bupivacaine with 12.5 μg
fentanyl (group F) or 0.1 ml of 50% magnesium sulphate (50 mg)
(group M) with 0.15ml preservative free distilled water. Onset,
duration and recovery of sensory and motor block, time to maximum
sensory block, duration of spinal anaesthesia and postoperative
analgesic requirements were studied. Statistical comparison was
carried out using the Chi-square or Fisher’s exact tests and
Independent Student’s t-test where appropriate. The onset of both
sensory and motor block was slower in the magnesium group. The
duration of spinal anaesthesia (246 vs. 284) and motor block (186.3
vs. 210) were significantly longer in the magnesium group. Total
analgesic top up requirement was less in group M. Hemodynamic
parameters were similar in both the groups. Intrathecal magnesium
caused minimal side effects. Since Fentanyl and other opioid
congeners are not available throughout the country easily,
magnesium with its easy availability and less side effect profile can
be a cost effective alternative to fentanyl in managing pregnancy
induced hypertension (PIH) patients given along with Bupivacaine
intrathecally in caesarean section.
Abstract: The increasing volume of solid waste generated,
collected and disposed daily complicate adequate management of
solid waste by relevant agency like Niger State Environmental
Protection Agency (NISEPA). In addition, the impacts of solid waste
on the natural environment and human livelihood require
identification of cost-effective ways for sustainable municipal waste
management in Nigeria. These signal the need for identifying
environment-friendly initiative and local solution to address the
problem of municipal solid waste. A research field was secured at
Pago, Minna, Niger State which is located in the guinea savanna belt
of Nigeria, within longitude 60 361 4311 - 4511 and latitude 90 291
37.6111 - .6211 N. Poultry droppings, decomposed household waste
manure and NPK treatments were used. The experimental field was
divided into three replications and four (4) treatments on each
replication making a total of twelve (12) plots. The treatments were
allotted using Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) and
Data collected was analyzed using SPSS software and RCBD. The
result depicts variation in plant height and number of leaves at 50%
flowering; Poultry dropping records the highest height while the
number of leaves for waste manure competes fairly well with NPK
treatment. Similarly, the varying treatments significantly increase
vegetable yield, as the control (non-treatment) records the least yield
for the three vegetable samples. Adoption of this organic manure for
cultivation does not only enhance environment quality and attainment
of food security but will contribute to local economic development,
poverty alleviation as well as social inclusion.
Abstract: Traditional mechanical control systems in thrust
vectoring are efficient in rocket thrust guidance but their costs
and their weights are excessive. The fluidic injection in the nozzle
divergent constitutes an alternative procedure to achieve the goal. In
this paper, we present a 3D analytical model for fluidic injection
in a supersonic nozzle integrating an orifice. The fluidic vectoring
uses a sonic secondary injection in the divergent. As a result, the
flow and interaction between the main and secondary jet has built in
order to express the pressure fields from which the forces and thrust
vectoring are deduced. Under various separation criteria, the present
analytical model results are compared with the existing numerical
and experimental data from the literature.
Abstract: The localization information is crucial for the
operation of WSN. There are principally two types of localization
algorithms. The Range-based localization algorithm has strict
requirements on hardware, thus is expensive to be implemented in
practice. The Range-free localization algorithm reduces the hardware
cost. However, it can only achieve high accuracy in ideal scenarios.
In this paper, we locate unknown nodes by incorporating the
advantages of these two types of methods. The proposed algorithm
makes the unknown nodes select the nearest anchor using the
Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) and choose two other
anchors which are the most accurate to achieve the estimated
location. Our algorithm improves the localization accuracy compared
with previous algorithms, which has been demonstrated by the
simulating results.
Abstract: Despite the financial crisis and ongoing need for cost
cutting, companies all around the world heavily invest in Information
Systems (IS) and underlying Information Technology (IT).
Proliferation of governance of enterprise IT helps companies manage,
or rather, governs IS as a primary business function with executive
management involved in making decision about IS and IT. The
business value of IT is raising with the involvement of the executive
management in IT decision making process and quality IT
governance mechanisms in place. In this paper the practice of
governing the enterprise IT will be investigated on a sample of the
largest 100 Croatian companies. Research questions posed here will
reveal if there are some formal IT governance mechanisms, are there
any differences in perceived role of IS and IT between CIOs (Chief
Information Officers) and CEOs (Chief Executive Officers) of the
sampled companies and what are the mechanisms to govern massive
investment in enterprise IT.
Abstract: In order to achieve high data rate and increase the
spectral efficiency, multiple input multiple output (MIMO) system has
been proposed. However, multiple antennas are limited by size and
cost. Therefore, recently developed cooperative diversity scheme,
which profits the transmit diversity only with the existing hardware by
constituting a virtual antenna array, can be a solution. However, most
of the introduced cooperative techniques have a common fault of
decreased transmission rate because the destination should receive the
decodable compositions of symbols from the source and the relay. In
this paper, we propose a cooperative cyclic delay diversity (CDD)
scheme that use hierarchical modulation. This scheme is free from the
rate loss and allows seamless cooperative communication.
Abstract: Expansive soils are often encountered in many parts
of the world, especially in arid and semi-arid fields. Such kind of
soils, generally including active clay minerals in low water content,
enlarge in volume by absorbing the water through the surface and
cause a great harm to the light structures such as channel coating,
roads and airports. The expansive soils were encountered on the path
of Apa-Hotamış conveyance channel belonging to the State
Hydraulic Works in the region of Konya. In the research done in this
area, it is predicted that the soil has a swollen nature and the soil
should be filled with proper granular equipments by digging the
ground to 50-60 cm. In this study, for purpose of helping the other
research to be done in the same area, it is thought that instead of
replacing swollen soil with the granular soil, by stabilizing it with
polypropylene fiber and using it its original place decreases effect of
swelling percent, in this way the cost will be decreased. Therefore,
laboratory tests were conducted to study the effects of polypropylene
fiber on swelling characteristics of expansive soil. Test results
indicated that inclusion of fiber reduced swell percent of expansive
soil. As the fiber content increased, the unconfined compressive
strength was increased. Finally, it can be said that stabilization of
expansive soils with polypropylene fiber is an effective method.
Abstract: The aim of this work was to characterize a potential
target group of people interested in participating into a training
program in organic farming in the context of mobile-learning. The
information sought addressed in particular, but not exclusively,
possible contents, formats and forms of evaluation that will
contribute to define the course objectives and curriculum, as well as
to ensure that the course meets the needs of the learners and their
preferences. The sample was selected among different European
countries. The questionnaires were delivered electronically for
answering on-line and in the end 135 consented valid questionnaires
were obtained. The results allowed characterizing the target group
and identifying their training needs and preferences towards m-learning
formats, giving valuable tools to design the training offer.
Abstract: Sewer deposits have been identified as a major cause
of dysfunctions in combined sewer systems regarding sewer
management, which induces different negative consequents resulting
in poor hydraulic conveyance, environmental damages as well as
worker’s health. In order to overcome the problematics of
sedimentation, flushing has been considered as the most operative
and cost-effective way to minimize the sediments impacts and
prevent such challenges. Flushing, by prompting turbulent wave
effects, can modify the bed form depending on the hydraulic
properties and geometrical characteristics of the conduit. So far, the
dynamics of the bed-load during high-flow events in combined sewer
systems as a complex environment is not well understood, mostly due
to lack of measuring devices capable to work in the “hostile” in
combined sewer system correctly. In this regards, a one-episode
flushing issue from an opening gate valve with weir function was
carried out in a trunk sewer in Paris to understand its cleansing
efficiency on the sediments (thickness: 0-30 cm). During more than
1h of flushing within 5 m distance in downstream of this flushing
device, a maximum flowrate and a maximum level of water have
been recorded at 5 m in downstream of the gate as 4.1 m3/s and 2.1
m respectively. This paper is aimed to evaluate the efficiency of this
type of gate for around 1.1 km (from the point -50 m to +1050 m in
downstream from the gate) by (i) determining bed grain-size
distribution and sediments evolution through the sewer channel, as
well as their organic matter content, and (ii) identifying sections that
exhibit more changes in their texture after the flush. For the first one,
two series of sampling were taken from the sewer length and then
analyzed in laboratory, one before flushing and second after, at same
points among the sewer channel. Hence, a non-intrusive sampling
instrument has undertaken to extract the sediments smaller than the
fine gravels. The comparison between sediments texture after the
flush operation and the initial state, revealed the most modified zones
by the flush effect, regarding the sewer invert slope and hydraulic
parameters in the zone up to 400 m from the gate. At this distance,
despite the increase of sediment grain-size rages, D50 (median grainsize)
varies between 0.6 mm and 1.1 mm compared to 0.8 mm and 10
mm before and after flushing, respectively. Overall, regarding the
sewer channel invert slope, results indicate that grains smaller than
sands (< 2 mm) are more transported to downstream along about 400
m from the gate: in average 69% before against 38% after the flush
with more dispersion of grain-sizes distributions. Furthermore, high
effect of the channel bed irregularities on the bed material evolution
has been observed after the flush.
Abstract: The disposal and the treatment of sewage sludge is an
expensive and environmentally complex problem. In this work, a
lipopeptide biosurfactant extracted from corn steep liquor was used
as ecofriendly and cost-competitive alternative for the mobilization
and bioremediation of fluorene in sewage sludge. Results have
demonstrated that this biosurfactant has the capability to mobilize
fluorene to the aqueous phase, reducing the amount of fluorene in the
sewage sludge from 484.4 mg/Kg up to 413.7 mg/Kg and 196.0
mg/Kg after 1 and 27 days respectively. Furthermore, once the
fluorene was extracted the lipopeptide biosurfactant contained in the
aqueous phase allowed the biodegradation, up to 40.5% of the initial
concentration of this polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon.
Abstract: There is currently a gap in the technology covering the
rapid establishment of control after a reconfiguration in a
Reconfigurable Manufacturing System. This gap involves the
detection of the factory floor state and the communication link
between the factory floor and the high-level software. In this paper, a
thin, hardware-supported Middleware Management System (MMS) is
proposed and its design and implementation are discussed. The
research found that a cost-effective localization technique can be
combined with intelligent software to speed up the ramp-up of a
reconfigured system. The MMS makes the process more intelligent,
more efficient and less time-consuming, thus supporting the
industrial implementation of the RMS paradigm.
Abstract: In insulation and cooling of power transformers
various liquids are used. Mineral oils have wide availability and low
cost. However, they have a poor biodegradability potential and lower
fire point in comparison with other insulating liquids. Use of a liquid
having high biodegradability is important due to environmental
consideration. This paper investigates edible corn oil as an alternative
to mineral oil. Various properties of mineral and corn oil like
breakdown voltage, dissipation factor, relative dielectric constant,
power loss and resistivity were measured according to different
standards.
Abstract: This report presents an alternative technique of
application of contrast agent in vivo, i.e. before sampling. By this
new method the electron micrograph of tissue sections have an
acceptable contrast compared to other methods and present no artifact
of precipitation on sections. Another advantage is that a small amount
of contrast is needed to get a good result given that most of them are
expensive and extremely toxic.
Abstract: Localization of nodes is one of the key issues of
Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) that gained a wide attention in
recent years. The existing localization techniques can be generally
categorized into two types: range-based and range-free. Compared
with rang-based schemes, the range-free schemes are more costeffective,
because no additional ranging devices are needed. As a
result, we focus our research on the range-free schemes. In this paper
we study three types of range-free location algorithms to compare the
localization error and energy consumption of each one. Centroid
algorithm requires a normal node has at least three neighbor anchors,
while DV-hop algorithm doesn’t have this requirement. The third
studied algorithm is the amorphous algorithm similar to DV-Hop
algorithm, and the idea is to calculate the hop distance between two
nodes instead of the linear distance between them. The simulation
results show that the localization accuracy of the amorphous
algorithm is higher than that of other algorithms and the energy
consumption does not increase too much.