Abstract: Steel corrosion in concrete is considered as a main
engineering problems for many countries and lots of expenses has been paid for their repair and maintenance annually. This problem
may occur in all engineering structures whether in coastal and offshore or other areas. Hence, concrete structures should be able to
withstand corrosion factors existing in water or soil. Reinforcing
steel corrosion enhancement can be measured by use of concrete
electrical resistance; and maintaining high electric resistivity in concrete is necessary for steel corrosion prevention. Lots of studies
devoted to different aspects of the subjects worldwide. In this paper, an evaluation of the effects of W/C ratio, cementitious materials, and
percent increase in silica fume were investigated on electric resistivity of high strength concrete. To do that, sixteen mix design
with one aggregate grading was planned. Five of them had varying amount of W/C ratio and other eleven mixes was prepared with
constant W/C ratio but different amount of cementitious materials.
Silica fume and super plasticizer were used with different proportions
in all specimens. Specimens were tested after moist curing for 28 days. A total of 80 cube specimens (50 mm) were tested for concrete
electrical resistance. Results show that concrete electric resistivity can be increased with increasing amount of cementitious materials
and silica fume.
Abstract: A specially designed flat plate was mounted vertically
over the axial line in the wind tunnel of the Aerospace Department of
the Pusan National University. The plate is 2 m long, 0.8 m high and 8
cm thick. The measurements were performed in velocity range from
15 to 60 m/s. A sand paper turbulizer was placed close to the plate nose
to provide fully developed turbulent boundary layer over the most part
of the plate. Strain balances were mounted in the trailing part of the
plate to measure the skin friction drag over removable insertions of
0.55×0.25m2 size. A set of the insertions was designed and
manufactured: 3mm thick polished metal surface and three compliant
surfaces. The compliant surfaces were manufactured of a silicone
rubber Silastic® S2 (Dow Corning company). To modify the
viscoelastic properties of the rubber, its composition was varied: 90%
of the rubber + 10% catalyst (standard), 92.5% + 7.5% (weak), 85% +
15% (strong). Modulus of elasticity and the loss tangent were
measured accurately for these materials in the frequency range from
40 Hz to 3 KHz using the unique proposed technique.
Abstract: This work concerns the topological optimization
problem for determining the optimal petroleum refinery
configuration. We are interested in further investigating and
hopefully advancing the existing optimization approaches and
strategies employing logic propositions to conceptual process
synthesis problems. In particular, we seek to contribute to this
increasingly exciting area of chemical process modeling by
addressing the following potentially important issues: (a) how the
formulation of design specifications in a mixed-logical-and-integer
optimization model can be employed in a synthesis problem to enrich
the problem representation by incorporating past design experience,
engineering knowledge, and heuristics; and (b) how structural
specifications on the interconnectivity relationships by space (states)
and by function (tasks) in a superstructure should be properly
formulated within a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP)
model. The proposed modeling technique is illustrated on a case
study involving the alternative processing routes of naphtha, in which
significant improvement in the solution quality is obtained.
Abstract: The design requirements for successful human
accommodation in urban spaces are well known; and the range of
facilities available for meeting urban water quality and quantity
requirements is also well established. Their competing requirements
must be reconciled in order for urban spaces to be successful for
both. This paper outlines the separate human and water imperatives
and their interactions in urban spaces. Stormwater management
facilities- relative potential contributions to urban spaces are
contrasted, and design choices for achieving those potentials are
described. This study uses human success of urban space as the
evaluative criterion of stormwater amenity: human values call on
stormwater facilities to contribute to successful human spaces.
Placing water-s contribution under the overall idea of successful
urban space is an evolution from previous subjective evaluations.
The information is based on photographs and notes from
approximately 1,000 stormwater facilities and urban sites collected
during the last 35 years in North America and overseas, and the
author-s experience on multi-disciplinary design teams. This
conceptual study combines the disciplinary roles of engineering,
landscape architecture, and sociology in effecting successful urban
design.
Abstract: A multi-board run-time reconfigurable (MRTR)
system for evolvable hardware (EHW) is introduced with the aim to
implement on hardware the bidirectional incremental evolution (BIE)
method. The main features of this digital intrinsic EHW solution rely
on the multi-board approach, the variable chromosome length
management and the partial configuration of the reconfigurable
circuit. These three features provide a high scalability to the solution.
The design has been written in VHDL with the concern of not being
platform dependant in order to keep a flexibility factor as high as
possible. This solution helps tackling the problem of evolving
complex task on digital configurable support.
Abstract: Determination of nano particle size is substantial since
the nano particle size exerts a significant effect on various properties
of nano materials. Accordingly, proposing non-destructive, accurate
and rapid techniques for this aim is of high interest. There are some
conventional techniques to investigate the morphology and grain size
of nano particles such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM),
atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray diffractometry (XRD).
Vibrational spectroscopy is utilized to characterize different
compounds and applied for evaluation of the average particle size
based on relationship between particle size and near infrared spectra
[1,4] , but it has never been applied in quantitative morphological
analysis of nano materials. So far, the potential application of nearinfrared
(NIR) spectroscopy with its ability in rapid analysis of
powdered materials with minimal sample preparation, has been
suggested for particle size determination of powdered
pharmaceuticals. The relationship between particle size and diffuse
reflectance (DR) spectra in near infrared region has been applied to
introduce a method for estimation of particle size. Back propagation
artificial neural network (BP-ANN) as a nonlinear model was applied
to estimate average particle size based on near infrared diffuse
reflectance spectra. Thirty five different nano TiO2 samples with
different particle size were analyzed by DR-FTNIR spectrometry and
the obtained data were processed by BP- ANN.
Abstract: In order to optimize annual IT spending and to reduce
the complexity of an entire system architecture, SOA trials have been
started. It is common knowledge that to design an SOA system we
have to adopt the top-down approach, but in reality silo systems are
being made, so these companies cannot reuse newly designed services,
and cannot enjoy SOA-s economic benefits. To prevent this situation,
we designed a generic SOA development process referred to as the
architecture of “mass customization."
To define the generic detail development processes, we did a case
study on an imaginary company. Through the case study, we could
define the practical development processes and found this could vastly
reduce updating development costs.
Abstract: A virtual collaborative classroom was created at East Carolina University, using videoconference technology via regular internet to bring students from 18 different countries, 2 at a time, to the ECU classroom in real time to learn about each other-s culture. Students from two countries are partnered one on one, they meet for 4-5 weeks, and submit a joint paper. Then the same process is repeated for two other countries. Lectures and student discussions are managed with pre-determined topics and questions. Classes are conducted in English and reading assignments are placed on the website. Administratively all partners are independent, students pay fees and get credits at their home institution. Familiarity with technology, knowledge in cultural understanding and attitude change were assessed, only attitude changes are reported in this paper. After taking this course, all students stated their comfort level in working with, and their desire to interact with, culturally different others grew stronger and their xenophobia and isolationist attitudes decreased.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to consider the
introduction of online courses to replace the current classroom-based
staff training. The current training is practical, and must be
completed before access to the financial computer system is
authorized. The long term objective is to measure the efficacy,
effectiveness and efficiency of the training, and to establish whether
a transfer of knowledge back to the workplace has occurred. This
paper begins with an overview explaining the importance of staff
training in an evolving, competitive business environment and
defines the problem facing this particular organization. A summary
of the literature review is followed by a brief discussion of the
research methodology and objective. The implementation of the
alpha version of the online course is then described. This paper may
be of interest to those seeking insights into, or new theory regarding,
practical interventions of online learning in the real world.
Abstract: We developed a non-contact method for the in-situ
monitoring of the thermal forming of glass and Si foils to optimize
the manufacture of mirrors for high-resolution space x-ray
telescopes. Their construction requires precise and light-weight
segmented optics with angular resolution better than 5 arcsec. We
used 75x25 mm Desag D263 glass foils 0.75 mm thick and 0.6 mm
thick Si foils. The glass foils were shaped by free slumping on a
frame at viscosities in the range of 109.3-1012 dPa·s, the Si foils by
forced slumping above 1000°C. Using a Nikon D80 digital camera,
we took snapshots of a foil-s shape every 5 min during its isothermal
heat treatment. The obtained results we can use for computer
simulations. By comparing the measured and simulated data, we can
more precisely define material properties of the foils and optimize
the forming technology.
Abstract: We have investigated the effect of piezoelectric (PZ)
polarization property in binary as well as in ternary wurtzite nitrides.
It is found that with the presence of PZ polarization property, the
phonon group velocity is modified. The change in phonon group
velocity due to PZ polarization effect directly depends on
piezoelectric tensor value. Using different piezoelectric tensor values
recommended by different workers in the literature, percent change in
group velocities of phonons has been estimated. The Debye
temperatures and frequencies of binary nitrides GaN, AlN and InN
are also calculated using the modified group velocities. For ternary
nitrides AlxGa(1-x)N, InxGa(1-x)N and InxAl(1-x)N, the phonon group
velocities have been calculated as a functions of composition. A
small positive bowing is observed in phonon group velocities of
ternary alloys. Percent variations in phonon group velocities are also
calculated for a straightforward comparison among ternary nitrides.
The results are expected to show a change in phonon relaxation rates
and thermal conductivity of III-nitrides when piezoelectric
polarization property is taken into consideration.
Abstract: How to effectively allocate system resource to process
the Client request by Gateway servers is a challenging problem. In
this paper, we propose an improved scheme for autonomous
performance of Gateway servers under highly dynamic traffic loads.
We devise a methodology to calculate Queue Length and Waiting
Time utilizing Gateway Server information to reduce response time
variance in presence of bursty traffic. The most widespread
contemplation is performance, because Gateway Servers must offer
cost-effective and high-availability services in the elongated period,
thus they have to be scaled to meet the expected load. Performance
measurements can be the base for performance modeling and
prediction. With the help of performance models, the performance
metrics (like buffer estimation, waiting time) can be determined at
the development process. This paper describes the possible queue
models those can be applied in the estimation of queue length to
estimate the final value of the memory size. Both simulation and
experimental studies using synthesized workloads and analysis of
real-world Gateway Servers demonstrate the effectiveness of the
proposed system.
Abstract: In Supply Chain Management (SCM), strengthening partnerships with suppliers is a significant factor for enhancing competitiveness. Hence, firms increasingly emphasize supplier evaluation processes. Supplier evaluation systems are basically developed in terms of criteria such as quality, cost, delivery, and flexibility. Because there are many variables to be analyzed, this process becomes hard to execute and needs expertise. On this account, this study aims to develop an expert system on supplier evaluation process by designing Artificial Neural Network (ANN) that is supported with Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The methods are applied on the data of 24 suppliers, which have longterm relationships with a medium sized company from German Iron and Steel Industry. The data of suppliers consists of variables such as material quality (MQ), discount of amount (DOA), discount of cash (DOC), payment term (PT), delivery time (DT) and annual revenue (AR). Meanwhile, the efficiency that is generated by using DEA is added to the supplier evaluation system in order to use them as system outputs.
Abstract: A number of routing algorithms based on learning
automata technique have been proposed for communication
networks. How ever, there has been little work on the effects of
variation of graph scarcity on the performance of these algorithms. In
this paper, a comprehensive study is launched to investigate the
performance of LASPA, the first learning automata based solution to
the dynamic shortest path routing, across different graph structures
with varying scarcities. The sensitivity of three main performance
parameters of the algorithm, being average number of processed
nodes, scanned edges and average time per update, to variation in
graph scarcity is reported. Simulation results indicate that the LASPA
algorithm can adapt well to the scarcity variation in graph structure
and gives much better outputs than the existing dynamic and fixed
algorithms in terms of performance criteria.
Abstract: This research investigates the effects of the opening
shape and location on the structural behavior of reinforced concrete
deep beam with openings, while keeping the opening size unchanged.
The software ANSYS 12.1 is used to handle the nonlinear finite
element analysis. The ultimate strength of reinforced concrete deep
beam with opening obtained by ANSYS 12.1 shows fair agreement
with the experimental results, with a difference of no more than 20%. The present work concludes that the opening location has much more effect on the structural strength than the opening shape. It was
concluded that placing the openings near the upper corners of the
deep beam may double the strength, and the use of a rectangular
narrow opening, with the long sides in the horizontal direction, can save up to 40% of structural strength of the deep beam.
Abstract: Air quality studies were carried out in the towns of
Putrajaya, Petaling Jaya and Nilai in the Malaysian Peninsular. In this
study, the variations of Ozone (O3) concentrations over a four year
period (2008-2011) were investigated using data obtained from the
Malaysian Department of the Environment (DOE). This study aims to
identify and describe the daily and monthly variations of O3
concentrations at the monitoring sites mentioned. The SPPS program
(Statistical Package for the Social Science) was used to analyze this
data in order to obtain the variations of O3 and also to clarify the
relationship between the stations. The findings of the study revealed
that the highest concentration of O3 occurred during the midday and
afternoon (between 13:00-15:00 hrs). The comparison between
stations also showed that highest O3 concentrations were recorded in
Putrajaya. The comparisons of average and maximum concentrations
of O3 for the three stations showed that the strongest significant
correlation was recorded in the Petaling Jaya station with the value
R2= 0.667. Results from this study indicate that in the urban areas of
Peninsular Malaysia, the concentration of O3 depends on the
concentration of NOx. Furthermore, HYSPLIT back trajectories
(-72h) indicated that air-mass transport patterns can also influence the
O3 concentration in the areas studied.
Abstract: In order to investigate water deficit stress on 24 of
soybean (Glycine Max. L) cultivars and lines in temperate climate, an
experiment was conducted in Iran Seed and Plant Improvement
Institute. Stress levels were irrigation after evaporation of 50, 100,
150 mm water from pan, class A. Randomized Completely Block
Design was arranged for each stress levels. Some traits such as, node
number, plant height, pod number per area, grain number per pod,
grain number per area, 1000 grains weight, grain yield and harvest
index were measured. Results showed that water deficit stress had
significant effect on node number, plant height, pod number per area,
grain number per pod, grain number per area, 1000 grains weight and
harvest index. Also all of agronomic traits except harvest index
influenced significantly by cultivars and lines. The least and most
grain yield was belonged to Ronak X Williams and M41 x Clark
respectively.
Abstract: Currently searching through internet is very popular especially in a field of academic. A huge of educational information such as research papers are overload for user. So community-base web sites have been developed to help user search information more easily from process of customizing a web site to need each specifies user or set of user. In this paper propose to use association rule analyze the community group on research paper bookmarking. A set of design goals for community group frameworks is developed and discussed. Additionally Researcher analyzes the initial relation by using association rule discovery between the antecedent and the consequent of a rule in the groups of user for generate the idea to improve ranking search result and development recommender system.
Abstract: A wireless sensor network with a large number of tiny sensor nodes can be used as an effective tool for gathering data in various situations. One of the major issues in wireless sensor networks is developing an energy-efficient routing protocol which has a significant impact on the overall lifetime of the sensor network. In this paper, we propose a novel hierarchical with static clustering routing protocol called Energy-Efficient Protocol with Static Clustering (EEPSC). EEPSC, partitions the network into static clusters, eliminates the overhead of dynamic clustering and utilizes temporary-cluster-heads to distribute the energy load among high-power sensor nodes; thus extends network lifetime. We have conducted simulation-based evaluations to compare the performance of EEPSC against Low-Energy Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy (LEACH). Our experiment results show that EEPSC outperforms LEACH in terms of network lifetime and power consumption minimization.
Abstract: This article discusses stress analysis and the shape characteristics of the inflatable wing, and then introduces the design method of inflatable wing, in order to accurately approximate a standard airfoil. It specifically analyses the aerodynamic characteristics of the inflatable wing with the method of CFD, along with comparing to standard airfoil, afterwards we carries out the manufacture of inflatable wing and the flight test.