WorldWideScience

Sample records for blending transportation marketing

  1. Diluent and bitumen, an uneasy mix : considerations for treating, blending, transportation, marketing and refining

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Todd, C. [Connacher Oil and Gas Ltd., Calgary, AB (Canada)

    2009-07-01

    This presentation evaluated several issues regarding the use of diluent as a blending agent with Canadian bitumen. Heavy and viscous crude oils are commonly diluted with condensates and gasolines. This improves field processing, transportability in pipelines and acceptability in markets and refineries. The demand for such diluent is increasing because of the large amounts of heavy oil and bitumen currently produced in Canada. The current tenable price of diluents has meant that a wide range of diluent sources and components are finding their way into the Canadian diluent supply stream. This has raised concerns regarding diluent performance and the affect on blended crude oils. The cost of diluent is among the most controllable expense associated with most bitumen production projects. Market factors were considered in this presentation, such as supply demand; price and infrastructure; operational processing and blending issues; diluent quality and component variability; and downstream issues such as refinery processing and production. tabs., figs.

  2. The market and consumer welfare effects of mid-level ethanol blends in the US fuel market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gallagher, Paul W.; Sleper, Daniel

    2016-01-01

    This study examines the prospect that a consumer-driven market could eventually replace the myriad regulations and demand quotas in the US ethanol and gasoline fuel market. Given efficient households that minimize the cost of operating automobiles, recent vehicle technology that improves blended fuel substitution, and typical market conditions of the last five years, blended fuels with 20% ethanol concentration could occupy a volume of 82.2 billion gallons in a 138.3 billion gallon gasoline market. The consumer welfare gain associated with blended fuel is $15.9 billion annually for US consumers, or about $1000 over the life of a vehicle. The ethanol demand associated with a voluntary blended fuel market is 16.4 BGY, slightly more than the conventional component of the Renewable Fuels Standard. It is time to replace the corn RFS with a free market. But an active competition policy in the fuel marketing system may also be required. Intervention for the impending Biomass Ethanol Industry, such as a subsidy or an exemption a carbon tax, may also be in order. - Highlights: • Competiveness of 20% ethanol blends replacing gasoline is examined. • Households can reduce costs by $1000 over vehicle life with ethanol blend. • Blended fuel could gain a 60% share in a voluntary US gasoline market. • US ethanol supply in a voluntary market would match current mandated output.

  3. Bringing biofuels on the market. Options to increase EU biofuels volumes beyond the current blending limits

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kampman, B.; Van Grinsven, A.; Croezen, H. [CE Delft, Delft (Netherlands); Verbeek, R.; Van Mensch, P.; Patuleia, A. [TNO, Delft, (Netherlands)

    2013-07-15

    This handbook on biofuels provides a comprehensive overview of different types of biofuels, and the technical options that exist to market the biofuels volumes expected to be consumed in the EU Member States in 2020. The study concludes that by fully utilizing the current blending limits of biodiesel (FAME) in diesel (B7) and bioethanol in petrol (E10) up to 7.9% share of biofuels in the EU transport sector can be technically reached by 2020. Increasing use of advanced biofuels, particularly blending of fungible fuels into diesel (eg. HVO and BTL) and the use of higher ethanol blends in compatible vehicles (e.g. E20), can play an important role. Also, the increased use of biomethane (in particular bio-CNG) and higher blends of biodiesel (FAME) can contribute. However, it is essential for both governments and industry to decide within 1 or 2 years on the way ahead and take necessary actions covering both, the fuels and the vehicles, to ensure their effective and timely implementation. Even though a range of technical options exist, many of these require considerable time and effort to implement and reach their potential. Large scale implementation of the options beyond current blending limits requires new, targeted policy measures, in many cases complemented by new fuel and vehicle standards, adaptation of engines and fuel distribution, etc. Marketing policies for these vehicles, fuels and blends are also likely to become much more important than in the current situation. Each Member State may develop its own strategy tailored to its market and policy objectives, but the EU should play a crucial facilitating role in these developments.

  4. Homogeneity of blended nuclear fuel powders after pneumatic transport

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Smeltzer, E.E.; Skriba, M.C.; Lyon, W.L.

    1982-01-01

    A study of the pneumatic transport of fine (approx. 1μm) cohesive nuclear fuel powders was conducted for the U.S. Department of Energy to demonstrate the feasibility of this method of transport and to develop a design data base for use in a large scale nuclear fuel production facility. As part of this program, a considerable effort was directed at following the homogeneity of blended powders. Since different reactors require different enrichments, blending and subsequent transport are critical parts of the fabrication sequence. The various materials used represented analogs of a wide range of powders and blends that could be expected in a commercial mixed oxide fabrication facility. All UO 2 powders used were depleted and a co-precipitated master mix of (U, Th)O 2 was made specifically for this program, using thorium as an analog for plutonium. In order to determine the effect of pneumatic transport on a blended powder, samples were taken from a feeder vessel before each test, and from a receiver vessel and a few line sections after each transfer test. The average difference between the before and after degree of non-homogeneity was < 1%, for the 21 tests considered. This shows that overall, the pneumatic transport of blended, fine nuclear fuel powders is possible, with only minor unblending occurring

  5. Blending traditional and digital marketing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raluca Dania TODOR

    2016-07-01

    Full Text Available It is a matter of fact that we are in the digital era and internet marketing and social media have a significant impact on the way consumers behave, companies do business and it is a must for companies to adapt to the new reality. Due to the fast evolution of the technology, the continuous increase in demand and supply, the supply chain elongation and the big amount of date, the only solution to face the major changes is the automation of all the processes. But even though the new era of communication is here, specialist suggest that companies should not ignore traditional methods, and to try to blend digital marketing with traditional campaigns in order to achieve their goals.

  6. Evaluation of ternary blended cements for use in transportation concrete structures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gilliland, Amanda Louise

    This thesis investigates the use of ternary blended cement concrete mixtures for transportation structures. The study documents technical properties of three concrete mixtures used in federally funded transportation projects in Utah, Kansas, and Michigan that used ternary blended cement concrete mixtures. Data were also collected from laboratory trial batches of ternary blended cement concrete mixtures with mixture designs similar to those of the field projects. The study presents the technical, economic, and environmental advantages of ternary blended cement mixtures. Different barriers of implementation for using ternary blended cement concrete mixtures in transportation projects are addressed. It was concluded that there are no technical, economic, or environmental barriers that exist when using most ternary blended cement concrete mixtures. The technical performance of the ternary blended concrete mixtures that were studied was always better than ordinary portland cement concrete mixtures. The ternary blended cements showed increased durability against chloride ion penetration, alkali silica reaction, and reaction to sulfates. These blends also had less linear shrinkage than ordinary portland cement concrete and met all strength requirements. The increased durability would likely reduce life cycle costs associated with concrete pavement and concrete bridge decks. The initial cost of ternary mixtures can be higher or lower than ordinary portland cement, depending on the supplementary cementitious materials used. Ternary blended cement concrete mixtures produce less carbon dioxide emissions than ordinary portland cement mixtures. This reduces the carbon footprint of construction projects. The barriers associated with implementing ternary blended cement concrete for transportation projects are not significant. Supplying fly ash returns any investment costs for the ready mix plant, including silos and other associated equipment. State specifications can make

  7. A dark brown roast coffee blend is less effective at stimulating gastric acid secretion in healthy volunteers compared to a medium roast market blend.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rubach, Malte; Lang, Roman; Bytof, Gerhard; Stiebitz, Herbert; Lantz, Ingo; Hofmann, Thomas; Somoza, Veronika

    2014-06-01

    Coffee consumption sometimes is associated with symptoms of stomach discomfort. This work aimed to elucidate whether two coffee beverages, containing similar amounts of caffeine, but differing in their concentrations of (β) N-alkanoyl-5-hydroxytryptamides (C5HTs), chlorogenic acids (CGAs), trigonelline, and N-methylpyridinium (N-MP) have different effects on gastric acid secretion in healthy volunteers. The intragastric pH after administration of bicarbonate with/without 200 mL of a coffee beverage prepared from a market blend or dark roast blend was analyzed in nine healthy volunteers. Coffee beverages were analyzed for their contents of C5HT, N-MP, trigonelline, CGAs, and caffeine using HPLC-DAD and HPLC-MS/MS. Chemical analysis revealed higher concentrations of N-MP for the dark brown blend (87 mg/L) compared to the market blend coffee (29 mg/L), whereas concentrations of C5HT (0.012 versus 0.343 mg/L), CGAs (323 versus 1126 mg/L), and trigonelline (119 versus 343 mg/L) were lower, and caffeine concentrations were similar (607 versus 674 mg/mL). Gastric acid secretion was less effectively stimulated after administration of the dark roast blend coffee compared to the market blend. Future studies are warranted to verify whether a high ratio of N-MP to C5HT and CGAs is beneficial for reducing coffee-associated gastric acid secretion. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  8. MARKETING AND LOGISTICS INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRANSPORT SERVICES MARKET

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. I. Kopytko

    2009-02-01

    Full Text Available Taking into account the modern trends of world economy development, the opportunities of increasing the competitiveness of the Ukrainian transport system on the base of marketing-logistical providing the development of infrastructure of transport services market are presented. The analysis of marketing-logistical approaches of estimation of the efficiency of operation of transport infrastructure objects is performed. The condition of theoretical and practical aspects of the transport services market is elucidated, the examples of logistical concepts are given, considering the work experience of transport enterprises, the ways of formation of regional transport-logistical associations are offered.

  9. Natural gas marketing and transportation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1991-01-01

    This book covers: Overview of the natural gas industry; Federal regulation of marketing and transportation; State regulation of transportation; Fundamentals of gas marketing contracts; Gas marketing options and strategies; End user agreements; Transportation on interstate pipelines; Administration of natural gas contracts; Structuring transactions with the nonconventional source fuels credit; Take-or-pay wars- a cautionary analysis for the future; Antitrust pitfalls in the natural gas industry; Producer imbalances; Natural gas futures for the complete novice; State non-utility regulation of production, transportation and marketing; Natural gas processing agreements and Disproportionate sales, gas balancing, and accounting to royalty owners

  10. Charge Carrier Transport and Photogeneration in P3HT:PCBM Photovoltaic Blends

    KAUST Repository

    Laquai, Frederic

    2015-05-03

    This article reviews the charge transport and photogeneration in bulk-heterojunction solar cells made from blend films of regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (RR-P3HT) and methano­fullerene (PCBM). The charge transport, specifically the hole mobility in the RR-P3HT phase of the polymer:fullerene photovoltaic blend, is dramatically affected by thermal annealing. The hole mobility increases more than three orders of magnitude and reaches a value of up to 2 × 10−4 cm2 V−1 s−1 after the thermal annealing process as a result of an improved semi-crystallinity of the film. This significant increase of the hole mobility balances the electron and hole mobilities in a photovoltaic blend in turn reducing space-charge formation, and this is the most important factor for the strong enhancement of the photovoltaic efficiency compared to an as cast, that is, non-annealed device. In fact, the balanced charge carrier mobility in RR-P3HT:PCBM blends in combination with a field- and temperature-independent charge carrier generation and greatly reduced non-geminate recombination explains the large quantum efficiencies mea­sured in P3HT:PCBM photovoltaic devices.

  11. 7 CFR 989.16 - Blend.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 8 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Blend. 989.16 Section 989.16 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Marketing Agreements and... CALIFORNIA Order Regulating Handling Definitions § 989.16 Blend. Blend means to mix or commingle raisins. ...

  12. MARKETING AND LOGISTICS INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRANSPORT SERVICES MARKET

    OpenAIRE

    Kopytko, V. I.

    2009-01-01

    Taking into account the modern trends of world economy development, the opportunities of increasing the competitiveness of the Ukrainian transport system on the base of marketing-logistical providing the development of infrastructure of transport services market are presented. The analysis of marketing-logistical approaches of estimation of the efficiency of operation of transport infrastructure objects is performed. The condition of theoretical and practical aspects of the transport services...

  13. Soy-dairy protein blend and whey protein ingestion after resistance exercise increases amino acid transport and transporter expression in human skeletal muscle

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reidy, P. T.; Walker, D. K.; Dickinson, J. M.; Gundermann, D. M.; Drummond, M. J.; Timmerman, K. L.; Cope, M. B.; Mukherjea, R.; Jennings, K.; Volpi, E.

    2014-01-01

    Increasing amino acid availability (via infusion or ingestion) at rest or postexercise enhances amino acid transport into human skeletal muscle. It is unknown whether alterations in amino acid availability, from ingesting different dietary proteins, can enhance amino acid transport rates and amino acid transporter (AAT) mRNA expression. We hypothesized that the prolonged hyperaminoacidemia from ingesting a blend of proteins with different digestion rates postexercise would enhance amino acid transport into muscle and AAT expression compared with the ingestion of a rapidly digested protein. In a double-blind, randomized clinical trial, we studied 16 young adults at rest and after acute resistance exercise coupled with postexercise (1 h) ingestion of either a (soy-dairy) protein blend or whey protein. Phenylalanine net balance and transport rate into skeletal muscle were measured using stable isotopic methods in combination with femoral arteriovenous blood sampling and muscle biopsies obtained at rest and 3 and 5 h postexercise. Phenylalanine transport into muscle and mRNA expression of select AATs [system L amino acid transporter 1/solute-linked carrier (SLC) 7A5, CD98/SLC3A2, system A amino acid transporter 2/SLC38A2, proton-assisted amino acid transporter 1/SLC36A1, cationic amino acid transporter 1/SLC7A1] increased to a similar extent in both groups (P protein blend resulted in a prolonged and positive net phenylalanine balance during postexercise recovery compared with whey protein (P protein synthesis increased similarly between groups. We conclude that, while both protein sources enhanced postexercise AAT expression, transport into muscle, and myofibrillar protein synthesis, postexercise ingestion of a protein blend results in a slightly prolonged net amino acid balance across the leg compared with whey protein. PMID:24699854

  14. Charge carrier transport and photogeneration in P3HT:PCBM photovoltaic blends.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laquai, Frédéric; Andrienko, Denis; Mauer, Ralf; Blom, Paul W M

    2015-06-01

    This article reviews the charge transport and photogeneration in bulk-heterojunction solar cells made from blend films of regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (RR-P3HT) and methano-fullerene (PCBM). The charge transport, specifically the hole mobility in the RR-P3HT phase of the polymer:fullerene photovoltaic blend, is dramatically affected by thermal annealing. The hole mobility increases more than three orders of magnitude and reaches a value of up to 2 × 10(-4) cm(2) V(-1) s(-1) after the thermal annealing process as a result of an improved semi-crystallinity of the film. This significant increase of the hole mobility balances the electron and hole mobilities in a photovoltaic blend in turn reducing space-charge formation, and this is the most important factor for the strong enhancement of the photovoltaic efficiency compared to an as cast, that is, non-annealed device. In fact, the balanced charge carrier mobility in RR-P3HT:PCBM blends in combination with a field- and temperature-independent charge carrier generation and greatly reduced non-geminate recombination explains the large quantum efficiencies mea-sured in P3HT:PCBM photovoltaic devices. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  15. Poly(vinyl-alcohol)/poly(ethylene-glycol)/poly(ethylene-imine) blend membranes - structure and CO2 facilitated transport

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ben Hamouda, S.; Quang, Trong Nguyen; Langevin, D.; Sadok, Roudeslic

    2010-01-01

    Poly(vinyl-alcohol) (PVA)/poly(ethylene-imine) (PEI)/poly(ethylene-glycol) (PEG) blend membranes were prepared by solution casting followed by solvent evaporation. The effects of the blend polymer composition on the membrane structure and CO 2 /N 2 permeation characteristics were investigated. IR spectroscopy evidenced strong hydrogen bonding interactions between amorphous PVA and PEI, and weaker interactions between PVA and PEG. DSC studies showed that PVA crystallization was partially inhibited by the interactions between amorphous PVA and PEI blend, in which PEG separated into nodules. The CO 2 permeability decreased with an increase in CO 2 partial pressure in feed gas, while the N 2 permeability remained constant. This result indicated that only CO 2 was transported by the facilitated transport mechanism. The CO 2 and N 2 permeabilities increased monotonically with the PEI content in the blend membranes, whereas the ideal selectivity of CO 2 to N 2 transport showed a maximum. When CO 2 is humidified, its permeability through the blend membranes is much higher than that of dry CO 2 , but the change in permeability due to the presence of humidity is reversible. (authors)

  16. Life cycle energy and greenhouse gas emissions from transportation of Canadian oil sands to future markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tarnoczi, Tyler

    2013-01-01

    Oil sands transportation diversification is important for preventing discounted crude pricing. Current life cycle assessment (LCA) models that assess greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from crude oil transportation are linearly-scale and fail to account for project specific details. This research sets out to develop a detailed LCA model to compare the energy inputs and GHG emissions of pipeline and rail transportation for oil sands products. The model is applied to several proposed oils sands transportation routes that may serve as future markets. Comparison between transportation projects suggest that energy inputs and GHG emissions show a high degree of variation. For both rail and pipeline transportation, the distance over which the product is transported has a large impact on total emissions. The regional electricity grid and pump efficiency have the largest impact on pipeline emissions, while train engine efficiency and bitumen blending ratios have the largest impact on rail transportation emissions. LCA-based GHG regulations should refine models to account for the range of product pathways and focus efforts on cost-effective emission reductions. As the climate-change impacts of new oil sands transportation projects are considered, GHG emission boundaries should be defined according to operation control. -- Highlights: •A life cycle model is developed to compare transportation of oil sands products. •The model is applied to several potential future oil sands markets. •Energy inputs and GHG emissions are compared. •Model inputs are explored using sensitivity analysis. •Policy recommendations are provided

  17. Competitive sustainability of a transport route in the transport service market

    OpenAIRE

    Poletan Jugović, Tanja; Šimić Hlača, Marija; Žgaljić, Dražen

    2014-01-01

    In order for the particular transport route and entities in the production of a transport service on that route to maintain their position in the transport service market, they have to ensure efficiency, orientation towards service users, rationality, environmental friendliness and quality dominance of an offered service. User orientation and flexible reaction to market demands create preconditions for the establishment of a competitive and attractive transport route and accompanying transpor...

  18. Investigation on the effect of blending ratio and airflow rate on syngas profile produced from co-gasification of blended feedstock

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Inayat Muddasser

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Shortages of feedstock supply due to seasonal availability, high transportation costs, and lack of biomass market are creating serious problems in continues operation of bioenergy industry. Aiming at this problem, utilization of blended feedstock is proposed. In this work blends of two different biomasses (wood and coconut shells were co-gasified using externally heated downdraft gasifier. The effects of varying biomass blending ratio and airflow rate on gaseous components of syngas and its heating value were investigated. The results obtained from the experiments revealed that W20:CS80 blend yielded higher values for H2 (20 Vol.% and HHV (18 MJ/Nm3 as compared to the other blends. The higher airflow rate has a negative effect on syngas profile and heating value. The CO and CH4 were observed higher at the start of the process, however, CO was observed decreasing afterward, and the CH4 dropped to 5.0 Vol.%. The maximum H2 and CH4 were obtained at 2.5 LPM airflow rate. The process was noticed more stable at low air flow rates. The HHV was observed higher at the start of process at low airflow rate. It is concluded that low airflow rate and a higher ratio of coconut shells can improve the syngas quality during co-gasification.

  19. 40 CFR 246.201-6 - Recommended procedures: Transportation to market.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... 40 Protection of Environment 24 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recommended procedures: Transportation to market. 246.201-6 Section 246.201-6 Protection of Environment ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY... Procedures § 246.201-6 Recommended procedures: Transportation to market. Transportation to market may be...

  20. Distributed Propulsion featuring Boundary Layer Ingestion Engines for the Blended Wing Body Subsonic Transport

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kok, H.J.M.; Voskuijl, M.; Van Tooren, M.J.L.

    2010-01-01

    The blended wing body aircraft is one of the promising contenders for the next generation large transport aircraft. This aircraft is particularly suitable for the use of boundary layer ingestion engines. Results published in literature suggest that it might be beneficial to have a large number of

  1. Marketing: MSc in logistics and transportation

    OpenAIRE

    Jenkins, Mark

    1983-01-01

    The objective of this course is to introduce the basic concepts of marketing to students undertaking an MSc in Transportation and Logistics. This module will take a strategic view of marketing in that it will develop ideas for achieving sustainable competitive advantage.

  2. Social marketing of alternative transportation modes

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Thøgersen, John

    Researchers and practitioners working with travel demand management (TDM) seem to be increasingly interested in social marketing as a means for promoting non-car modes of transportation. However, as is true for social marketing in general, there is little clarity of the social marketing approach...... associated with TDM. Hence, it is not surprising that the effectiveness of this means is subject to considerable uncertainty. This chapter outlines the field and definition of social marketing and reviews practical experience and research on social marketing in TDM as a basis for evaluating the usefulness...... of social marketing in this area....

  3. Preparation of Citric Acid Crosslinked Chitosan/Poly(Vinyl Alcohol Blend Membranes for Creatinine Transport

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Retno Ariadi Lusiana

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Preparation of membrane using crosslinking reaction between chitosan and citric acid showed that functional group modification increased the number of active carrier groups which lead to better transport capacity of the membrane. In addition, the substitution of the carboxyl group increased creatinine permeation of chitosan membrane. The transport capacity of citric acid crosslinked chitosan membrane for creatinine was found to be 6.3 mg/L. The presence of cyanocobalamin slightly hindered the transport of creatinine although compounds did not able to pass through citric acid crosslinked chitosan/poly(vinyl alcohol blend membrane, as compounds no found in the acceptor phase.

  4. Synergies of the Liberalization of the Railway Transport Market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Panák Michal

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The liberalization of transport market brings various effects, which in the context of the assessment of synergies can affect in different ways the company, a customer as such, and transport undertakings operating on the railway transport market as well. This paper provides an innovative perspective on the relationship between liberalization and synergy, defining new types of synergies that have not yet been monitored in the conditions of railway transport. This approach is interesting because of the possibility of assessing the operation of railway undertakings in the open transport market. The eminent is characteristic of integration type synergies and emergence type synergies in relation to railway transport, as well as the breakdown of synergies in relation to the customer and carrier.

  5. The steady-state and transient electron transport within bulk zinc-blende indium nitride: The impact of crystal temperature and doping concentration variations

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Siddiqua, Poppy; O'Leary, Stephen K.

    2016-01-01

    Within the framework of a semi-classical three-valley Monte Carlo electron transport simulation approach, we analyze the steady-state and transient aspects of the electron transport within bulk zinc-blende indium nitride, with a focus on the response to variations in the crystal temperature and the doping concentration. We find that while the electron transport associated with zinc-blende InN is highly sensitive to the crystal temperature, it is not very sensitive to the doping concentration selection. The device consequences of these results are then explored.

  6. An economic analysis of transportation fuel policies in Brazil: Fuel choice, land use, and environmental impacts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nuñez, Hector M.; Önal, Hayri

    2016-01-01

    Brazil uses taxes, subsidies, and blending mandates as policy instruments to manage and stabilize its transportation fuel markets. The fuel sector has been very dynamic in recent years due to frequent policy adjustments and variable market conditions. In this paper, we use a price endogenous economic simulation model to analyze the impacts of such policy adjustments under various challenging conditions in the global ethanol and sugar markets. Our analysis specifically focuses on Brazilian producers' supply responses, consumers' driving demand and fuel choice, ethanol trade, land use, greenhouse gas emissions, and social welfare. The model results show that (i) under a low ethanol blending rate, conventional vehicles would be driven significantly less while flex-fuel and ethanol-dedicated vehicles would not be affected significantly; (ii) lowering the fuel taxes adversely affects the competitiveness of sugarcane ethanol against gasoline blends, thus lowering producers' surplus; and (iii) while a reduction in fuel taxes is advantageous in terms of overall social welfare, it has serious environmental impacts by increasing the GHG emissions from transportation fuels consumed in Brazil. - Highlights: • We examine the economic and environmental impacts of Brazilian fuel policies. • We also analyze impacts under different sugar and ethanol markets conditions. • Lowering blending rate reduces distance driven by conventional cars. • Lowering fuel tax rates affects competitiveness of ethanol against gasoline blend. • Reducing fuel tax rates has dramatic environmental impacts by increasing emissions.

  7. Biofuel supply chain, market, and policy analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Leilei

    Renewable fuel is receiving an increasing attention as a substitute for fossil based energy. The US Department of Energy (DOE) has employed increasing effort on promoting the advanced biofuel productions. Although the advanced biofuel remains at its early stage, it is expected to play an important role in climate policy in the future in the transportation sector. This dissertation studies the emerging biofuel supply chain and markets by analyzing the production cost, and the outcomes of the biofuel market, including blended fuel market price and quantity, biofuel contract price and quantity, profitability of each stakeholder (farmers, biofuel producers, biofuel blenders) in the market. I also address government policy impacts on the emerging biofuel market. The dissertation is composed with three parts, each in a paper format. The first part studies the supply chain of emerging biofuel industry. Two optimization-based models are built to determine the number of facilities to deploy, facility locations, facility capacities, and operational planning within facilities. Cost analyses have been conducted under a variety of biofuel demand scenarios. It is my intention that this model will shed light on biofuel supply chain design considering operational planning under uncertain demand situations. The second part of the dissertation work focuses on analyzing the interaction between the key stakeholders along the supply chain. A bottom-up equilibrium model is built for the emerging biofuel market to study the competition in the advanced biofuel market, explicitly formulating the interactions between farmers, biofuel producers, blenders, and consumers. The model simulates the profit maximization of multiple market entities by incorporating their competitive decisions in farmers' land allocation, biomass transportation, biofuel production, and biofuel blending. As such, the equilibrium model is capable of and appropriate for policy analysis, especially for those policies

  8. Market Integration and Transport Costs in France 1825-1903

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ejrnæs, Mette; Persson, Karl Gunnar

    2000-01-01

    This article argues that the appropriate standard for the analysis of commodity market integration is the transport cost adjusted law of one price. A threshold error correction model that incorporates that property is developed and applied to French wheat prices in the 19th century. This type...... to equilibrium price differentials between markets. Unlike previous studies this article shows that French wheat markets were well integrated by the middle of the 19th century...... of modeling acknowledges the fact that error corrections only take place when price differentials between markets exceed transport costs. The method used produces estimates of implied transport costs, which are quite close to observed costs, and generates more accurate estimates of the adjustment speed...

  9. Urban Transport Policies: The Dutch Struggle with Market Failures and Policy Failures

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Rietveld, Piet

    2004-01-01

    Transport is characterised by market failures that are of particular importance in urban settings. This paper reviews market failures and policy failures in The Netherlands for various transport markets, including road transport, public transport and biking. Special attention is paid to parking

  10. Well-to-Wheels Greenhouse Gas Emissions Analysis of High-Octane Fuels with Various Market Shares and Ethanol Blending Levels

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Han, Jeongwoo [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Elgowainy, Amgad [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Wang, Michael [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Divita, Vincent [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

    2015-07-14

    In this study, we evaluated the impacts of producing HOF with a RON of 100, using a range of ethanol blending levels (E10, E25, and E40), vehicle efficiency gains, and HOF market penetration scenarios (3.4% to 70%), on WTW petroleum use and GHG emissions. In particular, we conducted LP modeling of petroleum refineries to examine the impacts of different HOF production scenarios on petroleum refining energy use and GHG emissions. We compared two cases of HOF vehicle fuel economy gains of 5% and 10% in terms of MPGGE to baseline regular gasoline vehicles. We incorporated three key factors in GREET — (1) refining energy intensities of gasoline components for the various ethanol blending options and market shares, (2) vehicle efficiency gains, and (3) upstream energy use and emissions associated with the production of different crude types and ethanol — to compare the WTW GHG emissions of various HOF/vehicle scenarios with the business-as-usual baseline regular gasoline (87 AKI E10) pathway.

  11. Data collection approaches for public transport marketing: some examples

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Waerden, van der P.J.H.J.; Timmermans, H.J.P.; Berenos, M.

    2008-01-01

    This paper presents some findings regarding geo-data collection in the context of public transport marketing and marking research. Two different data collections were carried out to feed a proposed marketing instrument called Public Transport Potential Maps (PTPM). The PTPM are based on area

  12. North Dakota wheat transportation knowledge for market enhancement.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    North Dakota wheat producers are located long distances from major consumer and export markets. Understanding the competitive position of their products is important to focusing efforts for market development and transportation investments. Research ...

  13. Ion transport property studies on PEO-PVP blended solid polymer electrolyte membranes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chandra, Angesh; Agrawal, R C; Mahipal, Y K

    2009-01-01

    The ion transport property studies on Ag + ion conducting PEO-PVP blended solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) membranes, (1 - x)[90PEO : 10AgNO 3 ] : xPVP, where x = 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10 (wt%), are reported. SPE films were caste using a novel hot-press technique instead of the traditional solution cast method. The conventional solid polymeric electrolyte (SPE) film, (90PEO : 10AgNO 3 ), also prepared by the hot-press method and identified as the highest conducting composition at room temperature on the basis of PEO-AgNO 3 -salt concentration dependent conductivity studies, was used as the first-phase polymer electrolyte host into which PVP were dispersed as second-phase dispersoid. A two-fold conductivity enhancement from that of the PEO host could be achieved at room temperature for PVP blended SPE film composition: 98(90PEO : 10AgNO 3 ) : 2PVP. This has been referred to as optimum conducting composition (OCC). The formation of SPE membranes and material characterizations were done with the help of the XRD and DSC techniques. The ion transport mechanism in this SPE OCC has been characterized with the help of basic ionic parameters, namely ionic conductivity (σ), ionic mobility (μ), mobile ion concentration (n) and ionic transference number (t ion ). Solid-state polymeric batteries were fabricated using OCC as electrolyte and the cell-potential discharge characteristics were studied under different load conditions.

  14. Market Innovation in the Transport and Heavy Vehicle Market

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Borgström, Benedikte; Agndal, Henrik; Cui, Lianguang

    The purpose is to better understand the interrelatedness of new business models in the truck market and developments in the road transport sector. Based on a three year research project in cooperation with a European heavy vehicle manufacturer, we describe short cases showing some of the business...

  15. Mapping nanoscale effects of localized noise-source activities on photoconductive charge transports in polymer-blend films

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shekhar, Shashank; Cho, Duckhyung; Cho, Dong-Guk; Yang, Myungjae; Hong, Seunghun

    2018-05-01

    We develolped a method to directly image the nanoscale effects of localized noise-source activities on photoconducting charge transports in domain structures of phase-separated polymer-blend films of Poly(9,9-di-n-octylfluorenyl-2,7-diyl) and Poly(9,9-di-n-octylfluorene-alt-benzothiadiazole). For the imaging, current and noise maps of the polymer-blend were recorded using a conducting nanoprobe in contact with the surface, enabling the conductivity (σ) and noise-source density (N T) mappings under an external stimulus. The blend-films exhibited the phase-separation between the constituent polymers at domains level. Within a domain, high σ (low N T) and low σ (high N T) regions were observed, which could be associated with the ordered and disordered regions of a domain. In the N T maps, we observed that noise-sources strongly affected the conduction mechanism, resulting in a scaling behavior of σ ∝ {{N}{{T}}}-0.5 in both ordered and disordered regions. When a blend film was under an influence of an external stimulus such as a high bias or an illumination, an increase in the σ was observed, but that also resulted in increases in the N T as a trade-off. Interestingly, the Δσ versus ΔN T plot exhibited an unusual scaling behavior of Δσ ∝ {{Δ }}{{N}{{T}}}0.5, which is attributed to the de-trapping of carriers from deep traps by the external stimuli. In addition, we found that an external stimulus increased the conductivity at the interfaces without significantly increasing their N T, which can be the origin of the superior performances of polymer-blend based devices. These results provide valuable insight about the effects of noise-sources on nanoscale optoelectronic properties in polymer-blend films, which can be an important guideline for improving devices based on polymer-blend.

  16. High-Octane Mid-Level Ethanol Blend Market Assessment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Johnson, Caley [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Newes, Emily [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Brooker, Aaron [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); McCormick, Robert [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Peterson, Steve [Lexidyne, LLC, Colorado Springs, CO (United States); Leiby, Paul [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Martinez, Rocio Uria [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Oladosu, Gbadebo [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Brown, Maxwell L. [Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO (United States)

    2015-12-01

    The United States government has been promoting increased use of biofuels, including ethanol from non-food feedstocks, through policies contained in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. The objective is to enhance energy security, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and provide economic benefits. However, the United States has reached the ethanol blend wall, where more ethanol is produced domestically than can be blended into standard gasoline. Nearly all ethanol is blended at 10 volume percent (vol%) in gasoline. At the same time, the introduction of more stringent standards for fuel economy and GHG tailpipe emissions is driving research to increase the efficiency of spark ignition (SI) engines. Advanced strategies for increasing SI engine efficiency are enabled by higher octane number (more highly knock-resistant) fuels. Ethanol has a research octane number (RON) of 109, compared to typical U.S. regular gasoline at 91-93. Accordingly, high RON ethanol blends containing 20 vol% to 40 vol% ethanol are being extensively studied as fuels that enable design of more efficient engines. These blends are referred to as high-octane fuel (HOF) in this report. HOF could enable dramatic growth in the U.S. ethanol industry, with consequent energy security and GHG emission benefits, while also supporting introduction of more efficient vehicles. HOF could provide the additional ethanol demand necessary for more widespread deployment of cellulosic ethanol. However, the potential of HOF can be realized only if it is adopted by the motor fuel marketplace. This study assesses the feasibility, economics, and logistics of this adoption by the four required participants--drivers, vehicle manufacturers, fuel retailers, and fuel producers. It first assesses the benefits that could motivate these participants to adopt HOF. Then it focuses on the drawbacks and barriers that these participants could face when adopting HOF and proposes strategies--including incentives and

  17. Transport Modeling Analysis to Test the Efficiency of Fish Markets in Oman

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khamis S. Al-Abri

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available Oman’s fish exports have shown an increasing trend while supplies to the domestic market have declined, despite increased domestic demand caused by population growth and income. This study hypothesized that declining fish supplies to domestic markets were due to inefficiency of the transport function of the fish marketing system in Oman. The hypothesis was tested by comparing the observed prices of several fish species at several markets with optimal prices. The optimal prices were estimated by the dual of a fish transport cost- minimizing linear programming model. Primary data on market prices and transportation costs and quantities transported were gathered through a survey of a sample of fish transporters. The quantity demanded at market sites was estimated using secondary data. The analysis indicated that the differences between the observed prices and the estimated optimal prices were not significantly different showing that the transport function of fish markets in Oman is efficient. This implies that the increasing trend of fish exports vis-à-vis the decreasing trend of supplies to domestic markets is rational and will continue. This may not be considered to be equitable but it is efficient and may have long-term implications for national food security and have an adverse impact on the nutritional and health status of the rural poor population. Policy makers may have to recognize the trade off between the efficiency and equity implications of the fish markets in Oman and make policy decisions accordingly in order to ensure national food security.

  18. Honduras - Transportation and Farm to Market Roads

    Data.gov (United States)

    Millennium Challenge Corporation — The evaluation of the Transport Project and Farm to Market Roads Activity aimed to answer whether or not improved conditions throughout the road network: • Lowered...

  19. Demand Elasticity on the Transport Market

    OpenAIRE

    Teodor Perić; Nada Štrumberger

    2002-01-01

    The elasticity of demand for traffic se1vices is the adaptationof traffic supply to traffic demand. The elasticity of suchdemand is low which is specific of the transport market, especiallyfrom the aspect of designing traffic demand.The essence of the problem of low elasticity can be noticedin three basic properties:First, in the change of place which determines the traffic demandor traffic relation.Second is the continuity of the need to transport goods andpassengers.Third, the needs for tra...

  20. Intermodal freight terminals : marketing channels and transport networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Nijkamp, Peter; Wiegmans, Bart

    1999-01-01

    The goal of this paper is to combine the current theory about marketing channels withcombined transport and logistics in order to develop a customer-based and broadly applicable approach to the study of combined freight transport inEurope. Furthermore, this paper seeks to provide an analytical

  1. An assessment of public transportation markets using NHTS data.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-03-01

    In 2007, the American Public Transportation : Association (APTA) assessed public transit markets : in a national study published as A Profile of Public : Transportation Passenger Demographics and Travel : Characteristics Reported in On-Board Surveys....

  2. 19 CFR 12.45 - Transportation and marketing of prison-labor products.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 19 Customs Duties 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Transportation and marketing of prison-labor... SECURITY; DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY SPECIAL CLASSES OF MERCHANDISE Merchandise Produced by Convict, Forced, Or Indentured Labor § 12.45 Transportation and marketing of prison-labor products. If any apparent...

  3. Performance and Combustion Characteristics Analysis of Multi-Cylinder CI Engine Using Essential Oil Blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    S. M. Ashrafur Rahman

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available Essential oils are derived from not-fatty parts of plants and are mostly used in aromatherapy, as well as cosmetics and perfume production. The essential oils market is growing rapidly due to their claimed health benefits. However, because only therapeutic grade oil is required in the medicinal sector, there is a substantial low-value waste stream of essential oils that can be used in the transportation and agricultural sectors. This study investigated the influence of orange, eucalyptus, and tea tree oil on engine performance and combustion characteristics of a multi-cylinder compression ignition engine. Orange, eucalyptus, and tea tree oil were blended with diesel at 10% by volume. For benchmarking, neat diesel and 10% waste cooking biodiesel-diesel blend were also tested. The selected fuels were used to conduct engine test runs with a constant engine speed (1500 RPM (revolutions per minute at four loads. As the load increased, frictional power losses decreased for all of the fuel samples and thus mechanical efficiency increased. At higher loads (75% and 100%, only orange oil-diesel blends produced comparable power to diesel and waste cooking biodiesel-diesel blends. Fuel consumption (brake and indicated for the essential oil-diesel blends was higher when compared to base diesel and waste cooking biodiesel-diesel blends. Thermal efficiency for the essential oil-diesel blends was comparable to base diesel and waste cooking biodiesel-diesel blends. At higher loads, blow-by was lower for essential oil blends as compared to base diesel and waste cooking biodiesel-diesel blends. At 50% and 100% load, peak pressure was lower for all of the essential oil-diesel blends when compared to base diesel and waste cooking biodiesel-diesel blends. From the heat release rate curve, the essential oil-diesel blends ignition delay times were longer because the oils have lower cetane values. Overall, the low-value streams of these essential oils were found to be

  4. HEU to LEU conversion and blending facility: Metal blending alternative to produce LEU oxide for disposal

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-09-01

    US DOE is examining options for disposing of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials. The nuclear material is converted to a form more proliferation- resistant than the original form. Blending HEU (highly enriched uranium) with less-enriched uranium to form LEU has been proposed as a disposition option. Five technologies are being assessed for blending HEU. This document provides data to be used in environmental impact analysis for the HEU-LEU disposition option that uses metal blending with an oxide waste product. It is divided into: mission and assumptions, conversion and blending facility descriptions, process descriptions and requirements, resource needs, employment needs, waste and emissions from plant, hazards discussion, and intersite transportation.

  5. HEU to LEU conversion and blending facility: Metal blending alternative to produce LEU oxide for disposal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-09-01

    US DOE is examining options for disposing of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials. The nuclear material is converted to a form more proliferation- resistant than the original form. Blending HEU (highly enriched uranium) with less-enriched uranium to form LEU has been proposed as a disposition option. Five technologies are being assessed for blending HEU. This document provides data to be used in environmental impact analysis for the HEU-LEU disposition option that uses metal blending with an oxide waste product. It is divided into: mission and assumptions, conversion and blending facility descriptions, process descriptions and requirements, resource needs, employment needs, waste and emissions from plant, hazards discussion, and intersite transportation

  6. The Role of Budget Airlines in the Air Transport Market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Panasiuk Irina P.

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available The contemporary air transport market has been considered and analyzed, key aspects of the emergence of budget airlines (low-cost in the air transport market have been highlighted. The main factors of influence on their functioning and international distribution have been allocated. On exploring the air transport market, it can be argued that low-cost airlines are gaining speed and spreading all around the world. This system was developed specifically for budget tourists and is particularly popular among students. Budget airlines are a profitable alternative to expensive airfares. As a rule, low-cost airlines refuse most traditional services to reduce the cost of transporting passengers, and hence the prices of flights. In the current phase of operation of the budget airlines, it is particularly necessary to study the reasons for such charity and the efficiency factor in providing cheap airfares. In spite of the tempting offer, there are some nuances that are subject of research.

  7. Handbook for Handling, Storing, and Dispensing E85 and Other Ethanol-Gasoline Blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    2016-03-02

    This document provides information on ethanol fuel properties, standards, codes, best practices, and equipment information for those who blend, distribute, store, sell, or use E15 (gasoline blended with 10.5 percent - 15 percent ethanol), E85 (marketing term for ethanol-gasoline blends containing 51 percent - 83 percent ethanol, depending on geography and season), and other ethanol blends.

  8. Handbook for Handling, Storing, and Dispensing E85 and Other Ethanol-Gasoline Blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    2016-03-01

    This document provides information on ethanol fuel properties, standards, codes, best practices, and equipment information for those who blend, distribute, store, sell, or use E15 (gasoline blended with 10.5 percent - 15 percent ethanol), E85 (marketing term for ethanol-gasoline blends containing 51 percent - 83 percent ethanol, depending on geography and season), and other ethanol blends.

  9. Demand Elasticity on the Transport Market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Teodor Perić

    2002-09-01

    Full Text Available The elasticity of demand for traffic se1vices is the adaptationof traffic supply to traffic demand. The elasticity of suchdemand is low which is specific of the transport market, especiallyfrom the aspect of designing traffic demand.The essence of the problem of low elasticity can be noticedin three basic properties:First, in the change of place which determines the traffic demandor traffic relation.Second is the continuity of the need to transport goods andpassengers.Third, the needs for transport may vmy according to thechanges in society and economy, and they also change thesources of traffic demand. Therefore, the elasticity of demandfor traffic se1vices is relatively low.

  10. Gas transportation tariffs in the european union market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bianchi, A.

    2001-01-01

    In a liberalised market, it is an indubitable competitive advantage for a firm to accede at the gas grid with a low cost. The comparison among gas transportation tariffs of 18 European gas transportation companies for a big industrial consumer, shows that Italy is in the medium-high position of the ranking [it

  11. The use of instruments of logistics and marketing in transport enterprises in lubuskie voivodeship

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Agnieszka Perzyńska

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Background: The aim of the article is to verify the logistics and marketing instruments used in transport enterprises in Lubuskie voivodeship. The article presents the results of surveys of transport companies. Based on these studies in transport enterprises in Lubuskie, the current level of the use of logistics and marketing instruments was determined. Logistics and marketing instruments were separated to study the needs of transport companies in Lubuskie voivodeship. The choice of these instruments gave rise to a study f the possibility of using them in the implementation of business operations. From the findings it can be inferred that they are useful for the voivodeship, and that such a system can be implemented in the whole country. Methods: The study was conducted in the second half of 2014 and 140 transport enterprises in Lubuskie. Based on the research results, classifications of instruments were developed using logistics and marketing division at their levels. Results: On the basis of these findings and observations, the authors have analysed the levels of identification instruments, logistics and marketing. On this basis, it was possible to identify the instruments used by logistics and marketing in these companies. Conclusions: Based on the study of transport companies in Lubuskie voivodeship, a selection of logistics and marketing instruments were identified, along with a classification of the logistics and marketing instruments used. With the implementation of the above steps to classify the usage level of logistics and marketing instruments, the ability to match these levels to data transport companies was established.

  12. Powertrain Component Inspection from Mid-Level Blends Vehicle Aging Study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shoffner, Brent [Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio; Johnson, Ryan [Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio; Heimrich, Martin J. [Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio; Lochte, Michael [Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio

    2010-11-01

    The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 calls on the nation to significantly increase its use of renewable fuels to meet its transportation energy needs. The law expands the renewable fuel standard to require use of 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel by 2022. Given that ethanol is the most widely used renewable fuel in the U.S. market, ethanol will likely make up a significant portion of the 36-billion-gallon requirement. The vast majority of ethanol used in the United States is blended with gasoline to create E10-gasoline with up to 10% ethanol. The remaining ethanol is sold in the form of E85 - a gasoline blend with as much as 85% ethanol that can only be used in flexible-fuel vehicles (FFVs). Consumption of E85 is at present limited by both the size of the FFV fleet and the number of E85 fueling stations. Gasoline consumption in the United States is currently about 140 billion gallons per year; thus the maximum use of ethanol as E10 is only about 14 billion gallons. While the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) remains committed to expanding the E85 infrastructure, that market represented less than 1% of the ethanol consumed in 2010 and will not be able to absorb projected volumes of ethanol in the near term. Because of these factors, DOE and others have been assessing the viability of using mid-level ethanol blends (E15 or E20) as a way to accommodate growing volumes of ethanol. The DOE Mid-Level Ethanol Blends Test Program has been under way since 2007, supported jointly by the Office of the Biomass Program and the Vehicle Technologies Program. One of the larger projects, the Catalyst Durability Study, or Vehicle Aging Study, will be completed early in calendar year 2011. The following report describes a subproject of the Vehicle Aging Study in which powertrain components from 18 of the vehicles were examined at Southwest Research Institute under contract to Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL).

  13. An assessment of public transportation markets using NHTS data : [summary].

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-01-01

    In 2007, the American Public Transportation : Association (APTA) assessed public transit markets : in a national study published as A Profile of Public : Transportation Passenger Demographics and Travel : Characteristics Reported in On-Board Surveys....

  14. Study of charge transport in composite blend of P3HT and PCBM

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Manoj; Kumar, Sunil; Upadhyaya, Aditi; Yadav, Anjali; Gupta, Saral K.; Singh, Amarjeet

    2018-05-01

    Poly (3-hexylthiophene-2,5diyl) (P3HT) as donor and [6,6]-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) as acceptor are mostly used as active medium in polymeric electronic device. In this paper we have prepare the P3HT - PCBM based bulk hetero junction thin films by spin coating technique. The charge transport properties of P3HT:PCBM blends are investigated by the current-voltage measurements using Ag as an electron injecting electrode and ITO as a hole injecting contact. The current density v/s voltage relationships are analyzed in the backdrop of Schottky and Space charge limited current model.

  15. Air ambulance medical transport advertising and marketing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2011-01-01

    The National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP), the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), the Air Medical Physician Association (AMPA), the Association of Air Medical Services (AAMS), and the National Association of State EMS Officials (NASEMSO) believe that patient care and outcomes are optimized by using air medical transport services that are licensed air ambulance providers with robust physician medical director oversight and ongoing quality assessment and review. Only air ambulance medical transport services with these credentials should advertise/market themselves as air ambulance services.

  16. Transport Market and its Structure

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Teodor Perić

    2002-05-01

    Full Text Available Market is the integrity of relations between supply and demandof traffic or some other service (goods which at a ce11ainplace and location, at a certain time affect the supply and purchaseof certain products, including services, stocks, money,and the set of all institutions, areas, devices and instrumentsthat act on the sale and other transactions realised at that point.It is the main resource allocator (~resource allocation in thesystems of free private ownership economic and transport systems.

  17. Trends of non-destructive analytical methods for identification of biodiesel feedstock in diesel-biodiesel blend according to European Commission Directive 2012/0288/EC and detecting diesel-biodiesel blend adulteration: A brief review.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mazivila, Sarmento Júnior

    2018-04-01

    Discrimination of biodiesel feedstock present in diesel-biodiesel blend is challenging due to the great similarity in the spectral profile as well as digital image profile of each type of feedstock employed in biodiesel production. Once the marketed diesel-biodiesel blend is subsidized, in which motivates adulteration in biofuel blend by cheaper supplies with high solubility to obtain profits associated with the subsidies involved in biodiesel production. Non-destructive analytical methods based on qualitative and quantitative analysis for detecting marketed diesel-biodiesel blend adulteration are reviewed. Therefore, at the end is discussed the advantage of the qualitative analysis over quantitative analysis, when the systems require immediate decisions such as to know if the marketed diesel-biodiesel blend is unadulterated or adulterated in order to aid the analyst in selecting the most appropriate green analytical procedure for detecting diesel-biodiesel blend adulteration proceeding in fast way. This critical review provides a brief review on the non-destructive analytical methods reported in scientific literature based on different first-order multivariate calibration models coupled with spectroscopy data and digital image data to identify the type of biodiesel feedstock present in diesel-biodiesel blend in order to meets the strategies adopted by European Commission Directive 2012/0288/EC as well as to monitoring diesel-biodiesel adulteration. According to that Directive, from 2020 biodiesel produced from first-generation feedstock, that is, oils employed in human food such as sunflower, soybean, rapeseed, palm oil, among other oils should not be subsidized. Therefore, those non-destructive analytical methods here reviewed are helpful for discrimination of biodiesel feedstock present in diesel-biodiesel blend according to European Commission Directive 2012/0288/EC as well as for detecting diesel-biodiesel blend adulteration. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B

  18. Markets and system developments in rail-guided passenger transport

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Koch, Guenter [DB International GmbH, Karlsruhe (Germany); Grein, Ottmar [DB International GmbH, Frankfurt am Main (Germany)

    2013-03-01

    The way people are transported is an ever-changing process - and that applies to the railway systems too. If anything, this process of change has sped up in recent years. The authors of this report present an overview of the markets for rail-guided forms of transport and the various systems that exist. (orig.)

  19. Data blending in health care : Evaluation of data blending

    OpenAIRE

    Chen, Qian

    2016-01-01

    This report is aimed at those who are interested in data analysis and data blending. Decision making is crucial for an organization to succeed in today’s market. Data analysis is an important support activity in decision making and is applied in many industries, for example healthcare. For many years data analysts have worked on structured data in small volumes, with traditional methods such as spreadsheet. As new data sources emerged, such as social media, data is generated in higher volume,...

  20. Thinking on Sichuan-Chongqing gas pipeline transportation system reform under market-oriented conditions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Duan, Yanzhi

    2017-01-01

    The gas pipeline networks in Sichuan and Chongqing (Sichuan-Chongqing) region have formed a fully-fledged gas pipeline transportation system in China, which supports and promotes the rapid development of gas market in Sichuan-Chongqing region. In the circumstances of further developed market-oriented economy, it is necessary to carry out further the pipeline system reform in the areas of investment/financing system, operation system and pricing system to lay a solid foundation for improving future gas production and marketing capability and adapting itself to the national gas system reform, and to achieve the objectives of multiparty participated pipeline construction, improved pipeline transportation efficiency and fair and rational pipeline transportation prices. In this article, main thinking on reform in the three areas and major deployment are addressed, and corresponding measures on developing shared pipeline economy, providing financial support to pipeline construction, setting up independent regulatory agency to enhance the industrial supervision for gas pipeline transportation, and promoting the construction of regional gas trade market are recommended.

  1. The Impact of Molecular p-Doping on Charge Transport in High-Mobility Small-Molecule/Polymer Blend Organic Transistors

    KAUST Repository

    Paterson, Alexandra F.

    2017-12-27

    Molecular doping is a powerful tool with the potential to resolve many of the issues currently preventing organic thin-film transistor (OTFT) commercialization. However, the addition of dopant molecules into organic semiconductors often disrupts the host lattice, introducing defects and harming electrical transport. New dopant-based systems that overcome practical utilization issues, while still reaping the electrical performance benefits, would therefore be extremely valuable. Here, the impact of p-doping on the charge transport in blends consisting of the small-molecule 2,7-dioctyl[1]benzothieno[3,2-b][1]benzothiophene (C8-BTBT), the polymer indacenodithiophene-benzothiadiazole (C16IDT-BT), and the molecular dopant C60F48 is investigated. Electrical field-effect measurements indicate that p-doping not only enhances the average saturation mobility from 1.4 to 7.8 cm2 V−1 s−1 over 50 devices (maximum values from around 4 to 13 cm2 V−1 s−1), but also improves bias–stress stability, contact resistance, threshold voltage, and the overall device-to-device performance variation. Importantly, materials characterization using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy, and ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy, combined with charge transport modeling, reveal that effective doping is achieved without perturbing the microstructure of the polycrystalline semiconductor film. This work highlights the remarkable potential of ternary organic blends as a simple platform for OTFTs to achieve all the benefits of doping, with none of the drawbacks.

  2. The Impact of Molecular p-Doping on Charge Transport in High-Mobility Small-Molecule/Polymer Blend Organic Transistors

    KAUST Repository

    Paterson, Alexandra F.; Lin, Yen-Hung; Mottram, Alexander D.; Fei, Zhuping; Niazi, Muhammad Rizwan; Kirmani, Ahmad R.; Amassian, Aram; Solomeshch, Olga; Tessler, Nir; Heeney, Martin; Anthopoulos, Thomas D.

    2017-01-01

    Molecular doping is a powerful tool with the potential to resolve many of the issues currently preventing organic thin-film transistor (OTFT) commercialization. However, the addition of dopant molecules into organic semiconductors often disrupts the host lattice, introducing defects and harming electrical transport. New dopant-based systems that overcome practical utilization issues, while still reaping the electrical performance benefits, would therefore be extremely valuable. Here, the impact of p-doping on the charge transport in blends consisting of the small-molecule 2,7-dioctyl[1]benzothieno[3,2-b][1]benzothiophene (C8-BTBT), the polymer indacenodithiophene-benzothiadiazole (C16IDT-BT), and the molecular dopant C60F48 is investigated. Electrical field-effect measurements indicate that p-doping not only enhances the average saturation mobility from 1.4 to 7.8 cm2 V−1 s−1 over 50 devices (maximum values from around 4 to 13 cm2 V−1 s−1), but also improves bias–stress stability, contact resistance, threshold voltage, and the overall device-to-device performance variation. Importantly, materials characterization using X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoemission spectroscopy, and ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy, combined with charge transport modeling, reveal that effective doping is achieved without perturbing the microstructure of the polycrystalline semiconductor film. This work highlights the remarkable potential of ternary organic blends as a simple platform for OTFTs to achieve all the benefits of doping, with none of the drawbacks.

  3. Assessing the current Brazilian sugar cane industry and directing developments for maximum fossil fuel mitigation for the international petrochemical market

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Brehmer, B.; Sanders, J.P.M.

    2009-01-01

    The EU proposes that 5.75% of the transportation fuels market consist of biofuels by 2010 and the USA proposes that all gasoline be blended with 10% bioethanol by 2012. While these targets have not yet been reached, an aura of critique is emerging, arguing that biofuel mandates are not sustainable.

  4. Journal of Air Transportation, Volume 9, No. 2. Volume 9, No. 2

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bowen, Brent (Editor); Kabashkin, Igor (Editor); Gudmundsson, Sveinn Vidar (Editor); Scarpellini, Nanette (Editor)

    2004-01-01

    The following articles from the "Journal of Air Transportation" were processed: Future Requirements and Concepts for Cabins of Blended Wing Body Configurations:A Scenario Approach; Future Scenarios for the European Airline Industry: A Marketing-Based Perspective; An Application of the Methodology for Assessment of the Sustainability of the Air Transport System; Modeling the Effect of Enlarged Seating Room on Passenger Preferences of Domestic Airlines in Taiwan; Developing a Fleet Standardization Index for Airline Pricing; and Future Airport Capacity Utilization in Germany: Peaked Congestion and/or Idle Capacity).

  5. Feed withdrawal and transportation effects on Salmonella enterica levels in market-weight pigs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eicher, S D; Rostagno, M H; Lay, D C

    2017-07-01

    Feed withdrawal and transport commonly occur together in pigs. Objectives of this study were to determine if these preslaughter stressors, feed withdrawal and transportation, affect the levels of , stress hormone concentrations, and immune functions in infected market pigs. A 2 × 2 factorial analysis of a randomized complete block design with feed withdrawal and transport as fixed effects was used. Sixty market-weight pigs were individually inoculated with serovar Typhimurium. The experiment was replicated 3 times (blocking factor) with 20 pigs per replicate. Three days after inoculation, the pigs were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 treatments (5 pigs per treatment in each/replicate), including 1) control (Control; or no stress), 2) feed withdrawal for 12 h (FW), 3) transportation for 2 h (T), and 4) feed withdrawal for 12 h followed by transportation for 2 h (FWT). Feed withdrawal by itself or followed by transportation caused an increase of levels in ileal contents ( 0.10). Cortisol increased in pigs from all 3 stress treatments ( 0.03). Each granulocyte percentage (neutrophil, eosinophils, and basophils) increased ( transport but was attenuated ( > 0.05) by feed withdrawal with transport. Lymphocytes were suppressed ( transported (T and FWT). However, monocytes were suppressed ( transportation, lead to greater intestinal levels and gut-associated lymphoid tissue markers of inflammation in market pigs and, consequently, to an increased food safety risk.

  6. The Transportation Logistics of Manufactured Products in the Colombian Internal Market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Edisson Castro Escobar

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper tracks the transport logistics of the Colombian manufacturing industry in the domestic market, analyzing the direction and the volume of the cargo moved by road. The study is intended to identify some sectorial and regional enclaves of the industry that could be strategic for market diversification and to facilitate production chains. Estimates of land freight movements are made based on the origin-destination survey carried out by the Ministry of Transportation in 2008. The different regional and sectorial flows are projected through a geodetic network model. The results indicate that regional differences in product specialization explain the movement of cargo from specific industries, while in other cases there are no significant flows because the industries largely serve local markets.

  7. Evaluation of Anti-Knock Quality of Dicyclopentadiene-Gasoline Blends

    KAUST Repository

    Al-Khodaier, Mohannad

    2017-03-28

    Increasing the anti-knock quality of gasoline fuels can enable higher efficiency in spark ignition engines. In this study, the blending anti-knock quality of dicyclopentadiene (DCPD), a by-product of ethylene production from naphtha cracking, with various gasoline fuels is explored. The blends were tested in an ignition quality tester (IQT) and a modified cooperative fuel research (CFR) engine operating under homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) and knock limited spark advance (KLSA) conditions. Due to current fuel regulations, ethanol is widely used as a gasoline blending component in many markets. In addition, ethanol is widely used as a fuel and literature verifying its performance. Moreover, because ethanol exhibits synergistic effects, the test results of DCPD-gasoline blends were compared to those of ethanol-gasoline blends. The experiments conducted in this work enabled the screening of DCPD auto-ignition characteristics across a range of combustion modes. The synergistic blending nature of DCPD was apparent and appeared to be greater than that of ethanol. The data presented suggests that DCPD has the potential to be a high octane blending component in gasoline; one which can substitute alkylates, isomerates, reformates, and oxygenates.

  8. Evaluation of Anti-Knock Quality of Dicyclopentadiene-Gasoline Blends

    KAUST Repository

    Al-Khodaier, Mohannad; Bhavani Shankar, Vijai Shankar; Waqas, Muhammad; Naser, Nimal; Sarathy, Mani; Johansson, Bengt

    2017-01-01

    Increasing the anti-knock quality of gasoline fuels can enable higher efficiency in spark ignition engines. In this study, the blending anti-knock quality of dicyclopentadiene (DCPD), a by-product of ethylene production from naphtha cracking, with various gasoline fuels is explored. The blends were tested in an ignition quality tester (IQT) and a modified cooperative fuel research (CFR) engine operating under homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI) and knock limited spark advance (KLSA) conditions. Due to current fuel regulations, ethanol is widely used as a gasoline blending component in many markets. In addition, ethanol is widely used as a fuel and literature verifying its performance. Moreover, because ethanol exhibits synergistic effects, the test results of DCPD-gasoline blends were compared to those of ethanol-gasoline blends. The experiments conducted in this work enabled the screening of DCPD auto-ignition characteristics across a range of combustion modes. The synergistic blending nature of DCPD was apparent and appeared to be greater than that of ethanol. The data presented suggests that DCPD has the potential to be a high octane blending component in gasoline; one which can substitute alkylates, isomerates, reformates, and oxygenates.

  9. Novel bio-based and biodegradable polymer blends

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Shengzhe

    Most plastic materials, including high performance thermoplastics and thermosets are produced entirely from petroleum-based products. The volatility of the natural oil markets and the increasing cost of petroleum have led to a push to reduce the dependence on petroleum products. Together with an increase in environmental awareness, this has promoted the use of alternative, biorenewable, environmentally-friendly products, such as biomass. The growing interest in replacing petroleum-based products by inexpensive, renewable, natural materials is important for sustainable development into the future and will have a significant impact on the polymer industry and the environment. This thesis involved characterization and development of two series of novel bio-based polymer blends, namely polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA)/polyamide (PA) and poly(lactic acid) (PLA)/soy protein. Blends with different concentrations and compatible microstructures were prepared using twin-screw extruder. For PHA/PA blends, the poor mechanical properties of PHA improved significantly with an excellent combination of strength, stiffness and toughness by adding PA. Furthermore, the effect of blending on the viscoelastic properties has been investigated using small-amplitude oscillatory shear flow experiments as a function of blend composition and angular frequency. The elastic shear modulus (G‧) and complex viscosity of the blends increased significantly with increasing the concentration of PHA. Blending PLA with soy protein aims at reducing production cost, as well as accelerating the biodegradation rate in soil medium. In this work, the mechanical, thermal and morphological properties of the blends were investigated using dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and tensile tests.

  10. The Migration of Railway Freight Transport from Command Economy to Market Economy: The Case of China.

    OpenAIRE

    Xie, R.; Chen, H.; Nash, C.

    2000-01-01

    In recent years, the Chinese railways freight transport has been facing great challenges from the transport market and economic expansion. The total freight volume has been increasing. But the market share of railway freight has decreased greatly, especially since the beginning of migration from command economy to market economy. In this paper, we make some insight into five aspects. Firstly, the historical and current situation of freight transport in China and the relationship between econo...

  11. Determination of Component Contents of Blend Oil Based on Characteristics Peak Value Integration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xu, Jing; Hou, Pei-guo; Wang, Yu-tian; Pan, Zhao

    2016-01-01

    Edible blend oil market is confused at present. It has some problems such as confusing concepts, randomly named, shoddy and especially the fuzzy standard of compositions and ratios in blend oil. The national standard fails to come on time after eight years. The basic reason is the lack of qualitative and quantitative detection of vegetable oils in blend oil. Edible blend oil is mixed by different vegetable oils according to a certain proportion. Its nutrition is rich. Blend oil is eaten frequently in daily life. Different vegetable oil contains a certain components. The mixed vegetable oil can make full use of their nutrients and make the nutrients more balanced in blend oil. It is conducive to people's health. It is an effectively way to monitor blend oil market by the accurate determination of single vegetable oil content in blend oil. The types of blend oil are known, so we only need for accurate determination of its content. Three dimensional fluorescence spectra are used for the contents in blend oil. A new method of data processing is proposed with calculation of characteristics peak value integration in chosen characteristic area based on Quasi-Monte Carlo method, combined with Neural network method to solve nonlinear equations to obtain single vegetable oil content in blend oil. Peanut oil, soybean oil and sunflower oil are used as research object to reconcile into edible blend oil, with single oil regarded whole, not considered each oil's components. Recovery rates of 10 configurations of edible harmonic oil is measured to verify the validity of the method of characteristics peak value integration. An effective method is provided to detect components content of complex mixture in high sensitivity. Accuracy of recovery rats is increased, compared the common method of solution of linear equations used to detect components content of mixture. It can be used in the testing of kinds and content of edible vegetable oil in blend oil for the food quality detection

  12. Solution-printed organic semiconductor blends exhibiting transport properties on par with single crystals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Niazi, Muhammad R; Li, Ruipeng; Qiang Li, Er; Kirmani, Ahmad R; Abdelsamie, Maged; Wang, Qingxiao; Pan, Wenyang; Payne, Marcia M; Anthony, John E; Smilgies, Detlef-M; Thoroddsen, Sigurdur T; Giannelis, Emmanuel P; Amassian, Aram

    2015-11-23

    Solution-printed organic semiconductors have emerged in recent years as promising contenders for roll-to-roll manufacturing of electronic and optoelectronic circuits. The stringent performance requirements for organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) in terms of carrier mobility, switching speed, turn-on voltage and uniformity over large areas require performance currently achieved by organic single-crystal devices, but these suffer from scale-up challenges. Here we present a new method based on blade coating of a blend of conjugated small molecules and amorphous insulating polymers to produce OTFTs with consistently excellent performance characteristics (carrier mobility as high as 6.7 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1), low threshold voltages oforganic semiconductor films with transport properties and other figures of merit on par with their single-crystal counterparts.

  13. HEU to LEU Conversion and Blending Facility: UF6 blending alternative to produce LEU UF6 for commercial use

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-09-01

    US DOE is examining options for disposing of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials; the nuclear material will be converted to a form more proliferation- resistant than the original form. Examining options for increasing the proliferation resistance of highly enriched uranium (HEU) is part of this effort. Five technologies for blending HEU will be assessed; blending as UF 6 to produce a UF 6 product for commercial use is one of them. This document provides data to be used in the environmental impact analysis for the UF 6 blending HEU disposition option. Resource needs, employment needs, waste and emissions from plant, hazards, accident scenarios, and intersite transportation are discussed

  14. River Protection Project Mission Analysis Waste Blending Study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shuford, D.H.; Stegen, G.

    2010-01-01

    Preliminary evaluation for blending Hanford site waste with the objective of minimizing the amount of high-level waste (HLW) glass volumes without major changes to the overall waste retrieval and processing sequences currently planned. The evaluation utilizes simplified spreadsheet models developed to allow screening type comparisons of blending options without the need to use the Hanford Tank Waste Operations Simulator (HTWOS) model. The blending scenarios evaluated are expected to increase tank farm operation costs due to increased waste transfers. Benefit would be derived from shorter operating time period for tank waste processing facilities, reduced onsite storage of immobilized HLW, and reduced offsite transportation and disposal costs for the immobilized HLW.

  15. Formation of the Cycle of Business Processes of Management of Marketing Activity of a Transport Enterprise

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Horielov Dmytro O.

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to problems of organisation of the process of management of marketing activity of an enterprise. It specifies the model of services of a transport enterprise and provides levels of services and their structure: basic, real, expanded, expected and prospective. The article offers to differentiate planning and realisation of the transportation service by its levels, each of which would correspond with a separate business process of management. It reveals specific features of use of instruments of the traditional, internal and interactive marketing in the market of transportation services. It identifies the structure of the object when managing marketing activity of a transportation enterprise. The article uses the Deming cycle to formulate general principles of formation of business processes of management of marketing activity: “Motivation – Plan – Do – Check – Act”. The proposed cycle would ensure continuous improvement of the said business processes of an enterprise in accordance with international quality standards (ISO.

  16. CO2 slurry pipeline to transport solid marketable products to improve CCS economics

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Luhning, Richard

    2010-09-15

    Carbon dioxide pipelines are anticipated to be a key element in CCS (Carbon Capture and Sequestration) to transport the carbon dioxide to sequestration sites or to oil fields for use in enhanced oil recovery applications. However the economics of CCS are such that the operations are economically challenged. The concept of using super critical (liquid) carbon dioxide in a slurry pipeline is to use the pipeline constructed for environmental purposes to transport marketable products such as sulphur, petroleum coke, limestone and others to market thereby generating additional income to make CCS carbon dioxide transportation economically attractive.

  17. The blending and segregation of coal for the U.K. industrial market

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McGlinchey, D.; Jones, M.G.; Marjanovic, P. [Glasgow Caledonian Univ. (United Kingdom). Dept. of Physical Sciences

    1999-09-01

    The two most common methods of 'blending' industrial coals is either by use of feeder belts discharging onto a central conveyor belt, or by a compartment hopper discharging onto a common belt. These two methodologies were shown to give very similar levels of variance in the proportioning of component coals, over a wide range of discharge conditions. Limited work suggested that belt sampling from the end of the belt gave similar results to the stopped belt and frame technique. The segregation found in heaps formed from binary mixtures of coals was quantified by various statistical methods. These results demonstrated that very high levels of segregation can be expected in almost any heap formed when material is discharged from the belt in either of the two 'blending' methods described above. This can reasonably be expected to be a major factor in the inconsistent supply of a specified blend to a consumer. (orig.)

  18. HEU to LEU Conversion and Blending Facility: UNH blending alternative to produce LEU UNH for commercial use

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-09-01

    US DOE is examining options for disposing of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials. The nuclear material is converted to a form that is more proliferation-resistant than the original form. Examining options for increasing the proliferation resistance of highly enriched uranium (HEU) is part of this effort. Five technologies for blending HEU will be assessed. This document provides data to be used in the environmental impact analysis for the UNH blending HEU disposition option. Process requirements, resource needs, employment needs, waste/emissions from plant, hazards, accident scenarios, and intersite transportation are discussed.

  19. HEU to LEU Conversion and Blending Facility: UF{sub 6} blending alternative to produce LEU UF{sub 6} for commercial use

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-09-01

    US DOE is examining options for disposing of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials; the nuclear material will be converted to a form more proliferation- resistant than the original form. Examining options for increasing the proliferation resistance of highly enriched uranium (HEU) is part of this effort. Five technologies for blending HEU will be assessed; blending as UF{sub 6} to produce a UF{sub 6} product for commercial use is one of them. This document provides data to be used in the environmental impact analysis for the UF{sub 6} blending HEU disposition option. Resource needs, employment needs, waste and emissions from plant, hazards, accident scenarios, and intersite transportation are discussed.

  20. Studies of PVC/ENR blends: blend compositions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chantara Thevy Ratnam; Khairul Zaman Mohd Dahlan; Nasir, M.; Baharin, A.

    2002-01-01

    Blends of poly(vinyl chloride/epoxidized natural rubber (PVC/ENR) were prepared by using Bra bender Plasticorder at compositions ranging from 0-100% PVC. They were blended at 150 degree C mixing temperature, 50 rpm rotor speed and 10 minutes mixing time. The blends were characterized for tensile strength , elongation at break, glass transition temperatures and Fourier transform infra red spectroscopy (FTIR). Results revealed that as the PVC content increases the blend behaviour changes from elastomeric to glassy. However the blends found to be compatible at all compositions. (Author)

  1. Study of PP/Polybutene Blends Modified by Gamma Irradiation and HMS-PP/Polybutene Blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lugao, A. B.

    2006-01-01

    The polypropylene (PP) has been applied to a wide range of production due to its various excellent properties such as cheapness, high stiffness, chemical resistance, no environmental pollution when incinerated, low specific density and good mechanical properties. However, PP is a linear polymer which exhibits low melt strength. One of the effective approaches to achieve high melt strength (HMS) is to add chain branches onto backbone polymers. High melt strength polypropylene (HMS-PP) has been recently developed and introduced in the market by the major international polypropylene producers. As a consequence different methods have been applied to modify polypropylenes by chain branches. The technology obtained by IPEN together with EMBRARAD and BRASKEM comprises chain branches added onto backbone species using gamma radiation, which is generated from a Co 6 0 source. Such radiation is very convenient in order to improve polymer materials by grafting, crosslinking and degradation. Another important approach to the development of polymer materials is based on the combination of different polymers into a new product having some of the desired properties of each component. In this work, gamma irradiation technique was used to induce chemical changes in commercial polypropylene (HMS-PP) that was after blended with polybutene and in polypropylene/polybutene blends. The samples were irradiated with a 60 C o source at doses of 12,5 and 20kGy in the presence of acetylene. It was investigated how the two different routes of blends processing can modify their properties. Indeed the results from melt flow, gel fraction and rheology reveal the influence of the process route in the blends properties. Effects on the elongation at break and break strength were observed by the results of mechanical tests. The results from rheology demonstrated an increase in melt strength and drawability of the blends

  2. Blended marketing: la piedra filosofal del marketing educativo del presente = Blended marketing: the essential key of educational marketing today

    OpenAIRE

    Blanco Moreno, Sof??a

    2015-01-01

    Desde el Siglo XX las tecnolog??as han irrumpido en nuestras vidas de forma exponencial. Esto ha supuesto unos cambios y avances muy grandes en la sociedad, que han hecho que redirijamos nuestra forma de ver y realizar las cosas. En esta investigaci??n se puede encontrar un an??lisis exhaustivo del marketing educativo actual, tanto digital como tradicional, as?? como su evoluci??n y estrategias, a la vez que una explicaci??n de c??mo las tecnolog??as han cambiado este sector en general int...

  3. Identification of key target markets for intermodal freight transport solutions in South Africa

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joubert van Eeden

    2010-11-01

    Full Text Available The Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (AsgiSA identified South Africa's freight logistics challenges as among the key binding constraints on the country's growth aspirations. The research presented here points to the structural imbalance between road and rail freight transport as one of the key contributors to this state of affairs. Most long-distance corridor transport has been captured by road. However, long-distance transport is a market segment that is very suitable for intermodal transportation : rail is utilised for the high-density, long-distance component and road for the feeder and distribution services at the corridor end points. A market segmentation approach is developed to identify the corridors and industries that are natural candidates for such solutions, thereby paving the way for role-players and stakeholders to initiate a dialogue on the development of appropriate solutions.

  4. Can new units start up in liberalized markets?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kidd, S.

    2005-01-01

    Power market liberalization had stimulating effect on the nuclear power engineering. It is shown that the operating nuclear power plants blended well into the market medium. Nevertheless the success of the new nuclear power unit is not clear in this market medium [ru

  5. Biofuels for transportation. From R and D to market

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pilo, C [comp.

    1996-11-01

    The aim of the Workshop was to bring together stakeholders in industry, government and science to identify technical, economic and institutional opportunities and/or barriers to the market penetration of biofuels and to tackle these issues jointly in an international environment. The Workshop was to cover the role of biofuels in replacing fossil fuels and achieving sustainable transportation. It was to be more oriented towards policy issues than towards analyses of scientific and technical details. The Workshop was focused on the conditions in Northern Europe and North America. Three main themes were chosen: THEME 1. Biomass Feedstocks. How do we produce them cost-effectively and for what purpose? THEME 2. Biofuels for Transportation. What will make them technically and economically competitive? THEME 3. Market Penetration of Biofuels. How do we remove barriers? The following biofuels were considered during the Workshop: Alcohols, such as ethanol and methanol. Ethers, such as MTBE (methyl-tertio-butyl-ether) and ETBE (ethyl-tertio-butyl-ether). Vegetable oils and esters, such as VME (vegetable-oil-methylester), RME (rape-oil-methyl-ester) and REE (rape-oil-ethyl-ester)

  6. STUDY OF TRANSPORTATION OF GTL PRODUCTS FROM ALASKAN NORTH SLOPE (ANS) TO MARKETS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Godwin A. Chukwu, Ph.D., P.E.

    2002-09-01

    The Alaskan North Slope is one of the largest hydrocarbon reserves in the US where Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) technology can be successfully implemented. The proven and recoverable reserves of conventional natural gas in the developed and undeveloped fields in the Alaskan North Slope (ANS) are estimated to be 38 trillion standard cubic feet (TCF) and estimates of additional undiscovered gas reserves in the Arctic field range from 64 TCF to 142 TCF. Transportation of the natural gas from the remote ANS is the key issue in effective utilization of this valuable and abundance resource. The throughput of oil through the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) has been on decline and is expected to continue to decline in future. It is projected that by the year 2015, ANS crude oil production will decline to such a level that there will be a critical need for pumping additional liquid from GTL process to provide an adequate volume for economic operation of TAPS. The pumping of GTL products through TAPS will significantly increase its economic life. Transporting GTL products from the North Slope of Alaska down to the Marine terminal at Valdez is no doubt the great challenge facing the Gas to Liquids options of utilizing the abundant natural gas resource of the North Slope. The primary purpose of this study was to evaluate and assess the economic feasibility of transporting GTL products through the TAPS. Material testing program for GTL and GTL/Crude oil blends was designed and implemented for measurement of physical properties of GTL products. The measurement and evaluation of the properties of these materials were necessary so as to access the feasibility of transporting such materials through TAPS under cold arctic conditions. Results of the tests indicated a trend of increasing yield strength with increasing wax content. GTL samples exhibited high gel strengths at temperatures as high as 20 F, which makes it difficult for cold restart following winter shutdowns. Simplified

  7. Blend or not to blend: a study investigating faculty members perceptions of blended teaching

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mehmet A Ocak

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available This study examined faculty members’ perceptions of blended teaching from several perspectives. A total of 73 faculty members in Turkish Higher Education context participated in the study by completing an online survey that combined quantitative and qualitative approaches. Based on a data analysis, the faculty members’ perceptions were sorted into six categories: (a satisfaction with blended teaching, (b perceived impact on the role of the faculty, (c perceived impact on student learning, (d perceived impact on student motivation, (e advantages of blended teaching, and (f disadvantages of blended teaching. Findings indicated that faculty members were likely to agree that blended teaching provides a high degree of satisfaction and that it requires more time and commitment from the faculty. The faculty members perceived that blended teaching improves student learning and, to some extent, improves motivation. The faculty members also emphasized the importance of institutional support and the use of technology to mitigate student problems. This study presents these faculty members’ perceptions, which are helpful for those planning to implement a blended teaching approach, and makes suggestions for trouble-shooting and taking advantage of the opportunities in a blended environment successfully.

  8. Solution-printed organic semiconductor blends exhibiting transport properties on par with single crystals

    KAUST Repository

    Niazi, Muhammad Rizwan; Li, Ruipeng; Li, Erqiang; Kirmani, Ahmad R.; Abdelsamie, Maged; Wang, Qingxiao; Pan, Wenyang; Payne, Marcia M.; Anthony, John E.; Smilgies, Detlef-M.; Thoroddsen, Sigurdur T; Giannelis, Emmanuel P.; Amassian, Aram

    2015-01-01

    Solution-printed organic semiconductors have emerged in recent years as promising contenders for roll-to-roll manufacturing of electronic and optoelectronic circuits. The stringent performance requirements for organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) in terms of carrier mobility, switching speed, turn-on voltage and uniformity over large areas require performance currently achieved by organic single-crystal devices, but these suffer from scale-up challenges. Here we present a new method based on blade coating of a blend of conjugated small molecules and amorphous insulating polymers to produce OTFTs with consistently excellent performance characteristics (carrier mobility as high as 6.7 cm2 V−1 s−1, low threshold voltages of<1 V and low subthreshold swings <0.5 V dec−1). Our findings demonstrate that careful control over phase separation and crystallization can yield solution-printed polycrystalline organic semiconductor films with transport properties and other figures of merit on par with their single-crystal counterparts.

  9. Solution-printed organic semiconductor blends exhibiting transport properties on par with single crystals

    KAUST Repository

    Niazi, Muhammad Rizwan

    2015-11-23

    Solution-printed organic semiconductors have emerged in recent years as promising contenders for roll-to-roll manufacturing of electronic and optoelectronic circuits. The stringent performance requirements for organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) in terms of carrier mobility, switching speed, turn-on voltage and uniformity over large areas require performance currently achieved by organic single-crystal devices, but these suffer from scale-up challenges. Here we present a new method based on blade coating of a blend of conjugated small molecules and amorphous insulating polymers to produce OTFTs with consistently excellent performance characteristics (carrier mobility as high as 6.7 cm2 V−1 s−1, low threshold voltages of<1 V and low subthreshold swings <0.5 V dec−1). Our findings demonstrate that careful control over phase separation and crystallization can yield solution-printed polycrystalline organic semiconductor films with transport properties and other figures of merit on par with their single-crystal counterparts.

  10. Optimization of refinery product blending by using linear programming

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ristikj, Julija; Tripcheva-Trajkovska, Loreta; Rikaloski, Ice; Markovska, Liljana

    1999-01-01

    The product slate of a simple refinery consists mainly of liquefied petroleum gas, leaded and unleaded gasoline, jet fuel, diesel fuel, extra light heating oil and fuel oil. The quality of the oil products (fuels) for sale has to comply with the adopted standards for liquid fuels, and the produced quantities have to be comply with the market needs. The oil products are manufactured by blending two or more different fractions which quantities and physical-chemical properties depend on the crude oil type, the way and conditions of processing, and at the same time the fractions are used to blend one or more products. It is in producer's interest to do the blending in an optimal way, namely, to satisfy the requirements for the oil products quality and quantity with a maximal usage of the available fractions and, of course, with a maximal profit out of the sold products. This could be accomplished by applying linear programming, that is by using a linear model for oil products blending optimization. (Author)

  11. Market analysis biofuels. Implications for the armed forces in the Netherlands

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    De Wilde, H.P.J.; Londo, H.M.

    2009-11-01

    Commercial road fuels are increasingly blended with biofuels. These biofuel blends impose risks for the specific application in the military environment. Therefore the Ministry of Defence has commissioned ECN to provide a market analysis of biofuel (blends) projected to become available up till 2030, with a focus on diesel fuels for ground use. We conclude that the percentage of conventional biodiesel (FAME) in the EU is likely to increase up to around 7% until 2020. It is unlikely that the share of FAME in commercially available diesel blends will increase above 10%. Hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO) is expected to gain an increasing market share, especially in the time window 2015-2020. After 2020, the fraction of biogenic diesel in blends may further increase. However, this additional demand will most likely be met by the production of advanced high quality 2nd generation BTL diesel, thereby not reducing the fuel quality, also not for military applications. From a global perspective, it is most likely that up to 2030 biodiesel blends will only contain a minor average fraction of diesel from biological origin (below 3%). The main reason is that biofuel substitutes for petrol are expected to maintain their market share of about 80% of the total biofuel production. However, in addition to the EU, biodiesel blends up to 10% may also be introduced in regions with a large biodiesel feedstock supply potential, such as South East Asia, Latin America or Sub-Sahara Africa.

  12. Markets for Canadian bitumen-based feedstock

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lauerman, V.

    2001-01-01

    The best types of refineries for processing western Canadian bitumen-based feedstock (BBF) were identified and a potential market for these feedstock for year 2007 was calculated. In addition, this power point presentation provided an estimation of potential regional and total demand for BBF. BBF included Athabasca bitumen blend, de-asphalted blend, coked sour crude oil (SCO), coked sweet SCO, hydrocracked SCO and hydrocracked/aromatic saturated SCO (HAS). Refinery prototypes included light and mixed prototypes for primary cracking units, light and heavy prototypes for primary coking units, as well as no coking, coking severe and residuum prototypes for primary hydrocracking units. The presentation included graphs depicting the natural market for Western Canadian crudes as well as U.S. crude oil production forecasts by PADD districts. It was forecasted that the market for bitumen-based feedstock in 2007 will be tight and that the potential demand for bitumen-based blends would be similar to expected production. It was also forecasted that the potential demand for SCO is not as promising relative to the expected production, unless price discounting or HAS will be available. 11 figs

  13. Open source marketing: Camel cigarette brand marketing in the "Web 2.0" world.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Freeman, B; Chapman, S

    2009-06-01

    The international trend towards comprehensive bans on tobacco advertising has seen the tobacco industry become increasingly innovative in its approach to marketing. Further fuelling this innovation is the rapid evolution and accessibility of web-based technology. The internet, as a relatively unregulated marketing environment, provides many opportunities for tobacco companies to pursue their promotional ambitions. In this paper, "open source marketing" is considered as a vehicle that has been appropriated by the tobacco industry, through a case study of efforts to design the packaging for the Camel Signature Blends range of cigarettes. Four sources are used to explore this case study including a marketing literature search, a web-based content search via the Google search engine, interviews with advertising trade informants and an analysis of the Camel brand website. RJ Reynolds (RJR) has proven to be particularly innovative in designing cigarette packaging. RJR engaged with thousands of consumers through their Camel brand website to design four new cigarette flavours and packages. While the Camel Signature Blends packaging designs were subsequently modified for the retail market due to problems arising with their cartoon-like imagery, important lessons arise on how the internet blurs the line between marketing and market research. Open source marketing has the potential to exploit advertising ban loopholes and stretch legal definitions in order to generate positive word of mouth about tobacco products. There are also lessons in the open source marketing movement for more effective tobacco control measures including interactive social marketing campaigns and requiring plain packaging of tobacco products.

  14. Transport Services Market of North-East Asia: Trends and Prospects

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Anna Borisovna Bardal

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper considers changes of directions and scale of traffic flows generated by the NEA countries during the period from 1990 to 2013. Using the international statistics data (volume and structure of NEA trade flows within and outside the region the author analyzes the main tendencies of NEA foreign trade as it’s the basis of international freight and passenger traffic. The study also gives the dynamics of transport systems of the NEA countries. With the help of the national statistics data the author focuses on the transformation of transport systems of the NEA «Big Three»: Japan, Republic of Korea and China. For these three countries the article examines the key formation stages of transport systems, analyzes the structure changes in transport modes of freight and passenger traffic, dynamics of the transport infrastructure elements (density of ground networks and GDP cargo consumption. The paper shows stimulating and restricting conditions to integration of national transport systems of the NEA countries, in particular, institutional and technological factors prevailing in the regional transport market

  15. Coal lumps vs. electrons: How do Chinese bulk energy transport decisions affect the global steam coal market?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Paulus, Moritz; Trüby, Johannes

    2011-01-01

    This paper demonstrates the ways in which different Chinese bulk energy transport strategies affect the future steam coal market in China and in the rest of the world. An increase in Chinese demand for steam coal will lead to a growing need for additional domestic infrastructure as production hubs and demand centers are spatially separated, and domestic transport costs could influence the future Chinese steam coal supply mix. If domestic transport capacity is available only at elevated costs, Chinese power generators could turn to the global trade markets and further increase steam coal imports. Increased Chinese imports could then yield significant changes in steam coal market economics on a global scale. This effect is analyzed in China, where coal is mainly transported by railway, and in another setting where coal energy is transported as electricity. For this purpose, a spatial equilibrium model for the global steam coal market has been developed. One major finding is that if coal is converted into electricity early in the supply chain, worldwide marginal costs of supply are lower than if coal is transported via railway. Furthermore, China's dependence on international imports is significantly reduced in this context. Allocation of welfare changes particularly in favor of Chinese consumers while rents of international producers decrease.

  16. The Methodology of Selecting the Transport Mode for Companies on the Slovak Transport Market

    Science.gov (United States)

    Černá, Lenka; Zitrický, Vladislav; Daniš, Jozef

    2017-03-01

    Transport volume in the Slovak Republic is growing continuously every year. This rising trend is influenced by the development of car industry and its suppliers. Slovak republic has also a geographic strategy position in middle Europe from the side of transport corridors (east-west and north-south). The development of transport volume in freight transport depends on the transport and business processes between the European Union and China and it is an opportunity for Slovak republic to obtain transit transport flows. In the Slovak Republic, road transport has a dominant position in the transport market. The volume of road transport has gradually increased over the past years. The increase of road transport is reflected on the highways and speed roads in regions which have higher economic potential. The increase of rail transport as seen on the main rail corridors is not as significant as in road transport. Trade globalization also has an influence on the increase of transport volume in intermodal transport. Predicted increase in transport volume for this transport mode is from 2,3 mil ton per year at present to 8 mil ton in the year 2020. Selection of transport mode and carrier is an important aspect for logistic management, because companies (customers) want to reduce the number of carriers which they trade and they create the system of several key carriers. Bigger transport volume and more qualitative transport service give a possibility to reduce transport costs. This trend is positive for carriers too, because the carriers can focus only on the selected customers and provide more qualitative services. The paper is focused on the selection of transport mode based on the proposed methodology. The aims of the paper are, definition of criteria which directly influence the selection of transport modes, determination of criteria based on the subjectively methods, creation of process for the selection of transport modes and practical application of proposed

  17. Transportation Energy Futures Series. Projected Biomass Utilization for Fuels and Power in a Mature Market

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ruth, M. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Mai, T. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Newes, E. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Aden, A. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Warner, E. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Uriarte, C. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Inman, D. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Simpkins, T. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Argo, A. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2013-03-01

    The viability of biomass as transportation fuel depends upon the allocation of limited resources for fuel, power, and products. By focusing on mature markets, this report identifies how biomass is projected to be most economically used in the long term and the implications for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and petroleum use. In order to better understand competition for biomass between these markets and the potential for biofuel as a market-scale alternative to petroleum-based fuels, this report presents results of a micro-economic analysis conducted using the Biomass Allocation and Supply Equilibrium (BASE) modeling tool. The findings indicate that biofuels can outcompete biopower for feedstocks in mature markets if research and development targets are met. The BASE tool was developed for this project to analyze the impact of multiple biomass demand areas on mature energy markets. The model includes domestic supply curves for lignocellulosic biomass resources, corn for ethanol and butanol production, soybeans for biodiesel, and algae for diesel. This is one of a series of reports produced as a result of the Transportation Energy Futures (TEF) project, a Department of Energy-sponsored multi-agency project initiated to pinpoint underexplored strategies for abating GHGs and reducing petroleum dependence related to transportation.

  18. Transportation Energy Futures Series: Projected Biomass Utilization for Fuels and Power in a Mature Market

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ruth, M.; Mai, T.; Newes, E.; Aden, A.; Warner, E.; Uriarte, C.; Inman, D.; Simpkins, T.; Argo, A.

    2013-03-01

    The viability of biomass as transportation fuel depends upon the allocation of limited resources for fuel, power, and products. By focusing on mature markets, this report identifies how biomass is projected to be most economically used in the long term and the implications for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and petroleum use. In order to better understand competition for biomass between these markets and the potential for biofuel as a market-scale alternative to petroleum-based fuels, this report presents results of a micro-economic analysis conducted using the Biomass Allocation and Supply Equilibrium (BASE) modeling tool. The findings indicate that biofuels can outcompete biopower for feedstocks in mature markets if research and development targets are met. The BASE tool was developed for this project to analyze the impact of multiple biomass demand areas on mature energy markets. The model includes domestic supply curves for lignocellulosic biomass resources, corn for ethanol and butanol production, soybeans for biodiesel, and algae for diesel. This is one of a series of reports produced as a result of the Transportation Energy Futures (TEF) project, a Department of Energy-sponsored multi-agency project initiated to pinpoint underexplored strategies for abating GHGs and reducing petroleum dependence related to transportation.

  19. Radiation processed polychloroprene-co-ethylene-propene diene terpolymer blends: Effect of radiation vulcanization on solvent transport kinetics

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dubey, K.A. [Radiation Technology Development Section, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Room No. S-1, HIRUP Building, Trombay, Mumbai 400 085 (India); Bhardwaj, Y.K. [Radiation Technology Development Section, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Room No. S-1, HIRUP Building, Trombay, Mumbai 400 085 (India)], E-mail: ykbhard@barc.gov.in; Chaudhari, C.V.; Kumar, Virendra; Goel, N.K.; Sabharwal, S. [Radiation Technology Development Section, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Room No. S-1, HIRUP Building, Trombay, Mumbai 400 085 (India)

    2009-03-15

    Blends of polychloroprene rubber (PCR) and ethylene propylene diene terpolymer rubber (EPDM) of different compositions were made and exposed to different gamma radiation doses. The radiation sensitivity and radiation vulcanization efficiency of blends was estimated by gel-content analysis, Charlesby-Pinner parameter determination and crosslinking density measurements. Gamma radiation induced crosslinking was most efficient for EPDM (p{sub 0}/q{sub 0} {approx} 0.08), whereas it was the lowest for blends containing 40% PCR (p{sub 0}/q{sub 0} {approx} 0.34). The vulcanized blends were characterized for solvent diffusion characteristics by following the swelling dynamics. Blends with higher PCR content showed anomalous swelling. The sorption and permeability of the solvent were not strictly in accordance with each other and the extent of variation in two parameters was found to be a function of blend composition. The {delta}G values for solvent diffusion were in the range -2.97 to -9.58 kJ/mol and indicated thermodynamically favorable sorption for all blends. These results were corroborated by dynamic swelling, experimental as well as simulated profiles and have been explained on the basis of correlation between crosslinking density, diffusion kinetics, thermodynamic parameters and polymer-polymer interaction parameter.

  20. Welfare distribution effect of a price reduction in the Dutch gas transport market: A scenario analysis of regulatory policy, market form and rent allocation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    A. Witteloostuijn, van (Arjen); S. Brakman (Steven); J.G.M. van Marrewijk (Charles)

    2007-01-01

    textabstractAs part of the larger energy market deregulation program, the Dutch energy authority—DTe—has developed the habit to force the Dutch gas transport enterprise—Gas Transport Services, or GTS—to lower its prices. DTe's key argument is that lower gas transport prices will benefit the

  1. Physicochemical, microbiological and sensory evaluation of a bioactive food blend

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rosângela dos Santos Ferreira

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available The potential of functional foods to decrease the risks of chronic non-communicable diseases has motivated the development of products with beneficial effects on fat and carbohydrate metabolism. The present study aimed at analyzing the physicochemical, microbiological, and sensory properties of a bioactive food blend developed to help the nutritional therapy provided to hypolipidemic and hyperglycemic patients with HIV/AIDS treated with antiretroviral therapy. The food blend was evaluated for moisture, protein, carbohydrate, fats, fixed mineral residue, total fiber content, and fatty acid composition, according to the standards established by the Instituto Adolfo Lutz. Food safety was assessed by microbiological analyses for Bacillus cereus, Salmonella spp, and coliforms. Sensory acceptance and intention to purchase were also evaluated. The food blend showed good nutritional potential, with low atherogenicity and thrombogenicity indexes, good macronutrient balance, and high energy value. The adoption of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP resulted in a product suitable for consumption. With respect to sensory aspects, the food blend showed satisfactory indexes of acceptability and promising marketing potential.

  2. Well-to-Wheels Greenhouse Gas Emission Analysis of High-Octane Fuels with Ethanol Blending: Phase II Analysis with Refinery Investment Options

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Han, Jeongwoo [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Energy Systems Division; Wang, Michael [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Energy Systems Division; Elgowainy, Amgad [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Energy Systems Division; DiVita, Vincent [Jacobs Consultancy Inc., Houston, TX (United States)

    2016-08-01

    Higher-octane gasoline can enable increases in an internal combustion engine’s energy efficiency and a vehicle’s fuel economy by allowing an increase in the engine compression ratio and/or by enabling downspeeding and downsizing. Producing high-octane fuel (HOF) with the current level of ethanol blending (E10) could increase the energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions intensity of the fuel product from refinery operations. Alternatively, increasing the ethanol blending level in final gasoline products could be a promising solution to HOF production because of the high octane rating and potentially low blended Reid vapor pressure (RVP) of ethanol at 25% and higher of the ethanol blending level by volume. In our previous HOF well-to-wheels (WTW) report (the so-called phase I report of the HOF WTW analysis), we conducted WTW analysis of HOF with different ethanol blending levels (i.e., E10, E25, and E40) and a range of vehicle efficiency gains with detailed petroleum refinery linear programming (LP) modeling by Jacobs Consultancy and showed that the overall WTW GHG emission changes associated with HOFVs were dominated by the positive impact associated with vehicle efficiency gains and ethanol blending levels, while the refining operations to produce gasoline blendstock for oxygenate blending (BOB) for various HOF blend levels had a much smaller impact on WTW GHG emissions (Han et al. 2015). The scope of the previous phase I study, however, was limited to evaluating PADDs 2 and 3 operation changes with various HOF market share scenarios and ethanol blending levels. Also, the study used three typical configuration models of refineries (cracking, light coking, and heavy coking) in each PADD, which may not be representative of the aggregate response of all refineries in each PADD to various ethanol blending levels and HOF market scenarios. Lastly, the phase I study assumed no new refinery expansion in the existing refineries, which limited E10 HOF production to the

  3. Welfare distribution effect of a price reduction in the Dutch gas transport market: A scenario analysis of regulatory policy, market form and rent allocation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Witteloostuijn , van Arjen; Brakman, S.; van Marrewijk, C.

    2007-01-01

    As part of the larger energy market deregulation program, the Dutch energy authority-DTe-has developed the habit to force the Dutch gas transport enterprise-Gas Transport Services, or GTS-to lower its prices. DTe's key argument is that lower gas transport prices will benefit the end-user. Indeed,

  4. Blending traditional and digital marketing

    OpenAIRE

    Raluca Dania TODOR

    2016-01-01

    It is a matter of fact that we are in the digital era and internet marketing and social media have a significant impact on the way consumers behave, companies do business and it is a must for companies to adapt to the new reality. Due to the fast evolution of the technology, the continuous increase in demand and supply, the supply chain elongation and the big amount of date, the only solution to face the major changes is the automation of all the processes. But even though the ...

  5. Blended learning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dau, Susanne

    2016-01-01

    Blended Learning has been implemented, evaluated and researched for the last decades within different educational areas and levels. Blended learning has been coupled with different epistemological understandings and learning theories, but the fundamental character and dimensions of learning...... in blended learning are still insufficient. Moreover, blended learning is a misleading concept described as learning, despite the fact that it fundamentally is an instructional and didactic approach (Oliver & Trigwell, 2005) addressing the learning environment (Inglis, Palipoana, Trenhom & Ward, 2011......) instead of the learning processes behind. Much of the existing research within the field seems to miss this perspective. The consequence is a lack of acknowledgement of the driven forces behind the context and the instructional design limiting the knowledge foundation of learning in blended learning. Thus...

  6. Concentration fluctuations in miscible polymer blends: Influence of temperature and chain rigidity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dudowicz, Jacek; Freed, Karl F.; Douglas, Jack F.

    2014-01-01

    In contrast to binary mixtures of small molecule fluids, homogeneous polymer blends exhibit relatively large concentration fluctuations that can strongly affect the transport properties of these complex fluids over wide ranges of temperatures and compositions. The spatial scale and intensity of these compositional fluctuations are studied by applying Kirkwood-Buff theory to model blends of linear semiflexible polymer chains with upper critical solution temperatures. The requisite quantities for determining the Kirkwood-Buff integrals are generated from the lattice cluster theory for the thermodynamics of the blend and from the generalization of the random phase approximation to compressible polymer mixtures. We explore how the scale and intensity of composition fluctuations in binary blends vary with the reduced temperature τ ≡ (T − T c )/T (where T c is the critical temperature) and with the asymmetry in the rigidities of the components. Knowledge of these variations is crucial for understanding the dynamics of materials fabricated from polymer blends, and evidence supporting these expectations is briefly discussed

  7. Corporate Blended Learning in Portugal: Current Status and Future Directions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marcal, Julia; Caetano, Antonio

    2010-01-01

    The aim of this study is to characterize the current status of blended learning in Portugal, given that b-learning has grown exponentially in the Portuguese market over recent years. 38 organizations (representing 68% of all institutions certified to provide distance training by the Government Labour Office--DGERT-) participated in this study. The…

  8. Price Analysis of Railway Freight Transport under Marketing Mechanism

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shi, Ying; Fang, Xiaoping; Chen, Zhiya

    Regarding the problems in the reform of the railway tariff system and the pricing of the transport, by means of assaying the influence of the price elasticity on the artifice used for price, this article proposed multiple regressive model which analyzed price elasticity quantitatively. This model conclude multi-factors which influences on the price elasticity, such as the averagely railway freight charge, the averagely freight haulage of proximate supersede transportation mode, the GDP per capita in the point of origin, and a series of dummy variable which can reflect the features of some productive and consume demesne. It can calculate the price elasticity of different classes in different domains, and predict the freight traffic volume on different rate levels. It can calculate confidence-level, and evaluate the relevance of each parameter to get rid of irrelevant or little relevant variables. It supplied a good theoretical basis for directing the pricing of transport enterprises in market economic conditions, which is suitable for railway freight, passenger traffic and other transportation manner as well. SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Science) software was used to calculate and analysis the example. This article realized the calculation by HYFX system(Ministry of Railways fund).

  9. Oil product blending optimization system; Sistema de otimizacao de misturas de derivados

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Costa, F.L.P.; Sousa, L.C.F.; Joly, M.; Takahashi, M.T.; Magalhaes, M.V.O.; Mendonca, P.N. [PETROBRAS, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

    2008-07-01

    The current scenario of the world refining industry demands significant investment in the improvement of its products and production processes quality, either due to a competitive market or strict environmental restrictions, requiring deep changes in the oil companies. In this environment, blending optimization has been receiving increasing attention in both academic and industrial sectors resulting in the development and improvement of tools for decision support and realtime control. The main objective of these tools is to optimize, according to either an economic or an operational criterion, the fuel blending recipe, guaranteeing the product specification with minimum giveaway in the critical properties and avoiding the reblending process. This work presents a blending optimization system of oil products named OTIMIST and instances of its application in PETROBRAS' Recap refinery. (author)

  10. Observations of market pigs following transport to a packing plant.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kephart, K B; Harper, M T; Raines, C R

    2010-06-01

    A field study was conducted to record observations of 41,744 market-weight pigs upon arrival at a commercial abattoir to evaluate the relationships between various independent factors and open-mouth breathing, skin discoloration, lameness, unloading time, and mortality during transport. Observations were recorded from 242 trailer loads on 46 separate days over a period of 14 mo. Travel time (or=2.5 h), wait time before unloading (or=20 min), loading pressure (space or >or=260 kg of BW/m(2) trailer floor space), ambient temperature while unloading (or=17 degrees C), and trailer type [potbelly (PB); straight-deck with conventional unloading doors (SDC); or straight-deck with wide unloading doors (SDW)] were recorded for each load. Open-mouth breathing was more prevalent in pigs when transported on PB trailers compared with that of SDC or SDW trailers (P or=17 degrees C, P or=17 degrees C. Lameness was more prevalent (P travel times at greater loading pressure compared with shorter travel times at decreased loading pressure. Unloading time for PB trailers was longer (P 0.10) relationships between mortality and any independent variable tested. Wait time before unloading was not associated (P > 0.10) with any of the dependent variables included in the statistical model. In conclusion, warmer ambient temperatures (>or=17 degrees C) and the use of PB trailers are associated with an increased incidence of open-mouth breathing and skin discoloration, and longer unloading times after the transport of market pigs.

  11. Blending Biodiesel in Fishing Boat Fuels for Improved Fuel Characteristics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin, Cherng-Yuan

    2014-01-01

    Biodiesel is a renewable, clean, alternative energy source with advantages, such as excellent lubricity, superior biodegradability, and high combustion efficiency. Biodiesel is considered for mixing with fishing boat fuels to adjust their fuel characteristics so that toxic pollutants and greenhouse-effect gas emissions from such shipping might be reduced. The effects of blending fishing boat fuels A and B with various weight proportions of biodiesel are experimentally investigated in this study. The results show that biodiesel blending can significantly improve the inferior fuel properties of both fishing boat fuels and particularly fuel B. The flash points of both of these fuels increases significantly with the addition of biodiesel and thus enhances the safety of transporting and storing these blended fuels. The flash point of fishing boat fuel B even increases by 16% if 25 wt.% biodiesel is blended. The blending of biodiesel with no sulfur content is found to be one of the most effective ways to reduce the high sulfur content of fishing boat fuel, resulting in a reduction in the emission of sulfur oxides. The addition of only 25 wt.% biodiesel decreased the sulfur content of the fishing boat fuel by 37%. The high kinematic viscosity of fishing boat fuel B was also observed to be reduced by 63% with the blending of just 25 wt.% biodiesel. However, biodiesel blending caused a slight decrease in heating value around 1–4.5%.

  12. Blending Biodiesel in Fishing Boat Fuels for Improved Fuel Characteristics

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lin, Cherng-Yuan, E-mail: lin7108@ntou.edu.tw [Department of Marine Engineering, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung, Taiwan (China)

    2014-02-24

    Biodiesel is a renewable, clean, alternative energy source with advantages, such as excellent lubricity, superior biodegradability, and high combustion efficiency. Biodiesel is considered for mixing with fishing boat fuels to adjust their fuel characteristics so that toxic pollutants and greenhouse-effect gas emissions from such shipping might be reduced. The effects of blending fishing boat fuels A and B with various weight proportions of biodiesel are experimentally investigated in this study. The results show that biodiesel blending can significantly improve the inferior fuel properties of both fishing boat fuels and particularly fuel B. The flash points of both of these fuels increases significantly with the addition of biodiesel and thus enhances the safety of transporting and storing these blended fuels. The flash point of fishing boat fuel B even increases by 16% if 25 wt.% biodiesel is blended. The blending of biodiesel with no sulfur content is found to be one of the most effective ways to reduce the high sulfur content of fishing boat fuel, resulting in a reduction in the emission of sulfur oxides. The addition of only 25 wt.% biodiesel decreased the sulfur content of the fishing boat fuel by 37%. The high kinematic viscosity of fishing boat fuel B was also observed to be reduced by 63% with the blending of just 25 wt.% biodiesel. However, biodiesel blending caused a slight decrease in heating value around 1–4.5%.

  13. Supporting School Leaders in Blended Learning with Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Acree, Lauren; Gibson, Theresa; Mangum, Nancy; Wolf, Mary Ann; Kellogg, Shaun; Branon, Suzanne

    2017-01-01

    This study provides a mixed-methods case-study design evaluation of the Leadership in Blended Learning (LBL) program. The LBL program uses blended approaches, including face-to-face and online, to prepare school leaders to implement blended learning initiatives in their schools. This evaluation found that the program designers effectively…

  14. Blended Learning

    OpenAIRE

    Bauerová, Andrea

    2013-01-01

    This thesis is focused on a new approach of education called blended learning. The history and developement of Blended Learning is described in the first part. Then the methods and tools of Blended Learning are evaluated and compared to the traditional methods of education. At the final part an efficient developement of the educational programs is emphasized.

  15. Effect of diamond blend on the gas-separation properties of composite membranes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kryuchkova, S. V.; Kostina, Yu. V.; Yablokova, M. Yu.; Gasanova, L. G.; Kepman, A. V.

    2017-10-01

    The morphological structure and gas transport properties of polyimide- and polyamide-imidebased rigid-chain polymers containing a fine carbon filler (a diamond blend) are studied. Gas transport properties are measured, and the effect exerted on these properties by intermolecular interaction between the functional groups of polymer chains and the fine filler is analyzed.

  16. Natural gas liquids markets in the United States

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anderson, W.E.

    1991-01-01

    Changes in natural gas liquids (NGL) markets in the USA, brought about primarily by environmental issues and actions, are reviewed. Three aspects of the Clean Air Act amendments are exerting a powerful influence on NGL product demands. Regulatory limits on Reed vapor pressure (RVP) reduce the amount of evaporative hydrocarbon emissions, and lower-RVP gasoline is leaner in the more volatile hydrocarbons. This means primarily a lower n-butane content, and during the 1990-91 summer blending season it is estimated that half of total U.S. gas plant production of n-butane was being eliminated from the traditional refinery blending market. N-butane prices fell, making n-butane attractive as a petrochemical feedstock. Regulatory requirements for reformulated and oxygenated gasolines, for which methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) will be the largest single source of oxygenate, have increased demand for NGL butanes used as the basic raw material in MBTE manufacture. This demand should increase enough to absorb all the n-butane dislodged from the gasoline blending market. The amendments also specify that in selected metropolitan areas having severe air quality problems, an alternative fuels program must be established. In the alternative fuels market, propane is already well-established due to favorable economics and proven performance, and significant new demand for propane in metropolitan markets is expected. Ethylene, the basic raw material for plastics manufacture, is mainly derived from NGLs and the continued strong demand for plastics will have a positive effect on the NGL market. NGL product demand profiles and projections are presented in graph form for ethane, propane, butanes, and pentanes plus. 4 figs

  17. Selective removal of carbon dioxide from wet CO{sub 2}/H{sub 2} mixtures via facilitated transport membranes containing amine blends as carriers

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Heydari Gorji, A. [Department of Chemical Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology (Tehran Polytechnic), Tehran (Iran); Kargari, A. [Department of Mechanical Engineering, K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran (Iran); Kaghazchi, T.

    2009-01-15

    The selective separation of carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) from a wet gaseous mixture of CO{sub 2}/H{sub 2} through facilitated transport membranes containing immobilized aqueous solutions of monoethanolamine (MEA), diethanolamine (DEA), ethylenediamine (EDA) and monoprotonated ethylenediamine (EDAH{sup +}) and their blends was experimentally investigated. The effect of CO{sub 2} partial pressure, amine concentration, feed side pressure and amine species on the CO{sub 2} and H{sub 2} permeances were studied. The CO{sub 2} permeability through amine solution membranes decreased with increasing CO{sub 2} feed partial pressure but the H{sub 2} permeance was almost independent of the H{sub 2} partial pressure. A comparison of experimental results showed that single or blended amines with low viscosity and a moderate equilibrium constant, i.e., large forward and reverse reaction rate of CO{sub 2}-amine, are suitable for effective separation of CO{sub 2}. The permeability of CO{sub 2} generally increased with an increase in amine concentration, although this increase may be compromised by the salting out effect and decrease in diffusivities of species. The results obtained indicated that CO{sub 2} permeance across a variety of amines are in the order of DEA (2 M)>MD(2M) >MD(1 M)>MEA(2 M) >MEA(4 M)>MD (4 M)>DEA (1 M)> DEA(4 M)>MEA (1 M) for various concentrations of MEA+DEA blend and are in the order of EDAH{sup +}(2 M)> DEA(2 M) >MH(2 M)>DH (2 M)>ED (2 M)>EDA (2 M)> MEA(2 M) for various blends of amine. (Abstract Copyright [2009], Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

  18. The influence of additives on crystallization of blends based on polylactid acid

    Science.gov (United States)

    Perd'ochová, D.; Tomanová, K.; Alexy, P.; Bočkaj, J.; Feranc, J.; Plavec, R.; Omaníková, L.; Jurkovič, P.; Prikřyl, R.

    2017-11-01

    The sustainable development consists of the effort of replacing commonly used polymer materials for the biodegradable ones. They do not have sufficient physical and mechanical properties, therefore they have to be modified by producing various ratio mixtures or with the additives. Improving their processability and properties is an important challenge to be afforded before using these materials on the market. One way to improve the properties of these materials is to prepare their blends [1]. The most common way of the preparation of packaging materials is the injection moulding, where the crystallization of material is very important. That is the reason the crystallization has become one of the most studied characteristics of biodegradable blends based on PLA / PHB. The work is a contribution to works that deal with the description of the structure of PLA / PHB blends, which have been modified by the addition of various types of additives, mainly nucleating agents and plasticizers [2]. The films of these blends keep approximately unchanged mechanical properties after two weeks of storage. The presence of plasticizer (ATBC) and nucleating agent (BN) has no significant impact on the processing stability of PLA/PHB blends. The results show that the combination of the plasticizer and nucleating agent greatly affects the process of crystallization of PLA/PHB blends as well as the ratio of polymers and the heat treatment process.

  19. Carbonaceous Aerosols Emitted from Light-Duty Vehicles Operating on Ethanol Fuel Blends

    Science.gov (United States)

    Air pollution is among the many environmental and public health concerns associated with increased ethanol use in vehicles. Jacobson [2007] showed for the U.S. market that full conversion to e85 ([85% ethanol, 15% gasoline]—the maximum standard blend used in modern dual fuel veh...

  20. Marketing Research on Passenger Satisfaction With Public Transport Service in the City of Belgrade

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Branislav Radnović

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to determine, based on conducted marketing research, the level of passenger satisfaction with public transport services for the purpose of making better marketing decisions in the example of the City of Belgrade. The main task is to test the hypothesis on the existence of significant influence of factors, such as quality service, attitude and behaviour of employees (e.g. driver, adequate informing, quality of vehicles, line routes and timetable, on passenger satisfaction. Correlation coefficient and regression analysis were used for interpreting the obtained results and examining the formulated hypothesis. Empirical research has shown that there is a significant correlation between the aforementioned factors and passenger satisfaction with public transport services. The obtained results provided recommendations and guidelines for improving and increasing the quality of public transport services. The research results also provide the basis for future research that could examine the relationship between passenger satisfaction with services and sub-groups within the analyzed factors.

  1. The role of legal regulation and place of international organisations in transport companies’ development at foreign market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Oleh Lyashuk

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with the analysis of the market of international trucking transport companies. The study is based on statistics and works of domestic and foreign scholars on the issue of current state and prospects of market development. Dedicated dynamics and structure of international trucking market, features of export, import and transit trucking. Identified the main priorities for the development and growth of the market.

  2. Relations between blended learning possibilities and teachers' approaches to blended learning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Stenalt, Maria Hvid; Nielsen, Tobias Alsted; Bager-Elsborg, Anna

    Higher Education has embraced blended learning as a way of enhancing quality in teaching and helping students to learn. This presentation addresses relations between blended learning possiblities presented to teachers in a teacher training project and teachers’ approaches to blended learning. We...... suggest that in order to identify the level of impact of integrating technologies in teaching and learning, we need to understand the factors influencing approaches to design of courses for blended contexts. Participants in the teacher training project come from the Department of Law at Aarhus University......: • Optain locally-embedded knowledge about blended learning • Develop opportunities for law students to receive (more) feedback • Comply with strategic aims The results so far suggest that teachers provide a disciplinary perspective on the key dimensions of blended learning, which influences...

  3. U.S. West Coast market developments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yamaguchi, N.D.

    1999-01-01

    The crude production, quality, oil product demand, imports and refinery capabilities of U.S. Petroleum Administration for Defence District Five (PADD -V) were discussed and the distinguishing characteristics of the PADD-V market were summarized. The seven states which make up US PADD-V include Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada and Arizona. PADD-V is a unique petroleum market with strong ties to Canada. The only crude oil pipeline serving the area is the TransMountain pipeline which connects Alberta producers with British Columbia and Washington State. PADD-V has emerged as a significant customer of Canadian crude, and methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) to California refiners producing reformulated gasoline. PADD-V refining capacity utilization is high and generally more sophisticated than refineries elsewhere, with higher actual throughput and product output slate higher in value. The large majority of PADD-V output is reformulated gasoline and diesel, aviation fuels, and conventional transport fuels. It is believed that as product demand continues, PADD-V may become an even more significant importer of refined product. The proposed ban on MTBE blending in gasoline could have a major impact on refinery operations and product trade. 14 figs

  4. Implications of a North American grain marketing system for prairie transportation and elevators

    Science.gov (United States)

    1997-09-01

    The balance of this report will examine the experiences U.S. production agriculture has had with deregulation of the transportation industry. It will highlight the evolution of the procurement segment of grain marketing, concentrating on the wheat or...

  5. Numerical investigation on the effects of natural gas and hydrogen blends on engine combustion

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Morrone, Biagio; Unich, Andrea [Dipartimento di Ingegneria Aerospaziale e Meccanica (DIAM), Seconda Universita degli Studi di Napoli via Roma 29, 81031 Aversa (CE) (Italy)

    2009-05-15

    The use of hydrogen blended with natural gas is a viable alternative to pure fossil fuels because of the expected reduction of the total pollutant emissions and increase of efficiency. These blends offer a valid opportunity for tackling sustainable transportation, in view of the future stringent emission limits for road vehicles. The aim of the present paper is the investigation of the performance of internal combustion engines fuelled by such blends. A numerical investigation on the characteristics of natural gas-hydrogen blends as well as their effect on engine performance is carried out. The activity is focused on the influence of such blends on flame propagation speed. Combustion pattern modelling allows the comparison of engine brake efficiency and power output using different fuels. Results showed that there is an increase in engine efficiency only if Maximum Brake Torque (MBT) spark advance is used for each fuel. Moreover, an economic analysis has been carried out to determine the over cost of hydrogen in such blends, showing percent increments by using these fuels about between 10 and 34%. (author)

  6. Blended Learning

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Van der Baaren, John

    2009-01-01

    Van der Baaren, J. (2009). Blended Learning. Presentation given at the Mini symposium 'Blended Learning the way to go?'. November, 5, 2009, The Hague, The Netherlands: Netherlands Defence Academy (NDLA).

  7. Study of a ternary blend system for bulk heterojunction thin film solar cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahmad, Zubair; Touati, Farid; Shakoor, R. A.; Al-Thani, N. J.

    2016-08-01

    In this research, we report a bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cell consisting of a ternary blend system. Poly(3-hexylthiophene) P3HT is used as a donor and [6,6]-phenyl C61-butyric acid methylester (PCBM) plays the role of acceptor whereas vanadyl 2,9,16,23-tetraphenoxy-29H, 31H-phthalocyanine (VOPcPhO) is selected as an ambipolar transport material. The materials are selected and assembled in such a fashion that the generated charge carriers could efficiently be transported rightwards within the blend. The organic BHJ solar cells consist of ITO/PEDOT:PSS/ternary BHJ blend/Al structure. The power conversion efficiencies of the ITO/ PEDOT:PSS/P3HT:PCBM/Al and ITO/PEDOT:PSS/ P3HT:PCBM:VOPcPhO/Al solar cells are found to be 2.3% and 3.4%, respectively. This publication was made possible by PDRA (Grant No. PDRA1-0117-14109) from the Qatar National Research Fund (a member of Qatar Foundation). The findings achieved herein are solely the responsibility of the authors.

  8. Coal transport demand in Western Europe and Japan: Impacts of energy market liberalisation and climate policy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Golombek, Rolf; Kittelsen, Sverre A.C.; Maestad, Ottar

    2005-12-01

    Western Europe and Japan are among the main importers of coal. Climate policies following the Kyoto agreement are creating pressure to substitute away from coal and turn to less emission intensive energy sources. At the same time, liberalizations of energy markets in Europe and Japan are likely to cause reduced electricity prices, which will boost the overall demand for electricity. This paper analyses the combined effect of electricity market liberalization and climate policies on the international coal trade. Using the numerical equilibrium model LIBEMOD, we find that while liberalization of electricity markets will imply a large increase in aggregate coal transport demand, the negative impact of climate policies may be even larger, in particular if Russia and Ukraine utilise their market power in the market for emission permits. If this market power is exploited, the total effect of liberalisation and climate policy - when including the impact of general economic growth - is a 20% reduction in aggregate coal transport between 2000 and 2010. Further, impacts differ markedly between Western Europe and Japan. A main difference is that liberalisation has a much more positive - and climate policies have a much stronger negative - impact on steam coal demand in Western Europe than in Japan

  9. Polymer blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Allen, Scott D.; Naik, Sanjeev

    2017-08-22

    The present invention provides, among other things, extruded blends of aliphatic polycarbonates and polyolefins. In one aspect, provided blends comprise aliphatic polycarbonates such as poly(propylene carbonate) and a lesser amount of a crystalline or semicrystalline polymer. In certain embodiments, provided blends are characterized in that they exhibit unexpected improvements in their elongation properties. In another aspect, the invention provides methods of making such materials and applications of the materials in applications such as the manufacture of consumer packaging materials.

  10. Field effect measurements on charge carrier mobilities in various polymer-fullerene blend compositions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hauff, Elizabeth von; Parisi, Juergen; Dyakonov, Vladimir

    2006-01-01

    In this study we investigated materials typically used in polymer photovoltaics. Field effect measurements were performed in order to determine the hole mobilities in the conjugated polymer poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and the electron mobilities in the methanofullerene[6,6]-phenyl C 61 -butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM), and, particularly, in the polymer-fullerene composite blends. Regarding the pure films, electron mobilities in PCBM were found to be in the 10 -2 cm 2 /Vs range, and hole mobilities in P3HT were found to be in the 10 -3 cm2/Vs range. In the PCBM:P3HT blends, it was found that varying the PCBM content in PCBM:P3HT blends led to a steep increase in electron mobility with increasing PCBM content, while the hole mobility was found to slightly decrease with the increasing PCBM concentration. In 2:1 PCBM:P3HT tempered blends, the charge carrier mobilities were found to be roughly balanced, at 10 -3 cm 2 /Vs. For improved electron transport in the blends, tempering was found to be crucial

  11. Blended learning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Staugaard, Hans Jørgen

    2012-01-01

    Forsøg på at indkredse begrebet blended learning i forbindelse med forberedelsen af projekt FlexVid.......Forsøg på at indkredse begrebet blended learning i forbindelse med forberedelsen af projekt FlexVid....

  12. Welfare distribution effect of a price reduction in the Dutch gas transport market: A scenario analysis of regulatory policy, market form and rent allocation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van Witteloostuijn, Arjen; Van Marrewijk, Charles

    2007-01-01

    As part of the larger energy market deregulation program, the Dutch energy authority - DTe - has developed the habit to force the Dutch gas transport enterprise - Gas Transport Services, or GTS - to lower its prices. DTe's key argument is that lower gas transport prices will benefit the end-user. Indeed, that might well be the case. This policy, in general, is in line with European legislation on the liberalization of the gas market. We model and simulate the (domestic) welfare effects of a 5 percent transport price reduction. From this, we conclude that at least three observations complicate matters substantially. First, GTS is government-owned, and the dominant shipper - Gasunie Trade and Supply (or GasTerra, as it was recoined recently) - is partly so (50%). Second, shippers enter into the competitive game to make profits. Third, not only is the majority of gas transported in the Netherlands exported to foreign end-users, but also foreign owners have a large stake in Dutch shippers. As a result, part of the rents will always be distributed, or will 'leak' away, to foreign consumers and shippers (or their shareholders). These three observations together have three important implications. First, state ownership implies that much rent allocation is simply a matter of circulating money from one government sub-budget to the other. Second, given that the industry is imperfectly competitive, part of the rents will not be passed on to the end-consumers. Third, it is unavoidable that a substantial part of the rents are transferred abroad. A general conclusion for policy-makers is that market liberalization might not bring ex post what they expected ex ante. (author)

  13. Alberta oil sands crudes : upgrading and marketing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ashar, M.

    2008-01-01

    Open pit mining and in situ techniques, such as steam stimulation, are used to recover Alberta's bitumen and heavy oil resources, which have higher viscosities than conventional hydrocarbons. The bitumen is typically upgraded to synthetic crude oil (SCO). In the simplest processing scheme, the bitumen is blended with diluent for ease in pipeline transport and then processed at refineries with upgrading facilities. The bitumen is also upgraded to light SCO at world-scale upgraders in Alberta. The SCO is then processed at refineries in downstream markets. The 2 categories of upgrading, notably primary and secondary upgrading, were described in this article along with technology options for both categories. Slurry hydrocracking is regarded as the most interesting emerging residual fuel upgrading technology. It combines special catalyst mixes with the latest slurry reactor designs as well as innovative catalyst capture and recycle schemes to produce very high conversions and potentially superior upgrading economics. The increase in volume and rate of SCO from Alberta provides refiners in the oil sands marketing sector an unprecedented choice of opportunities to improve profitability. Key trends indicate that production will increase substantially from 2008 to 2030. 5 figs

  14. Alberta oil sands crudes : upgrading and marketing

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ashar, M. [Suncor Energy, Fort McMurray, AB (Canada)

    2008-05-15

    Open pit mining and in situ techniques, such as steam stimulation, are used to recover Alberta's bitumen and heavy oil resources, which have higher viscosities than conventional hydrocarbons. The bitumen is typically upgraded to synthetic crude oil (SCO). In the simplest processing scheme, the bitumen is blended with diluent for ease in pipeline transport and then processed at refineries with upgrading facilities. The bitumen is also upgraded to light SCO at world-scale upgraders in Alberta. The SCO is then processed at refineries in downstream markets. The 2 categories of upgrading, notably primary and secondary upgrading, were described in this article along with technology options for both categories. Slurry hydrocracking is regarded as the most interesting emerging residual fuel upgrading technology. It combines special catalyst mixes with the latest slurry reactor designs as well as innovative catalyst capture and recycle schemes to produce very high conversions and potentially superior upgrading economics. The increase in volume and rate of SCO from Alberta provides refiners in the oil sands marketing sector an unprecedented choice of opportunities to improve profitability. Key trends indicate that production will increase substantially from 2008 to 2030. 5 figs.

  15. Color matching of fabric blends: hybrid Kubelka-Munk + artificial neural network based method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Furferi, Rocco; Governi, Lapo; Volpe, Yary

    2016-11-01

    Color matching of fabric blends is a key issue for the textile industry, mainly due to the rising need to create high-quality products for the fashion market. The process of mixing together differently colored fibers to match a desired color is usually performed by using some historical recipes, skillfully managed by company colorists. More often than desired, the first attempt in creating a blend is not satisfactory, thus requiring the experts to spend efforts in changing the recipe with a trial-and-error process. To confront this issue, a number of computer-based methods have been proposed in the last decades, roughly classified into theoretical and artificial neural network (ANN)-based approaches. Inspired by the above literature, the present paper provides a method for accurate estimation of spectrophotometric response of a textile blend composed of differently colored fibers made of different materials. In particular, the performance of the Kubelka-Munk (K-M) theory is enhanced by introducing an artificial intelligence approach to determine a more consistent value of the nonlinear function relationship between the blend and its components. Therefore, a hybrid K-M+ANN-based method capable of modeling the color mixing mechanism is devised to predict the reflectance values of a blend.

  16. Characteristics of Successful Local Blended Programs in the Context of the Sloan-C Pillars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moloney, Jacqueline F.; Hickey, Charmaine P.; Bergin, Amy L.; Boccia, Judith; Polley, Kathleen; Riley, Jeannette E.

    2010-01-01

    Drawing on the University of Massachusetts experience in developing successful blended local programs, this paper suggests guiding principles that include mission-driven responsiveness to local contexts and partnerships; using low-cost marketing strategies available through local relationships and brand; attending to students' preferences for…

  17. Polystyrene/Hyperbranched Polyester Blends and Reactive Polystyrene/Hyperbranched Polyester Blends

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Mulkern, Thomas

    1999-01-01

    .... In this work, the incorporation of HBPs in thermoplastic blends was investigated. Several volume fractions of hydroxyl functionalized hyperbranched polyesters were melt blended with nonreactive polystyrene (PS...

  18. Coal supply and transportation markets during Phase One: Change, risk and opportunity. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heller, J.N.; Kaplan, S.

    1996-01-01

    The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (CAAA) required many utilities to sharply reduce sulfur emissions by January 1, 1995. This study describes and analyzes how the coal and transportation markets responded to this major development. The study focuses on five key coal supply regions and their associated transportation networks: the Uinta Basin (Colorado/Utah), Wyoming Powder River Basin, Illinois Basin, Monongahela region (Pittsburgh seam) and the central Appalachian region. From these regional studies, the report identifies key risk areas for future coal planning and general lessons for the fuels planning process. The study provides statistical information on coal production, demand, and transportation flows for each region. The analysis for each region focuses on developments which were generally unexpected; e.g., the relatively large volumes of medium-sulfur coal produced in the Illinois Basin and Monongahela region, the eastern penetration of Utah and Colorado coals, and the relatively modest growth in demand for central Appalachian coals. These developments generally worked to the advantage of utilities; i.e., medium- and low-sulfur coal was available at a lower price, in greater volumes and from a wider range of sources than many had expected. Utilities both took advantage of and helped to encourage these developments in the coal and transportation market. Looking ahead to Phase 11 strategies and future coal procurement, a major challenge will be to maintain the choice among supply and transportation alternatives which was so important to utility success in Phase 1. The report identifies rail transportation to be the major area of risk in most regions

  19. Marketing approach to pricing of rail freight

    OpenAIRE

    Savitska, G.

    2015-01-01

    Price the is essence of the economic interests the participants of the transport market, which manifests itself in maintaining or increasing of the main price component revenue. Pricing for transportation of cargoes railway transport in a market economy is the most important management decisions affecting traffic volumes, profitability and competitiveness in the transport market. The market pricing for transportation of cargoes railway transport is a concentrated expression of market conditio...

  20. Charge Carrier Transport and Photogeneration in P3HT:PCBM Photovoltaic Blends

    KAUST Repository

    Laquai, Fré dé ric; Andrienko, Denis; Mauer, Ralf; Blom, Paul W. M.

    2015-01-01

    mobility in the RR-P3HT phase of the polymer:fullerene photovoltaic blend, is dramatically affected by thermal annealing. The hole mobility increases more than three orders of magnitude and reaches a value of up to 2 × 10−4 cm2 V−1 s−1 after the thermal

  1. North American natural gas long-term outlook : market and transportation opportunities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mahan, R.

    1998-01-01

    This study assessed the impact of major issues and trends on the market dynamics of the natural gas industry. A view of how these trends may evolve over the 1998 to 2015 period was also presented. The focus of the study is on market and transportation opportunities in Canada and the United States and their relationship in terms of supply, demand and gas flows between large aggregated regions. Key issues addressed in the report include: (1) the impacts of new transportation capacity on the flow of gas among supply and demand regions, (2) the impact of deregulation and environmental issues on the demand for gas in the electricity generation sector, and (3) the impacts of technological innovations on supply cost and size of the resource base. The report predicts a steady increase ( about 2 per cent annually) in demand for natural gas in Canada over the projection period (i.e. 1998-2015). Highest growth rates are likely to occur in the use of natural gas to generate electricity. While Alberta will remain pre-eminent among producing regions, British Columbia and resource areas off Canada's East Coast will also significantly increase their share of Canada's total production. 36 refs., 64 tabs., 46 figs

  2. Blended Learning in the Vocational Education and Training System in Tanzania: Understanding Vocational Educators’ Perceptions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Haruni J. Machumu

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available In a constructivist world of teaching and learning, opportunities to acquire and develop the knowledge and practical skills necessary to design, establish, and deploy blended learning in vocational education and training (VET programs delivery is a labour-market-driven. The paper examines VET educator’s pleas about the need for the design, adoption and deployment of blended learning in VET programs delivery in Tanzania. A single case study design with an in-depth interview and focus group discussion was conducted with 15 VET educators in three VET colleges in both Morogoro and Dar es Salaam regions. Snowball and purposive sampling were used to obtain sample respondents. For the data analysis, content analysis was employed to condense data obtained from interviews and focus group discussion. It was found that continuous professional development, institutional arrangements, and support should be provided online to facilitate the design, adoption and use of blended learning in VET. We recommend that locally designed blended learning should be relevant to the environment of both students and teachers. In reality, the interplay between blended learning, imparting knowledge and practical skills remain the key focus of future research.

  3. Profiling Student Behaviour in a Blended Course: Closing the Gap Between Blended Teaching and Blended Learning

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Bos, Nynke; Brand-Gruwel, Saskia

    2018-01-01

    Blended learning is often associated with student-oriented learning in which students have varying degrees of control over their learning process. However, the current notion of blended learning is often a teacher- oriented approach in which the teacher identifies the used learning technologies and

  4. Effect of blending temperature on the mechanical properties of PVC/ENR blend upon irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chantara Thevy Ratnam; Khairul Zaman Mohd Dahlan; Nasir, M.; Baharin, A.

    2000-01-01

    Poly (vinyl chloride) / epoxidized natural rubber blends were prepared with a Brabender plasticorder at 140, 150, 160, 170 and 180 degree C mixing temperatures. They were mixed at 50 rpm rotor speed for 10 min. The blends were irradiated with doses ranging from 0-200 kGy. Changes in tensile strength, modulus at 100% elongation, gel fraction and damping properties (tan δ) of the blends with increasing mixing temperatures and irradiation doses were investigated. In general, it was observed that the mixing temperature is important in maximizing the positive effect of irradiation. Results revealed that a readily miscible blend enjoy maximum benefit from irradiation meanwhile irradiation impart miscibility to a partially miscible PVC/ENR blend. The enhancement in blend properties is believed to be attributed by the irradiation-induced crosslinking along with irradiation-induced interaction between the polymers. The radiation-induced degradation found to be prominent at higher doses for blend that has undergone excessive thermal degradation. However evidence did not reveal the specific nature of radiation-induced reaction responsible for the improved interactions of the blends. (author)

  5. Blending Words Found In Social Media

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Giyatmi Giyatmi

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available There are many new words from the social media such as Netizen, Trentop, and Delcon. Those words include in blending. Blending is one of word formations combining two clipped words to form a brand new word. The researchers are interested in analyzing blend words used in the social media such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Blackberry Messenger. This research aims at (1 finding blend words used in the social media (2 describing kinds of blend words used in social media (3 describing the process of blend word formation used in the social media. This research uses some theories dealing with definition of blending and kinds of blending. This research belongs to descriptive qualitative research. Data of the research are English blend words used in social media. Data sources of this research are websites consisting of some English words used in social media and some social media users as the informant. Techniques of data collecting in this research are observation and simak catat. Observation is by observing some websites consisting of some English words used in social media. Simak catat is done by taking some notes on the data and encoding in symbols such as No/Blend words/Kinds of Blending. The researchers use source triangulation to check the data from the researchers with the informant and theory triangulation to determine kinds of blending and blend word formation in social media. There are115 data of blend words. Those data consists of 65 data of Instagram, 47 data of Twitter, 1 datum of Facebook, and 2 data of Blackberry Messenger. There are 2 types of blending used in social media;108 data of blending with clipping and 7 data of blending with overlapping. There are 10 ways of blend word formation found in this research.

  6. Design Principles for the Blend in Blended Learning: A Collective Case Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lai, Ming; Lam, Kwok Man; Lim, Cher Ping

    2016-01-01

    This paper reports on a collective case study of three blended courses taught by different instructors in a higher education institution, with the purpose of identifying the different types of blend and how the blend supports student learning. Based on the instructors' and students' interviews, and document analysis of course outlines, two major…

  7. Improvements of fill factor in solar cells based on blends of polyfluorene copolymers as electron donors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gadisa, Abay; Zhang, Fengling; Sharma, Deepak; Svensson, Mattias; Andersson, Mats R.; Inganaes, Olle

    2007-01-01

    The photovoltaic characteristics of solar cells based on alternating polyfluorene copolymers, poly(2,7-(9,9-dioctyl-fluorene)-alt-5,5-(4',7'-di-2-thienyl-2',1',3' -benzothia diazole)) (APFO-3), and poly(2,7-(9,9-didodecyl-fluorene)-alt-5,5-(4',7'-di-2-thienyl-2',1',3' -benzothiadiazole)) (APFO-4), blended with an electron acceptor fullerene molecule [6,6]-phenyl-C 61 -butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM), have been investigated and compared. The two copolymers have the same aromatic backbone structure but differ by the length of their alkyl side chain. The overall photovoltaic performance of the solar cells is comparable irrespective of the copolymer used in the active layer. However, the fill factor (FF) values of the devices are strongly affected by the copolymer type. Higher FF values were realized in solar cells with APFO-4 (with longer alkyl side chain)/PCBM bulk heterojunction active layer. On the other hand, devices with blends of APFO-3/APFO-4/PCBM were found to render fill factor values that are intermediate between the values obtained in solar cells with APFO-3/PCBM and APFO-4/PCBM active film. Upon using APFO-3/APFO-4 blends as electron donors, the cell efficiency can be enhanced by about 16% as compared to cells with either APFO-3 or APFO-4. The transport of holes in each polymer obeys the model of hopping transport in disordered media. However, the degree of energetic barrier against hopping was found to be larger in APFO-3. The tuning of the photovoltaic parameters will be discussed based on studies of hole transport in the pure polymer films, and morphology of blend layers. The effect of bipolar transport in PCBM will also be discussed

  8. BLENDED LEARNING AS AN INNOVATIVE FORM OF TEACHING AND LEARNING AT SCHOOL

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olga Kuzmenko

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available In the paper the theoretical background of blended learning is examined, traditional brick-and-mortar and blended learning are compared, the advantages of blended learning are outlined and it effectiveness in foreign language teaching is proven. The topicality of this research is determined by the prospect of implementing the blended learning models to achieve the goals set by the National Strategy for the Development of Education in Ukraine for 2012-2021, namely: improving the quality of education on an innovative basis, creating and providing opportunities for implementing various learning models, forms and means of getting education. In this context, a modern educational institution is required to set up a combination of traditional and innovative forms of learning, and constantly update its information and communication resources, which cause the need to introduce the blended learning approach. Blended learning is a relatively new approach in the field of education in Ukraine. The great prospect of blended learning consists in its potential to combine the best of traditional and online practices. This is a formal education program in which pupils learn partially through online learning with some element of self-control over time, place and pace; and partially in a traditional classroom setting. It provides more efficiency and flexibility in comparison with traditional learning as well as online or distance learning. Moreover, blended learning implies a mastery-based approach ensuring that pupils achieve the required level of mastery at the end of the course. It also prepares learners to collaborate in an online environment and meet the demands of the modern labour market. This is particularly important for schools, because modern pupils are tech-savvy and their motivation is determined by the need for autonomy, personalization, communicatively-oriented and mastery-based learning. For the teaching staff, blended learning can improve teaching

  9. Strategija marketing-miksa u obezbeđivanju kadrova saobraćajne službe vojske / The marketing mix strategy within army transportation service personnel providing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Srđan Ljubojević

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available Aktuelni reformski procesi u Vojsci Srbije prilika su za postavljanje novih principa, kada je u pitanju spoj marketinga i vojne organizacije. U ovom radu prikazan je mogući izgled instrumenata marketing-miksa u funkciji obezbeđivanja kadrovskih resursa saobraćajne službe Vojske Srbije, sa namerom da se definiše opšti izgled instrumenata u marketing-aktivnostima. / The presently relevant reform processes in the Military of Serbia are an opportunity for setting new principles when we are talking about marketing - military organization joint. In this work a possible look of marketing mix instruments is presented which purpose is to provide meaning resources of transportation service in the Military of Serbia, with intention to define a general look of the instruments in marketing activities.

  10. Blended acquisition with dispersed source arrays

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhout, A.J.

    2012-01-01

    Blended source arrays are historically configured with equal source units, such as broadband vibrators (land) and broadband air-gun arrays (marine). I refer to this concept as homogeneous blending. I have proposed to extend the blending concept to inhomogeneous blending, meaning that a blended

  11. Structural analysis of nanocomposites based on HDPE/EPDM blends.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zitzumbo, Roberto; Alonso, Sergio; Avalos, Felipe; Ortiz, José C; López-Manchado, Miguel A; Arroyo, Miguel

    2006-02-01

    Intercalated and exfoliated nanocomposites based on HDPE and EPDM blends with an organoclay have been obtained through the addition of EPDM-g-MA as a compatibilizer. The combined effect of clay and EPDM-g-MA on the rheological behaviour is very noticeable with a sensible increase in viscosity which suggests the formation of a structural net of percolation induced by the presence of intercalated and exfoliated silicate layer. As deduced from rheological studies, a morphology based on nanostructured micro-domains dispersed in HDPE continuous phase is proposed for EPDM/HDPE blend nanocomposites. XRD and SEM analysis suggest that two different transport phenomena take simultaneously place during the intercalation process in the melt. One due to diffusion of HDPE chains into the tactoid and the other to diffusion of EPDM-g-MA into the silicate galleries.

  12. Oil markets and prices: the Brent market and the formation of world oil prices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Horsnell, Paul; Mabro, Robert.

    1993-01-01

    The purpose of this book is to enhance our understanding of the complex working of the world petroleum market and of the formation of oil prices in international trade. It devotes particular attention to the Brent market which involves spot, physical forward and futures trading of a blend of North Sea crudes known as Brent which has become one of the most important markers for world oil prices. Because the Brent market is central the research presented here examines its relationship to the constellation of other oil markets: those which deal on a spot basis with the main export crude of Africa, the Gulf, the Far East and the North Sea, the market for Dubai, another marker crude, and that for West Texas Intermediate (WTI). Finally an analysis of pricing mechanisms used by OPEC and many non-OPEC exporting countries for their oil sales under term contracts and which use Brent prices as one of their references complete this study on oil markets and prices. (author)

  13. Structural determinants of electric vehicle market growth : a National Center for Sustainable Transportation research report.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2017-02-01

    Zero emission vehicles (ZEV) and plug-in electric vehicles (PEV) are critical technologies to attain deep reductions in greenhouse gases from transportation. PEV markets, however, have grown more slowly than anticipated by many observers. In this stu...

  14. Action Research: Effective Marketing Strategies for a Blended University Program

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cook, Ruth Gannon; Ley, Kathryn

    2008-01-01

    This action research study investigated a marketing plan based on collaboration among a program faculty team and other organizational units for a graduate professional program. From its inception through the second year of operation, program enrollment increased due to the marketing plan based on an effective approach grounded in simple marketing…

  15. Blending Study For SRR Salt Disposition Integration: Tank 50H Scale-Modeling And Computer-Modeling For Blending Pump Design, Phase 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leishear, R.; Poirier, M.; Fowley, M.

    2011-01-01

    the sludge level was shown to remain constant. To experimentally model the sludge layer, a very thin, pourable, sludge simulant was conservatively used for all testing. To experimentally model the liquid, supernate layer above the sludge in waste tanks, two salt solution simulants were used, which provided a bounding range of supernate properties. One solution was water (H 2 O + NaOH), and the other was an inhibited, more viscous salt solution. The research performed and data obtained significantly advances the understanding of fluid mechanics, mixing theory and CFD modeling for nuclear waste tanks by benchmarking CFD results to actual experimental data. This research significantly bridges the gap between previous CFD models and actual field experiences in real waste tanks. A finding of the 2009, DOE, Slurry Retrieval, Pipeline Transport and Plugging, and Mixing Workshop was that CFD models were inadequate to assess blending processes in nuclear waste tanks. One recommendation from that Workshop was that a validation, or bench marking program be performed for CFD modeling versus experiment. This research provided experimental data to validate and correct CFD models as they apply to mixing and blending in nuclear waste tanks. Extensive SDI research was a significant step toward bench marking and applying CFD modeling. This research showed that CFD models not only agreed with experiment, but demonstrated that the large variance in actual experimental data accounts for misunderstood discrepancies between CFD models and experiments. Having documented this finding, SRNL was able to provide correction factors to be used with CFD models to statistically bound full scale CFD results. Through the use of pilot scale tests performed for both types of pumps and available engineering literature, SRNL demonstrated how to effectively apply CFD results to salt batch mixing in full scale waste tanks. In other words, CFD models were in error prior to development of experimental

  16. BLENDING STUDY FOR SRR SALT DISPOSITION INTEGRATION: TANK 50H SCALE-MODELING AND COMPUTER-MODELING FOR BLENDING PUMP DESIGN, PHASE 2

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Leishear, R.; Poirier, M.; Fowley, M.

    2011-05-26

    the sludge level was shown to remain constant. To experimentally model the sludge layer, a very thin, pourable, sludge simulant was conservatively used for all testing. To experimentally model the liquid, supernate layer above the sludge in waste tanks, two salt solution simulants were used, which provided a bounding range of supernate properties. One solution was water (H{sub 2}O + NaOH), and the other was an inhibited, more viscous salt solution. The research performed and data obtained significantly advances the understanding of fluid mechanics, mixing theory and CFD modeling for nuclear waste tanks by benchmarking CFD results to actual experimental data. This research significantly bridges the gap between previous CFD models and actual field experiences in real waste tanks. A finding of the 2009, DOE, Slurry Retrieval, Pipeline Transport and Plugging, and Mixing Workshop was that CFD models were inadequate to assess blending processes in nuclear waste tanks. One recommendation from that Workshop was that a validation, or bench marking program be performed for CFD modeling versus experiment. This research provided experimental data to validate and correct CFD models as they apply to mixing and blending in nuclear waste tanks. Extensive SDI research was a significant step toward bench marking and applying CFD modeling. This research showed that CFD models not only agreed with experiment, but demonstrated that the large variance in actual experimental data accounts for misunderstood discrepancies between CFD models and experiments. Having documented this finding, SRNL was able to provide correction factors to be used with CFD models to statistically bound full scale CFD results. Through the use of pilot scale tests performed for both types of pumps and available engineering literature, SRNL demonstrated how to effectively apply CFD results to salt batch mixing in full scale waste tanks. In other words, CFD models were in error prior to development of experimental

  17. Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Imbriale, Ryan

    2013-01-01

    Teachers always have been and always will be the essential element in the classroom. They can create magic inside four walls, but they have never been able to create learning environments outside the classroom like they can today, thanks to blended learning. Blended learning allows students and teachers to break free of the isolation of the…

  18. Apparatus for blending small particles

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bradley, R.A.; Reese, C.R.; Sease, J.D.

    1975-01-01

    An apparatus is described for blending small particles and uniformly loading the blended particles in a receptacle. Measured volumes of various particles are simultaneously fed into a funnel to accomplish radial blending and then directed onto the apex of a conical splitter which collects the blended particles in a multiplicity of equal subvolumes. Thereafter the apparatus sequentially discharges the subvolumes for loading in a receptacle. A system for blending nuclear fuel particles and loading them into fuel rod molds is described in a preferred embodiment

  19. The safety and reliability of the electricity transportation network, and the opening of markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Merlin, A.

    2003-01-01

    Following a decade in which the electricity sector was concerned by the opening of markets the world over, the year 2003 highlighted the challenges of secure supply and of the safety of electrical systems. Major incidents are nothing new throughout history, and occurred well before the trend towards opening the markets dot underway. However, it is necessary to verify that the rules for the organisation, clarification of responsibilities and regulation make it possible to control the growing complexity of interconnected systems related to opening the market up to competition. Faced with such situations, changes are necessary in Europe. Firstly, it is important to have the second European directive on the internal electricity market introduced everywhere, this directive providing common rules to be met by all key players to ensure greater safety within the electricity system, and strengthening the role of the electricity transport network manager, who is separate from the other players in the market. It is also necessary to draft a third directive, focusing on both security of supply and the operational safety of the European electricity system. (authors)

  20. Characterization and Behavior of Cold Lake Blend and Western Canadian Select Diluted Bitumen Products

    Science.gov (United States)

    Unconventional diluted bitumen (dilbit) oil products present an increasing environmental concern because of extensive transport in North America, recent spills into aquatic habitats, and limited understanding of environmental fate and toxicity. Dilbits are blends of highly weathe...

  1. Economic analysis of the expected environmental impact of the Single European Market through the transport, waste and energy sectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Brutscher, S.

    1993-01-01

    Similarly to other studies the present dissertation presupposes that the Single European Market will lead to an increase in transport waste quantities, and energy consumption and consequently to greater environmental pollution. Of central importance here is the concept of ''expletive costs'' introduced in this paper which describes that damage to the natural and human environment which is not compensated. It forms out that the sectors of transport, waste, and energy alone will most probably send the expletive costs of the Single European Market into astronomic dimensions. In view of the interdependencies of these three sectors it seems doubtful whether the economic benefit to be expected from the establishment of the Single European Market can justify the additional environmental damage thus caused. (HP) [de

  2. In the wake of liberalisation: long-term developments in the EU air transport market

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Burghouwt, G.; de Wit, J.G.

    2015-01-01

    Using a 24-year analysis period (1990-2013), a new perspective is offered on long-term first- and second-order developments following liberalisation of the intra-EU air transport market. The focus of the analysis is on supply-side issues, such as airline output, structure of supply, yields, business

  3. Developing land market data for use in a state wide land use and transportation model

    Science.gov (United States)

    1997-10-01

    This working paper describes the process used to develop land market variables : for use by TRANUS in the Transportation and Land Use Model Integration : Program (TLUMIP). One of the key variables developed during this phase of the : project is the m...

  4. View from the market : the refiners' perspective

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Earnest, N.K.

    2003-01-01

    The western Canadian crude market area is vast, ranging from Puget Sound to Oklahoma to western Pennsylvania. The three main challenges facing western Canadian crude oil producers are high crude production volumes of heavy sour grades, strong competition for market share from the United States and offshore crudes, and the inability to access offshore global crude markets in meaningful volumes. The paper includes a map depicting core markets which have historically processed most of the crude produced in western Canada. The map also includes extended market areas where western Canadian crude sales are expected to increase as production increases. These regions will become the price setting areas for Canadian crude. Currently more than 40 per cent of the total crude produced in western Canada flows into the upper Midwest market. This paper summarized Canadian crude pricing mechanisms, noting that more than half of the oil consumed in North America is imported, linking North America with the pricing dynamics and supply/demand considerations of the global crude markets. The two key points that have to be considered in the Canadian crude pricing mechanisms is the economics of refining and parity point location. Crude grades such as light sweet or medium sour, are priced relative to one another depending on their differing values as a feedstock. The greatest determinant of relative crude grade value is the proportion produced of high value, light transportation fuels compared to low value, heavy products such as asphalt and heavy fuel oil. The value of crude oil is also influenced by the level of sulphur and metal content. A section of the paper was devoted to the pricing of heavy sour conventional and bitumen blend crudes, which is different than for lighter crude grades because of the near lack of competition from similar imported crude grades. A market optimization model used to analyze the future price relationships for Canadian crudes showed that the Canadian crude

  5. Investigation of diesel-ethanol blended fuel properties with palm methyl ester as co-solvent and blends enhancer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mat Taib Norhidayah

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Diesel engine is known as the most efficient engine with high efficiency and power but always reported as high fuel emission. Malaysia National Automotive Policy (NAP was targeting to improve competitive regional focusing on green technology development in reducing the emission of the engine. Therefore, ethanol was introduced to reduce the emission of the engine and while increasing its performance, Palm methyl ester was introduced as blend enhancer to improve engine performance and improve diesel-ethanol blends stability. This paper aimed to study the characteristics of the blends and to prove the ability of palm-methyl-ester as co-solvent in ethanol-diesel blends. Stability and thermophysical test were carried out for different fuel compositions. The stability of diesel-ethanol blended was proved to be improved with the addition of PME at the longer period and the stability of the blends changed depending on temperature and ethanol content. Density and viscosity of diesel-ethanol-PME blends also give higher result than diesel-ethanol blends and it's proved that PME is able to increase density and viscosity of blends. Besides, heating value of the blends also increases with the increasing PME in diesel-ethanol blends.

  6. Competence and Capacity-Building Requirements in Transport and Logistics Market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bazaras Darius

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The article analyses theoretical aspects of the qualitative assessment of logistics and transport specialists’ potential, as well as provides research results on competence and capacity-building process in preparation of logistics and transport specialists. The results enabled to identify problematic areas of graduate integration in the labour market and foresee the possible requirements for professional development. In some cases, internal motivation is related to problematic points or negative view from the environment, as well as poor understanding of knowledge benefits in the person’s practical life. Training and education is objectively at the meeting point between research, technological and organisational systems. In such conditions the objective of the education on logistics is to offer the customers the best possible service in the field of the transfer of knowledge in harmony with the trend in logistics programme development. The main problems and perspectives of logistics education and training process are discussed in this article.

  7. Effect of PVA Blending on Structural and Ion Transport Properties of CS:AgNt-Based Polymer Electrolyte Membrane

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shujahadeen B. Aziz

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available In this work, the role of poly(vinyl alcohol (PVA blending on structural and electrical properties of chitosan:silver nitrate systems is studied. The X-ray diffraction (XRD results show that the crystalline phase of chitosan (CS is greatly scarified by silver nitrate (AgNt salt. The crystalline domain of CS:AgNt is more broadened at 10 wt % of PVA. The spike and semicircular arcs can be separated in impedance plots. At high temperatures, the spike regions remained. The direct current (DC conductivity was calculated from the bulk resistance obtained from the impedance plots. The dielectric constant and DC conductivity versus PVA content exhibited similar behavior. The maximum DC conductivity at ambient temperature was 1.1 × 10−6 S/cm for 10 wt % of PVA. The DC ionic conductivity increased to 9.95 × 10−5 S/cm at 80 °C. Above 10 wt % of PVA, the drop in DC conductivity and dielectric constant were observed due to the increase in viscosity. Shifting of relaxation peaks towards the lower frequency revealed the increase of resistivity of the samples. The linear increase of DC conductivity versus 1000/T indicated that ion transport followed the Arrhenius model. The incomplete semicircular arc in Argand plots indicated the non-Debye type of relaxation process. The Argand plots were used to distinguish between conductivity relaxation and viscoelastic relaxation. Three regions were distinguished in the alternating current (AC spectra of the blend electrolyte samples. The plateau region in AC spectra was used to estimate the DC conductivity. The estimated DC conductivity from the AC spectra was close to those calculated from the impedance plots.

  8. Radiation effect on PVC/ENR blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chantara Thevy Ratnam; Khairul Zaman Mohd Dahlan

    1997-01-01

    The effect of irradiation on the physical properties of Polyvinyl Chloride / Epoxidised Natural Rubber Blends (PVC/ENR blends) were investigated. The enhancement in tensile strength, elongation at break, hardness and aging properties of the blends have confirmed the positive effect of irradiation on the blends. It is evident from gel fraction and infra red spectroscopic studies that the blends of PVC and ENR cross-linked upon irradiation. The results also revealed that at any blend composition, the enhancement in properties depend on irradiation dose which controls the degree of radiation induced cross-linking. In an attempt to maximize the constructive effect of irradiation, the influence of various additives such as stabilizers, radiation sensitizers, fillers and processing aids on the blend properties were studied. The changes in blend properties upon irradiation with the presents of above additives were also presented in this paper

  9. Blending into the mix

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Adams, R.G.; Gibb, W.H.; Majid, K.A. [Power Technology (United Kingdom)

    1999-07-01

    Successful coal blending requires finding a careful balance between fuel costs and plant performance. A recent study of a Malaysian power plant shows how the utility (Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB)) could reduce fuel costs while avoiding boiler operating problems normally associated with firing low-grade coals. TNB`s Kaper 2220 MW power station in Selangor needed an improved method of coal blending for two new 500 MW units and for two existing 300 MW units. UK`s Power Technology was commissioned to identify what coal blends the boiler could tolerate. A Coal Quality Impact Model (CQIM) analysis of the effect of different coals and coal blends on combustion performance and economics, and a performance analysis of coal yard handling facility was made to determine whether the accuracy of the required blend could be achieved (using a Coal Handling Simulation, CHAS, software package). The CQIM study showed that the proportion of cheaper coals could be increased from 20% to 50% provided each shipment was adequately sampled. The CHAS study showed that use of a flat back reclaimer or modifications to the dry coal stove would allow accurate blending. 5 figs., 1 tab.

  10. The use of the natural-gas pipeline infrastructure for hydrogen transport in a changing market structure

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Haeseldonckx, Dries; D'haeseleer, William

    2007-01-01

    In this paper, the transport and distribution aspects of hydrogen during the transition period towards a possible full-blown hydrogen economy are carefully looked at. Firstly, the energetic and material aspects of hydrogen transport through the existing natural-gas (NG) pipeline infrastructure is discussed. Hereby, only the use of centrifugal compressors and the short-term security of supply seem to constitute a problem for the NG to hydrogen transition. Subsequently, the possibility of percentwise mixing of hydrogen into the NG bulk is dealt with. Mixtures containing up to 17 vol% of hydrogen should not cause difficulties. As soon as more hydrogen is injected, replacement of end-use applications and some pipelines will be necessary. Finally, the transition towards full-blown hydrogen transport in (previously carrying) NG pipelines is treated. Some policy guidelines are offered, both in a regulated and a liberalised energy (gas) market. As a conclusion, it can be stated that the use of hydrogen-natural gas mixtures seems well suited for the transition from natural gas to hydrogen on a distribution (low pressure) level. However, getting the hydrogen gas to the distribution grid, by means of the transport grid, remains a major issue. In the end, the structure of the market, regulated or liberalised, turns out not to be important. (author)

  11. Decentralized Blended Acquisition

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhout, A.J.

    2013-01-01

    The concept of blending and deblending is reviewed, making use of traditional and dispersed source arrays. The network concept of distributed blended acquisition is introduced. A million-trace robot system is proposed, illustrating that decentralization may bring about a revolution in the way we

  12. Blended Learning: enabling Higher Education Reform

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kathleen Matheos

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Blended learning research and practice have been areas of growth for two decades in Canada, with over 95% of Canadian higher education institutions involved in some form of blended learning. Despite strong evidence based research and practice blended learning, for the most part, has remained at sidelined in Canadian universities. The article argues the need for blended learning to situate itself within the timely and crucial Higher Education Reform (HER agenda. By aligning the affordances of blended learning with the components of HER, blended learning can clearly serve as an enabler for HER.

  13. PERCEPTION OF MODES OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT COMPARED TO TRAVEL BEHAVIOUR OF URBAN INHABITANTS IN LIGHT OF MARKETING RESEARCH

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katarzyna HEBEL

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The study introduces the notion of “travel behaviour” among urban inhabitants, as well as highlighting its most common determinants, one of which is the perception of public transport. The study includes a comparative analysis of the link between passenger perceptions of the main modes of public transport in relation to the actual mode of transport chosen to complete a certain journey, based on market research results collected within a given city.

  14. Understanding Air Transportation Market Dynamics Using a Search Algorithm for Calibrating Travel Demand and Price

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumar, Vivek; Horio, Brant M.; DeCicco, Anthony H.; Hasan, Shahab; Stouffer, Virginia L.; Smith, Jeremy C.; Guerreiro, Nelson M.

    2015-01-01

    This paper presents a search algorithm based framework to calibrate origin-destination (O-D) market specific airline ticket demands and prices for the Air Transportation System (ATS). This framework is used for calibrating an agent based model of the air ticket buy-sell process - Airline Evolutionary Simulation (Airline EVOS) -that has fidelity of detail that accounts for airline and consumer behaviors and the interdependencies they share between themselves and the NAS. More specificially, this algorithm simultaneous calibrates demand and airfares for each O-D market, to within specified threshold of a pre-specified target value. The proposed algorithm is illustrated with market data targets provided by the Transportation System Analysis Model (TSAM) and Airline Origin and Destination Survey (DB1B). Although we specify these models and datasources for this calibration exercise, the methods described in this paper are applicable to calibrating any low-level model of the ATS to some other demand forecast model-based data. We argue that using a calibration algorithm such as the one we present here to synchronize ATS models with specialized forecast demand models, is a powerful tool for establishing credible baseline conditions in experiments analyzing the effects of proposed policy changes to the ATS.

  15. Rare Social Marketing for Sustainable Fishing in Cortes, Surigao Del Sur, Philippines

    Science.gov (United States)

    Day, Brian A.; DeWan, Amielle; Cadiz, Fel Ceasar; Jakosalem-Balane, Joy; Dueñas, Vincent; Trinidad, Pedro M., Jr.

    2014-01-01

    Rare's approach to promoting sustainable fishing through social marketing in the Philippines is exemplified in the Cortes Pride campaign. The Cortes Pride campaign is a social marketing behavior change program that was part of a cohort of 12 similar sustainable fishing campaigns in the Philippines, all of which used a unique blend of social…

  16. Canadian oil sands : supply and potential for market growth

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Crandall, G.

    2004-01-01

    Canadian oil sands recoverable reserves rank second only to Saudi Arabia and present enormous potential, particularly through technological gains. This paper discussed the market potential for oil sands both globally and in North America. It was estimated that oil sands production would eventually surpass declining conventional production, increasing from 42 per cent of Western supply in 2002 to 78 per cent in 2015. Recoverable reserves were an estimated 174 billion barrels, with cumulative production at 4 billion barrels between 1967 to 2003. Statistics of U.S. and Canadian markets for crude oil were presented to the year 2020. A flow chart of oil sands products and market outlets was presented, as well as details of existing and potential markets for Canadian crude oil. Oil sands product dispositions were outlined, with the prediction that Asia may emerge as an incremental market. World crude oil production statistics were presented by type. World residual supply and demand estimates were presented, including details of conversion capacity and requirements for residual processing capacity in refineries and field upgraders. American refinery feedstocks were presented by type, with the identification of an increase in heavy crude runs. It was noted that recent pricing provided a strong incentive to add refining conversion capacity to process heavy oil. An outline of a study completed for the Alberta government and industry was presented, in which upgrading to light synthetic crude was determined as a base case. The value added to process bitumen beyond upgrading was discussed in relation to the upgrading of American refineries to process bitumen blends and synthetic crude. Potential cases for upgrading bitumen were presented, along with a comparison of capital costs. An overall economic comparison of projects was provided. Various measures to maximize markets for oil sands products in Alberta were presented. It was suggested that U.S. markets should absorb more new

  17. Ambipolar charge carrier transport in organic semiconductor blends of C{sub 60} and CuPc; Ambipolarer Ladungstransport in organischen Halbleiter-Mischschichten bestehend aus C{sub 60} und CuPc

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bronner, Markus

    2008-06-20

    In this work ambipolar charge carrier transport is realised in organic field effect transistors using mixtures of p-conductive copper phthalocyanine and n-conductive buckminster fullerene as active layer. These blends are known from research on organic solar cells and can be considered as a model system for ambipolar transport. The field effect mobilities for electrons and holes can be adjusted by the variation of the mixing ratio. Thereby balanced mobilities for both charge carrier types are possible. In this work the variation of mobility, threshold voltage and electronic energy levels with the mixing ratio is discussed. The charge carrier mobilities are strongly reduced upon dilution of the respective conducting phase by the other species. This shows that transport of each carrier species occurs by percolation through the respective phase in the blend. A strong correlation between contact resistance and mobility indicates that carrier injection is diffusion limited. A charge redistribution in the copper phthalocyanine causes a hole accumulation at the organic/organic interface and affects thereby the threshold voltage for holes. The electronic structure was investigated by photoelectron spectroscopy. It was found that there is no chemical reaction between the different materials. The common work function of these blends changes linearly between the work functions of the neat materials. Moreover, a constant ionisation potential for the highest occupied molecular orbitals of the two materials and the core levels is obtained. Furthermore ambipolar inverters using mixed organic semiconductor layers were made and compared to complementary inverters consisting of discrete p- and n-channel transistors. The experimental findings and concomitant simulations demonstrate the need for balanced electron and hole mobilities in order to achieve symmetric inverter characteristics. However, they also reveal the superior performance of true complementary logic inverters towards

  18. Effect of Blending on the Composition and Acceptability of Blends of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    However the blend was found deficient in lysine, leucine, iso-leucine and phenylalanine when compared with the FAO recommendations for infants. Increased levels of pigeon pea in the blend also resulted in significant increases in potassium, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium and calcium. Similarly, increased levels of ...

  19. Experimental investigation of engine emissions with marine gas oil-oxygenate blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nabi, Md. Nurun, E-mail: nurun.nabi@ntnu.no [Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (Bangladesh); Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) (Norway); Hustad, Johan Einar, E-mail: johan.e.hustad@ntnu.no [Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) (Norway)

    2010-07-15

    This paper investigates the diesel engine performance and exhaust emissions with marine gas oil-alternative fuel additive. Marine gas oil (MGO) was selected as base fuel for the engine experiments. An oxygenate, diethylene glycol dimethyl ether (DGM), and a biodiesel (BD) jatropha oil methyl ester (JOME) with a volume of 10% were blended with the MGO fuel. JOME was derived from inedible jatropha oil. Lower emissions with diesel-BD blends (soybean methyl ester, rapeseed methyl ester etc.) have been established so far, but the effect of MGO-BD (JOME) blends on engine performance and emissions has been a growing interest as JOME (BD) is derived from inedible oil and MGO is frequently used in maritime transports. No phase separation between MGO-DGM and MGO-JOME blends was found. The neat MGO, MGO-DGM and MGO-JOME blends are termed as MGO, Ox10 and B10 respectively. The experiments were conducted with a six-cylinder, four-stroke, turbocharged, direct-injection Scania DC 1102 (DI) diesel engine. The experimental results showed significant reductions in fine particle number and mass emissions, PM and smoke emissions with Ox10 and B10 fuels compared to the MGO fuel. Other emissions including total unburned hydrocarbon (THC), carbon monoxide (CO) and engine noise were also reduced with the Ox10 and B10 fuels, while maintaining similar brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC) and thermal efficiency with MGO fuel. Oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions, on the other hand, were slightly higher with the Ox10 and B10 fuels at high engine load conditions.

  20. Market Segmentation: An Instructional Module.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wright, Peter H.

    A concept-based introduction to market segmentation is provided in this instructional module for undergraduate and graduate transportation-related courses. The material can be used in many disciplines including engineering, business, marketing, and technology. The concept of market segmentation is primarily a transportation planning technique by…

  1. Morphology stabilization of heterogeneous blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1980-01-01

    A heterogeneous elastomer blend is described, consisting of at least two elastomer components which are cross-linkable by irradiation and having a stabilized morphology formed by subjecting the blend to high energy radiation to a point from below to slightly above the gel dose of the blend. (author)

  2. Locally restricted blending of Blobtrees

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Groot, de Erwin; Wyvill, B.; Wetering, van de H.M.M.

    2009-01-01

    Blobtrees are volume representations particularly useful for models which require smooth blending. When blending is applied to two or more Blobtree models, extra volume will be created in between the two surfaces to form a smooth connection. Although it is easy to apply blending, it is hard to

  3. Performance of Blended Learning in University Teaching:

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael Reiss

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available Blended learning as a combination of classroom teaching and e-learning has become a widely represented standard in employee and management development of companies. The exploratory survey “Blended Learning@University” conducted in 2008 investigated the integration of blended learning in higher education. The results of the survey show that the majority of participating academic teachers use blended learning in single courses, but not as a program of study and thus do not exploit the core performance potential of blended learning. According to the study, the main driver of blended learning performance is its embeddedness in higher education. Integrated blended programs of study deliver the best results. In blended learning, learning infrastructure (in terms of software, culture, skills, funding, content providing, etc. does not play the role of a performance driver but serves as an enabler for blended learning.

  4. Proton exchange membranes from sulfonated polyetheretherketone and sulfonated polyethersulfone-cardo blends: Conductivity, water sorption and permeation properties

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Li, Yongli; Nguyen, Quang Trong; Schaetzel, Pierre; Lixon-Buquet, Camille; Colasse, Laurent; Ratieuville, Vincent

    2013-01-01

    Five blend membranes were prepared by solvent evaporation from solutions of the synthesized sulfonated polyetheretherketone (SPEEK) and sulfonated polyethersulfone-cardo (SPESc). Their ion exchange capacity and degree of sulfonation determined by acid–base titration and by thermogravimetric analysis were consistent. The blends glass transition behavior obtained by differential scanning calorimetry suggests that the two sulfonated polymers are compatible in the whole composition range. The values of the activation energy for proton transport determined by conductivity measurements on the SPEEK-based blend membranes were in the range of 13–34 kJ mol −1 , which suggest a mixed transport mechanism that involves both proton jumps on ionic sites and water of hydration and diffusion of proton–water complex in hydrophilic domains. The water vapor sorption in the membranes exhibits sigmoid-shape isotherms which were well fitted by the “new dual mode sorption” model, and the fitted parameters values were successfully used to model the change in the water permeation flux with the upstream water activity using the first Fick's diffusion equation. The fast increase in the permeation flux beyond a critical value of activity (0.5) was owing to the exponential concentration-dependent diffusion coefficient. These modelings allowed us to show a strong increase in the limit diffusion coefficient of water and a decrease in the water-diffusion plasticization coefficient with the SPEEK content in the polymer blends

  5. The sensitivity of the electron transport within bulk zinc-blende gallium nitride to variations in the crystal temperature, the doping concentration, and the non-parabolicity coefficient associated with the lowest energy conduction band valley

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Siddiqua, Poppy; O' Leary, Stephen K., E-mail: stephen.oleary@ubc.ca [School of Engineering, The University of British Columbia, 3333 University Way, Kelowna, British Columbia V1V 1V7 (Canada)

    2016-09-07

    Within the framework of a semi-classical three-valley Monte Carlo simulation approach, we analyze the steady-state and transient electron transport that occurs within bulk zinc-blende gallium nitride. In particular, we examine how the steady-state and transient electron transport that occurs within this material changes in response to variations in the crystal temperature, the doping concentration, and the non-parabolicity coefficient associated with the lowest energy conduction band valley. These results are then contrasted with those corresponding to a number of other compound semiconductors of interest.

  6. Preparation and Characterization of Polyurethane-Polydimethylsiloxane/Polyamide12-b-Polytetramethylene Glycol Blend Membranes for Gas Separation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Ali Semsarzadeh*

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Blend membranes of synthesized polyurethane based on toluene diisocyanate (TDI, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS and polytetramethylene glycol (PTMG with polyamide12-b-PTMG were prepared by solution casting technique. The synthesized polyurethane-polydimethylsiloxane and PU-PDMS/polyamide12-b-PTMG blend membranes were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC and scanning electron microscopy (SEM. In the FTIR spectrum of the synthesized PU-PDMS, the disappearance of NCO stretching vibration at 2270 cm−1 was used to confirm the completion of the reaction. According to our DSC results, the use of higher polyamide12-b-PTMG content in PU-PDMS/polyamide12-b-PTMG blends led to greater compatibility between the two phases. The SEM images showed that the blends with polyamide12-b-PTMG (20 wt% were significantly more homogeneous in the micrometric scale compared to other samples. Gas transport properties have been determined for N2, CO2 and He gases and the obtained permeability values were correlated with the properties of the blends. The comparison of the results with that of the pure PU-PDMS membrane showed that the blend membranes had a higher permeability toward CO2 and lower toward N2 gas. The blend membrane with 20 wt% polyamide12-b-PTMG showed higher CO2 permeability (≈105 Barrer compared to PU-PDMS membrane. By introduction of polyamide12-b-PTMG into PU-PDMS matrix a perceptible rise in helium ideal selectivity of the blend membranes was observed. In blend membranes with 5-20 wt% polyamide12-b-PTMG contents, an enhancement of CO2/N2 (244%, He/N2 (20% and CO2/He (103% selectivity factor was observed. The experimental permeability values of the blend membranes were compared with the calculated permeability based on a modified additive logarithmic model.

  7. The Wearable World in the Palm of our Hand: The Perceived Importance of Augmented Reality in Marketing Strategies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fernando Bandeira, Ph.D

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The present article refers to an exploratory study of the perceived importance of augmented reality for marketing strategies, namely in what concern: costs, branding, communications and product versus immersion, body, wearable and blended augmented reality. It starts with the theoretical framework for augmented reality, followed by the design and research methodology; it then proceeds with the analyses and comment of data gathered, and at the end, it refers to the research limitations and perspectives. Results point out that augmented reality is not perceived as an outstanding tool for marketing nor as an investment with high benefits, nevertheless it is seen as pertinent for blended marketing and immersive augmented reality gathering some sympathy from respondents.

  8. The Relationship Between Self-Regulation and Online Learning in a Blended Learning Context

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Richard Lynch

    2004-08-01

    Full Text Available This study reviewed the distance education and self-regulation literatures to identify learner self-regulation skills predictive of academic success in a blended education context. Five self-regulatory attributes were judged likely to be predictive of academic performance: intrinsic goal orientation, self-efficacy for learning and performance, time and study environment management, help seeking, and Internet self-efficacy. Verbal ability was used as a control measure. Performance was operationalized as final course grades. Data were collected from 94 students in a blended undergraduate marketing course at a west coast American research university (tier one. Regression analysis revealed that verbal ability and self-efficacy related significantly to performance, together explaining 12 percent of the variance in course grades. Self-efficacy for learning and performance alone accounted for 7 percent of the variance.

  9. Product management in green markets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Čajka Zoran

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available The present paper deals with the concept of green product management. To create a significantly greener economy, there will need to be a range of new and greener products and technologies. Today we are faced with a growth in more innovative "clean technology" solutions. Successful development of new green products requires high levels of communication and integration, good information, early consideration of green issues, support from top management, and benchmarking. The set of controllable tactical marketing tools (product, price, place and promotion that the company blends to produce the response it wants in the target green market, is the matter of the primary importance to the management.

  10. Blended Learning over Two Decades

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhonggen, Yu; Yuexiu, Zhejiang

    2015-01-01

    The 21st century has witnessed vast amounts of research into blended learning since the conception of online learning formed the possibility of blended learning in the early 1990s. The theme of this paper is blended learning in mainstream disciplinary communities. In particular, the paper reports on findings from the last two decades which looked…

  11. Evaporation characteristics of ETBE-blended gasoline.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Okamoto, Katsuhiro; Hiramatsu, Muneyuki; Hino, Tomonori; Otake, Takuma; Okamoto, Takashi; Miyamoto, Hiroki; Honma, Masakatsu; Watanabe, Norimichi

    2015-04-28

    To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming, production of gasoline blended with ethyl tert-buthyl ether (ETBE) is increasing annually. The flash point of ETBE is higher than that of gasoline, and blending ETBE into gasoline will change the flash point and the vapor pressure. Therefore, it is expected that the fire hazard caused by ETBE-blended gasoline would differ from that caused by normal gasoline. The aim of this study was to acquire the knowledge required for estimating the fire hazard of ETBE-blended gasoline. Supposing that ETBE-blended gasoline was a two-component mixture of gasoline and ETBE, we developed a prediction model that describes the vapor pressure and flash point of ETBE-blended gasoline in an arbitrary ETBE blending ratio. We chose 8-component hydrocarbon mixture as a model gasoline, and defined the relation between molar mass of gasoline and mass loss fraction. We measured the changes in the vapor pressure and flash point of gasoline by blending ETBE and evaporation, and compared the predicted values with the measured values in order to verify the prediction model. The calculated values of vapor pressures and flash points corresponded well to the measured values. Thus, we confirmed that the change in the evaporation characteristics of ETBE-blended gasoline by evaporation could be predicted by the proposed model. Furthermore, the vapor pressure constants of ETBE-blended gasoline were obtained by the model, and then the distillation curves were developed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. Evaporation characteristics of ETBE-blended gasoline

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Okamoto, Katsuhiro; Hiramatsu, Muneyuki; Hino, Tomonori; Otake, Takuma; Okamoto, Takashi; Miyamoto, Hiroki; Honma, Masakatsu; Watanabe, Norimichi

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • We chose 8-component hydrocarbon mixture as a model gasoline, and defined the molar mass of gasoline. • We proposed an evaporation model assuming a 2-component mixture of gasoline and ETBE. • We predicted the change in the vapor pressure of ETBE-blended gasoline by evaporation. • The vapor pressures were measured and compared as a means of verifying the model. • We presented the method for predicting flash points of the ETBE-blended gasoline. - Abstract: To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming, production of gasoline blended with ethyl tert-buthyl ether (ETBE) is increasing annually. The flash point of ETBE is higher than that of gasoline, and blending ETBE into gasoline will change the flash point and the vapor pressure. Therefore, it is expected that the fire hazard caused by ETBE-blended gasoline would differ from that caused by normal gasoline. The aim of this study was to acquire the knowledge required for estimating the fire hazard of ETBE-blended gasoline. Supposing that ETBE-blended gasoline was a two-component mixture of gasoline and ETBE, we developed a prediction model that describes the vapor pressure and flash point of ETBE-blended gasoline in an arbitrary ETBE blending ratio. We chose 8-component hydrocarbon mixture as a model gasoline, and defined the relation between molar mass of gasoline and mass loss fraction. We measured the changes in the vapor pressure and flash point of gasoline by blending ETBE and evaporation, and compared the predicted values with the measured values in order to verify the prediction model. The calculated values of vapor pressures and flash points corresponded well to the measured values. Thus, we confirmed that the change in the evaporation characteristics of ETBE-blended gasoline by evaporation could be predicted by the proposed model. Furthermore, the vapor pressure constants of ETBE-blended gasoline were obtained by the model, and then the distillation curves were

  13. Evaporation characteristics of ETBE-blended gasoline

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Okamoto, Katsuhiro, E-mail: okamoto@nrips.go.jp [National Research Institute of Police Science, 6-3-1 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0882 (Japan); Hiramatsu, Muneyuki [Yamanashi Prefectural Police H.Q., 312-4 Kubonakajima, Isawa-cho, Usui, Yamanashi 406-0036 (Japan); Hino, Tomonori; Otake, Takuma [Metropolitan Police Department, 2-1-1 Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8929 (Japan); Okamoto, Takashi; Miyamoto, Hiroki; Honma, Masakatsu; Watanabe, Norimichi [National Research Institute of Police Science, 6-3-1 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-0882 (Japan)

    2015-04-28

    Highlights: • We chose 8-component hydrocarbon mixture as a model gasoline, and defined the molar mass of gasoline. • We proposed an evaporation model assuming a 2-component mixture of gasoline and ETBE. • We predicted the change in the vapor pressure of ETBE-blended gasoline by evaporation. • The vapor pressures were measured and compared as a means of verifying the model. • We presented the method for predicting flash points of the ETBE-blended gasoline. - Abstract: To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming, production of gasoline blended with ethyl tert-buthyl ether (ETBE) is increasing annually. The flash point of ETBE is higher than that of gasoline, and blending ETBE into gasoline will change the flash point and the vapor pressure. Therefore, it is expected that the fire hazard caused by ETBE-blended gasoline would differ from that caused by normal gasoline. The aim of this study was to acquire the knowledge required for estimating the fire hazard of ETBE-blended gasoline. Supposing that ETBE-blended gasoline was a two-component mixture of gasoline and ETBE, we developed a prediction model that describes the vapor pressure and flash point of ETBE-blended gasoline in an arbitrary ETBE blending ratio. We chose 8-component hydrocarbon mixture as a model gasoline, and defined the relation between molar mass of gasoline and mass loss fraction. We measured the changes in the vapor pressure and flash point of gasoline by blending ETBE and evaporation, and compared the predicted values with the measured values in order to verify the prediction model. The calculated values of vapor pressures and flash points corresponded well to the measured values. Thus, we confirmed that the change in the evaporation characteristics of ETBE-blended gasoline by evaporation could be predicted by the proposed model. Furthermore, the vapor pressure constants of ETBE-blended gasoline were obtained by the model, and then the distillation curves were

  14. AKRO/SF: Blend System

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The Blend was the system used by the NMFS Alaska Regional Office to monitor groundfish catch from 1991 until 2002. The Blend system combined data from industry...

  15. Bioethanol: industrial world perspectives

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grassi, G.

    2000-01-01

    An overview of the production of bioethanol from biomass is presented, and the future for bioethanol in the transport, cogeneration, domestic appliances, and chemicals markets are examined. Bioethanol economics are considered, and yields and estimated prices for bioethanol produced from different crops are tabulated. Specific uses of bioethanol in the different markets are highlighted including the blending of ethanol with petrol in the transport market, the use of bioethanol for cooking in the domestic market, and the production of chemicals from bioethanol

  16. Attributional and consequential environmental assessment of using waste cooking oil- and poultry fat-based biodiesel blends in urban buses: a real-world operation condition study

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammad Rajaeifar

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Urban public transportation sector in general is heavily dependent on fossil-oriented fuels, e.g., diesel. Given the fact that a major proportion of urban pollution and the consequent threats towards public health are attributed to this sector, serious efforts at both technical and political levels have been being made to introduce less-polluting fueling regimes, e.g., partial replacement of diesel with biodiesel. In line with that, the present study was aimed at evaluating the emissions attributed to 5% blends of waste cooking oil (WCO and poultry fat (PF biodiesel fuels (i.e., B5-WCO and B5-PF fuel blends when used in urban buses during idle operation mode. Moreover, the attributional and consequential environmental impacts of using these fuel blends were also investigated through a well to wheel life cycle assessment (LCA by considering the real-world condition combustion data using ten urban buses. The findings of the ALCA revealed that the application of 1 L B5-WCO fuel blend could potentially reduce the environmental burdens in human health, ecosystem quality, and resources damage categories compared with using the B5-PF fuel blend. The situation was opposite for climate change damage category in which using 1 L B5-PF fuel blend had a lower impact on the environment. Overall, the environmental hotspots in the B5-WCO and B5-PF life cycles were identified as the combustion stage as well as the diesel production and transportation. From the consequential perspective, using 1 L B5-WCO fuel blend could potentially decrease the environmental burdens in human health, ecosystem quality, and resources damage categories. While, the situation was different for climate change damage category where using 1 L B5-PF fuel blend could have a lower impact on the environment. In conclusion, using B5-WCO fuel blend as an alternative for diesel could be an environmentally-friendly decision for the Iranian urban transportation sector at the policy level as long

  17. Entanglement in miscible blends

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watanabe, Hiroshi

    2010-03-01

    The entanglement length Le of polymer chains (corresponding to the entanglement molecular weight Me) is not an intrinsic material parameter but changes with the interaction with surrounding chains. For miscible blends of cis-polyisoprene (PI) and poly(tert-butyl styrene) (PtBS), changes of Le on blending was examined. It turned out that the Le averaged over the number fractions of the Kuhn segments of the components (PI and PtBS) satisfactorily describes the viscoelastic behavior of pseudo-monodisperse blends in which the terminal relaxation time is the same for PI and PtBS.

  18. Miscibility evolution of polycarbonate/polystyrene blends during compounding

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chuai, Chengzhi; Almdal, Kristoffer; Johannsen, Ib

    2002-01-01

    The miscibility evolution of polycarbonate/polystyrene (PC/PS) blends during the compounding process in three blending methods of industrial relevance, namely melt blending, remelt blending in a twin-screw extruder and third melt blending in an injection molding machine, was investigated...... polymer in the other. The observed solubility strongly depends on blend composition and blending method. The T-g measurements showed maximum mutual solubility around 50/50 composition. The miscibility of PC/PS blended after the third stage (melt injection molding) was higher than that after the first...... by measuring their glass transition temperatures (T-g) and their specific heat increment (DeltaC(p)). Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was used to examine nine blend compositions. Shifts in glass transition temperature (T-g) of the two phases in melt-mixed PC/PS blends suggest partial miscibility of one...

  19. Effects of Blended-Cement Paste Chemical Composition Changes on Some Strength Gains of Blended-Mortars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kirgiz, Mehmet Serkan

    2014-01-01

    Effects of chemical compositions changes of blended-cement pastes (BCPCCC) on some strength gains of blended cement mortars (BCMSG) were monitored in order to gain a better understanding for developments of hydration and strength of blended cements. Blended cements (BC) were prepared by blending of 5% gypsum and 6%, 20%, 21%, and 35% marble powder (MP) or 6%, 20%, 21%, and 35% brick powder (BP) for CEMI42.5N cement clinker and grinding these portions in ball mill at 30 (min). Pastes and mortars, containing the MP-BC and the BP-BC and the reference cement (RC) and tap water and standard mortar sand, were also mixed and they were cured within water until testing. Experiments included chemical compositions of pastes and compressive strengths (CS) and flexural strengths (FS) of mortars were determined at 7th-day, 28th-day, and 90th-day according to TS EN 196-2 and TS EN 196-1 present standards. Experimental results indicated that ups and downs of silica oxide (SiO2), sodium oxide (Na2O), and alkali at MP-BCPCC and continuously rising movement of silica oxide (SiO2) at BP-BCPCC positively influenced CS and FS of blended cement mortars (BCM) in comparison with reference mortars (RM) at whole cure days as MP up to 6% or BP up to 35% was blended for cement. PMID:24587737

  20. Effects of Blended-Cement Paste Chemical Composition Changes on Some Strength Gains of Blended-Mortars

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mehmet Serkan Kirgiz

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Effects of chemical compositions changes of blended-cement pastes (BCPCCC on some strength gains of blended cement mortars (BCMSG were monitored in order to gain a better understanding for developments of hydration and strength of blended cements. Blended cements (BC were prepared by blending of 5% gypsum and 6%, 20%, 21%, and 35% marble powder (MP or 6%, 20%, 21%, and 35% brick powder (BP for CEMI42.5N cement clinker and grinding these portions in ball mill at 30 (min. Pastes and mortars, containing the MP-BC and the BP-BC and the reference cement (RC and tap water and standard mortar sand, were also mixed and they were cured within water until testing. Experiments included chemical compositions of pastes and compressive strengths (CS and flexural strengths (FS of mortars were determined at 7th-day, 28th-day, and 90th-day according to TS EN 196-2 and TS EN 196-1 present standards. Experimental results indicated that ups and downs of silica oxide (SiO2, sodium oxide (Na2O, and alkali at MP-BCPCC and continuously rising movement of silica oxide (SiO2 at BP-BCPCC positively influenced CS and FS of blended cement mortars (BCM in comparison with reference mortars (RM at whole cure days as MP up to 6% or BP up to 35% was blended for cement.

  1. Introducing blended e-learning course design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gyamfi, Samuel Adu; Ryberg, Thomas

    2012-01-01

    In the face of diminishing education budgets in higher education, blended learning has been found to be a viable and effective approach to deliver high-quality, up-to-date, on-demand solutions to developing cross-curricular skills of undergraduates. However, research has also shown that blended...... learning solutions do not often live up to the potential of the approach or fail to produce the intended results because the students are not always equipped to handle the technical, psychological and organisational challenges of blended learning approaches. This project surveyed seventy-five first year...... the students’ e-readiness for an implementation of a blend-ed course design....

  2. Application of recently developed elliptic blending based models to separated flows

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Billard, F.; Revell, A.; Craft, T.

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► The study focuses on elliptic blending near-wall models. ► Models are compared on 2- and 3-dimensional separating flows. ► Conclusions are ambiguous on 2-d flows. ► Predictive superiority of Reynolds stress models over eddy viscosity model appear on 3-d flows. - Abstract: This paper considers the application of four Reynolds-Averaged Navier Stokes (RANS) models to a range of progressively complex test cases, exhibiting both 2-d and 3-d flow separation. Two Eddy Viscosity Models (EVM) and two Reynolds Stress Transport Models (RSM) are employed, of which two (one in each category) are based on elliptic blending formulations. By both reviewing the conclusions of previous studies, and from the present calculations, this study aims at gaining more insight into the importance of two modelling features for these flows: the usage of turbulence anisotropy resolving schemes, and the near-wall limiting behaviour. In general the anisotropy and near wall treatment offered by both elliptic blending models is observed to offer some improvement over other models tested, although this is not always the case for the 2-d flows, where (as ever) a single “best candidate” model does not emerge.

  3. State and market in post-reform Brazilian air transportation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cristiano Fonseca Monteiro

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available The changes that have taken place in Brazilian air transportation following the cycle of “market reforms” have turned this sector into an object of growing interest. This interest, in turn, has led to the emergence of a broad literature on the subject, characterized by the emphasis on an agenda of liberalization and the critique of State activism. The goal of the present article is to promote a confrontation between the different interpretations that have been made, incorporating the contributions of approaches inspired in Economic Sociology and in institutionalist analyses in order to draw attention to the importance that political variables, and the State in particular, have for economic performance. The post-reform context is characterized by an initial moment of greater State activism regarding air transportation, through re-initiation of stricter regulatory mechanisms and the re-opening of channels of dialog between state actors and firms. This is followed by a second moment in which state activism is abandoned, at the same time that the sector demonstrates expressive rates of growth, pushing it beyond its existing capacity and flight support infrastructure. This culminated in the episode known as the “apagão aéreo” (aerial black out Analysis of testimonies of state and private sector actors regarding the “blackout” enables us to identify the flaws in the responsible state apparatus as one of the factors that led to the “blackout”. Our conclusions draw attention to the importance of taking political factors into consideration, and particularly the role of the State, in the development of air transportation in Brazil. Keywords: commercial aviation, politics and economics, regulation, Economic Sociology, Historical Institutionalism.

  4. Coalescence in PLA-PBAT blends under shear flow: Effects of blend preparation and PLA molecular weight

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nofar, M. [Center for High Performance Polymer and Composite Systems (CREPEC), Chemical Engineering Department, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, Quebec H3T 1J4, Canada and CREPEC, Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B2 (Canada); Heuzey, M. C.; Carreau, P. J., E-mail: pierre.carreau@polymtl.ca [Center for High Performance Polymer and Composite Systems (CREPEC), Chemical Engineering Department, Polytechnique Montreal, Montreal, Quebec H3T 1J4 (Canada); Kamal, M. R. [CREPEC, Department of Chemical Engineering, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B2 (Canada); Randall, J. [NatureWorks LLC, 15305 Minnetonka Boulevard, Minnetonka, Minnesota 55345 (United States)

    2016-07-15

    Blends containing 75 wt. % of an amorphous polylactide (PLA) with two different molecular weights and 25 wt. % of a poly[(butylene adipate)-co-terephthalate] (PBAT) were prepared using either a Brabender batch mixer or a twin-screw extruder. These compounds were selected because blending PLA with PBAT can overcome various drawbacks of PLA such as its brittleness and processability limitations. In this study, we investigated the effects of varying the molecular weight of the PLA matrix and of two different mixing processes on the blend morphology and, further, on droplet coalescence during shearing. The rheological properties of these blends were investigated and the interfacial properties were analyzed using the Palierne emulsion model. Droplet coalescence was investigated by applying shear flows of 0.05 and 0.20 s{sup −1} at a fixed strain of 60. Subsequently, small amplitude oscillatory shear tests were conducted to investigate changes in the viscoelastic properties. The morphology of the blends was also examined using scanning electron microscope (SEM) micrographs. It was observed that the PBAT droplets were much smaller when twin-screw extrusion was used for the blend preparation. Shearing at 0.05 s{sup −1} induced significant droplet coalescence in all blends, but coalescence and changes in the viscoelastic properties were much more pronounced for the PLA-PBAT blend based on a lower molecular weight PLA. The viscoelastic responses were also somehow affected by the thermal degradation of the PLA matrix during the experiments.

  5. Coalescence in PLA-PBAT blends under shear flow: Effects of blend preparation and PLA molecular weight

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nofar, M.; Heuzey, M. C.; Carreau, P. J.; Kamal, M. R.; Randall, J.

    2016-01-01

    Blends containing 75 wt. % of an amorphous polylactide (PLA) with two different molecular weights and 25 wt. % of a poly[(butylene adipate)-co-terephthalate] (PBAT) were prepared using either a Brabender batch mixer or a twin-screw extruder. These compounds were selected because blending PLA with PBAT can overcome various drawbacks of PLA such as its brittleness and processability limitations. In this study, we investigated the effects of varying the molecular weight of the PLA matrix and of two different mixing processes on the blend morphology and, further, on droplet coalescence during shearing. The rheological properties of these blends were investigated and the interfacial properties were analyzed using the Palierne emulsion model. Droplet coalescence was investigated by applying shear flows of 0.05 and 0.20 s"−"1 at a fixed strain of 60. Subsequently, small amplitude oscillatory shear tests were conducted to investigate changes in the viscoelastic properties. The morphology of the blends was also examined using scanning electron microscope (SEM) micrographs. It was observed that the PBAT droplets were much smaller when twin-screw extrusion was used for the blend preparation. Shearing at 0.05 s"−"1 induced significant droplet coalescence in all blends, but coalescence and changes in the viscoelastic properties were much more pronounced for the PLA-PBAT blend based on a lower molecular weight PLA. The viscoelastic responses were also somehow affected by the thermal degradation of the PLA matrix during the experiments.

  6. Morphology Evolution of Polycarbonate-Polystyrene Blends During Compounding

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Chuai, Chengzhi; Almdal, Kristoffer; Johannsen, Ib

    2001-01-01

    The morphology evolution of polycarbonate-polystyrene (PC/PS) blends during the compounding process in three blending methods of industrial relevance, namely melt blending, re-melt blending in a twin-screw extruder and tri-melt blending in an injection-moulding machine, was investigated using......-empirical model. The results show that the formation of co-continuous morphology strongly depends on blend composition and melt blending method, whereas the model prediction for phase inversion deviates from the experimental values. Further, we found that the initial mechanism of morphology evolution involves...... scanning electron microscopy (SEM) Co examine nine blend compositions. Blends were prepared at compositions where phase inversion was expected to occur according to model predictions. The experimental results were compared to the values of the point of phase inversion calculated with the semi...

  7. The impact of transport- and transaction-cost reductions on food markets in developing countries: evidence for tempered expectations for Burkina Faso

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ruijs, A.J.W.; Schweigman, C.; Lutz, C.

    2004-01-01

    Reductions in transport and transaction costs are expected to have a major effect on the functioning of food markets in developing countries. For Burkina Faso, this is a relevant issue as it may have important consequences for the food markets in urban and rural deficit areas. A partial equilibrium

  8. The impact of transport- and transaction-cost reductions on food markets in developing countries : evidence for tempered expectations for Burkina Faso

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Ruijs, A.J.W.; Schweigman, C.; Lutz, C.H.M.

    2004-01-01

    Reductions in transport and transaction costs are expected to have a major effect on the functioning of food markets in developing countries. For Burkina Faso, this is a relevant issue as it may have important consequences for the food markets in urban and rural deficit areas. A partial equilibrium

  9. Biofuels policy and the US market for motor fuels: Empirical analysis of ethanol splashing

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Walls, W.D., E-mail: wdwalls@ucalgary.ca [Department of Economics, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 1N4 (Canada); Rusco, Frank; Kendix, Michael [US GAO (United States)

    2011-07-15

    Low ethanol prices relative to the price of gasoline blendstock, and tax credits, have resulted in discretionary blending at wholesale terminals of ethanol into fuel supplies above required levels-a practice known as ethanol splashing in industry parlance. No one knows precisely where or in what volume ethanol is being blended with gasoline and this has important implications for motor fuels markets: Because refiners cannot perfectly predict where ethanol will be blended with finished gasoline by wholesalers, they cannot know when to produce and where to ship a blendstock that when mixed with ethanol at 10% would create the most economically efficient finished motor gasoline that meets engine standards and has comparable evaporative emissions as conventional gasoline without ethanol blending. In contrast to previous empirical analyses of biofuels that have relied on highly aggregated data, our analysis is disaggregated to the level of individual wholesale fuel terminals or racks (of which there are about 350 in the US). We incorporate the price of ethanol as well as the blendstock price to model the wholesaler's decision of whether or not to blend additional ethanol into gasoline at any particular wholesale city-terminal. The empirical analysis illustrates how ethanol and gasoline prices affect ethanol usage, controlling for fuel specifications, blend attributes, and city-terminal-specific effects that, among other things, control for differential costs of delivering ethanol from bio-refinery to wholesale rack. - Research Highlights: > Low ethanol prices and tax credits have resulted in discretionary blending of ethanol into fuel supplies above required levels. > This has important implications for motor fuels markets and vehicular emissions. > Our analysis incorporates the price of ethanol as well as the blendstock price to model the wholesaler's decision of whether or not to blend additional ethanol into gasoline at any particular wholesale city

  10. Biofuels policy and the US market for motor fuels: Empirical analysis of ethanol splashing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Walls, W.D.; Rusco, Frank; Kendix, Michael

    2011-01-01

    Low ethanol prices relative to the price of gasoline blendstock, and tax credits, have resulted in discretionary blending at wholesale terminals of ethanol into fuel supplies above required levels-a practice known as ethanol splashing in industry parlance. No one knows precisely where or in what volume ethanol is being blended with gasoline and this has important implications for motor fuels markets: Because refiners cannot perfectly predict where ethanol will be blended with finished gasoline by wholesalers, they cannot know when to produce and where to ship a blendstock that when mixed with ethanol at 10% would create the most economically efficient finished motor gasoline that meets engine standards and has comparable evaporative emissions as conventional gasoline without ethanol blending. In contrast to previous empirical analyses of biofuels that have relied on highly aggregated data, our analysis is disaggregated to the level of individual wholesale fuel terminals or racks (of which there are about 350 in the US). We incorporate the price of ethanol as well as the blendstock price to model the wholesaler's decision of whether or not to blend additional ethanol into gasoline at any particular wholesale city-terminal. The empirical analysis illustrates how ethanol and gasoline prices affect ethanol usage, controlling for fuel specifications, blend attributes, and city-terminal-specific effects that, among other things, control for differential costs of delivering ethanol from bio-refinery to wholesale rack. - Research highlights: → Low ethanol prices and tax credits have resulted in discretionary blending of ethanol into fuel supplies above required levels. → This has important implications for motor fuels markets and vehicular emissions. → Our analysis incorporates the price of ethanol as well as the blendstock price to model the wholesaler's decision of whether or not to blend additional ethanol into gasoline at any particular wholesale city-terminal.

  11. Blended Learning Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pedersen, Lise

    2015-01-01

    University College Lillebaelt has decided that 30 percent of all educational elements must be generated as blended learning by the end of the year 2015 as part of a modernization addressing following educational needs: 1. Blended learning can help match the expectations of the future students who...... learning. 4. Blended learning can contribute to supporting and improving efficiency of educational efforts. This can for instance be done through programmes for several classes by using video conferencing, allocating traditional face to face teaching to synchronous and asynchronous study activities produce...... digital materials which can be employed didactically and reused by the teachers. This can also mean that the particular competencies which teaches have in Svendborg can be used at other locations in UCL and disseminated to a larger group of students without further costs. Educational Innovation...

  12. Blended Learning: How Teachers Balance the Blend of Online and Classroom Components

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeffrey, Lynn M.; Milne, John; Suddaby, Gordon

    2014-01-01

    Despite teacher resistance to the use of technology in education, blended learning has increased rapidly, driven by evidence of its advantages over either online or classroom teaching alone. However, blended learning courses still fail to maximize the benefits this format offers. Much research has been conducted on various aspects of this problem,…

  13. SELECTED MODELS OF RAIL MARKETS IN THE CONTEXT OF LIBERALIZATION OF THE RAIL MARKET IN EUROPE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Krystian Pietrzak

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available In the paper author has made an attempt at presenting problems of the operation of European railway transport market against the background of changes taking place in the European Union transport market. These changes are the result of processes aimed at liberalizing the market. In addition, this article defines the conditions of reforms in the Eu-ropean rail market by highlighting various models of its functioning.

  14. Economics of Swine Marketing in Kafanchan (Katsit)Market, Jama'a ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    The Gini coefficient was also high (0.53), indicating gross inequality in size distribution and seller concentration, hence oligopoly. Analyses also showed that the market is vertically integrated. Cost of transportation (N100 / animal) was the highest of the marketing services, representing 50.4%. Total cost of marketing ...

  15. Experimental assessment of non-edible candlenut biodiesel and its blend characteristics as diesel engine fuel.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Imdadul, H K; Zulkifli, N W M; Masjuki, H H; Kalam, M A; Kamruzzaman, M; Rashed, M M; Rashedul, H K; Alwi, Azham

    2017-01-01

    Exploring new renewable energy sources as a substitute of petroleum reserves is necessary due to fulfilling the oncoming energy needs for industry and transportation systems. In this quest, a lot of research is going on to expose different kinds of new biodiesel sources. The non-edible oil from candlenut possesses the potential as a feedstock for biodiesel production. The present study aims to produce biodiesel from crude candlenut oil by using two-step transesterification process, and 10%, 20%, and 30% of biodiesel were mixed with diesel fuel as test blends for engine testing. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and gas chromatography (GC) were performed and analyzed to characterize the biodiesel. Also, the fuel properties of biodiesel and its blends were measured and compared with the specified standards. The thermal stability of the fuel blends was measured by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scan calorimetry (DSC) analysis. Engine characteristics were measured in a Yanmar TF120M single cylinder direct injection (DI) diesel engine. Biodiesel produced from candlenut oil contained 15% free fatty acid (FFA), and two-step esterification and transesterification were used. FTIR and GC remarked the biodiesels' existing functional groups and fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) composition. The thermal analysis of the biodiesel blends certified about the blends' stability regarding thermal degradation, melting and crystallization temperature, oxidative temperature, and storage stability. The brake power (BP), brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC), and brake thermal efficiency (BTE) of the biodiesel blends decreased slightly with an increasing pattern of nitric oxide (NO) emission. However, the hydrocarbon (HC) and carbon monoxides (CO) of biodiesel blends were found decreased.

  16. Thin films of polymer blends deposited by matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation: Effects of blending ratios

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Paun, Irina Alexandra; Ion, Valentin; Moldovan, Antoniu; Dinescu, Maria

    2011-01-01

    In this work, we show successful use of matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE) for obtaining thin films of PEG:PLGA blends, in the view of their use for controlled drug delivery. In particular, we investigate the influence of the blending ratios on the characteristics of the films. We show that the roughness of the polymeric films is affected by the ratio of each polymer within the blend. In addition, we perform Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) measurements and we find that the intensities ratios of the infrared absorption bands of the two polymers are consistent with the blending ratios. Finally, we assess the optical constants of the polymeric films by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). We point out that the blending ratios exert an influence on the optical characteristics of the films and we validate the SE results by atomic force microscopy and UV-vis spectrophotometry. In all, we stress that the ratios in which the two polymers are blended have significant impact on the morphology, chemical structure and optical characteristics of the polymeric films deposited by MAPLE.

  17. Emissions characteristics of higher alcohol/gasoline blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gautam, M.; Martin, D.W.; Carder, D.

    2000-01-01

    An experimental investigation was conducted to determine the emissions characteristics of higher alcohols and gasoline (UTG96) blends. While lower alcohols (methanol and ethanol) have been used in blends with gasoline, very little work has been done or reported on higher alcohols (propanol, butanol and pentanol). Comparisons of emissions and fuel characteristics between higher alcohol/gasoline blends and neat gasoline were made to determine the advantages and disadvantages of blending higher alcohols with gasoline. All tests were conducted on a single-cylinder Waukesha Cooperative Fuel Research engine operating at steady state conditions and stoichiometric air-fuel (A/F) ratio. Emissions test were conducted at the optimum spark timing-knock limiting compression ratio combination for the particular blend being tested. The cycle emission [mass per unit time (g/h)] of CO, CO 2 and organic matter hydrocarbon equivalent (OMHCE) from the higher alcohol/gasoline blends were very similar to those from neat gasoline. Cycle emissions of NO x from the blends were higher than those from neat gasoline. However, for all the emissions species considered, the brake specific emissions (g/kW h) were significantly lower for the higher alcohol/gasoline blends than for neat gasoline. This was because the blends had greater resistance to knock and allowed higher compression ratios, which increased engine power output. The contribution of alcohols and aldehydes to the overall OMHCE emissions was found to be minimal. Cycle fuel consumption (g/h) of higher alcohol/gasoline blends was slightly higher than with neat gasoline due to the lower stoichiometric A/F ratios required by the blends. However, the brake specific fuel consumption (g/kW h) for the blends was significantly lower than that for neat gasoline. (Author)

  18. 40 CFR 80.82 - Butane blending.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-07-01

    ... FUELS AND FUEL ADDITIVES Reformulated Gasoline § 80.82 Butane blending. A refiner for any refinery that produces gasoline by blending butane with conventional gasoline or reformulated gasoline or RBOB may meet... paragraph (b)(1) of this section, the refiner may: (i) Blend the butane with conventional gasoline, or...

  19. Development of high-performance blended cements

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Zichao

    2000-10-01

    This thesis presents the development of high-performance blended cements from industrial by-products. To overcome the low-early strength of blended cements, several chemicals were studied as the activators for cement hydration. Sodium sulfate was discovered as the best activator. The blending proportions were optimized by Taguchi experimental design. The optimized blended cements containing up to 80% fly ash performed better than Type I cement in strength development and durability. Maintaining a constant cement content, concrete produced from the optimized blended cements had equal or higher strength and higher durability than that produced from Type I cement alone. The key for the activation mechanism was the reaction between added SO4 2- and Ca2+ dissolved from cement hydration products.

  20. Role of reduced pi-pi stacking in the charge transport in polyfluorene

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bajpai, Manisha; Srivastava, Ritu; Dhar, Ravindra; Tiwari, R.S.

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Role of bulky copolymer on the hole transport properties of polyfluorene thin films has been studied. • Photophysical measurement shows that the introduction of a SY in PFO effectively suppresses pi-stacking/aggregation of conjugated polymers in the solid state. • Current density decreases on blending for a given applied bias. - Abstract: We investigated the effect of blending of a bulky copolymer on the hole transport properties of poly (9,9-dihexyl fluorenyl-2,7-diyl)(PFO) thin films (∼120 nm) at different temperatures by obtaining the current density-voltage measurement. The poly (phenylenevinylene) based copolymer ‘‘Super Yellow” (SY) has been used as a blending component. Such polymer blending matrix is useful as it combines the host polymer (PFO) with the guest polymer of bulky side groups where pi-pi stacking is hindered by bulky side groups. This makes polyflorene much interesting and versatile material for lighting application. It has been found that the current density decreases on blending for a given applied bias. We demonstrated that the current conduction mechanism is bulk limited. It has been analyzed by trapped charge limited currents (TCLC) with electric field. We conclude that the relatively low hole mobility in blends as compared to pristine PFO would result due to increase in the pi-pi stacking distance and disorder.

  1. Role of reduced pi-pi stacking in the charge transport in polyfluorene

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bajpai, Manisha, E-mail: mansa83@gmail.com [Soft Materials Research Laboratory, Centre of Material Sciences, Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies, University of Allahabad, Allahabad 211002 (India); Department of Physics, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi 221005 (India); Srivastava, Ritu [Centre for Organic Electronics, National Physical Laboratory (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research), Dr. K. S. Krishnan Road, New Delhi 110012 (India); Dhar, Ravindra [Soft Materials Research Laboratory, Centre of Material Sciences, Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies, University of Allahabad, Allahabad 211002 (India); Tiwari, R.S. [Department of Physics, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi 221005 (India)

    2016-10-15

    Highlights: • Role of bulky copolymer on the hole transport properties of polyfluorene thin films has been studied. • Photophysical measurement shows that the introduction of a SY in PFO effectively suppresses pi-stacking/aggregation of conjugated polymers in the solid state. • Current density decreases on blending for a given applied bias. - Abstract: We investigated the effect of blending of a bulky copolymer on the hole transport properties of poly (9,9-dihexyl fluorenyl-2,7-diyl)(PFO) thin films (∼120 nm) at different temperatures by obtaining the current density-voltage measurement. The poly (phenylenevinylene) based copolymer ‘‘Super Yellow” (SY) has been used as a blending component. Such polymer blending matrix is useful as it combines the host polymer (PFO) with the guest polymer of bulky side groups where pi-pi stacking is hindered by bulky side groups. This makes polyflorene much interesting and versatile material for lighting application. It has been found that the current density decreases on blending for a given applied bias. We demonstrated that the current conduction mechanism is bulk limited. It has been analyzed by trapped charge limited currents (TCLC) with electric field. We conclude that the relatively low hole mobility in blends as compared to pristine PFO would result due to increase in the pi-pi stacking distance and disorder.

  2. Study of trends in the trucking market in modern conditions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    P.Popovych

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available The article analyzes the features of the transport services market in accordance with its segmentation from the position of statistics on the field of automotive freight. The tendencies of development dynamics and road trucking transport market structure, and particularly the impact of transportation logistics market, including foreign trade cargo traffic of road transport, on the basic trends and the impact of logistics infrastructure development for aggregate indicators of development of transport communications, the size and dynamics of development, market compatibility on investment attractiveness. Balance of consumer, wholesale and logistics market in Ukraine, having similar development trends are established. Market logistics of trucking transport services have a steady trend of development in an objective decline in growth. The necessity of modernization policies in the transport sector at the state level as a software-oriented transport sector investment resources of the economy, taking into account that the share of road transport in the transport system of the country demonstrates the dynamic development with a positive trend in demand for transportation of goods.

  3. THE COMBUSTION CHARACTERISTICS OF LIGNITE BLENDS

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    Cheng Jun; Zhou Junhu; Cao Xinyu; Cen Kefa

    2000-01-01

    The combustion characteristics of lignite blends were studied with a thermogravimetric analyzer (t.g.a.), at constant heating rate.The characteristic temperatures were determined from the burning profiles.It was found that the characteristic times of combustion reaction moved forward, the ignition temperature dropped and the burnout efficiency slightly changed when blending lignites.The characteristic parameters of blends could not be predicted as a linear function of the average values of the individual lignites.when blending with less reactive coal, the ignition and burnout characteristics of lignite turned worse.

  4. A Fuzzy Approach of the Competition on the Air Transport Market

    Science.gov (United States)

    Charfeddine, Souhir; DeColigny, Marc; Camino, Felix Mora; Cosenza, Carlos Alberto Nunes

    2003-01-01

    The aim of this communication is to study with a new scope the conditions of the equilibrium in an air transport market where two competitive airlines are operating. Each airline is supposed to adopt a strategy maximizing its profit while its estimation of the demand has a fuzzy nature. This leads each company to optimize a program of its proposed services (frequency of the flights and ticket prices) characterized by some fuzzy parameters. The case of monopoly is being taken as a benchmark. Classical convex optimization can be used to solve this decision problem. This approach provides the airline with a new decision tool where uncertainty can be taken into account explicitly. The confrontation of the strategies of the companies, in the ease of duopoly, leads to the definition of a fuzzy equilibrium. This concept of fuzzy equilibrium is more general and can be applied to several other domains. The formulation of the optimization problem and the methodological consideration adopted for its resolution are presented in their general theoretical aspect. In the case of air transportation, where the conditions of management of operations are critical, this approach should offer to the manager elements needed to the consolidation of its decisions depending on the circumstances (ordinary, exceptional events,..) and to be prepared to face all possibilities. Keywords: air transportation, competition equilibrium, convex optimization , fuzzy modeling,

  5. Structural characterization of HDPE/LLDPE blend-based nano composites obtained by different blending sequence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Passador, Fabio R.; Ruvolo Filho, Adhemar; Pessan, Luiz A.

    2011-01-01

    The blending sequence affects the morphology formation of the nanocomposites. In this work, the blending sequences were explored to determine its influence in the rheological behavior of HDPE/LLDPE/OMMT nanocomposites. The nanocomposites were obtained by melt-intercalation using a mixture of LLDPE-g-MA and HDPE-g-MA as compatibilizer system in a torque rheometer at 180 deg C and five blending sequences were studied. The materials structures were characterized by wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) and by rheological properties. The nanoclay's addition increased the shear viscosity at low shear rates, changing the behavior of HDPE/LLDPE matrix to a Bingham model behavior with an apparent yield stress. Intense interactions were obtained for the blending sequence where LLDPE and/or LLDPE-g-MA were first reinforced with organoclay since the intercalation process occurs preferentially in the amorphous phase. (author)

  6. Facilitating Cooperative Learning in Online and Blended Courses: An Example from an Integrated Marketing Communications Course

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Katryna

    2013-01-01

    Employers today expect that students will be able to work in teams. Cooperative learning theory addresses how skills such as decision making, problem solving and communication can be learned by individuals in group settings. This paper discusses how cooperative learning can be used in an online and blended environment to increase active learning…

  7. Influence of electrostatic interactions on the morphology and properties of blends containing perfluorinated ionomers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Eric Paul

    2002-01-01

    The first goal of this research project was to investigate the influence of the electrostatic interactions within the ion-containing domains of Nafion RTM perfluorosulfonate ionomer (PFSI) on the morphology and resultant properties of blend systems with poly(propylene imine) dendrimers of a variety of generational sizes and poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF). Perfluorosulfonate ionomers (PFSIs) are a commercially successful class of semi-crystalline, ion-containing polymers whose most extensive application is in use as a polymer electrolytic membrane in fuel cell applications. NafionRTM was blended and high temperature solution processed with poly(propylene imine) dendrimer as the minor component in order to increase the efficiency of direct methanol fuel cells by decreasing methanol crossover without significant loss of protonic conductivity. The preferential insertion of the dendrimer into the ionic cluster due to proton transfer reactions and the creation of ammonium-sulfonate ion pairs served to alter the transport properties through the ionic network of the membrane. In the second major system investigated, blends of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) with NafionRTM, a perfluorosulfonate ionomer, have been prepared and examined in terms of the crystallization kinetics and crystal morphology of the PVDF component in the blend. DSC analysis showed faster rates of bulk crystallization when PVDF was crystallized in the presence of Na+-form NafionRTM suggesting a high degree of phaseseparation in this blend system and an increase in the nucleation density. NafionRTM neutralized with alkylammonium-form counterions display an increase in blend compatibility with PVDF with an increase in the alkylammonium counterion size. As the alkylammonium counterion size increases, the strength of the electrostatic network within the ionic domains of Nafion RTM decrease resulting in a reduction in the driving force for ionic aggregation. Thus, a decrease is observed in the crystal

  8. Transportation Electrification Beyond Light Duty: Technology and Market Assessment

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tartaglia, Katie [Energetics Inc., Columbia, MD (United States); Birky, Alicia [Energetics Inc., Columbia, MD (United States); Laughlin, Michael [Energetics Inc., Columbia, MD (United States); Price, Rebecca [Energetics Inc., Columbia, MD (United States); Lin, Zhenhong [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

    2017-07-01

    Commercial fleets form the backbone of the nation’s economy, getting people and the things they need to the places they need to go and performing services necessary to keep public and private physical infrastructure in working order. Commercial fleets include a wide range of vehicle and equipment types, typical uses, and sizes, and involve millions of on-road and offroad vehicles. This diversity means there is no single solution to the challenges these vehicles pose for reducing petroleum dependence, impact on air quality, and emission of greenhouse gases. This document focuses on electrification of government, commercial, and industrial fleets. These fleets have been divided into three market segments based on equipment use: service fleets, goods movement, and people movement. In particular, it addresses highway vehicles not used for personal transport; non-highway modes, including air, rail, and water; and non-road equipment used directly or in support of these uses.

  9. Ciclo do Marketing Digital: tática e estratégia Blended

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Felipe Chibás Ortiz

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Este artigo discute sob o prisma relacional e processual a utilização da metodologia do Decálogo Digital, também conhecida como Ciclo do Marketing Digital elaborada pelo autor. No presente trabalho se justifica a necessidade de um sistema metodológico de trabalho prático e eficaz para a realização das campanhas de marketing que utilizam fundamentalmente os veículos disponíveis na Internet. Se fala das origens da pressente proposta fazendo um breve comparativo com os sistemas dos 4 Ps e os 8 Ps, Se apresentam algumas das diferenças das campanhas de marketing utilizando veículos presenciais e as que focam mais a utilização de mídias digitais,  se relacionam estes conteúdos com conceitos essenciais como os de estratégia, comunicação integrada, teoria dos inputs, throughputs e outputs, integração das mídias, marketing digital e responsável e gestão de redes virtuais. A seguir se define o Ciclo ou Decálogo do Marketing Digital e se explicam as etapas de trabalho com o sistema do Decálogo Digital responsável e se faz uma avaliação de suas possibilidades de aplicação na atualidade. Utilizou-se o método qualitativo, a revisão bibliográfica e o analise de documentos impressos e web, assim como as entrevistas em profundidade. O objetivo principal do presente trabalho é apresentar a proposta metodológica do Decálogo do Marketing Digital, também conhecida como Ciclo do Marketing Digital, mostrando as vantagens da utilização deste sistema de trabalho de caráter estratégico-operacional, para o profissional da comunicação.

  10. Marketing fortification of business through crowdsourcing and social responsibility: focus on South African SMEs

    OpenAIRE

    Eunice Lebogang Sesale; Solly Matshonisa Seeletse

    2017-01-01

    This paper investigates networking and related activities for marketing performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for the sustainable development and the preservation of the environment. These SMEs have limited business skills and knowledge, and don`t have any marketing funds. As a clearly growing trend aspect in business, networking approaches were blended to find approaches to help these SMEs to take their market niche. Thirty-seven (37) SMEs were used as a convenience sample to ex...

  11. Polyethylene/hydrophilic polymer blends for biomedical applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brynda, E; Houska, M; Novikova, S P; Dobrova, N B

    1987-01-01

    Polyethylene blends with poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) [poly(HEMA)] or poly(2,3-dihydroxypropyl methacrylate) [poly(DHPMA)] were prepared by swelling polyethylene with HEMA or 2,3-epoxypropyl methacrylate (EPMA) and by polymerization of the respective monomers. Poly(EPMA) in blends was hydrolysed to poly(DHPMA) with acetic acid. The blends had similar surface and bulk compositions. Swelling with water and surface wettability were proportional to the content of the hydrophilic component; at the same content the polyethylene/poly(DHPMA) blends appeared more hydrophilic than those of polyethylene/poly(HEMA). Thrombus formation in contact with blood examined ex vivo and in vivo was considerably slower on the blends than on unmodified polyethylene. The tests indicated optima in composition; the best biological response was achieved with the blends containing about 14% poly(HEMA) or 16% poly(DHPMA).

  12. HEU to LEU conversion and blending facility: UNH blending alternative to produce LEU oxide for disposal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-09-01

    The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is examining options for the disposition of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials. Disposition is a process of use or disposal of material that results in the material being converted to a form that is substantially and inherently more proliferation-resistant than is the original form. Examining options for increasing the proliferation resistance of highly enriched uranium (HEU) is part of this effort. This report provides data to be used in the environmental impact analysis for the uranyl nitrate hexahydrate blending option to produce oxide for disposal. This the Conversion and Blending Facility (CBF) alternative will have two missions (1) convert HEU materials into HEU uranyl nitrate (UNH) and (2) blend the HEU uranyl nitrate with depleted and natural assay uranyl nitrate to produce an oxide that can be stored until an acceptable disposal approach is available. The primary emphasis of this blending operation will be to destroy the weapons capability of large, surplus stockpiles of HEU. The blended LEU product can only be made weapons capable again by the uranium enrichment process. The blended LEU will be produced as a waste suitable for storage or disposal

  13. HEU to LEU conversion and blending facility: UNH blending alternative to produce LEU oxide for disposal

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-09-01

    The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is examining options for the disposition of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials. Disposition is a process of use or disposal of material that results in the material being converted to a form that is substantially and inherently more proliferation-resistant than is the original form. Examining options for increasing the proliferation resistance of highly enriched uranium (HEU) is part of this effort. This report provides data to be used in the environmental impact analysis for the uranyl nitrate hexahydrate blending option to produce oxide for disposal. This the Conversion and Blending Facility (CBF) alternative will have two missions (1) convert HEU materials into HEU uranyl nitrate (UNH) and (2) blend the HEU uranyl nitrate with depleted and natural assay uranyl nitrate to produce an oxide that can be stored until an acceptable disposal approach is available. The primary emphasis of this blending operation will be to destroy the weapons capability of large, surplus stockpiles of HEU. The blended LEU product can only be made weapons capable again by the uranium enrichment process. The blended LEU will be produced as a waste suitable for storage or disposal.

  14. Viscoelastic properties of PLA/PCL blends compatibilized with different methods

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shin, Boo Young; Han, Do Hung

    2017-11-01

    The aim of this study was to observe changes in the viscoelastic properties of PLA/PCL (80/20) blends produced using different compatibilization methods. Reactive extrusion and high-energy radiation methods were used for blend compatibilization. Storage and loss moduli, complex viscosity, transient stress relaxation modulus, and tan δ of blends were analyzed and blend morphologies were examined. All compatibilized PLA/PCL blends had smaller dispersed particle sizes than the non-compatibilized blend, and well compatibilized blends had finer morphologies than poorly compatibilized blends. Viscoelastic properties differentiated well compatibilized and poorly compatibilized blends. Well compatibilized blends had higher storage and loss moduli and complex viscosities than those calculated by the log-additive mixing rule due to strong interfacial adhesion, whereas poorly compatibilized blends showed negative deviations due to weak interfacial adhesion. Moreover, well compatibilized blends had much slower stress relaxation than poorly compatibilized blends and didn't show tan δ plateau region caused by slippage at the interface between continuous and dispersed phases.

  15. Mechanical properties of irradiated rubber-blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nasr, G.M.; Madani, M.

    2005-01-01

    A study has been made on blend ratios of natural rubber (NR) and acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) that are loaded with general purpose furnace (GPE) carbon black and irradiated at different gamma radiation doses. It was fount that the mechanical properties of such blend are highly affected by γ- irradiation dose and the composition ratios of its constituents. The elongation at break for blends was found to increase slightly with increasing NBR loafing which is mainly due to the stiffness of blending matrix formation between NR and GPF carbon black particles. The hysteresis loss, extension ratio and shape factor have been calculated for the different un-irradiated and irradiated samples

  16. Binary blend Nanoparticles with defined morphology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ghazy, O.A.H.

    2008-01-01

    The word blend in linguistics means a word formed from two parts of two words. In polymer science polymer blends means polymer mixtures, a class of materials analogues to the metal alloys. Blending of polymers is a simple and economic way to create new materials meeting specific desired properties. The other alternative is to synthesize such materials eventually facing the organic chemistry design difficulties. The low entropy of mixing polymers makes the process thermodynamically unfavorable, unless there are some specific interactions between the mixed polymers. As a result, in thermal equilibrium typically a phase separation between the blend components takes place. The main challenge facing the blending of polymers is the control of the length scale of the phase separation. One of the most important applications, where the control of the phase separation is crucial for the performance is the organic solar cells. In organic solar cells a blend of an electron donating polymer and electron accepting one is formed. The dimensions of the phase separation between the two polymers should be in the range of the exciton diffusion length [1-3] (in semiconductors, exciton diffusion length is the average distance traveled by the electron-hole pair before recombination). Only under this condition the charge transfer at the interface between the two polymer layers can take place and the solar cell performs efficiently. The thin polymer blend layers for such applications are commonly deposited by spin coating from solution containing both polymers. The morphology of the thin layer prepared in this way is highly influenced by the preparation conditions such as the surface properties of the substrate, the solvent from which the blend was deposited, the temperature, and the annealing temperature [4-9]. Therefore controlling the length scale of phase separation in layers casted or spin coated from solutions is difficult and is a matter of trials and errors. Recently a novel

  17. Face-to-Face Activities in Blended Learning

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjærgaard, Annemette

    While blended learning combines online and face-to-face teaching, research on blended learning has primarily focused on the role of technology and the opportunities it creates for engaging students. Less focus has been put on face-to-face activities in blended learning. This paper argues...... that it is not only the online activities in blended learning that provide new opportunities for rethinking pedagogy in higher education, it is also imperative to reconsider the face-to-face activities when part of the learning is provided online. Based on a review of blended learning in business and management...... education, we identify what forms of teaching and learning are suggested to take place face-to-face when other activities are moved online. We draw from the Community of Inquiry framework to analyze how face-to-face activities contribute to a blended learning pedagogy and discuss the implications...

  18. BLENDED LEARNING STRATEGY IN TEACHER TRAINING PROGRAMS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marian F. Byrka

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The article examines the implementation of blended learning strategy in teacher training programs as an innovation in online learning. The blended learning idea comes from blending elements which use online technology with more traditional face-to-face teaching in the same course. The article analyses teacher training programs offered by Chernivtsi Regional Institute of Postgraduate Pedagogical Education. Additional data were gathered through a questionnaire administered to teachers who attended training courses. The characteristics of blended learning strategy, its benefits and limitations for teacher training are supported by a review of literature. The article closes with the comparison of curriculum components (content delivery, learner activities, materials, and required competences between traditional and blended learning teacher training programs. Having obvious benefits in teacher training programs, the implementation of blended learning strategy sets some additional requirements to a learner, as well as to course instructors and lectors.

  19. Solution-processed small molecule-polymer blend organic thin-film transistors with hole mobility greater than 5 cm 2/Vs

    KAUST Repository

    Smith, Jeremy N.; Zhang, Weimin; Sougrat, Rachid; Zhao, Kui; Li, Ruipeng; Cha, Dong Kyu; Amassian, Aram; Heeney, Martin J.; McCulloch, Iain A.; Anthopoulos, Thomas D.

    2012-01-01

    Using phase-separated organic semiconducting blends containing a small molecule, as the hole transporting material, and a conjugated amorphous polymer, as the binder material, we demonstrate solution-processed organic thin-film transistors with superior performance characteristics that include; hole mobility >5 cm 2/Vs, current on/off ratio ≥10 6 and narrow transistor parameter spread. These exceptional characteristics are attributed to the electronic properties of the binder polymer and the advantageous nanomorphology of the blend film. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  20. Solution-processed small molecule-polymer blend organic thin-film transistors with hole mobility greater than 5 cm 2/Vs

    KAUST Repository

    Smith, Jeremy N.

    2012-04-10

    Using phase-separated organic semiconducting blends containing a small molecule, as the hole transporting material, and a conjugated amorphous polymer, as the binder material, we demonstrate solution-processed organic thin-film transistors with superior performance characteristics that include; hole mobility >5 cm 2/Vs, current on/off ratio ≥10 6 and narrow transistor parameter spread. These exceptional characteristics are attributed to the electronic properties of the binder polymer and the advantageous nanomorphology of the blend film. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  1. 27 CFR 24.213 - Heavy bodied blending wine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... 27 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Heavy bodied blending wine..., DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY LIQUORS WINE Production of Other Than Standard Wine § 24.213 Heavy bodied blending wine. Heavy bodied blending wine is wine made for blending purposes from grapes or other fruit without...

  2. [Blending powdered antineoplastic medicine in disposable ointment container].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miyazaki, Yasunori; Uchino, Tomonobu; Kagawa, Yoshiyuki

    2014-01-01

    On dispensing powdered antineoplastic medicines, it is important to prevent cross-contamination and environmental exposure. Recently, we developed a method for blending powdered medicine in a disposable ointment container using a planetary centrifugal mixer. The disposable container prevents cross-contamination. In addition, environmental exposure associated with washing the apparatus does not arise because no blending blade is used. In this study, we aimed to confirm the uniformity of the mixture and weight loss of medicine in the blending procedure. We blended colored lactose powder with Leukerin(®) or Mablin(®) powders using the new method and the ordinary pestle and mortar method. Then, the blending state was monitored using image analysis. Blending variables, such as the blending ratio (1:9-9:1), container size (35-125 mL), and charging rate (20-50%) in the container were also investigated under the operational conditions of 500 rpm and 50 s. At a 20% charging rate in a 35 mL container, the blending precision of the mixtures was not influenced by the blending ratio, and was less than 6.08%, indicating homogeneity. With an increase in the charging rate, however, the blending precision decreased. The possible amount of both mixtures rose to about 17 g with a 20% charging rate in a 125 mL container. Furthermore, weight loss of medicines with this method was smaller than that with the pestle and mortar method, suggesting that this method is safer for pharmacists. In conclusion, we have established a precise and safe method for blending powdered medicines in pharmacies.

  3. A Comparative Analysis of Social Media Marketing by Transportation Network Companies in the Sharing Economy

    OpenAIRE

    Heymans, Alice

    2017-01-01

    The sharing economy is a new business model rapidly expanding. In transportation, many people use innovative services proposed by ride-hailing mobile applications. These technological platforms, operated by networking companies, rely extensively on social media to promote their services, and reach new customers (riders) and providers (drivers). This dissertation focuses on e-marketing communication. It makes a comparative analysis of the information published on several social media (Facebook...

  4. The Optimum Blend: Affordances and Challenges of Blended Learning For Students

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuray Gedik

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to elicit students’ perceptions regarding the most facilitative and most challenging features (affordances and barriers in a blended course design. Following the phenomenological approach of qualitative inquiry, data were collected from ten undergraduate students who had experiences in a blended learning environment. Data were collected from the students’ weekly reşection papers, interviews with students, and documents, and analyzed by structurally and texturally describing the resulting experiences and perceptions. The findings of the study indicate that used together, online and face-to-face course structures offer several opportunities and challenges for students. The participating students mentioned interaction and communication opportunities, increased motivation, increased opportunities to voice their opinions, and reinforcement of learning as the affordances in the blended learning environment. The barriers included increased workload, cultural and technical barriers, and the inter-dependence of the two environments. Implications and suggestions are offered for instructors in higher education settings

  5. The Optimum Blend: Affordances and Challenges of Blended Learning For Students

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nuray Gedik

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to elicit students’ perceptions regarding the most facilitative and most challenging features (affordances and barriers in a blended course design. Following the phenomenological approach of qualitative inquiry, data were collected from ten undergraduate students who had experiences in a blended learning environment. Data were collected from the students’ weekly reflection papers, interviews with students, and documents, and analyzed by structurally and texturally describing the resulting experiences and perceptions. The findings of the study indicate that used together, online and face-to-face course structures offer several opportunities and challenges for students. The participating students mentioned interaction and communication opportunities, increased motivation, increased opportunities to voice their opinions, and reinforcement of learning as the affordances in the blended learning environment. The barriers included increased workload, cultural and technical barriers, and the inter-dependence of the two environments. Implications and suggestions are offered for instructors in higher education settings.

  6. Wavelet and Blend maps for texture synthesis

    OpenAIRE

    Du Jin-Lian; Wang Song; Meng Xianhai

    2011-01-01

    blending is now a popular technology for large realtime texture synthesis .Nevertheless, creating blend map during rendering is time and computation consuming work. In this paper, we exploited a method to create a kind of blend tile which can be tile together seamlessly. Note that blend map is in fact a kind of image, which is Markov Random Field, contains multiresolution signals, while wavelet is a powerful way to process multiresolution signals, we use wavelet to process the traditional ble...

  7. Silk fibroin/pullulan blend films: Preparation and characterization

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shivananda, C. S.; Rao, B. Lakshmeesha; Madhukumar, R.; Asha, S. [Department of Studies in Physics, Mangalore University, Mangalagangotri – 574 199 (India); Sarojini, B. K. [Department of Industrial Chemistry, Mangalore University, Mangalagangotri, Mangalore –574 199 (India); Somashekhar, R. [Department of Studies in Physics, University of Mysore, Manasagangotri, Mysore – 570 006 (India); Sangappa, Y., E-mail: syhalabhavi@yahoo.co.in [Department of Studies in Physics, Mangalore University, Mangalagangotri – 574 199 (India); School of Material Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332 (United States)

    2016-05-23

    In this work silk fibroin/pullulan blend films have been prepared by solution casting method. The blend films were examined for structural, and thermal properties using X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimatric (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis. The XRD results indicate that with the introduction of pullulan, the interaction between SF and pullulan in the blend films induced the conformation transition of SF films and amorphous phase increases with increasing pullulan ratio. The thermal properties of the blend films were improved significantly in the blend films.

  8. Correspondence Theory and Phonological Blending in French

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lee Scott

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Though less productive than rival word-formation processes like compounding and affixation, blending is still a rich source of neologisms in French. Despite this productivity, however, blends are often seen by scholars as unpredictable, uninteresting, or both. This analysis picks up where recent studies of blending have left off, using Correspondence Theory and a bundle of segmental constraints to deal with this phenomenon as it pertains to French. More specifically, it shows that blending is the result of a single output standing in correspondence with two or more other outputs, and that we do not need to refer to prosodic information, which is crucial in accounts of blending in languages with lexical stress like English, to account for the process in French. The analysis also differs from previous studies in that it locates blending exclusively within the phonology, leaving its morphological and semantic characteristics to be handled by other processes in the grammar.

  9. Blended working: for whom it may (not work.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nico W Van Yperen

    Full Text Available Similarly to related developments such as blended learning and blended care, blended working is a pervasive and booming trend in modern societies. Blended working combines on-site and off-site working in an optimal way to improve workers' and organizations' outcomes. In this paper, we examine the degree to which workers feel that the two defining features of blended working (i.e., time-independent working and location-independent working enhance their own functioning in their jobs. Blended working, enabled through the continuing advance and improvement of high-tech ICT software, devices, and infrastructure, may be considered beneficial for workers' perceived effectiveness because it increases their job autonomy. However, because blended working may have downsides as well, it is important to know for whom blended working may (not work. As hypothesized, in a sample of 348 workers (51.7% women, representing a wide range of occupations and organizations, we found that the perceived personal effectiveness of blended working was contingent upon workers' psychological need strength. Specifically, the perceived effectiveness of both time-independent working and location-independent working was positively related to individuals' need for autonomy at work, and negatively related to their need for relatedness and need for structure at work.

  10. Moisture sorption and thermal characteristics of polyaramide blend fabrics

    OpenAIRE

    Genç, Gözde; Alp, Burcu; Balköse, Devrim; Ülkü, Semra; Cireli, Aysun

    2006-01-01

    Four types of fabrics woven from various polyaramid fibers of Nomex and Kevlar blends were characterized by morphology, XRD, elemental analysis, thermal analysis, and moisture adsorption isotherms. The blends consisted of Polybenzimidazole/ Kevlar blend (40% FBI and 60% Kevlar®), Nomex Delta A (blend of 60% Kevlar and 40% Nomex®), Nomex Delta T (blend of 75% Nomex, 23% Kevlar, and 2% P140 antistatic fiber), and Nomex III (fabric with a 95/5 blend of Nomex and Kevlar) containing 1% steel fiber...

  11. Point-to-point people with purpose—Exploring the possibility of a commercial traveler market for point-to-point suborbital space transportation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Webber, Derek

    2013-12-01

    An argument was made at the First Arcachon Conference on Private Human Access to Space in 2008 [1] that some systematic market research should be conducted into potential market segments for point-to-point suborbital space transportation (PtP), in order to understand whether a commercial market exists which might augment possible government use for such a vehicle. The cargo market potential was subsequently addressed via desk research, and the results, which resulted in a pessimistic business case outlook, were presented in [2]. The same desk research approach is now used in this paper to address the potential business and wealthy individual passenger traveler market segment ("point-to-point people with purpose"). The results, with the assumed ticket pricing, are not encouraging.

  12. Using Blended Teaching to Teach Blended Learning: Lessons Learned from Pre-Service Teachers in an Instructional Methods Course

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shand, Kristen; Farrelly, Susan Glassett

    2017-01-01

    In this study, we explore the design and delivery of a blended social studies teaching methods course to examine the elements of the blended design that pre-service teachers found most constructive. In focus groups at the completion of the course, pre-service teachers were asked to reflect on their experience in the blended course, identify the…

  13. LENRA as compatibilizer in NR/HDPE blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dahlan Mohd; Mahathir Mohamed

    2006-01-01

    Polymer blends of 60/40 NR/RDPE were prepared using Brabender PL2000 Plasticorder with 60 g capacity. The blends were added with radiation-sensitive natural rubber (NR)-based compatibilizer, known as LENRA. They were irradiated with electron-beam radiation at various doses. The efficacy of the compatibilizer was monitored by measuring various properties of the blends such as physical and dynamic mechanical properties including morphological studies by electron microscopic technique. Early results show that the addition of LENRA improves the properties of the TPNR blends. (Author)

  14. Growing a medical practice with social media marketing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Laban, Jake

    2012-01-01

    Many medical practices are facing the lack of practice growth that their social media efforts are generating. This article provides concrete ideas that can be put in place by any medical practice to realize sustainable practice growth through social media marketing. In the article, the author demonstrates that social media marketing of the medical practice has become absolutely essential in today's evolving, competitive, and fast-paced environment. This demonstration is made through an exploration of the evolution of what "good" marketing has looked like for medical practices over time. In addition, attention is paid to the shift in the definition of good marketing that is required for the practice that is preparing a social media-marketing plan. Specifically, the article investigates the proven requirements for a balanced blend of unique and engaging promotional and nonpromotional community outreach, which is required on a daily basis to achieve the significant, lasting, and sustainable growth that the practice wishes to achieve.

  15. Blended learning within an undergraduate exercise physiology laboratory.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elmer, Steven J; Carter, Kathryn R; Armga, Austin J; Carter, Jason R

    2016-03-01

    In physiological education, blended course formats (integration of face-to-face and online instruction) can facilitate increased student learning, performance, and satisfaction in classroom settings. There is limited evidence on the effectiveness of using blending course formats in laboratory settings. We evaluated the impact of blended learning on student performance and perceptions in an undergraduate exercise physiology laboratory. Using a randomized, crossover design, four laboratory topics were delivered in either a blended or traditional format. For blended laboratories, content was offloaded to self-paced video demonstrations (∼15 min). Laboratory section 1 (n = 16) completed blended laboratories for 1) neuromuscular power and 2) blood lactate, whereas section 2 (n = 17) completed blended laboratories for 1) maximal O2 consumption and 2) muscle electromyography. Both sections completed the same assignments (scored in a blinded manner using a standardized rubric) and practicum exams (evaluated by two independent investigators). Pre- and postcourse surveys were used to assess student perceptions. Most students (∼79%) watched videos for both blended laboratories. Assignment scores did not differ between blended and traditional laboratories (P = 0.62) or between sections (P = 0.91). Practicum scores did not differ between sections (both P > 0.05). At the end of the course, students' perceived value of the blended format increased (P learning key foundational content through video demonstrations before class greatly enhanced their learning of course material compared with a preassigned reading (94% vs. 78%, P Blended exercise physiology laboratories provided an alternative method for delivering content that was favorably perceived by students and did not compromise student performance. Copyright © 2016 The American Physiological Society.

  16. A Phase Blending Study on Rubber Blends Based on the Solubility Preference of Curatives

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Guo, R.; Talma, Auke; Datta, Rabin; Dierkes, Wilma K.; Noordermeer, Jacobus W.M.

    2009-01-01

    Using previously obtained data on the solubilities of curatives in SBR, EPDM and in NBR, different mixing procedures were performed on 50/50 SBR/EPDM and NBR/EPDM blends. In contrast to a previous phase-mixing study, the curatives were added to separate phases before final blending, in an attempt to

  17. Sustainable Market Involvement in Transport Infrastructure Management

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leendertse, Willem; Arts, Jos; de Ridder, Hennes

    2016-01-01

    The construction industry is going through hard times in many countries. This is certainly true in the Netherlands as all big Dutch contractors face disappointing results. The market policies of major (public) clients are held accountable by politics and the market for this situation. However, for

  18. Sustainable Market Involvement in Transport Infrastructure Management

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Leendertse, W.L.; Arts, Jos; de Ridder, H.A.J.

    2016-01-01

    The construction industry is going through hard times in many countries. This is certainly true in the Netherlands as all big Dutch contractors face disappointing results. The market policies of major (public) clients are held accountable by politics and the market for this situation. However,

  19. Blended Learning: An Innovative Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lalima; Dangwal, Kiran Lata

    2017-01-01

    Blended learning is an innovative concept that embraces the advantages of both traditional teaching in the classroom and ICT supported learning including both offline learning and online learning. It has scope for collaborative learning; constructive learning and computer assisted learning (CAI). Blended learning needs rigorous efforts, right…

  20. Electricity and gas market design to supply the German transport sector with hydrogen

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Robinius, Martin

    2015-01-01

    The German government has set targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2020, 55% by 2030, 70% by 2040 and 80-95% by 2050 compared to 1990 as reference year. As well as meeting other requirements, these targets can be achieved by raising the contribution of renewably-generated power to Germany's gross electricity consumption to 80% by 2050. Based on Germany's potential, intermittent energy sources (IES) such as on- and offshore wind, as well as photovoltaics, are necessary sources that must be utilized in order to achieve these ambitious targets. Because of the intermittency of these sources, there will be times in which surplus power generated could be used for example for the transport sector. During these periods of surplus power, the storage capacity of hydrogen allows for a socalled ''power-to-gas'' concept whereby the surplus power can be used to produce hydrogen and oxygen by means of electrolyzers. The aim of this thesis is to identify and develop a market design that is characterized by high penetration levels of IES, supplemented by the use of hydrogen in the transport sector. Furthermore, the aim was to develop a model in which the electricity and gas sector, including a hydrogen pipeline grid, is represented so as to analyze and validate selected market designs. Therefore, potential electricity and gas markets, as well as the most important potential share and stakeholders of a hydrogen infrastructure, are analyzed. With the model developed in this thesis, an existing energy concept has been developed, analyzed and evaluated. In addition, the distribution of the hydrogen production costs was calculated by employing a Monte Carlo Simulation analysis. The developed energy concept relies on 170 GW onshore and 60 GW offshore wind capacity and these dominate the model. This leads to surplus power, especially in the federal states of Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. To supply the

  1. Summary of High-Octane Mid-Level Ethanol Blends Study

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Theiss, Timothy J. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Alleman, Teresa [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Brooker, Aaron [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Elgowainy, Amgad [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Fioroni, Gina [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Han, Jeongwoo [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Huff, Shean P. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Johnson, Caley [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Kass, Michael D. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Leiby, Paul Newsome [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Martinez, Rocio Uria [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); McCormick, Robert [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Moriarty, Kristi [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Newes, Emily [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Oladosu, Gbadebo A. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Szybist, James P. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Thomas, John F. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Wang, Michael [Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); West, Brian H. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

    2016-07-01

    Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) of light-duty vehicles are pursuing a broad portfolio of technologies to reduce CO2 emissions and improve fuel economy. Central to this effort is higher efficiency spark ignition (SI) engines, including technologies reliant on higher compression ratios and fuels with improved anti-knock properties, such as gasoline with significantly increased octane numbers. Ethanol has an inherently high octane number and would be an ideal octane booster for lower-octane petroleum blendstocks. In fact, recently published data from Department of Energy (DOE) national laboratories (Splitter and Szybist, 2014a, 2014b; Szybist, 2010; Szybist and West, 2013) and OEMs (Anderson, 2013) and discussions with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suggest the potential of a new high octane fuel (HOF) with 25–40 vol % of ethanol to assist in reaching Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS2) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions goals. This mid-level ethanol content fuel, with a research octane number (RON) of about 100, appears to enable efficiency improvements in a suitably calibrated and designed engine/vehicle system that are sufficient to offset its lower energy density (Jung, 2013; Thomas, et al, 2015). This efficiency improvement would offset the tank mileage (range) loss typically seen for ethanol blends in conventional gasoline and flexible-fuel vehicles (FFVs). The prospects for such a fuel are additionally attractive because it can be used legally in over 18 million FFVs currently on the road. Thus the legacy FFV fleet can serve as a bridge by providing a market for the new fuel immediately, so that future vehicles will have improved efficiency as the new fuel becomes widespread. In this way, HOF can simultaneously help improve fuel economy while expanding the ethanol market in the United States via a growing market for an ethanol blend higher than E10. The DOE Bioenergy Technologies Office initiated a collaborative research program

  2. LENRA as compatibilizer in NR/HDPE blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mahathir Mohamed; Dahlan Mohd

    2004-01-01

    Polymer blends of 60/40 NR/HDPE were prepared using Brabender PL2000 plasticorder with 60g capacity. The blends were added with radiation sensitive natural rubber (NR)-based compatibilizer, known as LENRA. They were irradiated in air with electron beam radiation at various doses. The efficacy of the compatibilizer was monitored by measuring various properties of the blends such as physical and dynamic mechanical properties including morphological studies by electron microscopic technique. Early results show that the addition of LENRA improves the properties of the TPNR blends. (Author)

  3. Performance evaluation of gamma irradiated SiR-EPDM blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Deepalaxmi, R., E-mail: deepalaxmivaithi@gmail.com; Rajini, V.

    2014-07-01

    Highlights: • The effects of gamma irradiation on SiR-EPDM blend are examined. • Cross-linking reaction is dominant in blends C, D and E, due to higher EPDM content. • The tensile strength and hardness of blend E is improved by gamma irradiation. • The blend C and EPDM rich blends (D, E) are found to have superior performance. • Among C, D and E, suitable blend can be selected for a particular NPP application. - Abstract: Cable insulation materials (CIM) should perform their safety functions throughout their installed life in nuclear power plants (NPP). The CIM will be exposed to gamma irradiation at the installed locations. In order to forecast long-term performance of CIM, the short time accelerated testing was carried out. Due to its good mechanical strength, ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) is widely used as CIM. Silicone rubber (SiR) is used in high temperature environments, due to its good di-electric properties/hydrophobicity. The blending of these two polymers may result in the improvement in their specific properties. This paper analyses the effects of gamma irradiation on the five different compositions (90-10; 70-30; 50-50; 30-70; 10-90) of SiR-EPDM blends. The blends were exposed to four different doses (25 Mrad, 100 Mrad, 200 Mrad and 250 Mrad) of gamma irradiation. The electrical and mechanical parameters like volume resistivity (VRY), surface resistivity (SRY), tensile strength (TS), elongation at break (EB), hardness (H) of the virgin and gamma irradiated blends were determined as per ASTM/IEC standards. The nature of degradation was investigated using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The simultaneous occurrence of cross-linking and chain scission is found to be the mechanism for ageing in SiR-EPDM blends. The electrical parameters such as volume resistivity and surface resistivity of all the blends are found to improve for all doses of gamma irradiation. To validate the influence of cross-linking reaction of the Si

  4. Structure–Conductivity Relationships in Ordered and Disordered Salt-Doped Diblock Copolymer/Homopolymer Blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Irwin, Matthew T.; Hickey, Robert J.; Xie, Shuyi; So, Soonyong; Bates, Frank S.; Lodge, Timothy P. (UMM)

    2016-11-21

    We examine the relationship between structure and ionic conductivity in salt-containing ternary polymer blends that exhibit various microstructured morphologies, including lamellae, a hexagonal phase, and a bicontinuous microemulsion, as well as the disordered phase. These blends consist of polystyrene (PS, Mn ≈ 600 g/mol) and poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO, Mn ≈ 400 g/mol) homopolymers, a nearly symmetric PS–PEO block copolymer (Mn ≈ 4700 g/mol), and lithium bis(trifluoromethane)sulfonamide (LiTFSI). These pseudoternary blends exhibit phase behavior that parallels that of well-studied ternary polymer blends consisting of A and B homopolymers compatibilized by an AB diblock copolymer. The utility of this framework is that all blends have nominally the same number of ethylene oxide, styrene, Li+, and TFSI– units, yet can exhibit a variety of microstructures depending on the relative ratio of the homopolymers to the block copolymer. For the systems studied, the ratio r = [Li+]/[EO] is maintained at 0.06, and the volume fraction of PS homopolymer is kept equal to that of PEO homopolymer plus salt. The total volume fraction of homopolymer is varied from 0 to 0.70. When heated through the order–disorder transition, all blends exhibit an abrupt increase in conductivity. However, analysis of small-angle X-ray scattering data indicates significant structure even in the disordered state for several blend compositions. By comparing the nature and structure of the disordered states with their corresponding ordered states, we find that this increase in conductivity through the order–disorder transition is most likely due to the elimination of grain boundaries. In either disordered or ordered states, the conductivity decreases as the total amount of homopolymer is increased, an unanticipated observation. This trend with increasing homopolymer loading is hypothesized to result from an increased density of

  5. About Some Aspects of Development of the Domestic Market of Services of the Waterway Transport

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marina V. Kogan

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available One of fundamental factors of development of national economy in modern conditions is a transport complex of the country. The analysis shows, historically raising of many developed countries in many respects was provided with concentration of the state transport policy on optimization of conditions for creation of mass, large-scale transportations that is caused by the acceleration of technical progress involving the growing need of economy for increase in speed of transportations, the tonnage of vehicles, etc. Territorial reserves of Russia demand harmonious development of all transport complex, including, railway, automobile, air, water. Shows world experiment, in the countries with such abundance of the rivers, waterways as in Russia one of decisive factors of growth of volumes of transportation of goods and passengers, increase of efficiency of deliveries in scales of all national economy, is the maximum use of a water transport which, other things being equal, manages to the state tens times cheaper than the contents automobile and the railroads. Currently time for the domestic market of transport services, unlike world, lack of close integration and interrelations in the form of commodity transport complexes with presence of managing directors of the transport centers influencing formation of tariff policy is characteristic. At the same time the analysis of productivity of a package of measures of tax support of navigation in the Russian Federation, implementation of the FTP "Development of transport system of Russia (2010 - 2020gody" according to the Concept of long-term social and economic development of the country till 2020 shows their efficiency that is confirmed by positive dynamics of indicators of economic activity of shipping companies, revival of ship-building branch, existence of multiplicative effect due to development of allied industries, revival of business, creation of additional workplaces.

  6. The art of designing markets.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roth, Alvin E

    2007-10-01

    Traditionally, markets have been viewed as simply the confluence of supply and demand. But to function properly, they must be able to attract a sufficient number of buyers and sellers, induce participants to make their preferences clear, and overcome congestion by providing both enough time to make choices and a speedy means of registering them. Solutions to these challenges are the province of market design--a blend of game theory and experimental economics. Roth, a professor of both business and economics at Harvard, is a leading market designer. He and his colleagues have rescued failing markets by, for example, designing labor clearinghouses through which U.S. doctors get their first jobs and auctions through which the Federal Communications Commission sells licenses for parts of the radio broadcast spectrum. They have also created marketlike allocation procedures that involve neither prices nor an exchange of money; these include systems for assigning children to schools in Boston and New York and for facilitating exchanges of kidneys. Computers enable the design of "smart markets" that combine the inputs of users in complex ways: In kidney exchange, they run through every possible match of donors and recipients to arrange the greatest possible number of transplants. In the future, computers may make it possible to auction bundled goods, such as airport takeoff and landing slots. As online markets--like those for jobs and dating--proliferate, a growing understanding of markets in general will provide virtually limitless opportunities for market design.

  7. A Comparative Study of Engine Performance and Exhaust Emissions Characteristics of Linseed Oil Biodiesel Blends with Diesel Fuel in a Direct Injection Diesel Engine

    Science.gov (United States)

    Salvi, B. L.; Jindal, S.

    2013-01-01

    This paper is aimed at study of the performance and emissions characteristics of direct injection diesel engine fueled with linseed oil biodiesel blends and diesel fuel. The comparison was done with base fuel as diesel and linseed oil biodiesel blends. The experiments were conducted with various blends of linseed biodiesel at different engine loads. It was found that comparable mass fraction burnt, better rate of pressure rise and BMEP, improved indicated thermal efficiency (8-11 %) and lower specific fuel consumption (3.5-6 %) were obtained with LB10 blend at full load. The emissions of CO, un-burnt hydrocarbon and smoke were less as compared to base fuel, but with slight increase in the emission of NOx. Since, linseed biodiesel is renewable in nature, so practically negligible CO2 is added to the environment. The linseed biodiesel can be one of the renewable alternative fuels for transportation vehicles and blend LB10 is preferable for better efficiency.

  8. Blended Learning: A Dangerous Idea?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moskal, Patsy; Dziuban, Charles; Hartman, Joel

    2013-01-01

    The authors make the case that implementation of a successful blended learning program requires alignment of institutional, faculty, and student goals. Reliable and robust infrastructure must be in place to support students and faculty. Continuous evaluation can effectively track the impact of blended learning on students, faculty, and the…

  9. Empowering Learners through Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Owston, Ron

    2018-01-01

    Blended learning appears to facilitate learner empowerment more readily than either face-to-face or fully online courses. This contention is supported by a review of literature on the affordances of blended learning that support Thomas and Velthouse's (1990) four conditions of empowerment: choice, meaningfulness, competence, and impact. Blended…

  10. The Basics of Blended Instruction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tucker, Catlin R.

    2013-01-01

    Even though many of teachers do not have technology-rich classrooms, the rapidly evolving education landscape increasingly requires them to incorporate technology to customize student learning. Blended learning, with its mix of technology and traditional face-to-face instruction, is a great approach. Blended learning combines classroom learning…

  11. The Art of Blending: Benefits and Challenges of a Blended Course for Preservice Teachers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shand, Kristen; Farrelly, Susan Glassett

    2018-01-01

    In this study, we explore the design and delivery of a blended social studies teaching methods course according to principles and core attributes of blended course design. In a survey at the end of the course, pre-service teachers were asked to reflect on their experience in the course, and identify the benefits and challenges of the blended…

  12. Tank 21 and Tank 24 Blend and Feed Study: Blending Times, Settling Times, and Transfers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, S.; Leishear, R.; Poirier, M.

    2012-01-01

    The Salt Disposition Integration (SDI) portfolio of projects provides the infrastructure within existing Liquid Waste facilities to support the startup and long term operation of the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF). Within SDI, the Blend and Feed Project will equip existing waste tanks in the Tank Farms to serve as Blend Tanks where salt solutions of up to 1.2 million gallons will be blended in 1.3 million gallon tanks and qualified for use as feedstock for SWPF. In particular, Tanks 21 and 24 are planned to be used for blending and transferring to the SDI feed tank. These tanks were evaluated here to determine blending times, to determine a range of settling times for disturbed sludge, and to determine that the SWPF Waste Acceptance Criteria that less than 1200 mg/liter of solids will be entrained in salt solutions during transfers from the Tank 21 and Tank 24 will be met. Overall conclusions for Tank 21 and Tank 24 operations include: (1) Experimental correction factors were applied to CFD (computational fluid dynamics) models to establish blending times between approximately two and five hours. As shown in Phase 2 research, blending times may be as much as ten times greater, or more, if lighter fluids are added to heavier fluids (i.e., water added to salt solution). As the densities of two salt solutions converge this effect may be minimized, but additional confirmatory research was not performed. (2) At the current sludge levels and the presently planned operating heights of the transfer pumps, solids entrainment will be less than 1200 mg/liter, assuming a conservative, slow settling sludge simulant. (3) Based on theoretical calculations, particles in the density range of 2.5 to 5.0 g/mL must be greater than 2-4 (micro)m in diameter to ensure they settle adequately in 30-60 days to meet the SWPF feed criterion ( 60 days) settling times in Tank 21.

  13. Full Load Performance of a Spark Ignition Engine Fueled with Gasoline-Isobutanol Blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adrian Irimescu

    2009-10-01

    Full Text Available With fossil fuels reserves coming ever closer to depletion and the issue of air pollution caused by automotive transport becoming more and more important, mankind has looked for various solutions in the field of internal combustion engines. One of these solutions is using biofuels, and while the internal combustion engine will most likely disappear along with the last fossil fuel source, studying biofuels and their impact on automotive power-trains is a necessity even if only on a the short term basis. While engines built to run on alcohol-gasoline blends offer good performance levels even at high concentrations of alcohol, unmodified engines fueled with blends of biofuels and fossil fuels can exhibit a drop in power. The object of this study is evaluating such phenomena when a spark ignition engine is operated at full load.

  14. Silk fibroin membranes from solvent-crystallized silk fibroin/gelatin blends: Effects of blend and solvent composition

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gil, Eun S. [Fiber and Polymer Science Program, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695 (United States); Frankowski, David J. [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695 (United States); Hudson, Samuel M. [Fiber and Polymer Science Program, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695 (United States); Spontak, Richard J. [Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695 (United States) and Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695 (United States)]. E-mail: Rich_Spontak@ncsu.edu

    2007-04-15

    Protein membranes have been prepared by mixing gelatin (G) with Bombyx mori silk fibroin (SF) and using aqueous methanol (MeOH) to induce SF crystallization. Amorphous blends of these polymers appear quasi-homogeneous, as discerned from visual observation, electron microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Upon subsequent exposure to aqueous MeOH, SF undergoes a conformational change from random-coil to {beta}-sheet. This transformation occurs in pure SF, as well as in each of the G/SF blends, as discerned from FTIR spectroscopy and thermal calorimetry. The influence of MeOH-induced SF crystallization on structure and property development has been measured as functions of blend and solvent composition. By preserving a support scaffold above the G helix-to-coil transition temperature, the formation of crystalline SF networks in G/SF blends can be used to stabilize G-based hydrogels or generate SF membranes for biomaterial, pharmaceutical and gas-separation purposes. The present study not only examines the properties of G/SF blends before and after SF crystallization, but also establishes the foundation for future research into thermally-responsive G/SF bioconjugates.

  15. NESDIS Blended Rain Rate (RR) Products

    Data.gov (United States)

    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The blended Rain Rate (RR) product is derived from multiple sensors/satellites. The blended products were merged from polar-orbiting and geostationary satellite...

  16. In view of unified market how liberalize the natural gas market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cavicchia, V.

    2000-01-01

    A liberalization to make in parallel with a electric market. That separate clearly the operations of retail and transport, that liberalize the access to stock, clear directions of prices structure avoid cartel agreement among transport managers [it

  17. Y2K and International Agricultural Transportation: Analysis of Export Markets, Import Suppliers, and Major Food Aid Recipient Countries

    Science.gov (United States)

    1999-09-01

    USDA Y2K information assessment of international food transportation modes in : selected foreign countries. The assessment targeted 9 of the top 10 markets for : U.S. Agricultural exports and 7 of the top 8 suppliers of imported food products : to th...

  18. Screening of tank-to-wheel efficiencies for CNG, DME and methanol-ethanol fuel blends in road transport

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kappel, Jannik; Mathiesen, Brian Vad

    efficiency. This screening indicates methanol, methanol-ethanol blends and CNG to be readily availability, economic feasible and with the introduction of the DISI engine not technologically challenging compared to traditional fuels. Studies across fuel types indicate a marginally better fuel utilization...

  19. Market power across the Channel: Are Continental European gas markets isolated?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Massol, Olivier; Banal-Estanol, Albert

    2014-01-01

    This paper examines the efficiency of the arbitrages performed between two regional markets for wholesale natural gas linked by a capacity-constrained pipeline system. We develop a switching regime specification to (i) detect if the observed spatial arbitrages satisfy the integration notion that all arbitrage opportunities between the two markets are being exploited, and (ii) decompose the observed spatial price differences into factors such as transportation costs, transportation bottlenecks, and the oligopolistic behavior of the arbitrageurs. Our framework incorporates a test for the presence of market power and it is thus able to distinguish between the physical and behavioral constraints to marginal cost pricing. We use the case of the 'Interconnector' pipeline as an application, linking Belgium and the UK. Our empirical findings show that all the arbitrage opportunities between the two zones are being exploited but confirm the presence of market power. (authors)

  20. The processing of blend words in naming and sentence reading.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Rebecca L; Slate, Sarah Rose; Teevan, Allison R; Juhasz, Barbara J

    2018-04-01

    Research exploring the processing of morphologically complex words, such as compound words, has found that they are decomposed into their constituent parts during processing. Although much is known about the processing of compound words, very little is known about the processing of lexicalised blend words, which are created from parts of two words, often with phoneme overlap (e.g., brunch). In the current study, blends were matched with non-blend words on a variety of lexical characteristics, and blend processing was examined using two tasks: a naming task and an eye-tracking task that recorded eye movements during reading. Results showed that blend words were processed more slowly than non-blend control words in both tasks. Blend words led to longer reaction times in naming and longer processing times on several eye movement measures compared to non-blend words. This was especially true for blends that were long, rated low in word familiarity, but were easily recognisable as blends.

  1. Evaluation of non-linear blending in dual-energy computed tomography

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Holmes, David R.; Fletcher, Joel G.; Apel, Anja; Huprich, James E.; Siddiki, Hassan; Hough, David M.; Schmidt, Bernhard; Flohr, Thomas G.; Robb, Richard; McCollough, Cynthia; Wittmer, Michael; Eusemann, Christian

    2008-01-01

    Dual-energy CT scanning has significant potential for disease identification and classification. However, it dramatically increases the amount of data collected and therefore impacts the clinical workflow. One way to simplify image review is to fuse CT datasets of different tube energies into a unique blended dataset with desirable properties. A non-linear blending method based on a modified sigmoid function was compared to a standard 0.3 linear blending method. The methods were evaluated in both a liver phantom and patient study. The liver phantom contained six syringes of known CT contrast which were placed in a bovine liver. After scanning at multiple tube currents (45, 55, 65, 75, 85, 95, 105, and 115 mAs for the 140-kV tube), the datasets were blended using both methods. A contrast-to-noise (CNR) measure was calculated for each syringe. In addition, all eight scans were normalized using the effective dose and statistically compared. In the patient study, 45 dual-energy CT scans were retrospectively mixed using the 0.3 linear blending and modified sigmoid blending functions. The scans were compared visually by two radiologists. For the 15, 45, and 64 HU syringes, the non-linear blended images exhibited similar CNR to the linear blended images; however, for the 79, 116, and 145 HU syringes, the non-linear blended images consistently had a higher CNR across dose settings. The radiologists qualitatively preferred the non-linear blended images of the phantom. In the patient study, the radiologists preferred non-linear blending in 31 of 45 cases with a strong preference in bowel and liver cases. Non-linear blending of dual energy data can provide an improvement in CNR over linear blending and is accompanied by a visual preference for non-linear blended images. Further study on selection of blending parameters and lesion conspicuity in non-linear blended images is being pursued

  2. Strategic regulation of gas transport

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nese, Gjermund; Straume, Odd Rune

    2005-01-01

    The basis of the article has been the steadily increasing focus particularly from EU, on increased competition in the natural gas markets. This could influence the profit distribution between the gas producing and consuming counties which is an important problem situation for Norway as a gas producer. The gas market value chain consist of three parts (production, transport and distribution). How the countries may use strategic regulation of the transport tariff for the transport and distribution systems in order to move as much as possible of the total profit to the part of the value chain in control is studied. The focus has been on how increased competition influences the incentives of the authorities through low or high transport tariff and to what extent increased competition influences the welfare level in the producer and consumer counties when strategic regulations of the transport occur. The analysis is based on a theoretical model developed in 2005. Some central mechanisms related to the natural gas market are mapped and Norway may counteract some negative effects of liberalisation of the European gas market through strategic adaptation of the transport tariff to the Norwegian gas transport systems

  3. Classifying K-12 Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Staker, Heather; Horn, Michael B.

    2012-01-01

    The growth of online learning in the K-12 sector is occurring both remotely through virtual schools and on campuses through blended learning. In emerging fields, definitions are important because they create a shared language that enables people to talk about the new phenomena. The blended-learning taxonomy and definitions presented in this paper…

  4. Radiation crosslinking of polymer blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spenadel, L.

    1979-01-01

    Rocked by the one-two punch of rising energy costs and tougher pollution controls, a growing number of companies are looking to radiation crosslinking as a cheaper, cleaner alternative to heat and costly chemical crosslinking agents such as peroxides. With the development of larger, more powerful electron beam machines it is now possible to irradiate parts as thick as 400 mils in a single pass. Two application areas which have been investigated at our laboratory are the electron beam processing of thermoplastic elastomeric automotive parts and EPDM electrical insulation. This paper covers work carried out to develop the necessary technology base for the radiation crosslinking of ethylene propylene/polyolefin blends. Initial results indicate that EP/PE blends of electrical insulation quality cross-link quite readily when irradiated. On the other hand, EP/PP blends developed for automotive fascia require the addition of crosslinking monomers such as trimethylol propane trimethacrylate in order for crosslinking to predominate over chain scission. Crosslinking EP/PP blends improve mar resistance, flexural set and deformation at elevated temperatures. These are all key properties for automotive fascia. (author)

  5. Radiation processing of thermoplastic starch by blending aromatic additives: Effect of blend composition and radiation parameters

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khandal, Dhriti; Mikus, Pierre-Yves; Dole, Patrice; Coqueret, Xavier

    2013-03-01

    This paper reports on the effects of electron beam (EB) irradiation on poly α-1,4-glucose oligomers (maltodextrins) in the presence of water and of various aromatic additives, as model blends for gaining a better understanding at a molecular level the modifications occurring in amorphous starch-lignin blends submitted to ionizing irradiation for improving the properties of this type of bio-based thermoplastic material. A series of aromatic compounds, namely p-methoxy benzyl alcohol, benzene dimethanol, cinnamyl alcohol and some related carboxylic acids namely cinnamic acid, coumaric acid, and ferulic acid, was thus studied for assessing the ability of each additive to counteract chain scission of the polysaccharide and induce interchain covalent linkages. Gel formation in EB-irradiated blends comprising of maltodextrin was shown to be dependent on three main factors: the type of aromatic additive, presence of glycerol, and irradiation dose. The chain scission versus grafting phenomenon as a function of blend composition and dose were studied using Size Exclusion Chromatography by determining the changes in molecular weight distribution (MWD) from Refractive Index (RI) chromatograms and the presence of aromatic grafts onto the maltodextrin chains from UV chromatograms. The occurrence of crosslinking was quantified by gel fraction measurements allowing for ranking the cross-linking efficiency of the additives. When applying the method to destructurized starch blends, gel formation was also shown to be strongly affected by the moisture content of the sample submitted to irradiation. The results demonstrate the possibility to tune the reactivity of tailored blend for minimizing chain degradation and control the degree of cross-linking.

  6. Characterization of polycaprolactone and starch blends for potential ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Thermally blending starch and polycaprolactone with the compatibilizer methylenediphenyl diisocyanate (MDI) distributed in the polyester phase had been previously confirmed to enhance the mechanical properties and interface between the two phases of the blends. In this study, blends of polycaprolactone with various ...

  7. Blending effects on coal burnout and NO emissions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    B. Arias; R. Backreedy; A. Arenillas; J.M. Jones; F. Rubiera; M. Pourkashanian; A. Williams; J.J. Pis [Instituto Nacional del Carbon, CSIC Oviedo (Spain)

    2003-07-01

    In this work, the combustion behaviour of individual coals of different rank and their blends was evaluated. The study was focused on burnout and NO emissions during blend combustion. Preliminary combustion tests of the coals and their blends were carried out in a thermogravimetric analyser (TGA). Some characteristic temperatures were obtained to evaluate the combustibility of the samples. These temperatures indicate an improvement in the combustibility of the less reactive coal when it is blended. An entrained flow reactor (EFR) was employed to study the behaviour of the samples at high heating rates and short residence times. Burnout and NO emissions were measured during EFR combustion tests. In some blends the results can be predicted from the weighted average of the values of the individual coals. However, other blends show an increase, from the averaged values, in burnout and especially in NO emissions. 14 refs., 10 figs., 3 tabs.

  8. BLENDED LEARNING COURSE FOR FUTURE PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHERS IMPLEMENTATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vira V. Kotkova

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available Ukrainian and foreign scientists’ views on the essence of blended learning are analyzed in the article. The author's definition of a blended learning course is presented. The process of such course designing is described according to target, motivational, substantive, operational and diagnostic components. Both the structure of the blended learning course implementation as well as students’ educational-cognitive activity distribution between classroom learning and distance course are shown. The problems for students, teachers, and educational institutions of blended courses effective implementation are summarized. Students’ academic performance of three years study is analyzed. The results of students’ questioning to determine their perception of blended learning course are described according to the following categories: the effectiveness of blended course, evaluation objectivity, motivation to study, the use of plagiarism in studies, understanding of blended learning course.

  9. Morphology development in immiscible polymer blends

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Cardinaels, R.M.; Moldenaers, P.; Guo, Qipeng

    This chapter discusses the morphology development of immiscible binary polymer blends. It first describes morphology development in droplet-matrix structures, the dynamics of fibrillar structures and cocontinuous structures. The chapter then considers binary immiscible polymer blends, such systems

  10. Synthesis of geopolymer from biomass-coal ash blends

    Science.gov (United States)

    Samadhi, Tjokorde Walmiki; Wulandari, Winny; Prasetyo, Muhammad Iqbal; Fernando, Muhammad Rizki; Purbasari, Aprilina

    2017-09-01

    Geopolymer is an environmentally attractive Portland cement substitute, owing to its lower carbon footprint and its ability to consume various aluminosilicate waste materials as its precursors. This work describes the development of geopolymer formulation based on biomass-coal ash blends, which is predicted to be the prevalent type of waste when biomass-based thermal energy production becomes mainstream in Indonesia. The ash blends contain an ASTM Class F coal fly ash (FA), rice husk ash (RHA), and coconut shell ash (CSA). A mixture of Na2SiO3 and concentrated KOH is used as the activator solution. A preliminary experiment identified the appropriate activator/ash mass ratio to be 2.0, while the activator Na2SiO3/KOH ratio varies from 0.8 to 2.0 with increasing ash blend Si/Al ratio. Both non-blended FA and CSA are able to produce geopolymer mortars with 7-day compressive strength exceeding the Indonesian national SNI 15-2049-2004 standard minimum value of 2.0 MPa stipulated for Portland cement mortars. Ash blends have to be formulated with a maximum RHA content of approximately 50 %-mass to yield satisfactory 7-day strength. No optimum ash blend composition is identified within the simplex ternary ash blend compositional region. The strength decreases with Si/Al ratio of the ash blends due to increasing amount of unreacted silicate raw materials at the end of the geopolymer hardening period. Overall, it is confirmed that CSA and blended RHA are feasible raw materials for geopolymer production..

  11. Enzymatic degradation of polycaprolactone–gelatin blend

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Banerjee, Aditi; Chatterjee, Kaushik; Madras, Giridhar

    2015-01-01

    Blends of polycaprolactone (PCL), a synthetic polymer and gelatin, natural polymer offer a optimal combination of strength, water wettability and cytocompatibility for use as a resorbable biomaterial. The enzymatic degradation of PCL, gelatin and PCL–gelatin blended films was studied in the presence of lipase (Novozym 435, immobilized) and lysozyme. Novozym 435 degraded the PCL films whereas lysozyme degraded the gelatin. Though Novozym 435 and lysozyme individually could degrade PCL–gelatin blended films, the combination of these enzymes showed the highest degradation of these blended films. Moreover, the enzymatic degradation was much faster when fresh enzymes were added at regular intervals. The changes in physico-chemical properties of polymer films due to degradation were studied by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. These results have important implications for designing resorbable biomedical implants. (paper)

  12. EVA reactive blending with Si–H terminated polysiloxane by carbonyl hydrosilylation reaction: From compatibilised blends to crosslinking networks

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bonnet, J.; Bounor-Legaré, V.; Alcouffe, P.; Cassagnau, P.

    2012-01-01

    A new and original method based on carbonyl hydrosilylation was developed to prepare ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA)/polysiloxane polymer blends. This focused on the addition of hydrogenosilane groups (SiH) from polysiloxane to the carbonyl groups of EVA. The influence of the nature of the polysiloxane on blend properties was investigated by rheology and scanning electron microscopy. Mixing of a low viscosity polysiloxane with a high viscosity EVA matrix produced a two-phase morphology. The occurrence of the hydrosilylation reaction at the EVA/polysiloxane interface promoted a homogenisation of the blend depending on the molar ratio SiH/vinyl acetate groups, [SiH]/[VA], and the viscosity ratio of the blend. Two distinct behaviours were observed. The formation of a crosslinked network under shear was obtained for a low viscosity ratio between polysiloxane and EVA (λ polysiloxane/EVA = 4.0 × 10 −6 ) with a high concentration of SiH groups ([SiH]/[VA] = 0.5), while the formation of a compatibilised blend was observed for high molar mass polysiloxanes (Mn > 15,000 g mol −1 ) with a low concentration of SiH ([SiH]/[VA] −3 ). -- Highlights: ► Carbonyl hydrosilylation reaction was found to enhance EVA/polysiloxane immiscible blends. ► EVA crosslinking was obtained with a low molar mass polysiloxane. ► EVA compatibilisation was obtained with a high molar mass polysiloxane. ► Shear rate was found to improve the hydrosilylation reaction at the interface. ► A two-phase morphology of the blends was observed after reaction with fine polysiloxane nodules.

  13. BioBlend.objects: metacomputing with Galaxy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leo, Simone; Pireddu, Luca; Cuccuru, Gianmauro; Lianas, Luca; Soranzo, Nicola; Afgan, Enis; Zanetti, Gianluigi

    2014-10-01

    BioBlend.objects is a new component of the BioBlend package, adding an object-oriented interface for the Galaxy REST-based application programming interface. It improves support for metacomputing on Galaxy entities by providing higher-level functionality and allowing users to more easily create programs to explore, query and create Galaxy datasets and workflows. BioBlend.objects is available online at https://github.com/afgane/bioblend. The new object-oriented API is implemented by the galaxy/objects subpackage. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press.

  14. Improving the Cold Temperature Properties of Tallow-Based Methyl Ester Mixtures Using Fractionation, Blending, and Additives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elwell, Caleb

    Beef tallow is a less common feedstock source for biodiesel than soy or canola oil, but it can have economic benefits in comparison to these traditional feedstocks. However, tallow methyl ester (TME) has the major disadvantage of poor cold temperature properties. Cloud point (CP) is an standard industry metric for evaluating the cold temperature performance of biodiesel and is directly related to the thermodynamic properties of the fuel's constituents. TME has a CP of 14.5°C compared with 2.3°C for soy methyl ester (SME) and -8.3°C for canola methyl ester (CME). In this study, three methods were evaluated to reduce the CP of TME: fractionation, blending with SME and CME, and using polymer additives. TME fractionation (i.e. removal of specific methyl ester constituents) was simulated by creating FAME mixtures to match the FAME profiles of fractionated TME. The fractionation yield was found to be highest at the eutectic point of methyl palmitate (MP) and methyl stearate (MS), which was empirically determined to be at a MP/(MP+MS) ratio of approximately 82%. Since unmodified TME has a MP/(MP+MS) ratio of 59%, initially only MS should be removed to produce a ratio closer to the eutectic point to reduce CP and maximize yield. Graphs relating yield (with 4:1 methyl stearate to methyl oleate carryover) to CP were produced to determine the economic viability of this approach. To evaluate the effect of blending TME with other methyl esters, SME and CME were blended with TME at blend ratios of 0 to 100%. Both the SME/TME and CME/TME blends exhibited decreased CPs with increasing levels of SME and CME. Although the CP of the SME/TME blends varied linearly with SME content, the CP of the CME/TME blends varied quadratically with CME content. To evaluate the potential of fuel additives to reduce the CP of TME, 11 different polymer additives were tested. Although all of these additives were specifically marketed to enhance the cold temperature properties of petroleum diesel or

  15. Game innovation through conceptual blending

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Möring, Sebastian Martin

    In  this  paper  I  wish  to  apply implications of  the  Conceptual  Blending  Theory  to  computer  games.  I  will  analyze  chosen  examples  and  discuss  them  as  a  result  of  video  game  innovation  made  possible  through  "conceptual  blending."  Conceptual  blending  links  at  least.......,  Hell.  The  purpose  of  my  approach  is  not  so  much  to  validate  the  ideas  of  conceptual  blending  theory  through  another  field  of  examples  (computer  games)  but  to  name  and analyze characteristics of the mentioned games with the  help of a given method.......  integration  network  consisting  of  at  least  two  input  spaces,  a  generic  space  and  a  blended  space  as  well  as  its  governing  principles  consisting  of  composition,  completion,  and  elaboration.  With  the  help  of  these  instruments  I  analyze computer  games like  Tuper  Tario  Tros...

  16. A study of coal-solid waste blend reactivity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nayibe Guerrero

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available The Flynn-Wall-Ozawa method was used for analysing coal-solid waste blend reactivity in an oxidising atmosphere. The presence of biomass strongly affected coal combustion kinetics when the blend contained more than 30% of it. Activation energy values (evaluated by different blends were 28.7495 kJ/mol for 0% biomass, 31.3915 kJ/mol for 30% biomass, 39.0365 kJ/mol for 50% biomass, 102.431 kJ/mol for 70% biomass and 107.8075 kJ/mol for 100% biomass; these values were close to those reported in the literature. First-order kinetics correlated the data ve-ry well for the 100% coal sample and the blend having 30% biomass and 70% coal. Eighth-order kinetics were more suitable for correlating the experimental data for the 70% biomass-30% coal blend and the 100% biomass sample. Combustion was done without previous pyrolysis of the blends; however segregation of phenomena could be appre-ciated. This seems to indicate that combustion and devolatilisation are independent processes which should be taken into account when building equipment using these kinds of blend.

  17. Production of silk sericin/silk fibroin blend nanofibers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhang Xianhua

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Silk sericin (SS/silk fibroin (SF blend nanofibers have been produced by electrospinning in a binary SS/SF trifluoroacetic acid (TFA solution system, which was prepared by mixing 20 wt.% SS TFA solution and 10 wt.% SF TFA solution to give different compositions. The diameters of the SS/SF nanofibers ranged from 33 to 837 nm, and they showed a round cross section. The surface of the SS/SF nanofibers was smooth, and the fibers possessed a bead-free structure. The average diameters of the SS/SF (75/25, 50/50, and 25/75 blend nanofibers were much thicker than that of SS and SF nanofibers. The SS/SF (100/0, 75/25, and 50/50 blend nanofibers were easily dissolved in water, while the SS/SF (25/75 and 0/100 blend nanofibers could not be completely dissolved in water. The SS/SF blend nanofibers could not be completely dissolved in methanol. The SS/SF blend nanofibers were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and differential thermal analysis. FTIR showed that the SS/SF blend nanofibers possessed a random coil conformation and ß-sheet structure.

  18. Blended Learning as Transformational Institutional Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    VanDerLinden, Kim

    2014-01-01

    This chapter reviews institutional approaches to blended learning and the ways in which institutions support faculty in the intentional redesign of courses to produce optimal learning. The chapter positions blended learning as a strategic opportunity to engage in organizational learning.

  19. Blended Learning within an Undergraduate Exercise Physiology Laboratory

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elmer, Steven J.; Carter, Kathryn R.; Armga, Austin J.; Carter, Jason R.

    2016-01-01

    In physiological education, blended course formats (integration of face-to-face and online instruction) can facilitate increased student learning, performance, and satisfaction in classroom settings. There is limited evidence on the effectiveness of using blending course formats in laboratory settings. We evaluated the impact of blended learning…

  20. Potential Application of ENR/EPDM Blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B.L. Chan

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Since the process and conversion of natural rubber into epoxidized natural rubber (ENR was discovered and patented by I. R. Gelling of the Malaysian Rubber Product Research Association  (or now known as the Tun Razak laboratory, Brickendonbury, Hertford, in the United Kingdom, there are more than 10 000 technical and technological papers cited in the internet. Information on ENR is available, not only in the the English language but also other languages like Chinese, Malay, French, Thai and even German languages are used. NR is the most versatile and reactive rubber/elastomer. It is an advanced natural rubber which could be potentially used as a starting material for the development of other rubbers, modifie elastomers, for grafting, plastic-based materials and also thermoplastic rubbers. Its reactivity is dependent on its epoxy groups, the opening of its ring structure, and also the subsequent structures of carboxylic groups and the in-situ side-chains “carbon – carbon” double bonds (> C = C <. In some instances, up to 65% epoxidation of NR is possible and achieved for more oil resistance. For these reasons, there are many new and advanced materials which have been formed and developed in the last two decades. Among them, some of the recent research work is listed here. Apart from studies of compounding the ENR itself and its potential uses, there are many rubber-rubber blends and ENR rubber-plastics blends, some of the studies cited are “uses of new and advanced chemicals”  and synthetic rubbers:  ENR/NBR, ENR/PVC, ENR/polylactic acid blends, ENR/copolyester blends, ENR/Copolyamide Blends, ENR/poly (vinylidene fluorideblends, ENR/Carbon Nanotubes with co-agent Trimethylol Propane Triacrylate, ENR /recycled silicon materials, and ENR/copolymer of n-butyl acrylate/butyl methacrylate “grafted”. Each of these blends has its own characteristics in terms of processing, enhancement of processing like safety, scorch, oil and water

  1. Teaching of anatomical sciences: A blended learning approach.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Khalil, Mohammed K; Abdel Meguid, Eiman M; Elkhider, Ihsan A

    2018-04-01

    Blended learning is the integration of different learning approaches, new technologies, and activities that combine traditional face-to-face teaching methods with authentic online methodologies. Although advances in educational technology have helped to expand the selection of different pedagogies, the teaching of anatomical sciences has been challenged by implementation difficulties and other limitations. These challenges are reported to include lack of time, costs, and lack of qualified teachers. Easy access to online information and advances in technology make it possible to resolve these limitations by adopting blended learning approaches. Blended learning strategies have been shown to improve students' academic performance, motivation, attitude, and satisfaction, and to provide convenient and flexible learning. Implementation of blended learning strategies has also proved cost effective. This article provides a theoretical foundation for blended learning and proposes a validated framework for the design of blended learning activities in the teaching and learning of anatomical sciences. Clin. Anat. 31:323-329, 2018. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  2. Magical Formulae for Market Futures

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Garsten, Christina; Sörbom, Adrienne

    2016-01-01

    Markets are often portrayed as being organized by way of rationalized knowledge, objective reasoning, and the fluctuations of demand and supply. In parallel, and often mixed with this modality of knowledge, magical beliefs and practices are prevalent. Business leaders, management consultants......, and financial advisors are often savvy in the art of creatively blending the ‘objective facts’ of markets with magical formulae, rites, and imaginaries of the future. This article looks at the World Economic Forum's yearly Davos meeting as a large-scale ritual that engages senior executives of global...... corporations, top-level politicians, and civil society leaders to contribute to the overall aim of ‘improving the world’. The Davos gathering has become a vital part of the business calendar, just as much for the intensity of its networking as for the declarations of action from the speakers’ podiums...

  3. Polymer blends of polylactic acid (PLA) and polybutylene succinate-adipate

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Wenguang

    A series of blends consisting of polylactic acid (PLA) and aliphatic succinate polyester (BionolleRTM #3000) had been prepared and investigated. The results of mechanical property investigations showed that using 20 wt% Bionolle#3000 can significantly increase the toughness of PLA. BionolleRTM #3000 also reduces the physical aging rate of PLA so blends remain tough longer. Conversely, the stiffness of BionolleRTM #3000 can be significantly increased by blending in PLA. DMA and DSC results show that PLA/BionolleRTM 3000 blends are not thermodynamically miscible, but are compatible blends. Studies have also been performed to determine the amount and rate of aerobic biodegradation of PLA/aliphatic succinate polyester blends in biologically active composting, enzymatic, and soil environments. The changes in molecular weight, molecular structure and thermal properties in the composting environment were also studied by GPC, NMR and DSC analyses. The research results showed BionolleRTM #3000 had a high degradation rate, while PLA had a low degradation rate. PLA/BionolleRTM #3000 blends had moderate degradation rates that increased with BionolleRTM #3000 content. The melt flow behavior of PLA/BionolleRTM #3000 blends has been studied by capillary rheometry. The relationship of the blends' viscosity with their composition, shear stress, shear rate, and temperature has been investigated. Power law index and activation energy of PLA, BionolleRTM #3000 and their blends have been calculated. The experimental and theoretical data can let us understand the processability of PLA/BionolleRTM #3000 blends. A scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to investigate the morphological structure of the PLA/BionolleRTM #3000 blends. Micrographs of the samples made from different methods (blown film, extrudate and compression molding sheet) were taken; their differences in morphology were compared. For comparison, the micrographs of blend PLA/BionolleRTM #6000 was also studied. The

  4. Finding a balance in dimensions of blended learning

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Verkroost, M.; Meijerink, L.; Lintsen, H.W.; Veen, W.

    2008-01-01

    This article is a formative evaluation of a course in which a blended learning environment was created and a good balance in dimensions of blended learning was sought. Blended learning is defined as the total mix of pedagogical methods, using a combination of different learning strategies, both with

  5. NOx emissions and combustibility characteristics of coal blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rubiera, F.; Arenillas, A.; Arias, B.; Pis, J.J. [CSIC, Instituto Nacional del Carbon, Oviedo (Spain). Dept. of Energy and Environment

    2001-07-01

    In this work, a series of coals with different origin and rank were blended and several aspects of the resultant blends were studied. This included determination of the grindability of individual coals and blends by means of the Hardgrove Grindability Index (HGI), and temperature programmed combustion test, which were carried out in a thermogravimetric analyser (TG) coupled to a quadruple mass spectrometer (MS) for evolved gas analysis. Special attention was paid to the combustibility parameters and the NO emissions during blends combustion. It was found that while some coal blends present interaction between the individual coals, others do not. This behaviour was assumed to be due to the differences in coal structure and functional groups composition. 18 refs., 11 figs., 2 tabs.

  6. Physico-chemical properties of blends of palm olein with other vegetable oils

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mobin Siddique, Bazlul

    2010-12-01

    Full Text Available Palm oil (olein was blended with other edible oils for the enhancement of its market acceptability in terms of melting point depression and shelf life. The physico-chemical properties like viscosity, density, melting behavior, peroxide value (PV, saponification value (SV and iodine value (IV of four different binary blends with four vegetable oils were evaluated. Palm olein was found to be more stable against rancidity than the other oils. For the stability against oxidation and melting point depression the palm olein-canola (PO/CO blend was found to be better than the others. The Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC thermogram of the melting behavior of the blends traces some new polymorphs of the triglyceride. This study will help the oil producing industry to find out the most economically viable oil blends for cooking purposes, with maximum nutrition as well as desirable physico-chemical properties.

    Aceite de palma (oleína fue mezclada con otros aceites comestibles para aumentar su aceptabilidad en el mercado en términos de descenso del punto de fusión y mejora de su almacenamiento. Las propiedades físico-químicas tales como viscosidad, densidad, comportamiento en la fusión, valor de peróxidos (PV, valor de saponificación (SV e índice de yodo (IV de cuatro diferentes mezclas binarias con cuatro aceites vegetales fueron evaluadas. La oleína de palma fue más estable frente a la rancidez que otros aceites. En la estabilidad frente la oxidación y el descenso del punto de fusión, la mezcla de oleína de palma/canola (PO/CO fue mejor que las otras. Los termogramas del calorímetro diferencial de barrido (DSC referidos al comportamiento de fusión de las mezclas indican algunos nuevos polimorfismos de los triglicéridos. Este estudio podría ayudar a las empresas que elaboran aceites a encontrar los aceites económicamente más viables para cocinar, con buenas propiedades nutricionales, así como con unas propiedades f

  7. On The compatibility and dynamic vulcanization of Pom/Nbr blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mortezaee, M.; Naveed Family, M.H.; Mehrabzadeh, M.

    2001-01-01

    Polymer blends based on polyacetal butadiene rubber were prepared by melt blending technique. The mixing parameters such ad temperature, time and speed of mixing were varied to obtain a wide range of properties. The mixing parameters were optimized by evaluating the mechanical properties of the blend over a wide range of mixing conditions. The morphology of the blend indicated a two-phase structure. This study describes an attempt to improve the tensile strength of Pom/Nbr blends by means of compatibility and dynamic vulcanization. A commercial compatibility, maleic anhydride (Ma), has been used to control the phase morphology of the blend system. Dicumyl peroxide is used to dynamically vulcanize the Nbr elastomer in the blend. The tensile strength of the compatibility systems showed improvement. Dynamic vulcanization raises elastic recovery and tensile modulus of the blends, but the elongation at break decreases

  8. Natural gas marketing II

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1988-01-01

    This book covers all aspects of gas marketing, from the basic regulatory structure to the latest developments in negotiating agreements and locating markets. Topics include: Federal regulation of the gas industry; Fundamentals of gas marketing contracts; FERC actions encouraging competitive markets; Marketing conditions from the pipelines' perspective; State non-utility regulation of natural gas production, transportation, and marketing; Natural gas wellhead agreements and tariffs; Natural gas processing agreements; Effective management of producer's natural gas contracts; Producer-pipeline litigation; Natural gas purchasing from the perspective of industrial gas users; Gas marketing by co-owners: problems of disproportionate sales, gas balancing, and accounting to royalty owners; Alternatives and new directions in marketing

  9. Highly efficient single-layer dendrimer light-emitting diodes with balanced charge transport

    Science.gov (United States)

    Anthopoulos, Thomas D.; Markham, Jonathan P. J.; Namdas, Ebinazar B.; Samuel, Ifor D. W.; Lo, Shih-Chun; Burn, Paul L.

    2003-06-01

    High-efficiency single-layer-solution-processed green light-emitting diodes based on a phosphorescent dendrimer are demonstrated. A peak external quantum efficiency of 10.4% (35 cd/A) was measured for a first generation fac-tris(2-phenylpyridine) iridium cored dendrimer when blended with 4,4'-bis(N-carbazolyl)biphenyl and electron transporting 1,3,5-tris(2-N-phenylbenzimidazolyl)benzene at 8.1 V. A maximum power efficiency of 12.8 lm/W was measured also at 8.1 V and 550 cd/m2. These results indicate that, by simple blending of bipolar and electron-transporting molecules, highly efficient light-emitting diodes can be made employing a very simple device structure.

  10. Can You Hear Me Now? Marketing Essentials for Audiologists in a Noisy Health Care World

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudden, DAnne

    2016-01-01

    Audiologists, even those with a strong acumen for business, are not traditionally taught the basics of creating a robust practice identity and dynamic marketing plan. This activity will teach learners how to create a distinct brand that separates them from others in a competitive and distracted marketplace. Additionally, learners will gain an understanding for how to blend traditional marketing tools with more modern online options and social media. Upon completion, learners will be familiar with the skills necessary to actively create, implement, and track the effectiveness of their marketing strategy using proven methodologies. PMID:28028325

  11. Can You Hear Me Now? Marketing Essentials for Audiologists in a Noisy Health Care World.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rudden, DAnne

    2016-11-01

    Audiologists, even those with a strong acumen for business, are not traditionally taught the basics of creating a robust practice identity and dynamic marketing plan. This activity will teach learners how to create a distinct brand that separates them from others in a competitive and distracted marketplace. Additionally, learners will gain an understanding for how to blend traditional marketing tools with more modern online options and social media. Upon completion, learners will be familiar with the skills necessary to actively create, implement, and track the effectiveness of their marketing strategy using proven methodologies.

  12. Use of Savannah River Site facilities for blend down of highly enriched uranium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bickford, W.E.; McKibben, J.M.

    1994-02-01

    Westinghouse Savannah River Company was asked to assess the use of existing Savannah River Site (SRS) facilities for the conversion of highly enriched uranium (HEU) to low enriched uranium (LEU). The purpose was to eliminate the weapons potential for such material. Blending HEU with existing supplies of depleted uranium (DU) would produce material with less than 5% U-235 content for use in commercial nuclear reactors. The request indicated that as much as 500 to 1,000 MT of HEU would be available for conversion over a 20-year period. Existing facilities at the SRS are capable of producing LEU in the form of uranium trioxide (UO 3 ) powder, uranyl nitrate [UO 2 (NO 3 ) 2 ] solution, or metal. Additional processing, and additional facilities, would be required to convert the LEU to uranium dioxide (UO 2 ) or uranium hexafluoride (UF 3 ), the normal inputs for commercial fuel fabrication. This study's scope does not include the cost for new conversion facilities. However, the low estimated cost per kilogram of blending HEU to LEU in SRS facilities indicates that even with fees for any additional conversion to UO 2 or UF 6 , blend-down would still provide a product significantly below the spot market price for LEU from traditional enrichment services. The body of the report develops a number of possible facility/process combinations for SRS. The primary conclusion of this study is that SRS has facilities available that are capable of satisfying the goals of a national program to blend HEU to below 5% U-235. This preliminary assessment concludes that several facility/process options appear cost-effective. Finally, SRS is a secure DOE site with all requisite security and safeguard programs, personnel skills, nuclear criticality safety controls, accountability programs, and supporting infrastructure to handle large quantities of special nuclear materials (SNM)

  13. Evaluation of the ignition behaviour of coals and blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    J. Faundez; F. Rubiera; X. Garcia; A. Arenillas; A.L. Gordon; J.J. Pis [CSIC, Instituto Nacional del Carbon, Oviedo (Spain). Department of Energy and Environment

    2003-07-01

    An experimental study about ignition of coals and blends was carried out by using an entrained flow reactor (EFR) with continuous feed. Seven coals of varying rank, from subbituminous to semianthracite, were tested and evolving gases (O{sub 2}, CO, CO{sub 2}, NO) were measured. The ignition temperature was evaluated from the evolution profiles of these gases, and correlated inversely to the reactivity of coals, as reflected by increasing values of ignition temperatures in the sequence subbituminous, high volatile bituminous, low volatile bituminous and semianthracite coals. Mechanism of ignition varied from an heterogeneous mechanism (for subbituminous, low volatile bituminous and semianthracite coals) to an homogeneous mechanism (for high volatile bituminous coal). Experiments with coal blends showed that if a low volatile bituminous coal is blended with a high volatile bituminous coal, the latter determines the value of the ignition temperature and ignition mechanism of the blend, when its percentage in the blend is 50% or higher. For blends of subbituminous and high volatile bituminous coals, the ignition mechanism of the blend is determined by the ignition mechanism of the coal with a higher content in the blend. 12 refs., 9 figs., 1 tab.

  14. Designing a climate change policy for the international maritime transport sector: Market-based measures and technological options for global and regional policy actions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Miola, A.; Marra, M.; Ciuffo, B.

    2011-01-01

    The international maritime transport sector has a significant abatement potential and some technical improvements that reduce GHG emissions would already be profitable without any policy in place. This paper analyses in-depth the limits and opportunities of policy options currently under consideration at the international level to stimulate the sector to reduce its GHG emissions. In particular, in order for the maritime transport sector to become more environmentally friendly, the flexible nature of international market-based measures and the European Union Emission Trading Scheme provide a definite window of opportunity without placing unnecessary high burden on the sector. However, the development of a regional policy, such as at European level, for the international maritime transport sector faces several obstacles: allocation of emissions, carbon leakage, permit allocation, treatment of the great variety in ship type, size and usage, and transaction cost. Global market-based policies could overcome most of these challenges. This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the policy instruments currently under discussion to reduce the sector's burden on the environment, and focuses on economic theory, legal principles, technological options, and the political framework that together make up the basis of decision-making regarding the international maritime transport sector's climate change policies. - Highlights: → Technologies for a more environmental friendly maritime transport sector and their cost-effectiveness. → How to combine ambitious CO 2 reduction goals with a sector-wide market-based policy. → Permits should be auctioned frequently and small emitters have to be excluded. → Inclusion of shipping in the EU ETS causes carbon leakage, so the policy should aim at expansion.

  15. Overview of the U.S. northeast market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Oliver, W.

    1998-01-01

    The focus of this presentation was the natural gas market in the northeastern United States. Topics addressed included: gas market requirements, gas transportation proposals, and market pricing dynamics. figs

  16. Design of Sustainable Blended Products using an Integrated Methodology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Yunus, Nor Alafiza Binti; Gernaey, Krist; Woodley, John

    2013-01-01

    This paper presents a systematic methodology for designing blended products consisting of three stages; product design, process identification and experimental verification. The product design stage is considered in this paper. The objective of this stage is to screen and select suitable chemicals...... to be used as building blocks in the mixture design, and then to propose the blend formulations that fulfill the desired product attributes. The result is a set of blends that match the constraints, the compositions, values of the target properties and information about their miscibility. The methodology has...... been applied to design several blended products. A case study on design of blended lubricants is highlighted. The objective is to identify blended products that satisfy the product attributes with at least similar or better performance compared to conventional products....

  17. Dual Energy Computed Tomography to Evaluate Hepatocellular Carcinoma Treated with Transcatheter Arterial Chemo-Embolization: Comparison between the Linear Blending and Nonlinear Moidal Blending Methods

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shin, Sang Soo; Kim, Hyeong Wook; Lee, Daun; Kang, Heoung Keun; Kim, Jin Woong; Heo, Suk Hee; Jeong, Yong Yeon; Seon, Hyun Ju

    2012-01-01

    To compare the linear blending image with the nonlinear moidal blending image using dual energy CT for the evaluation of the viable portion of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE). One-hundred and twenty three HCC patients incompletely treated after TACE were enrolled in this study. The dual energy mode (80 kVp and Sn140 kVp) was only applied in the late arterial phase scanning. A paired t-test was used to compare the lesion-to-liver contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and the image noise between the two blending images. Lesion conspicuity, image sharpness, image noise and the overall image quality between the two blending images were compared using the Wilcoxon matched-pair signed-ranks test. The lesion-to-liver CNR was significantly higher on the moidal blending image (5.6 ± 3.2) than on the linear blending image (2.7 ± 1.6) (p < 0.001). The image noise was significantly lower on the moidal blending image (10.9 ± 3.5) than on the linear blending image (17.5 ± 5.5) (p < 0.001). The lesion conspicuity and overall image quality were significantly better on the moidal blending image for both reviewers (p < 0.001). However, with respect to image sharpness, the linear blending image was significantly better for both reviewers (p < 0.01). The nonlinear moidal blending image of dual energy CT showed an increased lesion-to-liver CNR, decreased noise and improved overall image quality for the evaluation of the viable portion of HCC after TACE.

  18. Can You Hear Me Now? Marketing Essentials for Audiologists in a Noisy Health Care World

    OpenAIRE

    Rudden, DAnne

    2016-01-01

    Audiologists, even those with a strong acumen for business, are not traditionally taught the basics of creating a robust practice identity and dynamic marketing plan. This activity will teach learners how to create a distinct brand that separates them from others in a competitive and distracted marketplace. Additionally, learners will gain an understanding for how to blend traditional marketing tools with more modern online options and social media. Upon completion, learners will be familiar ...

  19. Preparation of LDPE/LNR Blend Via Emulsion Dispersion

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rusli Daik; Yee Lee Ching

    2007-01-01

    Low density polyethylene (LDPE)/ liquid natural rubber (LNR) blends with the composition of 100LDPE/ 0LNR, 70LDPE/ 30LNR, 60LDPE/ 40LNR and 40LDPE/ 60LNR were prepared via dispersion of LDPE and LNR emulsion. LNR was obtained via photochemical sensitization of natural rubber (NR). Emulsion of LNR was prepared by using sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and 1-hexanol as the emulsifier and co- emulsifier respectively. Emulsion of LDPE was prepared in the same way by using LDPE solution in carbon tetrachloride, SDS and 1-hexanol. LDPE/ LNR blends were prepared via mixing of LNR and LDPE emulsions. Mechanical properties of the blends were analyzed by tensile, hardness and impact test. Optimum mechanical properties were observed for composite with composition of 60LDPE/ 40LNR that showed the maximum value of stress and strain. The glass transition temperature, T g , of the blends as obtained from differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) showed that the blends were homogeneous. Morphology study by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) also indicates the homogeneity of LDPE/ LNR blends produced. (author)

  20. Preparation and Characterization of Keratin/Alginate Blend Microparticles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yaowalak Srisuwan

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The water-in-oil (W/O emulsification-diffusion method was used for construction of keratin (Ker, alginate (Alg, and Ker/Alg blend microparticles. The Ker, Alg, and Ker/Alg blend solutions were used as the water phase, while ethyl acetate was used as the oil phase. Firstly, different concentrations of Ker solution was used to find suitable content. 1.6% w/v Ker solution was blended with the same concentration of the Alg solution for further microparticle construction. Results from scanning electron microscope analysis show that the microparticles have different shapes: spherical, bowl-like, porous, and hollow, with several sizes depending on the blend ratio. FTIR and TG analyses indicated that the secondary structure and thermal stability of the microparticles were influenced by the Ker/Alg blend ratio. The interaction between functional groups of keratin and alginate was the main factor for both β-sheet structure and Td,max values of the microparticles. The results suggested that Ker/Alg blend microparticles might be applied in many fields by varying the Ker/Alg ratio.

  1. Intermodel freight terminals: marketing channels and telecommunication networks

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Wiegmans, B.W.; Nijkamp, P.; Masurel, E.

    2001-01-01

    This paper seeks to highlight the importance of modern telecommunications networks in combined transport marketing channels deployed for intermodal terminals. To develop a customer-based and broadly applicable framework for studying combined freight transport in Europe, the use of the marketing

  2. Molecular transport behaviour of organic solvents through halloysite ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    Micro and Nano Materials Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, Institute of Technical ... The transport behaviour of three organic solvents (benzene, toluene and xylene) through halloysite nan- ... ena play important roles in different areas of engineering and ... their blends by an equilibrium swelling method has been.

  3. Dipeptide-based polyphosphazene and polyester blends for bone tissue engineering.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deng, Meng; Nair, Lakshmi S; Nukavarapu, Syam P; Jiang, Tao; Kanner, William A; Li, Xudong; Kumbar, Sangamesh G; Weikel, Arlin L; Krogman, Nicholas R; Allcock, Harry R; Laurencin, Cato T

    2010-06-01

    Polyphosphazene-polyester blends are attractive materials for bone tissue engineering applications due to their controllable degradation pattern with non-toxic and neutral pH degradation products. In our ongoing quest for an ideal completely miscible polyphosphazene-polyester blend system, we report synthesis and characterization of a mixed-substituent biodegradable polyphosphazene poly[(glycine ethyl glycinato)(1)(phenyl phenoxy)(1)phosphazene] (PNGEG/PhPh) and its blends with a polyester. Two dipeptide-based blends namely 25:75 (Matrix1) and 50:50 (Matrix2) were produced at two different weight ratios of PNGEG/PhPh to poly(lactic acid-glycolic acid) (PLAGA). Blend miscibility was confirmed by differential scanning calorimetry, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and scanning electron microscopy. Both blends resulted in higher tensile modulus and strength than the polyester. The blends showed a degradation rate in the order of Matrix2PLAGA in phosphate buffered saline at 37 degrees C over 12 weeks. Significantly higher pH values of degradation media were observed for blends compared to PLAGA confirming the neutralization of PLAGA acidic degradation by polyphosphazene hydrolysis products. The blend components PLAGA and polyphosphazene exhibited a similar degradation pattern as characterized by the molecular weight loss. Furthermore, blends demonstrated significantly higher osteoblast growth rates compared to PLAGA while maintaining osteoblast phenotype over a 21-day culture. Both blends demonstrated improved biocompatibility in a rat subcutaneous implantation model compared to PLAGA over 12 weeks. (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Blended Learning Opportunities in Ukrainian IT Public Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Szimkovics, Tamás

    2017-01-01

    Based on previous surveys the usage of ICT and blended learning is at a low level in Ukraine. To catch up with the European average, it is important to familiarize the students and teachers with blended learning in the secondary school. The information technology classes provide the best opportunity to introduce the blended learning, because they…

  5. Investment in transport infrastructure, regulation, and gas-gas competition

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gasmi, Farid [Toulouse School of Economics (ARQADE and IDEI), Universite Toulouse 1 Capitole (France); Oviedo, Juan Daniel [Universidad del Rosario (Colombia)

    2010-05-15

    This paper develops a simple model in which a regulated (upstream) transporter provides capacity to a marketer competing in output with an incumbent in the (downstream) gas commodity market. The equilibrium outcome of the firms' interaction in the downstream market is explicitly taken into account by the regulator when setting the transport charge. We consider various forms of competition in this market and derive the corresponding optimal transport charge policies. We then run simulations that allow us to perform a comparative welfare analysis of these transport infrastructure investment policies based on different assumptions about the intensity of the competition that prevails in the gas commodity market. (author)

  6. Investment in transport infrastructure, regulation, and gas-gas competition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gasmi, Farid; Oviedo, Juan Daniel

    2010-01-01

    This paper develops a simple model in which a regulated (upstream) transporter provides capacity to a marketer competing in output with an incumbent in the (downstream) gas commodity market. The equilibrium outcome of the firms' interaction in the downstream market is explicitly taken into account by the regulator when setting the transport charge. We consider various forms of competition in this market and derive the corresponding optimal transport charge policies. We then run simulations that allow us to perform a comparative welfare analysis of these transport infrastructure investment policies based on different assumptions about the intensity of the competition that prevails in the gas commodity market. (author)

  7. Multiscattering illumination in blended acquisition design

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhout, A.J.; Blacquière, G.; Verschuur, D.J.

    2010-01-01

    In traditional seismic surveys the firing time between shots is such that the records do not interfere in time. However, in the concept of blending the records do overlap, allowing much denser and wider geometries in an economic way. The blending parameters are the locations of the involved sources

  8. Blended Learning in Vocational Education: Teachers' Conceptions of Blended Learning and Their Approaches to Teaching and Design

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bliuc, Ana-Maria; Casey, Grant; Bachfischer, Agnieszka; Goodyear, Peter; Ellis, Robert A.

    2012-01-01

    This paper presents research exploring teachers' experiences of using blended learning in vocational education. Teachers involved in designing and teaching using blended learning from a major Australian vocational education provider participated in the study. They received open-ended questionnaires asking to describe their conceptions of blended…

  9. Blended Learning in Action: A Practical Guide toward Sustainable Change

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tucker, Catlin R.; Wycoff, Tiffany; Green, Jason T.

    2017-01-01

    Blended learning has the power to reinvent education, but transitioning to a blended model is challenging. Blended learning requires a fundamentally new approach to learning as well as a new skillset for both teachers and school leaders. Loaded with research, examples, and resources, "Blended Learning in Action" demonstrates the…

  10. A drop penetration method to measure powder blend wettability.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Yifan; Liu, Zhanjie; Muzzio, Fernando; Drazer, German; Callegari, Gerardo

    2018-03-01

    Water wettability of pharmaceutical blends affects important quality attributes of final products. We investigate the wetting properties of a pharmaceutical blend lubricated with Magnesium Stearate (MgSt) as a function of the mechanical shear strain applied to the blend. We measure the penetration dynamics of sessile drops deposited on slightly compressed powder beds. We consider a blend composed of 9% Acetaminophen 90% Lactose and 1% MgSt by weight. Comparing the penetration time of water and a reference liquid Polydimethylsiloxane (silicon oil) we obtain an effective cosine of the contact angle with water, based on a recently developed drop penetration method. We repeat the experiments for blends exposed to increasing levels of shear strain and demonstrate a significant decrease in water wettability (decrease in the cosine of the contact angle). The results are consistent with the development of a hydrophobic film coating the powder particles as a result of the increased shear strain. Finally, we show that, as expected dissolution times increase with the level of shear strain. Therefore, the proposed drop penetration method could be used to directly assess the state of lubrication of a pharmaceutical blend and act as a quality control on powder blend attributes before the blend is tableted. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. NATURAL GAS TRANSPORTATION

    OpenAIRE

    Stanis³aw Brzeziñski

    2007-01-01

    In the paper, Author presents chosen aspects of natural gas transportation within global market. Natural gas transportation is a technicaly complicated and economicly expensive process; in infrastructure construction and activities costs. The paper also considers last and proposed initiatives in natural gas transportation.

  12. Non-isothermal crystallization of PET/PLA blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, Huipeng; Pyda, Marek; Cebe, Peggy

    2009-01-01

    Binary blends of poly(ethylene terephthalate) with poly(lactic acid), PET/PLA, were studied by differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray scattering. The PET/PLA blends, prepared by solution casting, were found to be miscible in the melt over the entire composition range. Both quenched amorphous and semicrystalline blends exhibit a single, composition dependent glass transition temperature. We report the non-isothermal crystallization of (a) PET, with and without the presence of PLA crystals and (b) PLA, with and without the presence of PET crystals. PET can crystallize in all blends, regardless of whether PLA is amorphous or crystalline, and degree of crystallinity of PET decreases as PLA content increases. In contrast, PLA crystallization is strongly affected by the mobility of the PET fraction. When PET is wholly amorphous, PLA can crystallize even in 70/30 blends, albeit weakly. But when PET is crystalline, PLA cannot crystallize when its own content drops below 0.90. These different behaviors may possibly be related to the tendency of each polymer to form constrained chains, i.e., to form the rigid amorphous fraction, or RAF. PET is capable of forming a large amount of RAF, whereas relatively smaller amount of RAF forms in PLA. Like the crystals, the rigid amorphous fraction of one polymer component may inhibit the growth of crystals of the other blend partner.

  13. Chitosan-Based Polymer Blends: Current Status and applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hefian, E.A.E.; Nasef, M.M.

    2014-01-01

    This paper reviews the latest developments in chitosan-based blends and their potential applications in various fields. Various blends together with other derivatives, such as composites and graft copolymers, have been developed to overcome chitosans disadvantages, including poor mechanical properties and to improve its functionality towards specific applications. The progress made in blending chitosan with synthetic and natural polymers is presented. The versatility and unique characteristics, such as hydrophilicity, film-forming ability, biodegradability, biocompatibility, antibacterial activity and non-toxicity of chitosan has contributed to the successful development of various blends for medical, pharmaceutical, agricultural and environmental applications. (author)

  14. TANK 21 AND TANK 24 BLEND AND FEED STUDY: BLENDING TIMES, SETTLING TIMES, AND TRANSFERS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, S.; Leishear, R.; Poirier, M.

    2012-05-31

    The Salt Disposition Integration (SDI) portfolio of projects provides the infrastructure within existing Liquid Waste facilities to support the startup and long term operation of the Salt Waste Processing Facility (SWPF). Within SDI, the Blend and Feed Project will equip existing waste tanks in the Tank Farms to serve as Blend Tanks where salt solutions of up to 1.2 million gallons will be blended in 1.3 million gallon tanks and qualified for use as feedstock for SWPF. In particular, Tanks 21 and 24 are planned to be used for blending and transferring to the SDI feed tank. These tanks were evaluated here to determine blending times, to determine a range of settling times for disturbed sludge, and to determine that the SWPF Waste Acceptance Criteria that less than 1200 mg/liter of solids will be entrained in salt solutions during transfers from the Tank 21 and Tank 24 will be met. Overall conclusions for Tank 21 and Tank 24 operations include: (1) Experimental correction factors were applied to CFD (computational fluid dynamics) models to establish blending times between approximately two and five hours. As shown in Phase 2 research, blending times may be as much as ten times greater, or more, if lighter fluids are added to heavier fluids (i.e., water added to salt solution). As the densities of two salt solutions converge this effect may be minimized, but additional confirmatory research was not performed. (2) At the current sludge levels and the presently planned operating heights of the transfer pumps, solids entrainment will be less than 1200 mg/liter, assuming a conservative, slow settling sludge simulant. (3) Based on theoretical calculations, particles in the density range of 2.5 to 5.0 g/mL must be greater than 2-4 {micro}m in diameter to ensure they settle adequately in 30-60 days to meet the SWPF feed criterion (<1200 mg/l). (4) Experimental tests with sludge batch 6 simulant and field turbidity data from a recent Tank 21 mixing evolution suggest the solid

  15. Shape memory behaviour of radiation-crosslinked PCL/PMVS blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhu Guangming; Xu Shuogui; Wang Jinhua; Zhang Longbin

    2006-01-01

    The performance and radiation crosslinking of polycaprolactone (PCL) and polymethylvinylsiloxane (PMVS) blends has been investigated. Radiation crosslinking of PCL/PMVS blends followed the Charlesby-Pinner equation, and PMVS promoted the radiation crosslinking of the blends. As the concentration of PMVS increased, the gelation dose and the ratio of degradation to crosslinking (p 0 /q 0 ) decreased and the efficiency of radiation crosslinking increased. The elastic modulus below the melting point of PCL of radiation-crosslinked PCL/PMVS blends decreased with the increase of PMVS, and increased above the melting point. The crosslinked PCL/PMVS blends exhibited excellent shape memory effects, and the ratios of deformation to recovery were more than 95%

  16. Method to blend separator powders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guidotti, Ronald A.; Andazola, Arthur H.; Reinhardt, Frederick W.

    2007-12-04

    A method for making a blended powder mixture, whereby two or more powders are mixed in a container with a liquid selected from nitrogen or short-chain alcohols, where at least one of the powders has an angle of repose greater than approximately 50 degrees. The method is useful in preparing blended powders of Li halides and MgO for use in the preparation of thermal battery separators.

  17. Marketing San Juan Basin gas

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Posner, D.M.

    1988-01-01

    Marketing natural gas produced in the San Juan Basin of New Mexico and Colorado principally involves four gas pipeline companies with significant facilities in the basin. The system capacity, transportation rates, regulatory status, and market access of each of these companies is evaluated. Because of excess gas supplies available to these pipeline companies, producers can expect improved take levels and prices by selling gas directly to end users and utilities as opposed to selling gas to the pipelines for system supply. The complexities of transporting gas today suggest that the services of an independent gas marketing company may be beneficial to smaller producers with gas supplies in the San Juan Basin

  18. Blended learning in health education: three case studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Jong, Nynke; Savin-Baden, Maggi; Cunningham, Anne Marie; Verstegen, Daniëlle M L

    2014-09-01

    Blended learning in which online education is combined with face-to-face education is especially useful for (future) health care professionals who need to keep up-to-date. Blended learning can make learning more efficient, for instance by removing barriers of time and distance. In the past distance-based learning activities have often been associated with traditional delivery-based methods, individual learning and limited contact. The central question in this paper is: can blended learning be active and collaborative? Three cases of blended, active and collaborative learning are presented. In case 1 a virtual classroom is used to realize online problem-based learning (PBL). In case 2 PBL cases are presented in Second Life, a 3D immersive virtual world. In case 3 discussion forums, blogs and wikis were used. In all cases face-to-face meetings were also organized. Evaluation results of the three cases clearly show that active, collaborative learning at a distance is possible. Blended learning enables the use of novel instructional methods and student-centred education. The three cases employ different educational methods, thus illustrating diverse possibilities and a variety of learning activities in blended learning. Interaction and communication rules, the role of the teacher, careful selection of collaboration tools and technical preparation should be considered when designing and implementing blended learning.

  19. Quantification of rice bran oil in oil blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mishra, R.; Sharma, H. K.; Sengar, G.

    2012-11-01

    Blends consisting of physically refined rice bran oil (PRBO): sunflower oil (SnF) and PRBO: safflower oil (SAF) in different proportions were analyzed for various physicochemical parameters. The quantification of pure rice bran oil in the blended oils was carried out using different methods including gas chromatographic, HPLC, ultrasonic velocity and methods based on physico-chemical parameters. The physicochemical parameters such as ultrasonic velocity, relative association and acoustic impedance at 2 MHz, iodine value, palmitic acid content and oryzanol content reflected significant changes with increased proportions of PRBO in the blended oils. These parameters were selected as dependent parameters and % PRBO proportion was selected as independent parameters. The study revealed that regression equations based on the oryzanol content, palmitic acid composition, ultrasonic velocity, relative association, acoustic impedance, and iodine value can be used for the quantification of rice bran oil in blended oils. The rice bran oil can easily be quantified in the blended oils based on the oryzanol content by HPLC even at a 1% level. The palmitic acid content in blended oils can also be used as an indicator to quantify rice bran oil at or above the 20% level in blended oils whereas the method based on ultrasonic velocity, acoustic impedance and relative association showed initial promise in the quantification of rice bran oil. (Author) 23 refs.

  20. Structuring of Interface-Modified Polymer Blends

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lyngaae-Jørgensen, Jørgen

    1999-01-01

    The paper treats the case where blends of polystyrene (PS), poly (dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) and a diblock copolymer of PS and PDMS are used as model materials. This modelsystem is predicted to be "stable" in discrete blends in simple shear flow. Stable in the sence that the block copolymer can not...

  1. Impact on electronic structure of donor/acceptor blend in organic photovoltaics by decontamination of molybdenum-oxide surface

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ito, Yuta; Akaike, Kouki; Fukuda, Takeshi; Sato, Daisuke; Fuse, Takuya; Iwahashi, Takashi; Ouchi, Yukio; Kanai, Kaname

    2018-05-01

    Molybdenum oxide (MoOx) is widely used as the hole-transport layer in bulk-heterojunction organic photovoltaics (BHJ-OPVs). During the fabrication of solution-processed BHJ-OPVs on vacuum-deposited MoOx film, the film must be exposed to N2 atmosphere in a glove box, where the donor/acceptor blends are spin-coated from a mixed solution. Employing photoelectron spectroscopy, we reveal that the exposure of the MoOx film to such atmosphere contaminates the MoOx surface. Annealing the contaminated MoOx film at 160 °C for 5 min, prior to spin-coating the blend film, can partially remove the carbon and oxygen adsorbed on the MoOx surface during the exposure of MoOx. However, the contamination layer on the MoOx surface does not affect the energy-level alignment at the interface between MoOx and the donor/acceptor blend. Hence, significant improvement in the performance of BHJ-OPVs by mildly annealing the MoOx layer, which was previously reported, can be explained by the reduction of undesired contamination.

  2. Chemical Characteristics of Mango (Mangifera Indica L.) Kernel Oil and Palm Oil Blends for Probable use as Vanaspati

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Atta Muhammad Arif; Irman Javed; Muhammad Abdullah; Muhammad Irman; Athar Mahmud; Muhammad Nadeem; Muhammad Ayaz

    2016-01-01

    Chemical characteristics of blends of palm oil and mango kernel oil for their probable use as vanaspati was studied. Crude mango kernel oil was blended with refined, bleached and deodorised palm oil from 10 %, 20 %, 30 %, 40 % and 50 % (T 1 , T 2 , T 3 , T 4 and T 5 ) market vanaspati was used as control. Concentration of trans fatty acids in control was 22.7 %, whereas, all the vanaspati samples were virtually trans-free. Slip melting points (degree Celsius) of control, T 1 , T 2 , T 3 , T 4 and T 5 were 37.5, 37.3, 36.4, 35.6, 34.8 and 34. Free fatty acids of control and T5 were respectively 0.11, 0.12 %. Polymer contents of control, T 1 , T 2 , T 3 , T 4 and T 5 , after three heating cycles (18 degree Celsius, for 8 hr) were 21.55 %, 20.97 %, 18.66 %, 17.61 % and 10.22 %, respectively with lower solid fat index (p<0.05). Blends of mango kernel oil and palm oil can be used for the formulation of trans-free vanaspati. (author)

  3. Modification of polymer blends by irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zuchowska, D.; Zagorski, Z.P.

    1999-01-01

    Modification of polymers, especially of polyolefin-elastomer blends (e. g. ethylene/propylene/diene terpolymer, ethylene propylene copolymer, ethylene/vinyl acetate copolymer etc.), by irradiation with a beam of fast electrons is discussed. Irradiation of polymer blends usually results in enhanced interactions between the constituents, caused among other things, by grafting induced at the polymer interphase. As a result, mechanical properties are affected to an extent depending on the proportion and type of constituent polymers, stabilizer content and radiation dose. Breaking strength (σ) relative elongation at break (ε) and melt flow rate (MFR), were examined for a triblock styrene/butadiene/styrene (SBS) copolymer, polypropylene (PP), and a PP-SBS blend (50:50 by wt.). In PP, the content of the crystal phase was determined. Irradiation was found to make SBS crosslink, as a result, σ rose by 25% and ε remained unaffected. PP was found to become degraded upon irradiation (MFR rose as much as 16 times), thereby σ and ε decreased considerably. In pure PP, the content of the crystal phase was found to increase. The variations of σ and ε in the irradiated PP-SBS blend follow a tendency similar to that in the SBS copolymer examined. This fact suggests the SBS copolymer to have a decisive effect on the macroscopic properties of the PP-SBS blend. (author)

  4. Teaching Qualitative Market Research: Multi-Perspectival Evaluation of a Curriculum Innovation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bettina König

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available The principal goal of teaching qualitative market research in a business degree programme at a university of applied sciences is to provide students with methodological skills that prove applicable in practice and are, at the same time, compliant with prevailing standards of academic research. Creating an appropriate curriculum that includes the methods of conducting expert interviews and carrying out focus groups poses challenges to instructors and students, both full-time and part-time. Designed as a "research workshop," the course we designed turned out to be most effective for teaching future graduates of business administration how to use relevant and practical qualitative market research methods. Students had to implement independently both research techniques 1. within their group and 2. in teams. They were thereby enabled to draw on synergies with respect to the recruitment of interview partners, implementation of analysis methods, and the visualization of results. At the same time, they gathered experiences in the triangulation of methods and data. Concurrently, a critical examination of quality criteria in the field of qualitative market research—as opposed to commonly used quantitative approaches—was ensured. Referring to the organization and communication efforts required by instructors and students, the integration of blended learning in this project-oriented course design made the implementation of this programme highly complex. The experiences reported here provide a solid basis for future programs that intend to teach qualitative market research techniques to prospective graduates of business administration in a blended learning framework. URN: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs110240

  5. Operational Challenges in Gas-To-Liquid (GTL) Transportation Through Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Godwin A. Chukwu; Santanu Khataniar; Shirish Patil; Abhijit Dandekar

    2006-06-30

    Oil production from Alaskan North Slope oil fields has steadily declined. In the near future, ANS crude oil production will decline to such a level (200,000 to 400,000 bbl/day) that maintaining economic operation of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) will require pumping alternative products through the system. Heavy oil deposits in the West Sak and Ugnu formations are a potential resource, although transporting these products involves addressing important sedimentation issues. One possibility is the use of Gas-to-Liquid (GTL) technology. Estimated recoverable gas reserves of 38 trillion cubic feet (TCF) on the North Slope of Alaska can be converted to liquid with GTL technology and combined with the heavy oils for a product suitable for pipeline transport. Issues that could affect transport of this such products through TAPS include pumpability of GTL and crude oil blends, cold restart of the pipeline following a prolonged winter shutdown, and solids deposition inside the pipeline. This study examined several key fluid properties of GTL, crude oil and four selected blends under TAPS operating conditions. Key measurements included Reid Vapor Pressure, density and viscosity, PVT properties, and solids deposition. Results showed that gel strength is not a significant factor for the ratios of GTL-crude oil blend mixtures (1:1; 1:2; 1:3; 1:4) tested under TAPS cold re-start conditions at temperatures above - 20 F, although Bingham fluid flow characteristics exhibited by the blends at low temperatures indicate high pumping power requirements following prolonged shutdown. Solids deposition is a major concern for all studied blends. For the commingled flow profile studied, decreased throughput can result in increased and more rapid solid deposition along the pipe wall, resulting in more frequent pigging of the pipeline or, if left unchecked, pipeline corrosion.

  6. Effect of hydrogen on ethanol-biodiesel blend on performance and emission characteristics of a direct injection diesel engine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parthasarathy, M; Isaac JoshuaRamesh Lalvani, J; Dhinesh, B; Annamalai, K

    2016-12-01

    Environment issue is a principle driving force which has led to a considerable effort to develop and introduce alternative fuels for transportation. India has large potential for production of biofuels like biodiesel from vegetable seeds. Use of biodiesel namely, tamanu methyl ester (TME) in unmodified diesel engines leads to low thermal Efficiency and high smoke emission. To encounter this problem hydrogen was inducted by a port fueled injection system. Hydrogen is considered to be low polluting fuel and is the most promising among alternative fuel. Its clean burning characteristic and better performance attract more interest compared to other fuels. It was more active in reducing smoke emission in biodiesel. A main drawback with hydrogen fuel is the increased NO x emission. To reduce NO x emission, TME-ethanol blends were used in various proportions. After a keen study, it was observed that ethanol can be blended with biodiesel up to 30% in unmodified diesel engine. The present work deals with the experimental study of performance and emission characteristic of the DI diesel engine using hydrogen and TME-ethanol blends. Hydrogen and TME-ethanol blend was used to improve the brake thermal efficiency and reduction in CO, NO x and smoke emissions. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. European intermodal freight transport network

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Saeedi, Hamid; Wiegmans, Bart; Behdani, Behzad; Zuidwijk, Rob

    2017-01-01

    The analysis of market structure and concentration measures for the Intermodal Freight Transport (IFT) market is important to avoid market failure and to find the areas for policy making to promote IFT market share. This analysis can be performed for separate segments, for example, the market for

  8. A blending rule for octane numbers of PRFs and TPRFs with ethanol

    KAUST Repository

    AlRamadan, Abdullah S.; Sarathy, Mani; Khurshid, Muneeb; Badra, Jihad

    2016-01-01

    -gasoline synergistic/antagonistic blending effects. Understanding ethanol blending effects with simpler gasoline surrogates blends may enable a better understanding of ethanol blending with complex multi-component gasoline fuels. This study presents a blending rule

  9. Teaching Parametric Urban Design in a Blended Learning Format

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Steinø, Nicolai

    2015-01-01

    On the basis of a theoretical discussion of the concept of blended learning, this paper presents the pre- paration, execution and evaluation of a 5 ECTS blended learning course on parametric urban design for a group of some 50 BSc students of architecture and design at Aalborg university...... and curriculum develop- ment, and di culties to nd time for research. Despite the general consensus that developing online/blended learning courses requires both technical support, complex software installations, and substantial preparation time, it is shown that free web ser- vices and low-tech adaptations...... of traditional teaching assets are su cient to get started with blended learning with only little extra e ort. While the pilot blended learning course which provided the insights for this paper has room for impro- vement, it represents a decent rst shot at developing blended learning courses for higher education...

  10. SELECTED ASPECTS OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ACTIVE MARKETING CAMPAIGN TO RAISE AWARENESS AND PROMOTE PUBLIC TRANSPORT SERVICES IN RURAL AREAS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katarzyna NOSAL

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The article presents selected aspects of the implementation of the EU’s SmartMove project, which aims to promote feeder public transport systems in rural areas through the implementation of an active marketing campaign (AMC. Campaigns of this type are connected with providing general and personalized information concerning the functioning of public transport services. In the article, characteristics of one of the implementation areas of the project are presented, namely, the Liszki district near Cracow. Transport services were also evaluated. In addition, selected results are presented from a survey that was conducted among residents of the area from the point of view of the implementation of the AMC. The results concerned data about the means of transport that were currently used for travelling, the knowledge of bus services, the reasons for their use and the factors that might encourage residents to use public transport

  11. Optimization of the octane response of gasoline/ethanol blends

    KAUST Repository

    Badra, Jihad; AlRamadan, Abdullah S.; Sarathy, Mani

    2017-01-01

    The octane responses of gasoline/ethanol mixtures are not well understood because of the unidentified intermolecular interactions in such blends. In general, when ethanol is blended with gasoline, the Research Octane Number (RON) and the Motor Octane Number (MON) non-linearly increase or decrease, and the non-linearity is determined by the composition of the base gasoline and the amount of added ethanol. The complexity of commercial gasolines, comprising of hundreds of different components, makes it challenging to understand ethanol-gasoline synergistic/antagonistic blending effects. Understanding ethanol blending effects with simpler gasoline surrogates is critical to acquire knowledge about ethanol blending with complex multi-component gasoline fuels. In this study, the octane numbers (ON) of ethanol blends with five relevant gasoline surrogate molecules were measured. The molecules investigated in this study include: n-pentane, iso-pentane, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, cyclopentane and 1-hexene. These new measurements along with the available data of n-heptane, iso-octane, toluene, various primary reference fuels (PRF) and toluene primary reference fuels (TPRF) with ethanol are used to develop a blending rule for the octane response (RON and MON) of multi-component blends with ethanol. In addition, new ON data are collected for six Fuels for Advanced Combustion Engine (FACE) with ethanol. The relatively simple volume based model successfully predicts the octane numbers (ON) of the various ethanol/PRF and ethanol/TPRF blends with the majority of predictions being within the ASTM D2699 (RON) and D2700 (MON) reproducibility limits. The model is also successfully validated against the ON of the FACE gasolines blended with ethanol with the majority of predictions being within the reproducibility limits. Finally, insights into the possible causes of the synergistic and antagonistic effects of different molecules with ethanol are provided.

  12. Optimization of the octane response of gasoline/ethanol blends

    KAUST Repository

    Badra, Jihad

    2017-07-04

    The octane responses of gasoline/ethanol mixtures are not well understood because of the unidentified intermolecular interactions in such blends. In general, when ethanol is blended with gasoline, the Research Octane Number (RON) and the Motor Octane Number (MON) non-linearly increase or decrease, and the non-linearity is determined by the composition of the base gasoline and the amount of added ethanol. The complexity of commercial gasolines, comprising of hundreds of different components, makes it challenging to understand ethanol-gasoline synergistic/antagonistic blending effects. Understanding ethanol blending effects with simpler gasoline surrogates is critical to acquire knowledge about ethanol blending with complex multi-component gasoline fuels. In this study, the octane numbers (ON) of ethanol blends with five relevant gasoline surrogate molecules were measured. The molecules investigated in this study include: n-pentane, iso-pentane, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, cyclopentane and 1-hexene. These new measurements along with the available data of n-heptane, iso-octane, toluene, various primary reference fuels (PRF) and toluene primary reference fuels (TPRF) with ethanol are used to develop a blending rule for the octane response (RON and MON) of multi-component blends with ethanol. In addition, new ON data are collected for six Fuels for Advanced Combustion Engine (FACE) with ethanol. The relatively simple volume based model successfully predicts the octane numbers (ON) of the various ethanol/PRF and ethanol/TPRF blends with the majority of predictions being within the ASTM D2699 (RON) and D2700 (MON) reproducibility limits. The model is also successfully validated against the ON of the FACE gasolines blended with ethanol with the majority of predictions being within the reproducibility limits. Finally, insights into the possible causes of the synergistic and antagonistic effects of different molecules with ethanol are provided.

  13. [White organic light emitting device with dyestuff DCJTB blended in polymer].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yan-Fei; Xu, Zheng; Zhang, Fu-Jun; Wang, Yong; Zhao, Su-Ling

    2008-04-01

    The Alq3 and DCJTB were blended with poly (N-vinylcarbazole) (PVK) in different weight ratios and spin coated into films. Multilayer devices with the light emitting layer PVK : Alq3 : DCJTB were fabricated, and their structure was ITO/ PVK : Alq3 : DCJTB/ BCP/Alq3/LiF/Al in which BCP and Alq3 were employed as the hole-blocking and electron-transporting layers respectively, PVK is the blue light-emitting as well as hole-transporting layer. The mass proportion of PVK relative to Alq3 was tuned while the quality ratio of PVK to DCJTB remained (100 : 1). Finally, fairly pure and stabile white emission was achieved when PVK : Alq3 : DCJTB was 100 : 5 : 1. The CIE coordinate was (0.33, 0.36) at 14 V, which is very stable at various biases (10-14 V).

  14. Chemical and Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Polyurethane/Polylactide Blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Joanna Brzeska

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Polyether-esterurethanes containing synthetic poly[(R,S-3-hydroxybutyrate] (R,S-PHB and polyoxytetramethylenediol in soft segments and polyesterurethanes with poly(ε-caprolactone and poly[(R,S-3-hydroxybutyrate] were blended with poly([D,L]-lactide (PLA. The products were tested in terms of their oil and water absorption. Oil sorption tests of polyether-esterurethane revealed their higher response in comparison to polyesterurethanes. Blending of polyether-esterurethanes with PLA caused the increase of oil sorption. The highest water sorption was observed for blends of polyether-esterurethane, obtained with 10% of R,S-PHB in soft segments. The samples mass of polyurethanes and their blends were almost not changed after incubation in phosphate buffer and trypsin and lipase solutions. Nevertheless the molecular weight of polymers was significantly reduced after degradation. It was especially visible in case of incubation of samples in phosphate buffer what suggested the chemical hydrolysis of polymer chains. The changes of surface of polyurethanes and their blends, after incubation in both enzymatic solutions, indicated on enzymatic degradation, which had been started despite the lack of mass lost. Polyurethanes and their blends, contained more R,S-PHB in soft segments, were degraded faster.

  15. A blend of Sodium Humate/SLES/Herbal Oils

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yeliz Akyiğit

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available A blend of sodium humate (SH with anionic surfactants such as sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES was prepared by solution mixing at medium of herbal oils at 25, 50 and 75°C. Its miscibility studies were carried out by using physical techniques over an extended range of concentration and composition in buffer solution. In addition, to ascertain the state of miscibility of the blends, they were investigated by using UV-visible spectrophotometer and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR. These values revealed that the blend is miscible when the sodium humate content is more than %60 in the blend at all temperatures. There were no important differences in the characteristics of the blends at different temperatures.It was thought that the mechanism ofthe complex formation is realized by making strong intermolecular interaction like hydrogen bonds between the carbonyl groups in humic acid and hydroxyl groups in fatty acids.

  16. Photonic polymer-blend structures and method for making

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnes, Michael D.

    2004-06-29

    The present invention comprises the formation of photonic polymer-blend structures having tunable optical and mechanical properties. The photonic polymer-blend structures comprise monomer units of spherical microparticles of a polymer-blend material wherein the spherical microparticles have surfaces partially merged with one another in a robust inter-particle bond having a tunable inter-particle separation or bond length sequentially attached in a desired and programmable architecture. The photonic polymer-blend structures of the present invention can be linked by several hundred individual particles sequentially linked to form complex three-dimensional structures or highly ordered two-dimensional arrays of 3D columns with 2D spacing.

  17. Market driven strategy for acquisition of waste acceptance and transportation services for commercial spent fuel in the United States

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lemeshewky, W.; Macaluso, C.; Smith, P.; Teer, B.

    1998-05-01

    The Department of Energy has the responsibility for the shipment of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from commercial reactors to a Federal facility for storage and/or disposal. DOE has developed a strategy for a market driven approach for the acquisition of transportation services and equipment which will maximize the participation of private industry. To implement this strategy, DOE is planning to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the provision of the required services and equipment to accept SNF from the utilities and transport the SNF to a Federal facility. The paper discusses this strategy and describes the RFP

  18. Improving Curriculum through Blended Learning Pedagogy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darojat, Ojat

    2016-01-01

    This paper is a study of blended learning pedagogy in open and distance learning (ODL), involving two universities in Southeast Asia, STOU Thailand and UT Indonesia. The purpose of this study is to understand the issues related to the implementation of blended-learning pedagogy. Qualitative case study was employed to optimize my understanding of…

  19. CURING AND MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF CHLOROSULPHONATED POLYETHYLENE RUBBER BLEND

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jaroslava Budinski-Simendić

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, the curing and mechanical properties of two series of prepared blends, i.e., chlorosulphonated polyethylene (CSM/isobutylene-co-isoprene (IIR rubber blends and chlorosulphonated polyethylene (CSM/chlorinated isobutylene-co-isoprene (CIIR rubber blends were carried out. Blends were prepared using a two-roll mill at a temperature of 40-50 °C. The curing was assessed using a Monsanto oscillating disc rheometer R-100. The process of vulcanization accelerated sulfur of pure rubbers and their blends was carried out in an electrically heated laboratory hydraulic press under a pressure of about 4 MPa and 160 °C. The stress-strain experiments were performed using a tensile tester machine (Zwick 1425. Results indicate that the scorch time, ts2, and optimum cure time, tc90, increase with increasing CSM content in both blends. The value of modulus at 100 and 300% elongation and tensile strength increases with increasing CSM content, whereas elongation at break shows a decreasing trend. The enhancement in mechanical properties was supported by data of crosslink density in these samples obtained from swelling measurement and scanning electron microscopy studies of the rubber blends fractured surfaces

  20. Regional life cycle assessment of soybean derived biodiesel for transportation fleets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xue Xiaobo; Collinge, William O.; Shrake, Scott O.; Bilec, Melissa M.; Landis, Amy E.

    2012-01-01

    Although the life cycle environmental impacts of biofuels have been recently reported, studies that focus on specific regions and use real fleet data for the use phase are still lacking. In Pennsylvania, the Penn Security Fuels Initiative required 2% biodiesel (B2), effective on January 1, 2010, with higher blending levels required in the future if production thresholds are met. This study quantifies the environmental impacts of biodiesel blends to meet increasing regional biodiesel demand. A process life cycle model was developed using data collected from collaboration with Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. For PennDOT, both in-state and out-of-state production scenarios were analyzed to estimate the possible environmental impacts of biodiesel blends. The results show that fertilizer usage in the agricultural phase, soy oil extraction and refining, feedstock and fuel transportation, and fuel combustion in the use phase are main contributors to biodiesel’s life cycle environmental impacts for all blends. Comparing biodiesels with ultra low sulfur diesel, significant environmental tradeoffs exist between global warming potential and eutrophication. For Pennsylvania, an in-state farming and processing preference has the lowest environmental impacts for B5. However, the limited area of farmlands in Pennsylvania may not satisfy the state’s biodiesel needs with higher blending levels. - Highlights: ► This study quantifies the environmental impacts of biodiesel policy in Pennsylvania. ► Fertilizer usage, soy oil refining and fuel combustion are the main contributing stages. ► Environmental tradeoffs exist between global warming and eutrophication impact categories. ► In-state farming and processing has the lowest environmental impact at current production levels.

  1. OIL AND GAS FUTURES AND OPTIONS MARKET

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ante Nosić

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Energy mineral resources markets are represented by complex supply and demand ratios which are depending on different factors such as technical (transport and geopolitical. The main specific of energy markets is represented by an uneven geographic distribution of hydrocarbon reserves and exploration on one hand and energy consumption on the other. World oil markets, although geographically localized, because of specific market trade, represent unique global market with decreasing price difference. Price differences are result of development of a transport possibilities of oil supply. Development of transport routes of natural gas and increasing number of liquefied natural gas terminals in the world give pressure to natural gas market and its integration into global gas market. Integration of regional gas markets into a common European gas market is main energy policy of EU concerning natural gas. On the other hand, there are still significant price differences on some markets (e.g. United States of America - South East Asia. Development of global energy markets is enabled by development of a futures and options contracts of an energy trade which have replaced bilateral contract deals between producers and consumers. Futures contracts are standardized contracts traded on exchanges. Buyer agrees to buy certain quantity of stock for an agreed upon price and with some future delivery date. Option is a contract which gives a buyer the option of the right to buy (or sell, depending on the option an asset at predetermined price and at a later date. Stocks price risk can be managed with the purchase and selling futures and options contracts. This paper deals with futures and options energy markets and their market strategies.

  2. An investigation on radiation crosslinked foam of LDPE/EVA blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Siqin Dalai; Chen Wenxiu

    1995-01-01

    LDPE/EVA blend, irradiated by γ-ray then expansed by heat as a foam material, the EVA content in LDPE/EVA blend was benefited to form gelation. The gel fraction on irradiated LDPE/EVA blend increased with the increasing of its EVA content in a given dose. The gel fraction values of LDPE/EVA blend with 30% EVA content were higher than those of other blends in a same given dose, its gel fraction value was 1.7 times as those values of LDPE without EVA. The gel fractions on LDPE/EVA blend were increased with dose in oxygen, in air and in nitrogen, the formation of gel was limited by oxygen. The oxidation products on foam of LDPE/EVA blend were observed in nitrogen, in air and in oxygen by FTIR spectra. The LDPE/EVA blend system has no protection effect from oxidation comparison with the LDPE system without EVA which has less oxidation product than those without EVA in a same given gel fraction. The gel fraction on foam of LDPE/EVA blend around 25-35%, dose 25 ± 5kGy, irradiated by γ-ray in air or in nitrogen, with higher expansion ratio (19), smaller cell diameter (0.175mm), lower apparent density (0.042g/cm 3 ), higher tensile strength (0.40MPa) and longer elongation at break (290-360%) on foam of LDPE/EVA blend were selected. It was opitimum condition for application in this systems. The relations among gel fraction on LDPE/EVA blend, expansion ratio, apparent density, average cell diameter and mechanical properties of foamed sheet were discussed. (author)

  3. Capitalizing on new opportunities in Canada's emerging midstream : processing, transportation, marketing, NGL, storage : proceedings of a Canadian Institute conference

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1999-01-01

    Text or speaking notes used at a conference to examine the challenges and opportunities facing Canada's midstream petroleum and natural gas industry are contained in this volume. A total of eight 8 papers were presented, focusing on the wide range of business opportunities that do not fit into the core functions of the upstream business (exploration and production), or into the core functions of the downstream business (distribution and retail marketing). One of the biggest opportunities lies in the development of storage facilities for the natural gas industry. Other aspects of the midstream business addressed included processing, transportation, marketing, and natural gas liquids. tabs., figs

  4. A systematic methodology for design of tailor-made blended products

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Yunus, Nor Alafiza Binti; Gernaey, Krist; Woodley, John

    2014-01-01

    A systematic methodology for design of tailor-made blended products has been developed. In tailor-made blended products, one identifies the product needs and matches them by blending different chemicals. The systematic methodology has four main tasks. First, the design problem is defined: the pro......, the methodology is highlighted through two case studies involving gasoline blends and lubricant base oils....

  5. 2012 Vehicle Technologies Market Report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Davis, Stacy Cagle [ORNL; Diegel, Susan W [ORNL; Boundy, Robert Gary [ORNL

    2013-03-01

    The Oak Ridge National Laboratory s Center for Transportation Analysis developed and published the first Vehicle Technologies Market Report in 2008. Three editions of the report have been published since that time. This 2012 report details the major trends in U.S. light vehicle and medium/heavy truck markets as well as the underlying trends that caused them. The opening section on Energy and Economics discusses the role of transportation energy and vehicle markets on a national scale. The following section examines light-duty vehicle use, markets, manufacture, and supply chains. The discussion of medium and heavy trucks offers information on truck sales and fuel use. The technology section offers information on alternative fuel vehicles and infrastructure, and the policy section concludes with information on recent, current, and near-future Federal policies like the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards.

  6. Critical Success Factor for Implementing Vocational Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dewi, K. C.; Ciptayani, P. I.; Surjono, H. D.; Priyanto

    2018-01-01

    Blended learning provides many benefits to the flexibility of time, place and situation constraints. The research’s objectives was describing the factors that determine the successful implementation of blended learning in vocational higher education. The research used a qualitative approach, data collected through observations and interviews by questionnare based on the CSFs indicators refers to TAM and Kliger. Data analysis was inductive method. The result provided an illustration that the success of vocational blended learning implementation was largely determined by the selection of instructional models that are inline with learning achievement target. The effectiveness of blended learning required the existence of policy support, readiness of IT infrastructure. Changing lecturer’s culture by utilizing ICT can also encourage the accelerated process of successful implementation. It can concluded that determinant factor of successful implementation of blended learning in vocational education is determined by teacher’s ability in mastering the pedagogical knowledge of designing instructional models.

  7. IMPACT OF ROAD TRANSPORT ON AGRICULTURAL ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Osondu

    2012-03-09

    Mar 9, 2012 ... major means of transporting agricultural produce from the farms to the markets as well as to ... methods were both employed to analyze the data gathered. ... Keywords: Rural Development, Marketing, Transportation, Agricultural Production & Road. Network ... traffic over short, medium and long distances.

  8. HEU to LEU conversion and blending facility: Oxide blending alternative to produce LEU oxide for commercial use

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1995-09-01

    The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is examining options for the disposition of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials. Disposition is a process of use or disposal of material that results in the material being converted to a form that is substantially and inherently more proliferation-resistant than the original form. Examining options for increasing the proliferation resistance of highly enriched uranium (HEU) is part of this effort. This document provides data to be used in the environmental impact analysis for the oxide blending HEU disposition option. This option provides for a yearly HEU throughput of 1 0 metric tons (MT) of uranium metal with an average U235 assay of 50% blended with 165 MT of natural assay triuranium octoxide (U 3 O 8 ) per year to produce 177 MT of 4% U235 assay U 3 O 8 , for LWR fuel. Since HEU exists in a variety of forms and not necessarily in the form to be blended, worst case scenarios for preprocessing prior to blending will be assumed for HEU feed streams

  9. Performance and emission characteristics of double biodiesel blends with diesel

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kuthalingam Arun Balasubramanian

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Recent research on biodiesel focused on performance of single biodiesel and its blends with diesel. The present work aims to investigate the possibilities of the application of mixtures of two biodiesel and its blends with diesel as a fuel for diesel engines. The combinations of Pongamia pinnata biodiesel, Mustard oil biodiesel along with diesel (PMD and combinations of Cotton seed biodiesel, Pongamia pinnata biodiesel along with diesel (CPD are taken for the experimental analysis. Experiments are conducted using a single cylinder direct-injection diesel engine with different loads at rated 3000 rpm. The engine characteristics of the two sets of double biodiesel blends are compared. For the maximum load, the value of Specific Fuel consumption and thermal efficiency of CPD-1 blend (10:10:80 is close to the diesel values. CPD blends give better engine characteristics than PMD blends. The blends of CPD are suitable alternative fuel for diesel in stationary/agricultural diesel engines.

  10. A robust quantitative near infrared modeling approach for blend monitoring.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mohan, Shikhar; Momose, Wataru; Katz, Jeffrey M; Hossain, Md Nayeem; Velez, Natasha; Drennen, James K; Anderson, Carl A

    2018-01-30

    This study demonstrates a material sparing Near-Infrared modeling approach for powder blend monitoring. In this new approach, gram scale powder mixtures are subjected to compression loads to simulate the effect of scale using an Instron universal testing system. Models prepared by the new method development approach (small-scale method) and by a traditional method development (blender-scale method) were compared by simultaneously monitoring a 1kg batch size blend run. Both models demonstrated similar model performance. The small-scale method strategy significantly reduces the total resources expended to develop Near-Infrared calibration models for on-line blend monitoring. Further, this development approach does not require the actual equipment (i.e., blender) to which the method will be applied, only a similar optical interface. Thus, a robust on-line blend monitoring method can be fully developed before any large-scale blending experiment is viable, allowing the blend method to be used during scale-up and blend development trials. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  11. Lifecycle optimized ethanol-gasoline blends for turbocharged engines

    KAUST Repository

    Zhang, Bo

    2016-08-16

    This study presents a lifecycle (well-to-wheel) analysis to determine the CO2 emissions associated with ethanol blended gasoline in optimized turbocharged engines. This study provides a more accurate assessment on the best-achievable CO2 emission of ethanol blended gasoline mixtures in future engines. The optimal fuel blend (lowest CO2 emitting fuel) is identified. A range of gasoline fuels is studied, containing different ethanol volume percentages (E0–E40), research octane numbers (RON, 92–105), and octane sensitivities (8.5–15.5). Sugarcane-based and cellulosic ethanol-blended gasolines are shown to be effective in reducing lifecycle CO2 emission, while corn-based ethanol is not as effective. A refinery simulation of production emission was utilized, and combined with vehicle fuel consumption modeling to determine the lifecycle CO2 emissions associated with ethanol-blended gasoline in turbocharged engines. The critical parameters studied, and related to blended fuel lifecycle CO2 emissions, are ethanol content, research octane number, and octane sensitivity. The lowest-emitting blended fuel had an ethanol content of 32 vol%, RON of 105, and octane sensitivity of 15.5; resulting in a CO2 reduction of 7.1%, compared to the reference gasoline fuel and engine technology. The advantage of ethanol addition is greatest on a per unit basis at low concentrations. Finally, this study shows that engine-downsizing technology can yield an additional CO2 reduction of up to 25.5% in a two-stage downsized turbocharged engine burning the optimum sugarcane-based fuel blend. The social cost savings in the USA, from the CO2 reduction, is estimated to be as much as $187 billion/year. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd

  12. Characterization of herbal powder blends homogeneity using near-infrared spectroscopy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wenlong Li

    2014-11-01

    Full Text Available Homogeneity of powder blend is essential to obtain uniform contents for the tablets and capsules. Near-infrared (NIR spectroscopy with fiber-optic probe was used as an on-line technique for monitoring the homogeneity of pharmaceutical blend during the blending process instead of the traditional techniques, such as high performance liquid chromatograph (HPLC method. In this paper NIRS with a SabIR diffuse reflectance fiber-optic probe was used to monitor the blending process of coptis powder and lactose (excipient with different contents, and further qualitative methods, like similarity, moving block of standard deviation and mean square were used for calculation purposes with the collected spectra after the pretreatment of multiplicative signal correction (MSC and second derivative. Correlation spectrum was used for the wavelength selection. Four different coptis were blended with lactose separately to validate the proposed method, and the blending process of "liu wei di huang" pill was also simulated in bottles to verify this method on multiple herbal blends. The overall results suggest that NIRS is a simple, effective and noninvasive technique can be successfully applied to the determination of homogeneity in the herbal blend.

  13. Transitioning to Blended Learning: Understanding Student and Faculty Perceptions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Napier, Nannette P.; Dekhane, Sonal; Smith, Stella

    2011-01-01

    This paper describes the conversion of an introductory computing course to the blended learning model at a small, public liberal arts college. Blended learning significantly reduces face-to-face instruction by incorporating rich, online learning experiences. To assess the impact of blended learning on students, survey data was collected at the…

  14. On the crystallization behavior of syndiotactic-b-atactic polystyrene stereodiblock copolymers, atactic/syndiotactic polystyrene blends, and aPS/sPS blends modified with sPS-b-aPS

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Annunziata, Liana, E-mail: liana.annunziatta@univ-rennes1.fr [Organométalliques et Catalyse, UMR 6226 Sciences Chimiques CNRS, Université de Rennes 1, Campus de Beaulieu, F-35042 Rennes Cedex (France); Monasse, Bernard, E-mail: bernard.monasse@mines-paristech.fr [Mines-ParisTech, CEMEF, Centre de Mise en Forme des Matériaux, UMR CNRS 7635, Sophia Antipolis (France); Rizzo, Paola; Guerra, Gaetano [Dipartimento di Chimica e Biologia, Università degli studi di Salerno, Via Ponte don Melillo, I-84084 Fisciano, SA (Italy); Duc, Michel [Total Petrochemicals Research Feluy, Zone Industrielle Feluy C, B-7181 Seneffe (Belgium); Carpentier, Jean-François, E-mail: jean-francois.carpentier@univ-rennes1.fr [Organométalliques et Catalyse, UMR 6226 Sciences Chimiques CNRS, Université de Rennes 1, Campus de Beaulieu, F-35042 Rennes Cedex (France)

    2013-09-16

    Crystallization and morphological features of syndiotactic-b-atactic polystyrene stereodiblock copolymers (sPS-b-aPS), atactic/syndiotactic polystyrene blends (aPS/sPS), and aPS/sPS blends modified with sPS-b-aPS, with different compositions in aPS and sPS, have been investigated using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), polarized light optical microscopy (POM) and wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXRD) techniques. For comparative purposes, the properties of parent pristine sPS samples were also studied. WAXRD analyses revealed for all the samples, independently from their composition (aPS/sPS ratio) and structure (blends, block copolymers, blends modified with block copolymers), the same polymorphic β form of sPS. The molecular weight of aPS and sPS showed opposite effects on the crystallization of 50:50 aPS/sPS blends: the lower the molecular weight of aPS, the slower the crystallization while the lower the molecular weight of sPS, the faster the crystallization. DSC studies performed under both isothermal and non-isothermal conditions, independently confirmed by POM studies, led to a clear trend for the crystallization rate at a given sPS/aPS ratio (ca. 50:50 and 20:80): sPS homopolymers > sPS-b-aPS block copolymers ∼sPS/aPS blends modified with sPS-b-aPS copolymers > sPS/aPS blends. Interestingly, sPS-b-aPS block copolymers not only crystallized faster than blends, but also affected positively the crystallization behavior of blends. At 50:50 sPS/aPS ratio, blends (Blend-2), block copolymers (Cop-1) and blends modified with block copolymers (Blend-2-mod) crystallized via spherulitic crystalline growth controlled by an interfacial process. In all cases, an instantaneous nucleation was observed. The density of nuclei in block copolymers (160,000−190,000 nuclei mm{sup −3}) was always higher than that in blends and modified blends (30,000−60,000 nuclei mm{sup −3}), even for quite different sPS/aPS ratio. At 20:80 sPS/aPS ratio, the block copolymers

  15. Low-Carbon Natural Gas for Transportation: Well-to-Wheels Emissions and Potential Market Assessment in California

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Penev, Michael [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Melaina, Marc [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Bush, Brian [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Muratori, Matteo [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Warner, Ethan [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Chen, Yuche [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

    2016-12-01

    This report improves on the understanding of the long-term technology potential of low-carbon natural gas (LCNG) supply pathways by exploring transportation market adoption potential through 2035 in California. Techno-economic assessments of each pathway are developed to compare the capacity, cost, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of select LCNG production pathways. The study analyzes the use of fuel from these pathways in light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicle applications. Economic and life-cycle GHG emissions analysis suggest that landfill gas resources are an attractive and relatively abundant resource in terms of cost and GHG reduction potential, followed by waste water treatment plants and biomass with gasification and methanation. Total LCNG production potential is on the order of total natural gas demand anticipated in a success scenario for future natural gas vehicle adoption by 2035 across light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicle markets (110 trillion Btu/year).

  16. A Novel Method of Extraction of Blend Component Structure from SANS Measurements of Homopolymer Bimodal Blends.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smerdova, Olga; Graham, Richard S; Gasser, Urs; Hutchings, Lian R; De Focatiis, Davide S A

    2014-05-01

    A new method is presented for the extraction of single-chain form factors and interchain interference functions from a range of small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments on bimodal homopolymer blends. The method requires a minimum of three blends, made up of hydrogenated and deuterated components with matched degree of polymerization at two different chain lengths, but with carefully varying deuteration levels. The method is validated through an experimental study on polystyrene homopolymer bimodal blends with [Formula: see text]. By fitting Debye functions to the structure factors, it is shown that there is good agreement between the molar mass of the components obtained from SANS and from chromatography. The extraction method also enables, for the first time, interchain scattering functions to be produced for scattering between chains of different lengths. [Formula: see text].

  17. Effect of irradiation on the prevulcanized latex/low nitrosamines latex blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ibrahim, Pairu; Zin, Wan Manshol Wan [Malaysian Nuclear Agency, 43000 kajang, Selangor (Malaysia); Daik, Rusli [Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia,43600 bangi, Selangor (Malaysia)

    2015-09-25

    Radiation Prevulcanized Natural Rubber Latex (RVNRL) was blended with Low Nitrosamines Latex (LNL) at different composition ratio. Methyl Metachrylate (MMA) was added for grafting onto the blended latex. Blended latex was subjected to gamma irradiation at various doses up to 8kGy. The mechanical properties and FTIR analysis were investigated as a function of the blended composition and irradiation dose. It was found that blending at specific ratio and gamma irradiation at specific dose led to significant improvement on the properties of the latex. The optimum mechanical properties was attained at a total blending ratio of 70% RVNRL and 30% of LNL.

  18. Linear polarizers based on oriented polymer blends

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Jagt, H.J.B.; Dirix, Y.J.L.; Hikmet, R.A.M.; Bastiaansen, C.W.M.

    1998-01-01

    Linear sheet polarizers based on the anisotropic scattering of light by drawn polymer blends are introduced here. The proper selection of materials and processing conditions for the production of large-area, flexible films of phase-segregated polymer blends suitable for polarization applications are

  19. Effect of noise in blending and deblending

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Berkhout, A.J.; Blacquière, G.

    2013-01-01

    If simultaneous shooting is carried out by incoherent source arrays, being the condition of blended acquisition, the deblending process generates shot records with a very low residual interference (blending noise). We found, theoretically and numerically, that deblended shot records had a better

  20. Improvement of biodiesel methanol blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Y. Datta Bharadwaz

    2016-06-01

    Full Text Available The main objective of this work was to improve the performance of biodiesel–methanol blends in a VCR engine by using optimized engine parameters. For optimization of the engine, operational parameters such as compression ratio, fuel blend, and load are taken as factors, whereas performance parameters such as brake thermal efficiency (Bth and brake specific fuel consumption (Bsfc and emission parameters such as carbon monoxide (CO, unburnt hydrocarbons (HC, Nitric oxides (NOx and smoke are taken as responses. Experimentation is carried out as per the design of experiments of the response surface methodology. Optimization of engine operational parameters is carried out using Derringers Desirability approach. From the results obtained it is inferred that the VCR engine has maximum performance and minimum emissions at 18 compression ratio, 5% fuel blend and at 9.03 kg of load. At this optimized operating conditions of the engine the responses such as brake thermal efficiency, brake specific fuel consumption, carbon monoxide, unburnt hydrocarbons, nitric oxide, and smoke are found to be 31.95%, 0.37 kg/kW h, 0.036%, 5 ppm, 531.23 ppm and 15.35% respectively. It is finally observed from the mathematical models and experimental data that biodiesel methanol blends have maximum efficiency and minimum emissions at optimized engine parameters.

  1. effect of effect of blend ratio on blend ratio on characteristics

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    User

    properties, cassava-soybean composite, wheat, bread, blend ratio ... dily growing population, an in eating and ... thermodynamic variables can produce an effect on .... these conditions. ..... Ragaee, S. et al., Pasting properties of starch and.

  2. Improved Mechanical Properties of Compatibilized Polypropylene/Polyamide-12 Blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nora Aranburu

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Compatibilized blends of polypropylene (PP and polyamide-12 (PA12 as a second component were obtained by direct injection molding having first added 20% maleic anhydride-modified copolymer (PP-g-MA to the PP, which produced partially grafted PP (gPP. A nucleating effect of the PA12 took place on the cooling crystallization of the gPP, and a second crystallization peak of the gPP appeared in the PA12-rich blends, indicating changes in the crystalline morphology. There was a slight drop in the PA12 crystallinity of the compatible blends, whereas the crystallinity of the gPP increased significantly in the PA12-rich blends. The overall reduction in the dispersed phase particle size together with the clear increase in ductility when gPP was used instead of PP proved that compatibilization occurred. Young’s modulus of the blends showed synergistic behavior. This is proposed to be both due to a change in the crystalline morphology of the blends on the one hand and, on the other, in the PA12-rich blends, to the clear increase in the crystallinity of the gPP phase, which may, in turn, have been responsible for the increase in its continuity and its contribution to the modulus.

  3. The Use of a Consumer Survey to Determine the Relevant Market – Case Study for public transport between Prague and Most

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kleinová Eliška

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to define a relevant market in the passenger transportation industry for the route between Prague and Most. A rising number of bus companies operating on this particular market suggests competition pressures. On the basis of European Commission legislation and its common practice we apply a demand-side substitution analysis in the form of the so called SSNIP test. Data for the empirical analysis were collected by means of a customer survey, which captured reactions to a 10% increase in the price of purchased tickets. The survey outcomes were then used to calculate an own price elasticity of demand and to carry out a critical loss analysis in order to define the relevant market.

  4. Does Market Remoteness Matter?

    OpenAIRE

    Moctar, Ndiaye; Elodie, Maitre d’Hôtel; Tristan, Le Cotty

    2015-01-01

    This paper addresses the role of market remoteness in explaining maize price volatility in Burkina Faso. A model of price formation is introduced to demonstrate formally that transport costs between urban and rural markets exacerbate maize price volatility. Empirical support is provided to the proposition by exploring an unusually rich data set of monthly maize price series across 28 markets over 2004-13. The methodology relies on an autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity model to inve...

  5. Blended e-learning Design: Discussion of Cultural Issues

    OpenAIRE

    Ahmed A Al-Hunaiyyan; Salah AL-Sharhan; Nabeel Al-Huwail

    2008-01-01

    Blended e-learning is becoming an educational issue especially with the new development of e-learning technology and globalization. Educators as the question: can we design these systems to accommodate different cultural groups and various learning strategies. This paper addresses some design issues when selecting a blended e-learning approach; it discusses some cultural elements that affect the design of blended e-learning. The paper also explores issues related to learning design, then emph...

  6. PAIRWISE BLENDING OF HIGH LEVEL WASTE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    CERTA, P.J.

    2006-01-01

    The primary objective of this study is to demonstrate a mission scenario that uses pairwise and incidental blending of high level waste (HLW) to reduce the total mass of HLW glass. Secondary objectives include understanding how recent refinements to the tank waste inventory and solubility assumptions affect the mass of HLW glass and how logistical constraints may affect the efficacy of HLW blending

  7. Synthesizing optimal waste blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Narayan, V.; Diwekar, W.M.; Hoza, M.

    1996-01-01

    Vitrification of tank wastes to form glass is a technique that will be used for the disposal of high-level waste at Hanford. Process and storage economics show that minimizing the total number of glass logs produced is the key to keeping cost as low as possible. The amount of glass produced can be reduced by blending of the wastes. The optimal way to combine the tanks to minimize the vole of glass can be determined from a discrete blend calculation. However, this problem results in a combinatorial explosion as the number of tanks increases. Moreover, the property constraints make this problem highly nonconvex where many algorithms get trapped in local minima. In this paper the authors examine the use of different combinatorial optimization approaches to solve this problem. A two-stage approach using a combination of simulated annealing and nonlinear programming (NLP) is developed. The results of different methods such as the heuristics approach based on human knowledge and judgment, the mixed integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) approach with GAMS, and branch and bound with lower bound derived from the structure of the given blending problem are compared with this coupled simulated annealing and NLP approach

  8. Blended Learning or E-learning?

    OpenAIRE

    Tayebinik, Maryam; Puteh, Marlia

    2013-01-01

    ICT or Information and Communication Technology has pervaded the fields of education.In recent years the term e-learning has emerged as a result of the integration of ICT in the education fields. Following the application this technology into teaching, some pitfalls have been identified and this have led to the Blended learning phenomenon.However the preference on this new method has been debated quite extensively.The aim of this paper is to investigate the advantages of blended learning over...

  9. Properties, performance, and applications of biofuel blends: a review

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Husam Al-Mashhadani

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel derived from living plants or animal matter can be used directly in their neat forms or as blends with their fossil counterparts in internal combustion engines. Although the properties and performance of neat biofuels have been extensively reported, this is not the case for many blends. The purpose of this review is to analyze different forms of biofuel blends that are under research and development comparing their utility and performance in the two primary classes of engines, i.e., spark ignition and compression ignition engines. The fuel properties, performance and emission characteristics, advantages and disadvantages of various fuel blends are compared and discussed. The analysis reveals certain blends possess better overall fuel properties and yield better overall performance than the neat or fossil forms.

  10. Investigating the compression ignition combustion of multiple biodiesel/ULSD (ultra-low sulfur diesel) blends via common-rail injection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mangus, Michael; Kiani, Farshid; Mattson, Jonathan; Tabakh, Daniel; Petka, James; Depcik, Christopher; Peltier, Edward; Stagg-Williams, Susan

    2015-01-01

    Researchers across the globe are searching for energy sources to replace the petroleum-based fuels used by the transportation sector. A fuel of particular interest is biodiesel, produced from a diverse variety of feedstock oils with differing fuel properties that alter the operation and emissions of the engines using them. As biodiesel may be mixed with petroleum-based diesel, the fuel being used by a diesel engine may vary by both biodiesel blend percentage and source. Therefore, the influence of biodiesel properties as a function of blend is important to understand. In this study, four biodiesels, produced from palm, jatropha, soybean, and beef tallow, are tested with blends of petroleum diesel at ratios of 5%, 10%, 20%, and 50% biodiesel content. The results are compared with tests of neat diesel and each biodiesel. Using electronic injection, timing is modulated to normalize combustion phasing for all fuels tested to directly investigate the effects of biodiesel on combustion. Results indicate that fuel viscosity, energy content, and molecular structure have distinct influences on combustion that must be considered for engine calibration. When adjusted for combustion timing, biodiesel blends also showed a general decrease in NO x emissions compared to ultra-low sulfur diesel. - Highlights: • Biodiesel injection timing is adjusted to remove cetane number effect on combustion. • When combustion is normalized, biodiesel NO x emissions are lower than those of ULSD. • Four distinct biodiesels used in blends from 0% to 100% biodiesel/ULSD fraction. • Correlating fuel properties to combustion/emissions is useful for engine calibration

  11. The Literature Landscape of Blended Learning in Higher Education: The Need for Better Understanding of Academic Blended Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Torrisi-Steele, Geraldine; Drew, Steve

    2013-01-01

    If we are to realise the potential of blended learning in higher education, then further research into academic practice and relevant academic development is essential. Our review of literature on blended learning in higher education reveals an interesting scholarship landscape which, when described in detail, pointedly directs attention to the…

  12. Phase Behavior, Thermal Stability and Rheological Properties of PPEK/PC Blends

    Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

    2002-01-01

    Phase behavior, thermal stability and rheological properties of the blends of poly(phthalazinone ether ketone) (PPEK)with bisphenol-A polycarbonate (PC) prepared by solution coprecipitation were studied using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Frourier-Transform IR spectroscopy (FT-IR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and capillary rheometer. The DSC results indicated that PPEK/PC blends are almost immiscible in full compositions. FT-IR investigation showed that there were no apparent specific interactions between the constituent polymers. The blends keep excellent thermal stability and the addition of PC degrades the thermal stability of blends to some degree. The thermal degradation processes of the blends are much similar to that of PC. The studies on rheological properties of blends show that blending PPEK with PC is beneficial to reducing the melt viscosity and improving the appearance of PPEK.

  13. Phosphor blends for high-CRI fluorescent lamps

    Science.gov (United States)

    Setlur, Anant Achyut [Niskayuna, NY; Srivastava, Alok Mani [Niskayuna, NY; Comanzo, Holly Ann [Niskayuna, NY; Manivannan, Venkatesan [Clifton Park, NY; Beers, William Winder [Chesterland, OH; Toth, Katalin [Pomaz, HU; Balazs, Laszlo D [Budapest, HU

    2008-06-24

    A phosphor blend comprises at least two phosphors each selected from one of the groups of phosphors that absorb UV electromagnetic radiation and emit in a region of visible light. The phosphor blend can be applied to a discharge gas radiation source to produce light sources having high color rendering index. A phosphor blend is advantageously includes the phosphor (Tb,Y,LuLa,Gd).sub.x(Al,Ga).sub.yO.sub.12:Ce.sup.3+, wherein x is in the range from about 2.8 to and including 3 and y is in the range from about 4 to and including 5.

  14. An Economic Model of Brazil’s Ethanol-Sugar Markets and Impacts of Fuel Policies

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Drabik, D.; Gorter, de H.; Just, D.R.; Timilsina, G.R.

    2014-01-01

    We develop an economic model of flex plants, export demands and two domestic fuel demand curves: E25, a 25 percent blend of ethanol with gasoline consumed by conventional cars, and E100, ethanol consumed only by flex cars. This allows us to analyze the market impacts of specific policies, namely the

  15. Presentation and exhibition activities for promoting theexportof transport services

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Darya Vladimirovna Nesterova

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available Development of presentation and exhibition activities is considered as an important factor in providing new competitive advantages at the strategic markets for exporting of transportation services. A specific role for exhibition activities as a factor to overcome market failures arose from imperfect information and incomplete markets is displayed. Exhibitions are considered as a true reflection of most market parameters, as a means to get correct information concerning market capacity and its borders, as an instrument to access to new markets. At the firm level presentation and branding activities should be considered as a modern technology (especially it concerns Russian companies which provide to hold up already existed markets and to conquer new ones. Presentation and branding activities are an effective technology to promote company trade-mark, competitive advantages for market demand increasing. Comparative analysis of the main exhibitions on transport and logistics issues is fulfilled on the data basecollected by authors. Data observes geographical distribution of transport exhibition and exhibition facilities development at several regions for the last years. The analyses allow to revealing a geographical structure of the exhibitions and its distribution by type of transport. The most promising and economically favorable exhibition areas for the promotion of Russian transport services are shown.

  16. France liberalizes its power supply market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    2004-01-01

    The French market of power supply to companies is now free. This means that Electricite de France (EdF), the first world electric utility now has competitors in its domestic market. This is an important challenge for EdF because 3 millions of clients (70% of the French power consumption) are now concerned by the opening of the power market. According to A. Merlin, head of the energy transportation network (RTE), the opening of the market does not increase the risk of black-out, it just makes the operation of power networks more complex. The implementation of a single power transportation company (RTE) simplifies the mastery of networks safety but the development of investments is necessary to ensure the maintenance of 400 kV power lines. A comparison of the situation of power market liberalization is made for 6 countries (Germany, UK, Spain, US, Netherlands and Italy). Short paper. (J.S.)

  17. Performance Testing of Diesel Engine using Cardanol-Kerosene oil blend

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ravindra

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Awareness of environmental pollution and fossil fuel depletion has necessitated the use of biofuels in engines which have a relatively cleaner emissions. Cardanol is a biofuel, abundantly available in India, which is a by-product of cashew processing industries. In this study performance of raw Cardanol blended with kerosene has been tested in diesel engine. Volumetric blend BK30 (30% kerosene and 70% Cardanol has been used for the test. The properties like flash point, viscosity and calorific value of the blend have been determined. The test was carried out in four stroke diesel engine connected with an eddy current dynamometer. Performance of the engine has been analysed by finding the brake specific fuel consumption (BSFC and brake thermal efficiency (BTE. The results showed that the brake thermal efficiency of the blend is 29.87%, with less CO and smoke emission compared to diesel. The results were also compared with the performance of Cardanol diesel blend and Cardanol camphor oil blend, which were already tested in diesel engines by other researchers. Earlier research work reveals that the blend of 30% camphor oil and 70% Cardanol performs very closer to diesel fuel with a thermal efficiency of 29.1%. Similarly, higher brake thermal efficiency was obtained for 20% Cardanol and 80% diesel blend.

  18. Ignition characteristics of coal blends in an entrained flow furnace

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    J. Faundez; B. Arias; F. Rubiera; A. Arenillas; X. Garcia; A.L. Gordon; J.J. Pis [Universidad de Concepcion, Concepcion (Chile)

    2007-09-15

    Ignition tests were carried out on blends of three coals of different rank - subbituminous, high volatile and low volatile bituminous - in two entrained flow reactors. The ignition temperatures were determined from the gas evolution profiles (CO, CO{sub 2}, NO, O{sub 2}), while the mechanism of ignition was elucidated from these profiles and corroborated by high-speed video recording. Under the experimental conditions of high carbon loading, clear interactive effects were observed for all the blends. Ignition of the lower rank coals (subbituminous, high volatile bituminous) enhanced the ignition of the higher rank coal (low volatile bituminous) in the blends. The ignition temperatures of the blends of the low rank coals (subbituminous-high volatile bituminous) were additive. However, for the rest of the blends the ignition temperatures were always closer to the lower rank coal in the blend. 21 refs., 8 figs.

  19. How can natural gas markets be competitively organized

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Funk, C.

    1992-01-01

    In this paper it will be discussed how to most effectively give room to competitive forces in natural gas markets, given the traditional merchant pipeline as point of departure. Alternative models of organizing the market will be reviewed: we first consider decreasing barriers to entry and then analyze advantages and drawbacks of a third party access system. In this context different forms of implementing a competitive market for transportation capacity and coordinating it with gas trade are discussed, among them a simultaneous auction of gas and transmission capacity. Finally a hub system of point markets in conjunction with third party access will be suggested to allow for competitive markets for gas and transportation service. 33 refs

  20. Physico-Chemical, Microbiological Profiles of Blends of Tea and ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Sample of tea obtained from Mambilla, Nigeria highland was blended with mistletoe - a known medicinal parasitic plant of cocoa. The ratios of the blends were Tea(T)/Mistletoe (M) 90:10 10:90, 75:25, 25:75, and 50:50 while ordinary tea and mistletoes served as control samples. Chemical analyses of blends were done ...

  1. Property Analysis of Ethanol--Natural Gasoline--BOB Blends to Make Flex Fuel

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Alleman, Teresa L. [National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Yanowitz, Janet [Ecoengineering, Inc., Sharonville, OH (United States)

    2016-11-01

    Ten natural gasolines were analyzed for a wide range of properties, including Reid vapor pressure (RVP), benzene, sulfur, distillation, stability, metals, and aromatic content, to determine their quality. Benzene and sulfur content were sufficiently low in all but one of the samples that they could be blended without further upgrading. Four of these samples were selected to blend with blendstock for oxygenate blending (BOB) and ethanol to produce E51, E70, and E83 blends, targeting 7.8 and 9.0-psi finished fuels. The volume of each component in the blend was estimated using the Reddy model, with the assumption that the BOB and natural gasoline blend linearly and behave as a single component in the model calculations. Results show that the Reddy model adequately predicts the RVP of the finished blend for E51 and E70, but significantly underpredicts the RVP of E83 blends by nearly 2 psi. It is hypothesized that the underprediction is a function of the very low aromatic content of the E83 blends, even compared to the E51 and E70 blends.

  2. Thermal Degradation and Kinetic Parameters of Polyester and Poly(Lactic Acid) Blends Used in Shopping Bags in Brazil

    OpenAIRE

    Araújo Junior, J.; Magalhães, D; Oliveira, N. A.; Wiebeck, Helio; Matos, J. R.

    2014-01-01

    In this work, synthetic polyester and poly(lactic acid) blends used as biodegradable shopping plastic bags were studied, together with control samples of polyethylene containing pro-oxidant catalysts (called “oxidegradable bags” in the market). Samples of these materials were weighed and buried in simulated soil for 3 months, and then studied by Thermal Analysis including a non-isothermal kinetic analysis. It was observed that although there was no significant mass loss in the period of the a...

  3. Market mechanisms and customer preferences

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Boethius, O. [Volvo Car Corporation, Goeteborg (Sweden)

    1995-12-31

    The paper relates to market mechanisms and customer preferences regarding alternative fuels for road transports. Globally, road transports are to 99% dependent on crude oil. According to the author, one third of the crude oil is consumed for road transports. The use of natural gas as an alternative fuel is discussed in this connection

  4. Intermediate Ethanol Blends Catalyst Durability Program

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    West, Brian H; Sluder, Scott; Knoll, Keith; Orban, John; Feng, Jingyu

    2012-02-01

    In the summer of 2007, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) initiated a test program to evaluate the potential impacts of intermediate ethanol blends (also known as mid-level blends) on legacy vehicles and other engines. The purpose of the test program was to develop information important to assessing the viability of using intermediate blends as a contributor to meeting national goals for the use of renewable fuels. Through a wide range of experimental activities, DOE is evaluating the effects of E15 and E20 - gasoline blended with 15% and 20% ethanol - on tailpipe and evaporative emissions, catalyst and engine durability, vehicle driveability, engine operability, and vehicle and engine materials. This report provides the results of the catalyst durability study, a substantial part of the overall test program. Results from additional projects will be reported separately. The principal purpose of the catalyst durability study was to investigate the effects of adding up to 20% ethanol to gasoline on the durability of catalysts and other aspects of the emissions control systems of vehicles. Section 1 provides further information about the purpose and context of the study. Section 2 describes the experimental approach for the test program, including vehicle selection, aging and emissions test cycle, fuel selection, and data handling and analysis. Section 3 summarizes the effects of the ethanol blends on emissions and fuel economy of the test vehicles. Section 4 summarizes notable unscheduled maintenance and testing issues experienced during the program. The appendixes provide additional detail about the statistical models used in the analysis, detailed statistical analyses, and detailed vehicle specifications.

  5. Effect of edible co-polymers coatings using γ-irradiation on Hyani date fruit behavior during marketing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    El-Dein, Asmaa Ezz; Khozemy, Ehab E; Farag, Serag A; Abd El-Hamed, N; Dosoukey, I M

    2018-05-24

    The present work introduces a preparation of coating fruits film from natural biodegradable materials with evaluation of its efficiency in keeping the quality of fresh date fruits. Triple blend (Tb) which involved PVA, chitosan (Cs) and tannic (TA) acids was studied in preservation of Rutab (Hyani) date. Antimicrobial characters besides decay of fruits during a cold storage were determined. The blend solutions were exposed to the γ-irradiation (5.0 to 20 kGy) before casting or use. The effects of polymer composition and irradiation dose on the mechanical and thermo-mechanical properties were studied. The obtained results showed that γ-irradiation and the addition of tannic acid (TA) increased the mechanical properties of the films and the shelf-life of Rutab (Hyani) date during the marketing period (12 ± 2 °C, 98%, RH) from one week to one month of marketing period for consumers with accepted freshness and quality. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Will EU Biofuel Policies affect Global Agricultural Markets?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Banse, M.; Vvan Meijl, H.; Tabeau, A.; Woltjer, G.

    2008-04-01

    This paper assesses the global and sectoral implications of the European Union Biofuels Directive (BFD) in a multi-region computable general equilibrium framework with endogenous determination of land supply. The results show that, without mandatory blending policies or subsidies to stimulate the use of biofuel crops in the petroleum sector, the targets of the BFD will not be met in 2010 and 2020. With a mandatory blending policy, the enhanced demand for biofuel crops has a strong impact on agriculture at the global and European levels. The additional demand from the energy sector leads to an increase in global land use and, ultimately, a decrease in biodiversity. The development, on the other hand, might slow or reverse the long-term process of declining real agricultural prices. Moreover, assuming a further liberalization of the European agricultural market imports of biofuels are expected to increase to more than 50% of the total biofuel demand in Europe

  7. Development of a special topics course on intelligent transportation systems for the Zachry Department of Civil Engineering of Texas A&M University.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-08-31

    With Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), engineers and system integrators blend emerging : detection/surveillance, communications, and computer technologies with transportation management and : control concepts to improve the safety and mobilit...

  8. Model for blended learning i de tekniske uddannelser

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Ringtved, Ulla Lunde; Leth, Lilli-Ann Thomsen; Olsen, Frank

    2012-01-01

    Anvendelse af blended learning i de tekniske uddannelser i UCN med udgangspunkt i bygningskonstruktøruddannelsen......Anvendelse af blended learning i de tekniske uddannelser i UCN med udgangspunkt i bygningskonstruktøruddannelsen...

  9. Utilization of waste expanded polystyrene: Blends with silica-filled natural rubber

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sekharan, Renju Vaikathusseril; Abraham, Beena Thattekatt; Thachil, Eby Thomas

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► Tensile strength of the silica filled blend is comparable with silica filled NR. ► Modulus and compression set were the best for compatibilized NR/EPS blends. ► Tear strength has increased by 25% for compatibilized blends. ► A 5% waste EPS can be incorporated into NR compounds as a waste management measure. -- Abstract: Expanded polystyrene (EPS) constitutes a considerable part of thermoplastic waste in the environment in terms of volume. In this study, this waste material has been utilized for blending with silica-reinforced natural rubber (NR). The NR/EPS (35/5) blends were prepared by melt mixing in a Brabender Plasticorder. Since NR and EPS are incompatible and immiscible a method has been devised to improve compatibility. For this, EPS and NR were initially grafted with maleic anhydride (MA) using dicumyl peroxide (DCP) to give a graft copolymer. Grafting was confirmed by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy. This grafted blend was subsequently blended with more of NR during mill compounding. Morphological studies using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) showed better dispersion of EPS in the compatibilized blend compared to the noncompatibilized blend. By this technique, the tensile strength, elongation at break, modulus, tear strength, compression set and hardness of the blend were found to be either at par with or better than that of virgin silica filled NR compound. It is also noted that the thermal properties of the blends are equivalent with that of virgin NR. The study establishes the potential of this method for utilising waste EPS.

  10. Mechanical and thermal properties of physically-blended-plastic films

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abu Issa, M. S.

    1983-10-01

    Low density polyethylene (LDPE) and isotactic polypropylene (PP) blend were produced in film form and were characterized by a number of techniques such as wide-angle x-ray diffraction (WAXD), differential thermal analysis (DTA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and instron tensile testing. Results of WAXD and DTA showed conclusively that the two components in the blend are incompatible. SEM micrographs indicated that the 60/40 and 40/60 PP/PE blends show approximately fine homogeneous dispersion of the minor component into the matrix of the major component. The mechanical properties of the blend films improved with respect to the PE homo polymer. The improvement was more remarkable with the increase of the PP component in the blend. Results obtained in this work were explained in terms of crystallinity and the crystallite orientation. 28 refs., 29 figs., 5 tabs. (A.M.H.)

  11. Perception of blended learning inventory (POBLI) - development and validation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lassesen, Berit; Rossen, Dorte Sidelmann; Stenalt, Maria Hvid

    and explore how the use of blended learning affects teachers’ approaches to teaching and students’ approaches to learning in higher education. So far, there has been relatively limited research on approaches to teaching in blended learning (González 2010; Lameras et al., 2012). In one study, Ellis et al....... In order to identify appropriate uses of blended learning in Higher Education and to enable the tailoring of teaching approaches to the different needs of an increasingly diverse student body, more knowledge is needed on how to integrate blended learning in educational settings and how best to address...... a new strategic focus on 'Educational IT’ with the purpose of strengthening teaching and learning through use of online interactions. Some of the major challenges in the development of this strategy include how to, identify rationales for using blended learning, stimulate pedagogical reflections...

  12. HEU to LEU conversion and blending facility: Oxide blending alternative to produce LEU oxide for commercial use

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1995-09-01

    The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is examining options for the disposition of surplus weapons-usable fissile materials and storage of all weapons-usable fissile materials. Disposition is a process of use or disposal of material that results in the material being converted to a form that is substantially and inherently more proliferation-resistant than the original form. Examining options for increasing the proliferation resistance of highly enriched uranium (HEU) is part of this effort. This document provides data to be used in the environmental impact analysis for the oxide blending HEU disposition option. This option provides for a yearly HEU throughput of 1 0 metric tons (MT) of uranium metal with an average U235 assay of 50% blended with 165 MT of natural assay triuranium octoxide (U{sub 3} O{sub 8}) per year to produce 177 MT of 4% U235 assay U{sub 3} O{sub 8}, for LWR fuel. Since HEU exists in a variety of forms and not necessarily in the form to be blended, worst case scenarios for preprocessing prior to blending will be assumed for HEU feed streams.

  13. An investigation on chloroprene-compatibilized acrylonitrile butadiene rubber/high density polyethylene blends.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahmed, Khalil

    2015-11-01

    Blends of acrylonitrile butadiene rubber/high density polyethylene (NBR/HDPE) compatibilized by Chloroprene rubber (CR) were prepared. A fixed quantity of industrial waste such as marble waste (MW, 40 phr) was also included. The effect of the blend ratio and CR on cure characteristics, mechanical and swelling properties of MW-filled NBR/HDPE blends was investigated. The results showed that the MW-filled NBR/HDPE blends revealed an increase in tensile strength, tear, modulus, hardness and cross-link density for increasing weight ratio of HDPE. The minimum torque (M L) and maximum torque (M H) of blends increased with increasing weight ratio of HDPE while scorch time (ts2) cure time (tc90), compression set and abrasion loss of blends decreased with increasing weight ratio of HDPE. The blends also showed a continuous reduction in elongation at break as well as swelling coefficient with increasing HDPE amount in blends. MW filled blends based on CR provided the most encouraging balance values of overall properties.

  14. An investigation on chloroprene-compatibilized acrylonitrile butadiene rubber/high density polyethylene blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Khalil Ahmed

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Blends of acrylonitrile butadiene rubber/high density polyethylene (NBR/HDPE compatibilized by Chloroprene rubber (CR were prepared. A fixed quantity of industrial waste such as marble waste (MW, 40 phr was also included. The effect of the blend ratio and CR on cure characteristics, mechanical and swelling properties of MW-filled NBR/HDPE blends was investigated. The results showed that the MW-filled NBR/HDPE blends revealed an increase in tensile strength, tear, modulus, hardness and cross-link density for increasing weight ratio of HDPE. The minimum torque (ML and maximum torque (MH of blends increased with increasing weight ratio of HDPE while scorch time (ts2 cure time (tc90, compression set and abrasion loss of blends decreased with increasing weight ratio of HDPE. The blends also showed a continuous reduction in elongation at break as well as swelling coefficient with increasing HDPE amount in blends. MW filled blends based on CR provided the most encouraging balance values of overall properties.

  15. Mechanical Properties of Dynamically Vulcanized Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU/Polybutadiene Rubber (BR Blends

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ji-Hoo Kim

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available To obtain thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU with low hardness, dynamically vulcanized TPU/polybutadiene rubber(BR(70/30 blends were prepared. The effect of dicumyl peroxide (DCP content and stabilizers on the tensile strength and elongation at break of the dynamically vulcanized blends was examined. The tensile strength and elongation at break of the dynamically vulcanized blends decrease with increasing content of DCP. The addition of optimal content of stabilizer leads to the improvement of tensile strength and elongation at break of the blends. Also, the effect of sulfur cure systems and accelerators on the tensile strength and elongation of the blends was investigated. The tensile strength and elongation at break of all the dynamically vulcanized TPU/BR (70/30 blends using 1-step processing are not higher than those of simple TPU/BR (70/30 blends. However, the tensile strength and elongation of the dynamically vulcanized blends prepared at 8 min (mixing time using 2-step processing are higher than those of the simple blends.

  16. A Study on Students’ Views On Blended Learning Environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Meryem YILMAZ SOYLU

    2006-07-01

    Full Text Available In the 21st century, information and communication technologies (ICT have developed rapidly and influenced most of the fields and education as well. Then, ICT have offered a favorable environment for the development and use of various methods and tools. With the developments in technology, blended learning has gained considerable popularity in recent years. Together with the developments it brought along the description of particular forms of teaching with technology. Blended learning is defined simply as a learning environment that combines technology with face-to-face learning. In other words blended learning means using a variety of delivery methods to best meet the course objectives by combining face-to-face teaching in a traditional classroom with teaching online. This article examines students’ views on blended learning environment. The study was conducted on 64 students from Department of Computer Education and Instructional Technologies in 2005–2006 fall semester in Instructional Design and Authoring Languages in PC Environment at Hacettepe University. The results showed that the students enjoyed taking part in the blended learning environment. Students’ achievement levels and their frequency of participation to forum affected their views about blended learning environment. Face-to-face interaction in blended learning application had the highest score. This result demonstrated the importance of interaction and communication for the success of on-line learning.

  17. Meeting Diverse Learner Needs with Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Owen, Hazel

    2010-01-01

    This article describes a 40-week Computer, Research Skills, and Projects (CRSP) blended learning course designed and implemented at Dubai Men's College. The learning employed a design using socio-constructivist principles in the blended approach to cater to the learning preferences of students. (Contains 2 figures and 1 footnote.)

  18. Effects of blending on the properties of diesel and palm biodiesel

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bukkarapu, Kiran Raj; Srinivas Rahul, T.; Kundla, Sivaji; Vishnu Vardhan, G.

    2018-03-01

    Palm biodiesel is blended to diesel in different volume percentages to improve certain properties. This would help in having a good understanding of the dependence of the diesel properties on the biodiesel proportion. The properties of interest in the present work are density, kinematic viscosity, flash point and fire point of the blends which are determined and compared to petrodiesel. It is observed that the kinematic viscosity and density of the diesel increase with the palm biodiesel proportion and it is not preferable. Blends with higher palm content possess higher flash point and fire point. Apparently, blending worsens the conditions and hence might be of no use when compared to diesel, but when compared to neat palm biodiesel, blending helped in pulling down the density, viscosity, fire point and flash point of the latter. Using regression analysis and the properties data of respective blends, correlations are developed to predict the properties of diesel and biodiesel blends known the percentage of biodiesel added to diesel, which are validated using biodiesel and diesel blends which are not used as an input to develop them.

  19. Thermoset Blends of an Epoxy Resin and Polydicyclopentadiene

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rohde, Brian J.; Le, Kim Mai; Krishnamoorti, Ramanan; Robertson, Megan L.

    2016-12-13

    The mechanical properties of two chemically distinct and complementary thermoset polymers were manipulated through development of thermoset blends. The thermoset blend system was composed of an anhydride-cured diglycidyl ether of bisphenol A (DGEBA)-based epoxy resin, contributing high tensile strength and modulus, and polydicyclopentadiene (PDCPD), which has a higher toughness and impact strength as compared to other thermoset polymers. Ultra-small-angle and small-angle X-ray scattering analysis explored the morphology of concurrently cured thermoset blends, revealing a macroscopically phase separated system with a surface fractal structure across blended systems of varying composition. The epoxy resin rich and PDCPD rich phases exhibited distinct glass transitions (Tg’s): the Tg observed at higher temperature was associated with the epoxy resin rich phase and was largely unaffected by the presence of PDCPD, whereas the PDCPD rich phase Tg systematically decreased with increasing epoxy resin content due to inhibition of dicyclopentadiene ring-opening metathesis polymerization. The mechanical properties of these phase-separated blends were in reasonable agreement with predictions by the rule of mixtures for the blend tensile strength, modulus, and fracture toughness. Scanning electron microscopy analysis of the tensile and fracture specimen fracture surfaces showed an increase in energy dissipation mechanisms, such as crazing, shear banding, and surface roughness, as the fraction of the more ductile component, PDPCD, increased. These results present a facile method to tune the mechanical properties of a toughened thermoset network, in which the high modulus and tensile strength of the epoxy resin can be largely retained at high epoxy resin content in the blend, while increasing the fracture toughness.

  20. Proton exchange membranes based on PVDF/SEBS blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mokrini, A.; Huneault, M.A. [Industrial Materials Institute, National Research Council of Canada, 75 de Mortagne Blvd., Boucherville, Que. (Canada J4B 6Y4)

    2006-03-09

    Proton-conductive polymer membranes are used as an electrolyte in the so-called proton exchange membrane fuel cells. Current commercially available membranes are perfluorosulfonic acid polymers, a class of high-cost ionomers. This paper examines the potential of polymer blends, namely those of styrene-(ethylene-butylene)-styrene block copolymer (SEBS) and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), in the proton exchange membrane application. SEBS/PVDF blends were prepared by twin-screw extrusion and the membranes were formed by calendering. SEBS is a phase-segregated material where the polystyrene blocks can be selectively functionalized offering high ionic conductivity, while PVDF insures good dimensional stability and chemical resistance to the films. Proton conductivity of the films was obtained by solid-state grafting of sulfonic acid moieties. The obtained membranes were characterized in terms of conductivity, ionic exchange capacity and water uptake. In addition, the membranes were characterized in terms of morphology, microstructure and thermo-mechanical properties to establish the blends morphology-property relationships. Modification of interfacial properties between SEBS and PVDF was found to be a key to optimize the blends performance. Addition of a methyl methacrylate-butyl acrylate-methyl methacrylate block copolymer (MMA-BA-MMA) was found to compatibilize the blend by reducing the segregation scale and improving the blend homogeneity. Mechanical resistance of the membranes was also improved through the addition of this compatibilizer. As little as 2wt.% compatibilizer was sufficient for complete interfacial coverage and lead to improved mechanical properties. Compatibilized blend membranes also showed higher conductivities, 1.9x10{sup -2} to 5.5x10{sup -3}Scm{sup -1}, and improved water management. (author)

  1. SYSTEM APPROACH TO THE BLENDED LEARNING

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vladimir Kukharenko

    2015-10-01

    Full Text Available Currently, much attention is paid to the development of learning sour cream – a combination of traditional and distance (30-70% of training. Such training is sometimes called hybrid and referred to disruptive technologies. Purpose – to show that the use of systemic campaign in blended learning provides a high quality of education, and the technology can be devastating. The subject of the study – blended learning, object of study – Mixed learning process. The analysis results show that the combined training increases the motivation of students, qualification of teachers, personalized learning process. At the same time there are no reliable methods of assessing the quality of education and training standards. It is important that blended learning strategy to support the institutional goals and had an effective organizational model for support.

  2. Phase Segregation in Polystyrene?Polylactide Blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Leung, Bonnie; Hitchcock, Adam; Brash, John; Scholl, Andreas; Doran, Andrew

    2010-06-09

    Spun-cast films of polystyrene (PS) blended with polylactide (PLA) were visualized and characterized using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and synchrotron-based X-ray photoemission electron microscopy (X-PEEM). The composition of the two polymers in these systems was determined by quantitative chemical analysis of near-edge X-ray absorption signals recorded with X-PEEM. The surface morphology depends on the ratio of the two components, the total polymer concentration, and the temperature of vacuum annealing. For most of the blends examined, PS is the continuous phase with PLA existing in discrete domains or segregated to the air?polymer interface. Phase segregation was improved with further annealing. A phase inversion occurred when films of a 40:60 PS:PLA blend (0.7 wt percent loading) were annealed above the glass transition temperature (Tg) of PLA.

  3. Considering the post-1995 enrichment market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gunter, L.

    1994-01-01

    World demand for uranium enrichment services is likely to grow only a little over the next decade, from the current 28 million separative work units (SWU) per year to 33 MSWU per year. Much of the growth will come from Asia where nuclear generating capacity is still increasing. The current situation of the primary enrichment companies is summarized. The primary Western suppliers, Cogema, United States Enrichment Corporation and Urenco, are competing for increased market share in the USA, Europe and Asia as utilities purchase their post-1995 requirements. Entry of the Russian enrichment company, Tenex, into Western markets has been limited by trade restrictions. As a consequence of disarmament, blended weapons material has resulted in a surplus of low-enriched uranium. Together with over-capacity amongst the primary enrichers this has led to an expectation that reduced prices will be negotiable in the medium term. (3 figures). (UK)

  4. Thermo-mechanical properties of poly ε-caprolactone/poly L-lactic acid blends: addition of nalidixic acid and polyethylene glycol additives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Douglas, P; Albadarin, Ahmad B; Al-Muhtaseb, Ala'a H; Mangwandi, Chirangano; Walker, G M

    2015-05-01

    The search for ideal biomaterials is still on-going for tissue regeneration. In this study, blends of poly ε-caprolactone (PCL) with poly l-lactic acid (PLLA), nalidixic acid (NA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) were prepared. Mechanical and thermal properties of the blends were investigated by tensile and flexural analysis, DSC, TGA, WXRD, MFI, BET, SEM and hot stage optical microscopy. Results showed that the loading of PLLA caused a significant decrease in tensile strength and almost total eradication of the elongation at break of PCL matrix, especially after PEG and NA addition. Increased stiffness was also noted with additional NA, PEG and PLLA, resulting in an increase in the flexural modulus of the blends. Isothermal degradation indicated that bulk PCL, PLLA and the blends were thermally stable at 200°C for the duration of 2h making extrusion of the blends at this temperature viable. Morphological study showed that increasing the PLLA content and addition of the very low viscosity PEG and powder NA decreased the Melt Flow Indexer and increased the viscosity. At the higher temperature, the PLLA begins to soften and eventually melts allowing for increased flow and, coupling this with, the natural increase in MFI caused by temperature is enhanced further. The PEG and NA addition increased dramatically the pore volume which is important for cell growth and flow transport of nutrients and metabolic waste. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Blending Multiple Nitrogen Dioxide Data Sources for Neighborhood Estimates of Long-Term Exposure for Health Research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hanigan, Ivan C; Williamson, Grant J; Knibbs, Luke D; Horsley, Joshua; Rolfe, Margaret I; Cope, Martin; Barnett, Adrian G; Cowie, Christine T; Heyworth, Jane S; Serre, Marc L; Jalaludin, Bin; Morgan, Geoffrey G

    2017-11-07

    Exposure to traffic related nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ) air pollution is associated with adverse health outcomes. Average pollutant concentrations for fixed monitoring sites are often used to estimate exposures for health studies, however these can be imprecise due to difficulty and cost of spatial modeling at the resolution of neighborhoods (e.g., a scale of tens of meters) rather than at a coarse scale (around several kilometers). The objective of this study was to derive improved estimates of neighborhood NO 2 concentrations by blending measurements with modeled predictions in Sydney, Australia (a low pollution environment). We implemented the Bayesian maximum entropy approach to blend data with uncertainty defined using informative priors. We compiled NO 2 data from fixed-site monitors, chemical transport models, and satellite-based land use regression models to estimate neighborhood annual average NO 2 . The spatial model produced a posterior probability density function of estimated annual average concentrations that spanned an order of magnitude from 3 to 35 ppb. Validation using independent data showed improvement, with root mean squared error improvement of 6% compared with the land use regression model and 16% over the chemical transport model. These estimates will be used in studies of health effects and should minimize misclassification bias.

  6. Structural characterization of Poly aniline blended with polyacrylamide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fayek, S.A.; El-Sayed, S.M.; Sayed, W.M.

    2007-01-01

    Poly aniline / polyacrylamide blends in presence of different catalysts were prepared. X-ray diffraction studies reveal that the samples produced are crystalline. Optical gap of the blend in the presence of NaCIO 4 used as a catalyst is greater than that in the presence of (NH 4 ) 2 S 2 O 8 as a catalyst. The structure of polyacrylamide (PAM) blended with poly aniline (PANI) were investigated by infrared spectroscopy, Grain size was identified using scanning electron microscopy [SEM

  7. Preparation and Characterization of Keratin/Alginate Blend Microparticles

    OpenAIRE

    Srisuwan, Yaowalak; Srihanam, Prasong

    2018-01-01

    The water-in-oil (W/O) emulsification-diffusion method was used for construction of keratin (Ker), alginate (Alg), and Ker/Alg blend microparticles. The Ker, Alg, and Ker/Alg blend solutions were used as the water phase, while ethyl acetate was used as the oil phase. Firstly, different concentrations of Ker solution was used to find suitable content. 1.6% w/v Ker solution was blended with the same concentration of the Alg solution for further microparticle construction. Results from scanning ...

  8. Flippin' Fluid Mechanics - Comparison of Blended Classroom vs. Traditional Lecture

    Science.gov (United States)

    Webster, D. R.; Kadel, R. S.; Newstetter, W. C.

    2017-11-01

    We conducted a study of student performance in and perceptions of a blended classroom delivery of a junior-level fluid mechanics course. In the blended pedagogy, students watch short on-line videos before class, participate in interactive in-class problem solving (in dyads), and complete individualized on-line quizzes weekly. Comparisons are made among four sections of the blended classroom delivery in the period of 2013-2017 to eleven sections delivered in a traditional lecture-style format by the same instructor in 2002-2012. The results reveal dramatic improvement in student engagement, perceptions, and achievement in the blended pedagogy. For instance, the withdrawal/fail/barely-passing (WFD) rate is significantly lower for the blended classroom (8.6% vs. 16.3%; p self-perception of how-much-learned, perception of the value of the course activities, and the overall effectiveness of the course and instructor in the blended classroom.

  9. Addressing Concerns Related to the Use of Ethanol-Blended Fuels in Marine Vehicles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gregory W. Davis

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Ethanol blended fuels have become increasingly prevalent in the on-road transportation sector due to the benefits they provide in energy security, sustainability and reduced environmental impact. However, ethanol usage has led to material compatibility concerns causing corrosion and degradation in materials that are commonly used in engines and fuel storage/delivery systems. The on-road transportation sector continues to study and develop alternatives to minimize potential material challenges. Although, marine vehicles represent a smaller segment of the transportation sector, they represent many vehicles, particularly in the United States. Concerns related to the use of ethanol blended fuels in the marine environment have been expressed by many individuals and groups. Unfortunately, relatively little work has gone into the study of gasoline mixed with approximately 10% ethanol usage and potential material incompatibilities in marine engines. The objective of this article is to provide some factual answers to these concerns. In order to understand the extent of material incompatibilities, a literature survey of published material compatibility data and marine engine manufacturer recommendations was conducted. Next field samples of marine fuels were gathered to estimate the extent of ethanol usage in marine gasoline. Finally, samples of new and in-use marine components were exposed to either gasoline mixed with approximately 10% ethanol or gasoline with 0% ethanol for 1,960 hours to determine whether gasoline mixed with approximately 10% ethanol presented degradation beyond that seen with gasoline (gasoline with 0% ethanol alone. This work has shown that many marine engine manufacturers have used ethanol compatible materials in current products and that exposure of older marine engine components to gasoline mixed with approximately 10% ethanol by did not reveal any significant degradation. Finally, marine fuel samples gathered in 2013, reveal that

  10. Influence of biodiesel blending on physicochemical properties and importance of mathematical model for predicting the properties of biodiesel blend

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wakil, M.A.; Kalam, M.A.; Masjuki, H.H.; Atabani, A.E.; Rizwanul Fattah, I.M.

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Short identification of selected biodiesel feedstock. • Review of physicochemical properties for blended biodiesel. • Mathematical model for predicting properties of various biodiesel blends. - Abstract: The growing demand for green world serves as one of the most significant challenges of modernization. Requirements like largest usage of energy for modern society as well as demand for friendly milieu create a deep concern in field of research. Biofuels are placed at the peak of the research arena for their underlying benefits as mentioned by multiple researches. Out of a number of vegetable oils, only a few are used commercially for biodiesel production. Due to various limitations of edible oil, non-edible oils are becoming a profitable choice. Till today, very little percentage of biodiesel is used successfully in engine. The research is still continuing for improving the biodiesel usage level. Recently, it is found that the blended biodiesel from more than one feedstock provides better performance in engine. This paper reviews the physicochemical properties of different biodiesel blends obtained from various feedstocks with a view to properly understand the fuel quality. Moreover, a short description of each feedstock is given along with graphical presentation of important properties for various blend percentages from B0 to B100. Finally, mathematical model is formed for predicting various properties of biodiesel blend with the help of different research data by using polynomial curve fitting method. The results obtained from a number of literature based on this work shows that the heating value of biodiesel is about 11% lower than diesel except coconut (14.5% lower) whereas kinematic viscosity is in the range of 4–5.4 mm 2 /s. Flash point of all biodiesels are more than 150 °C, except neem and coconut. Cold flow properties of calophyllum, palm, jatropha, moringa are inferior to others. This would help to determine important properties of

  11. X-ray blending device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Manolov, S.S.; Donchev, I.D.; Paunchev, A.N.; Atanasov, A.B.; Kerin, T.P.

    1985-01-01

    The X-ray blending device comprises electric motors for vertical and horizontal blending plates, electrically connected with the output of the block for format voltages and mechanically connected with the measuring potentiometers' slides. The potentiometers are respectively connected with the data inputs of the block for format voltages, the control input of which is connected with the control block output in a mode of scanning. The data outputs of the format voltage block are connected through a buffer converter, a memory block and a decoder with the data inputs of the first and second digital-to-analog converters, the outputs of which are connected with the first inputs of the first and the second comparison circuits. The second inputs of the last are linked to the slides of the first and the second potentiometers and their inputs are connected with the data inputs of the first and the second combinational logic circuits. The output of the control block in a mode of scanning is connected with the first control inputs of the first and the second combinational logic circuits and with the control inputs of the memory block and the decoder. The second and the third control units of the first and the second combinational circuits are respectively linked with the outputs for a position determination of the vertical and horizontal blending plates from the control block in a mode of scanning. The outputs of the first and the second combinational logic circuits are respectively connected with the first and the second control bridge circuits, the control outputs of which are electrically connected with the first and the second electric motors for vertical and horizontal blending plates. 1 cl., 3 figs

  12. COOLING COIL EFFECTS ON BLENDING IN A PILOT SCALE TANK

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leishear, R.; Poirier, M.; Fowley, M.; Steeper, T.

    2010-01-01

    Blending, or mixing, processes in 1.3 million gallon nuclear waste tanks are complicated by the fact that miles of serpentine, vertical, cooling coils are installed in the tanks. As a step toward investigating blending interference due to coils in this type of tank, a 1/10.85 scale tank and pump model were constructed for pilot scale testing. A series of tests were performed in this scaled tank by adding blue dye to visualize blending, and by adding acid or base tracers to solution to quantify the time required to effectively blend the tank contents. The acid and base tests were monitored with pH probes, which were located in the pilot scale tank to ensure that representative samples were obtained. Using the probes, the hydronium ion concentration [H + ] was measured to ensure that a uniform concentration was obtained throughout the tank. As a result of pilot scale testing, a significantly improved understanding of mixing, or blending, in nuclear waste tanks has been achieved. Evaluation of test data showed that cooling coils in the waste tank model increased pilot scale blending times by 200% in the recommended operating range, compared to previous theoretical estimates of a 10-50% increase. Below the planned operating range, pilot scale blending times were increased by as much as 700% in a tank with coils installed. One pump, rather than two or more, was shown to effectively blend the tank contents, and dual pump nozzles installed parallel to the tank wall were shown to provide optimal blending. In short, experimental results varied significantly from expectations.

  13. Breaking the bottleneck : how best can we bring oil sands products to demanding markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Prince, D.

    2006-01-01

    Alberta-based Altex Energy Ltd. is pursuing the development of an innovative heavy oil/bitumen pipeline from Alberta to the United States Gulf Coast (USGC). This energy infrastructure development company is led by a proven management team that developed and constructed the 3,700 km long Alliance Pipeline system. This presentation included a map of the $3.7 billion dollar Alliance Pipeline that identified the mainline compressor stations, lateral compressor stations, area offices and head offices. It was noted that oilsands will represent the most significant resource plays for many years. A graph indicating bitumen supply forecasts from 2005 to 2020 suggests that bitumen production will have exponential growth over the foreseeable future. Labor, materials and infrastructure limitations will create barriers to oilsands growth, as will uncertain market access. For that reason, assured pipeline capacity is needed along with an infrastructure to refineries and a favourable competitive balance for Canadian producers. The presentation addressed issues regarding marketing choices and the challenges of upgrading in Alberta. The economics of diluting heavy oil was also discussed along with industry response to the diluent challenge. Altex's proposed solution of a new direct greenfield pipeline from Alberta to the USGC would reach the largest refinery market in North America as well as the largest heavy oil/bitumen consuming regions. The Altex solution would be complementary to heavy oil/bitumen in Alberta. The proprietary pipeline technology permits alternative diluents, eliminating much of the diluent penalty. It mitigates the risks of upgrading in Alberta and competes on a cost basis with other expansion alternatives. The Altex pipeline system eliminates the need for costly condensate diluent, but accepts all current diluents. It transports up to 90 per cent more bitumen than clean diluted bitumen in a conventional pipeline. It can also transport as much as 175 per cent

  14. Sensitivity comparison of two L-alanine doped blends to different photon energies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, Felipe; Vega Ramirez, Jose; Nicolucci, Patricia; Baffa, Oswaldo

    2008-01-01

    Full text: Blends of L-alanine (85% weight proportion) with KI (10%) and with PbI 2 (10%), these last two compounds acting as dopants, and with PVA (5%) acting as binder, were prepared in water at 80 C degrees. A blend of pure L-alanine (95%) with PVA (5%) was also prepared. The three blends were irradiated with photon beams of different energies (120 kV, 60 Co and 10 MV) with a unique dose of 30 Gy to compare their sensitivities for those three energies. EPR spectra of the three irradiated blends were recorded in a K-Band spectrometer (24 GHz) taking aliquots of about 4 mg for each blend. The energy sensitivity of a blend was defined as the peak-to-peak amplitude of its EPR spectrum central line. For the 60 Co energy (1.25 MeV) the blends presented practically the same sensitivity indicating that the presence of the dopants does not affect the sensitivity of L-alanine. For 10 MV X-rays there was an increment (around 20% - 30 %) in sensitivity for the two L-alanine doped blends compared with the pure L-alanine blend (not doped). In the case of 120 kV X-rays, the blends ala+KI and ala+PbI 2 showed an increment of 10 and 20 times, respectively, more sensitivity than the pure L-alanine blend. It is concluded that the dopants KI and PbI 2 produce a great enhance of the L-alanine sensitivity to low-energy photons. For the same dopant's content (10%) in the blend, PbI 2 showed a better performance. These results encourage us to try to enhance the sensitivity of L-alanine even more increasing the dopant's content in the blend. Application of these L-alanine doped blends in the dosimetry in diagnostic radiology could be possible. (author)

  15. Competitiveness in Road Transport

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Borgström, Benedikte; Gammelgaard, Britta; Bruun, Poul

    Road transport is an important sector, connecting time and space of production and consumption. Its market conditions has changed. The EU single market implementation has increased price pressure due to supply of low cost road freight transport from counties with lower cost structures. Changes...... in the market also encourage strategic development of some road hauliers into providers of unique services. Such road haulier strategic development contributes to efficiency and effectiveness in basically all business sectors of EU. Little research is available of such strategic and operational management....... In this paper we will explore that knowledge gap and analyze what value proposition(s) and capabilities can transform potential cost disadvantages of acting in a market that includes both high- and low-cost-country actors? And in conceptual terminology, how are capabilities deployed and developed to construct...

  16. Trends of shipping markets development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tomasz Nowosielski

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available Shipping markets are dependent on international trade transactions that generate transport needs. These needs can dynamically change depending on global natural resources and commodity markets situation. The changes affecting shipping markets can also be caused by changes to the existing cargo flows and by establishing new ones in different geographies. It is anticipated that in the future shipping markets will change, visible by a decline in shipping in North America and Europe and an increase in Asia.

  17. Poly(hydroxybutyrate)/cellulose acetate blend nanofiber scaffolds: Preparation, characterization and cytocompatibility

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhijiang, Cai, E-mail: caizhijiang@hotmail.com [School of Textiles, Tianjin Polytechnic University, Tianjin 300387 (China); State Key Laboratory of Hollow Fiber Membrane Material and Processes, No 399 BingShuiXi Street, XiQing District, Tianjin, China, 300387 (China); Yi, Xu; Haizheng, Yang; Jia, Jianru; Liu, Yuanpei [School of Textiles, Tianjin Polytechnic University, Tianjin 300387 (China)

    2016-01-01

    Poly(hydroxybutyrate) (PHB)/cellulose acetate (CA) blend nanofiber scaffolds were fabricated by electrospinning using the blends of chloroform and DMF as solvent. The blend nanofiber scaffolds were characterized by SEM, FTIR, XRD, DSC, contact angle and tensile test. The blend nanofibers exhibited cylindrical, uniform, bead-free and random orientation with the diameter ranged from 80–680 nm. The scaffolds had very well interconnected porous fibrous network structure and large aspect surface areas. It was found that the presence of CA affected the crystallization of PHB due to formation of intermolecular hydrogen bonds, which restricted the preferential orientation of PHB molecules. The DSC result showed that the PHB and CA were miscible in the blend nanofiber. An increase in the glass transition temperature was observed with increasing CA content. Additionally, the mechanical properties of blend nanofiber scaffolds were largely influenced by the weight ratio of PHB/CA. The tensile strength, yield strength and elongation at break of the blend nanofiber scaffolds increased from 3.3 ± 0.35 MPa, 2.8 ± 0.26 MPa, and 8 ± 0.77% to 5.05 ± 0.52 MPa, 4.6 ± 0.82 MPa, and 17.6 ± 1.24% by increasing PHB content from 60% to 90%, respectively. The water contact angle of blend nanofiber scaffolds decreased about 50% from 112 ± 2.1° to 60 ± 0.75°. The biodegradability was evaluated by in vitro degradation test and the results revealed that the blend nanofiber scaffolds showed much higher degradation rates than the neat PHB. The cytocompatibility of the blend nanofiber scaffolds was preliminarily evaluated by cell adhesion studies. The cells incubated with PHB/CA blend nanofiber scaffold for 48 h were capable of forming cell adhesion and proliferation. It showed much better biocompatibility than pure PHB film. Thus, the prepared PHB/CA blend nanofiber scaffolds are bioactive and may be more suitable for cell proliferation suggesting that these scaffolds can be used for

  18. Preparing Teachers for Emerging Blended Learning Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oliver, Kevin M.; Stallings, Dallas T.

    2014-01-01

    Blended learning environments that merge learning strategies, resources, and modes have been implemented in higher education settings for nearly two decades, and research has identified many positive effects. More recently, K-12 traditional and charter schools have begun to experiment with blended learning, but to date, research on the effects of…

  19. Supertoughened renewable PLA reactive multiphase blends system: phase morphology and performance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Kunyu; Nagarajan, Vidhya; Misra, Manjusri; Mohanty, Amar K

    2014-08-13

    Multiphase blends of poly(lactic acid) (PLA), ethylene-methyl acrylate-glycidyl methacrylate (EMA-GMA) terpolymer, and a series of renewable poly(ether-b-amide) elastomeric copolymer (PEBA) were fabricated through reactive melt blending in an effort to improve the toughness of the PLA. Supertoughened PLA blend showing impact strength of ∼500 J/m with partial break impact behavior was achieved at an optimized blending ratio of 70 wt % PLA, 20 wt % EMA-GMA, and 10 wt % PEBA. Miscibility and thermal behavior of the binary blends PLA/PEBA and PLA/EMA-GMA, and the multiphase blends were also investigated through differential scanning calorimetric (DSC) and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). Phase morphology and fracture surface morphology of the blends were studied through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) to understand the strong corelation between the morphology and its significant effect on imparting tremendous improvement in toughness. A unique "multiple stacked structure" with partial encapsulation of EMA-GMA and PEBA minor phases was observed for the PLA/EMA-GMA/PEBA (70/20/10) revealing the importance of particular blend composition in enhancing the toughness. Toughening mechanism behind the supertoughened PLA blends have been established by studying the impact fractured surface morphology at different zones of fracture. Synergistic effect of good interfacial adhesion and interfacial cavitations followed by massive shear yielding of the matrix was believed to contribute to the enormous toughening effect observed in these multiphase blends.

  20. Blended Interaction Spaces for Collaborative Design

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dalsgaard, Peter; Halskov, Kim; Klokmose, Clemens Nylandsted

    During the past five years, we have explored the use, potentials and challenges of Blended Interaction spaces. In addition, we have a long background in developing and exploring methods for collaborative design. In this workshop paper, we give an overview of our work and present our visions...... and ongoing research in developing Blended Interaction spaces for collaborative design. We then identify key themes and challenges pertinent for the workshop....

  1. Inkjet-Printed Organic Transistors Based on Organic Semiconductor/Insulating Polymer Blends.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwon, Yoon-Jung; Park, Yeong Don; Lee, Wi Hyoung

    2016-08-02

    Recent advances in inkjet-printed organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) based on organic semiconductor/insulating polymer blends are reviewed in this article. Organic semiconductor/insulating polymer blends are attractive ink candidates for enhancing the jetting properties, inducing uniform film morphologies, and/or controlling crystallization behaviors of organic semiconductors. Representative studies using soluble acene/insulating polymer blends as an inkjet-printed active layer in OFETs are introduced with special attention paid to the phase separation characteristics of such blended films. In addition, inkjet-printed semiconducting/insulating polymer blends for fabricating high performance printed OFETs are reviewed.

  2. HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’ VIEWS ON BLENDED LEARNING

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ibrahim Umit YAPICI,

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available In this study, it is aimed to determine the high school students’ views on blended learning. The study was carried out in biology course for the lesson unit of “Classification of Living Things and Biodiversity” with 47 9th grade students attending Nevzat Ayaz Anatolian High School in the second term of the academic year of 2009-2010. The lessons were taught in a way appropriate to the blended learning model both via the Internet and on face-to-face basis. As the online dimension of the blended learning model, Moodle, a Learning Management System (LMS, was used. The application lasted 10 weeks. The scale of learners’ views on blended learning was applied and interviews were held to determine the views. As a result of the analysis of the scale, it was seen that their views were “highly” positive. The interviews held with the students revealed that the blended learning model provided students with various opportunities such as getting prepared for the lessons, reviewing the lessons as many times as wanted, reaching the subject-related materials without being dependent on time and place, testing oneself and communicating with the teacher and other students out of the school. The interviews also revealed that there were various problems though such as lack of Internet connection at home and problems experienced while playing the videos.

  3. Biocompatible electrospun polymer blends for biomedical applications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Munj, Hrishikesh Ramesh; Nelson, M Tyler; Karandikar, Prathamesh Sadanand; Lannutti, John Joseph; Tomasko, David Lane

    2014-10-01

    Blends of natural and synthetic polymers have received considerable attention as biomaterials due to the potential to optimize both mechanical and bioactive properties. Electrospinning of biocompatible polymers is an efficient method producing biomimetic topographies suited to various applications. In the ultimate application, electrospun scaffolds must also incorporate drug/protein delivery for effective cell growth and tissue repair. This study explored the suitability of a ternary Polymethylmethacrylate-Polycaprolactone-gelatin blend in the preparation of electrospun scaffolds for biomedical applications. Tuning the blend composition allows control over scaffold mechanical properties and degradation rate. Significant improvements were observed in the mechanical properties of the blend compared with the individual components. In order to study drug delivery potential, triblends were impregnated with the model compound Rhodamine-B using sub/supercritical CO₂ infusion under benign conditions. Results show significantly distinct release profiles of the impregnated dye from the triblends. Specific factors such as porosity, degradation rate, stress relaxation, dye-polymer interactions, play key roles in impregnation and release. Each polymer component of the triblends shows distinct behavior during impregnation and release process. This affects the aforementioned factors and the release profiles of the dye. Careful control over blend composition and infusion conditions creates the flexibility needed to produce biocompatible electrospun scaffolds for a variety of biomedical applications. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  4. The Public Urban Transport and The Tourism Marketing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Muhcină Silvia

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available A distinct activity within the transport services supply, the urban public transport is both a consequence and a cause of urban development. Through its functions, the urban public transport service allows the movement to and from various places of interest within an area not only of local residents, but also of different non-residents. In addition to this, if that locality is also a tourist destination, the urban public transport service gives tourists the possibility to travel to the various points of tourist attractions. In this paper we aim to present a few aspects related to the importance of the urban public transport service in increasing the attractiveness of the urban localities regarded as tourist attractions.

  5. Going below the line: creating transportable brands for Australia's dark market.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carter, S M

    2003-12-01

    To investigate non-point-of-sale cigarette marketing in Australia, one of the "darkest" markets in the world. Analysis of 172 tobacco industry documents. The tobacco industry has continued to market their products despite severe restrictions on legal marketing activity. They made careful plans to circumvent regulation well in advance. In preparation for bans, they chose and strengthened existing brands to enable their continued success in a dark market and prepared the consumer for bans by increasing their spending on below the line activities. Bans reduced the industry's effectiveness and efficiency. After bans new brand launches stopped: instead key existing brands were strengthened via alterations to the product, line extensions, and stretching loopholes in the legislation as far as possible. In line with the general trend towards integrated marketing, a range of activities have been used in combination, including guerrilla marketing, advertising in imported international magazines, altering the pack, sponsorships, brand stretching, event promotions, lifestyle premiums, and the development of corporate websites. The tobacco industry acknowledges that marketing restrictions have an impact, validating their continued use in tobacco control. The industry is extremely creative in circumventing these marketing restrictions, requiring tobacco marketing regulations to be informed by marketing expertise, regularly updated, and to adopt the broadest possible scope. Tobacco control advocates, particularly those communicating with young people, could learn from the creativity of the tobacco industry.

  6. How can natural gas markets be competitively organized

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Funk, C.

    1992-01-01

    In this paper it will be discussed how to most effectively give room to competitive forces in natural gas markets, given the traditional merchant pipeline as point of departure. Alternative models of organizing the market will be reviewed: we first consider decreasing barriers to entry and then analyse advantages and drawbacks of a third party access system. In this context different forms of implementing a competitive market for transportation capacity and coordinating it with gas trade are discussed, among them a simultaneous auction of gas and transmission capacity. Finally a hub system of point markets will be suggested to improve the currently implemented third party access system and to allow for competitive markets for gas and transportation service. 33 refs., 6 figs

  7. Tomorrow's Transportation Market : Developing an Innovative, Seamless Transportation System

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-04-17

    With the cost of congestion in the United States estimated to be in the order of $121 billion, transportation planners are under increasing pressure to improve conditions and meet projected demand increases. Harnessing emerging technologies to develo...

  8. The combustion of coal blends in a fluidised bed reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Boavida, Dulce; Abelha, Pedro; Gulyurtlu, Ibrahim; Cabrita, Isabel

    1999-07-01

    Combustion studies of five coals of different origin were carried out in a laboratory scale fluidised bed combustor. Five blends prepared by mixing two coals based on their petrological characterisation, in varying amounts, were selected to study the possibility of reduction NO{sub x}, N{sub 2}O and SO{sub 2} emissions. The results showed that some blends had the opposite behaviour concerning the release of NO{sub x} and SO{sub 2} in relation to parent coals, and the emissions were higher than expected. The N{sub 2}O amounts observed were, however, in almost all blends tested, lower than predicted values. With some blends, the mixing levels intended to reduce SO{sub 2} were not always found to correspond to those for simultaneous decrease of Nox. Most of the blends studied showed some evidence of interaction between them. Varying the proportion of the blend components was observed to alter the temperatures at which interactions were stronger.

  9. Oxidative stability of diacylglycerol oil and butter blends containing diacylglycerols

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kristensen, Janni Brogaard; Nielsen, Nina Skall; Jacobsen, Charlotte

    2006-01-01

    Diacylglycerol (DAG) oils produced from sunflower oil and traditional sunflower oil were stored for 20 wk at 38 degrees C, and their oxidative stability was measured. Moreover, two butter blends were produced containing 40 wt-% DAG oil made from sunflower oil or rapeseed oil, respectively, as well...... as two control butter blends with sunflower oil or rapeseed oil. Their oxidative stability during storage at 5 degrees C for up to 12 wk was examined by similar means as for the pure oils. The storage study of the oils indicated that the DAG oil was oxidatively less stable as compared to sunflower oil......, but that they had similar sensory quality. Storage of the butter blends revealed that blends with the two types of rapeseed oil (triacylglycerol (TAG) or DAG oil) were oxidatively more stable than the blends containing oils from sunflower. There was no unambiguous indication of DAG butter blends having a different...

  10. Olivine-Based Blended Compounds as Positive Electrodes for Lithium Batteries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christian M. Julien

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available Blended cathode materials made by mixing LiFePO4 (LFP with LiMnPO4 (LMP or LiNi1/3Mn1/3Co1/3O2 (NMC that exhibit either high specific energy and high rate capability were investigated. The layered blend LMP–LFP and the physically mixed blend NMC–LFP are evaluated in terms of particle morphology and electrochemical performance. Results indicate that the LMP–LFP (66:33 blend has a better discharge rate than the LiMn1−yFeyPO4 with the same composition (y = 0.33, and NMC–LFP (70:30 delivers a remarkable stable capacity over 125 cycles. Finally, in situ voltage measurement methods were applied for the evaluation of the phase evolution of blended cathodes and gradual changes in cell behavior upon cycling. We also discuss through these examples the promising development of blends as future electrodes for new generations of Li-ion batteries.

  11. Blended Learning Versus Traditional Lecture in Introductory Nursing Pathophysiology Courses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Blissitt, Andrea Marie

    2016-04-01

    Currently, many undergraduate nursing courses use blended-learning course formats with success; however, little evidence exists that supports the use of blended formats in introductory pathophysiology courses. The purpose of this study was to compare the scores on pre- and posttests and course satisfaction between traditional and blended course formats in an introductory nursing pathophysiology course. This study used a quantitative, quasi-experimental, nonrandomized control group, pretest-posttest design. Analysis of covariance compared pre- and posttest scores, and a t test for independent samples compared students' reported course satisfaction of the traditional and blended course formats. Results indicated that the differences in posttest scores were not statistically significant between groups. Students in the traditional group reported statistically significantly higher satisfaction ratings than students in the blended group. The results of this study support the need for further research of using blended learning in introductory pathophysiology courses in undergraduate baccalaureate nursing programs. Further investigation into how satisfaction is affected by course formats is needed. Copyright 2016, SLACK Incorporated.

  12. Design of tailor-made chemical blend using a decomposition-based computer-aided approach

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Yunus, Nor Alafiza; Gernaey, Krist; Manan, Z.A.

    2011-01-01

    Computer aided techniques form an efficient approach to solve chemical product design problems such as the design of blended liquid products (chemical blending). In chemical blending, one tries to find the best candidate, which satisfies the product targets defined in terms of desired product...... methodology for blended liquid products that identifies a set of feasible chemical blends. The blend design problem is formulated as a Mixed Integer Nonlinear Programming (MINLP) model where the objective is to find the optimal blended gasoline or diesel product subject to types of chemicals...... and their compositions and a set of desired target properties of the blended product as design constraints. This blend design problem is solved using a decomposition approach, which eliminates infeasible and/or redundant candidates gradually through a hierarchy of (property) model based constraints. This decomposition...

  13. Enhancing Students' Language Skills through Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Banditvilai, Choosri

    2016-01-01

    This paper presents a case study of using blended learning to enhance students' language skills and learner autonomy in an Asian university environment. Blended learning represents an educational environment for much of the world where computers and the Internet are readily available. It combines self-study with valuable face-to-face interaction…

  14. Blended Learning in Personalized Assistive Learning Environments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marinagi, Catherine; Skourlas, Christos

    2013-01-01

    In this paper, the special needs/requirements of disabled students and cost-benefits for applying blended learning in Personalized Educational Learning Environments (PELE) in Higher Education are studied. The authors describe how blended learning can form an attractive and helpful framework for assisting Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing (D-HH) students to…

  15. Market realities: new challenges and opportunities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1996-01-01

    The market outlook for the natural gas industry was the focus of discussion at this conference. Presentations included papers on energy and supply forecasting, natural gas supply and demand and market opportunities, growth, economics, and issues in natural gas transportation. Pricing dynamics of these energy resources and the complexities of the energy market were also addressed. tabs., figs

  16. The Methodology of Selecting the Transport Mode for Companies on the Slovak Transport Market

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Černá Lenka

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Transport volume in the Slovak Republic is growing continuously every year. This rising trend is influenced by the development of car industry and its suppliers. Slovak republic has also a geographic strategy position in middle Europe from the side of transport corridors (east-west and north-south. The development of transport volume in freight transport depends on the transport and business processes between the European Union and China and it is an opportunity for Slovak republic to obtain transit transport flows.

  17. OIL AND GAS FUTURES AND OPTIONS MARKET

    OpenAIRE

    Ante Nosić; Daria Karasalihović Sedlar; Lucija Jukić

    2017-01-01

    Energy mineral resources markets are represented by complex supply and demand ratios which are depending on different factors such as technical (transport) and geopolitical. The main specific of energy markets is represented by an uneven geographic distribution of hydrocarbon reserves and exploration on one hand and energy consumption on the other. World oil markets, although geographically localized, because of specific market trade, represent unique global market with decreasing price diffe...

  18. Degradable polyphosphazene/poly(alpha-hydroxyester) blends: degradation studies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ambrosio, Archel M A; Allcock, Harry R; Katti, Dhirendra S; Laurencin, Cato T

    2002-04-01

    Biomaterials based on the polymers of lactic acid and glycolic acid and their copolymers are used or studied extensively as implantable devices for drug delivery, tissue engineering and other biomedical applications. Although these polymers have shown good biocompatibility, concerns have been raised regarding their acidic degradation products, which have important implications for long-term implantable systems. Therefore, we have designed a novel biodegradable polyphosphazene/poly(alpha-hydroxyester) blend whose degradation products are less acidic than those of the poly(alpha-hydroxyester) alone. In this study, the degradation characteristics of a blend of poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (50:50 PLAGA) and poly[(50% ethyl glycinato)(50% p-methylphenoxy) phosphazene] (PPHOS-EG50) were qualitatively and quantitatively determined with comparisons made to the parent polymers. Circular matrices (14mm diameter) of the PLAGA, PPHOS-EG50 and PLAGA-PPHOS-EG50 blend were degraded in non-buffered solutions (pH 7.4). The degraded polymers were characterized for percentage mass loss and molecular weight and the degradation medium was characterized for acid released in non-buffered solutions. The amounts of neutralizing base necessary to bring about neutral pH were measured for each polymer or polymer blend during degradation. The poly(phosphazene)/poly(lactide-co-glycolide) blend required significantly less neutralizing base in order to bring about neutral solution pH during the degradation period studied. The results indicated that the blend degraded at a rate intermediate to that of the parent polymers and that the degradation products of the polyphosphazene neutralized the acidic degradation products of PLAGA. Thus, results from these in vitro degradation studies suggest that the PLAGA-PPHOS-EG50 blend may provide a viable improvement to biomaterials based on acid-releasing organic polymers.

  19. "Comfort" as a Critical Success Factor in Blended Learning Courses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Futch, Linda S.; deNoyelles, Aimee; Thompson, Kelvin; Howard, Wendy

    2016-01-01

    There are substantial quantitative research and anecdotal reports on blended learning and blended learning courses. However, few research studies focus on what happens at the classroom level. This research study aims to consider the highly contextual environment of effective blended learning courses by identifying the strategies instructors use to…

  20. Student acceptance of blended learning in Nigeria: a case study of ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Student acceptance of blended learning in Nigeria: a case study of Landmark University. ... instrument and the acceptance of blended learning was tested using UTAUT model. ... Keywords: Blended learning, UTAUT, technology acceptance ...

  1. Students' experiences of blended learning across a range of postgraduate programmes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smyth, Siobhan; Houghton, Catherine; Cooney, Adeline; Casey, Dympna

    2012-05-01

    The article describes the students' experiences of taking a blended learning postgraduate programme in a school of nursing and midwifery. The indications to date are that blended learning as a pedagogical tool has the potential to contribute and improve nursing and midwifery practice and enhance student learning. Little is reported about the students' experiences to date. Focus groups were conducted with students in the first year of introducing blended learning. The two main themes that were identified from the data were (1) the benefits of blended learning and (2) the challenges to blended learning. The blended learning experience was received positively by the students. A significant finding that was not reported in previous research was that the online component meant little time away from study for the students suggesting that it was more invasive on their everyday life. It is envisaged that the outcomes of the study will assist educators who are considering delivering programmes through blended learning. It should provide guidance for further developments and improvements in using Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) and blended learning in nurse education. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Blended learning experience in teacher education: the trainees´ perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Monika Černá

    2009-03-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with blended learning in the context of pre-graduate English language teacher education. Firstly, the concept of blended learning is defined, then, the attention is focused on the online component of a blend, namely on the issue of interpersonal interaction including the challenges, which learning through online networking poses. Finally, results of a small–scale research are provided to offer insights into teacher trainees´ perspective of the blended learning experience at the University of Pardubice, Czech Republic.

  3. Establish the technical regulation of MERCOSUR transport infectious materials and samples for diagnostic approve for resolution No.25/000 of MERCOSUR Common market group

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2001-01-01

    The Technical MERCOSUR (South Common Market) regulation presented for transport of infectious substances and analysis of samples in laboratories enabled by the Ministries of Health of the States Parts of the Mercosur for diagnostic [es

  4. Preparation and Properties of Polyhedral Oligosilsesquioxanes/Polymers Blends

    National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

    Blanski, Rusty

    2000-01-01

    ... (polycarbonate, SB rubber, etc.) resulting in a clear blend. We also report that aliphatic POSS compounds are also dispersible in high density polyethylene. The synthesis of POSS/polymer blends as well as some physical properties will be discussed.

  5. blend4php: a PHP API for galaxy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wytko, Connor; Soto, Brian; Ficklin, Stephen P

    2017-01-01

    Galaxy is a popular framework for execution of complex analytical pipelines typically for large data sets, and is a commonly used for (but not limited to) genomic, genetic and related biological analysis. It provides a web front-end and integrates with high performance computing resources. Here we report the development of the blend4php library that wraps Galaxy's RESTful API into a PHP-based library. PHP-based web applications can use blend4php to automate execution, monitoring and management of a remote Galaxy server, including its users, workflows, jobs and more. The blend4php library was specifically developed for the integration of Galaxy with Tripal, the open-source toolkit for the creation of online genomic and genetic web sites. However, it was designed as an independent library for use by any application, and is freely available under version 3 of the GNU Lesser General Public License (LPGL v3.0) at https://github.com/galaxyproject/blend4phpDatabase URL: https://github.com/galaxyproject/blend4php. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  6. Evaluation of the compatibility induced by ionizing radiation on polymeric blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pino, Eddy S.; Machado, Luci D.B.; Feitosa, Marcos A.F.; Giovedi, Claudia

    2011-01-01

    To produce new polymers is a costly and time consuming task. Therefore, the utilization of existing polymers in form of blends enables to obtain new polymeric materials at a competitive cost. In this sense, polymer blending has become a growing scientific and commercial development activity. In most of the cases, polymeric blends have immiscible components and this represents an unbecoming situation on blend design. For such immiscible blends, it is required the use of compatibilizers to gain properties advantage. Compatibilization process can be achieved by chemical handling using additives and heat. On the other hand, ionizing radiation induces compatibilization by free radicals, which improve the dispersion and adhesion of the blend phases, without use of chemical additives and at room temperature. In this work, a polyamide 6.6/low-density polyethylene 75/25% wt/wt composition blend was electron beam irradiated up to 250 kGy, and thereafter mechanical tests were carried out. Tensile measurements have shown that the strength at break increases, the elongation at break decreases, the resistance to impact decreases and hardness increases when the radiation dose increases. Since this mechanical behavior is due to cross-linking and to the radiation induced blend compatibilization, this compatibility was evaluated by the approach of the glass transition temperatures for both components using DMA measurements. The results have shown that the glass transition temperatures of the blend components got closer in 8 deg C in the irradiated sample, when compared to the glass transition temperature values obtained for non-irradiated blend. (author)

  7. Evaluation of the compatibility induced by ionizing radiation on polymeric blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pino, Eddy S.; Machado, Luci D.B., E-mail: lmachado@ipen.b [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Feitosa, Marcos A.F. [Centro Paula Souza, Faculdade de Tecnologia da Zona Leste, Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil); Giovedi, Claudia, E-mail: claudia.giovedi@ctmsp.mar.mil.b [Centro Tecnologico da Marinha em Sao Paulo (CTMSP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil). Dept. de Tecnologia de Reatores Nucleares

    2011-07-01

    To produce new polymers is a costly and time consuming task. Therefore, the utilization of existing polymers in form of blends enables to obtain new polymeric materials at a competitive cost. In this sense, polymer blending has become a growing scientific and commercial development activity. In most of the cases, polymeric blends have immiscible components and this represents an unbecoming situation on blend design. For such immiscible blends, it is required the use of compatibilizers to gain properties advantage. Compatibilization process can be achieved by chemical handling using additives and heat. On the other hand, ionizing radiation induces compatibilization by free radicals, which improve the dispersion and adhesion of the blend phases, without use of chemical additives and at room temperature. In this work, a polyamide 6.6/low-density polyethylene 75/25% wt/wt composition blend was electron beam irradiated up to 250 kGy, and thereafter mechanical tests were carried out. Tensile measurements have shown that the strength at break increases, the elongation at break decreases, the resistance to impact decreases and hardness increases when the radiation dose increases. Since this mechanical behavior is due to cross-linking and to the radiation induced blend compatibilization, this compatibility was evaluated by the approach of the glass transition temperatures for both components using DMA measurements. The results have shown that the glass transition temperatures of the blend components got closer in 8 deg C in the irradiated sample, when compared to the glass transition temperature values obtained for non-irradiated blend. (author)

  8. Morphology, thermal and mechanical properties of PVC/MMT nanocomposites prepared by solution blending and solution blending + melt compounding

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Madaleno, Liliana Andreia Oliveira; Schjødt-Thomsen, Jan; Pinto, José Cruz

    2010-01-01

    Two types of montmorillonite (MMT), natural sodium montmorillonite (Na-MMT) and organically modified montmorillonite (OMMT), in different amounts of 1, 2, 5, 10 and 25 phr (parts per hundred resin), were dispersed in rigid poly (vinyl chloride) by two different methods solution blending...... and solution blending + melt compounding The effects on morphology, thermal and mechanical properties of the PVC/MMT nanocomposites were studied by varying the amount of Na-MMT and OMMT in both methods SEM and XRD analysis revealed that possible intercalated and exfoliated structures were obtained in all...... prepared by solution blending + melt compounding method Experimental values for 1 and 2 phr are larger than the calculated values which directly suggest that the MMT particles are exfoliated (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved...

  9. Blended Learning in International Nuclear Education

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    James, Z. [KEPCO International Nuclear Graduate School, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of)

    2012-03-15

    The spread of nuclear power ambitions beyond the few early-adopter nations requires more globalized education. Two of the learning problems specific to international education are the need for a common instructional language and different cultural styles of learning. Blended learning, a mix of personal interaction between teacher and impersonal computer-based learning, can solve these problems. The new KEPCO International Nuclear Graduate School outside Ulsan, Korea is investing heavily in blended learning.

  10. Blended Learning in International Nuclear Education

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    James, Z.

    2012-01-01

    The spread of nuclear power ambitions beyond the few early-adopter nations requires more globalized education. Two of the learning problems specific to international education are the need for a common instructional language and different cultural styles of learning. Blended learning, a mix of personal interaction between teacher and impersonal computer-based learning, can solve these problems. The new KEPCO International Nuclear Graduate School outside Ulsan, Korea is investing heavily in blended learning

  11. Blended Refuge and Insect Resistance Management for Insecticidal Corn

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crespo, Andre L B; Pan, Zaiqi; Crain, Philip R; Thompson, Stephen D; Pilcher, Clinton D; Sethi, Amit

    2018-01-01

    Abstract In this review, we evaluate the intentional mixing or blending of insecticidal seed with refuge seed for managing resistance by insects to insecticidal corn (Zea mays). We first describe the pest biology and farming practices that will contribute to weighing trade-offs between using block refuges and blended refuges. Case studies are presented to demonstrate how the trade-offs will differ in different systems. We compare biological aspects of several abstract models to guide the reader through the history of modeling, which has played a key role in the promotion or denigration of blending in various scientific debates about insect resistance management for insecticidal crops. We conclude that the use of blended refuge should be considered on a case-by-case basis after evaluation of insect biology, environment, and farmer behavior. For Diabrotica virgifera virgifera, Ostrinia nubilalis, and Helicoverpa zea in the United States, blended refuge provides similar, if not longer, delays in the evolution of resistance compared to separate block refuges. PMID:29220481

  12. Study of turbocharged diesel engine operation, pollutant emissions and combustion noise radiation during starting with bio-diesel or n-butanol diesel fuel blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rakopoulos, C.D.; Dimaratos, A.M.; Giakoumis, E.G.; Rakopoulos, D.C.

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → Turbocharged diesel engine emissions during starting with bio-diesel or n-butanol diesel blends. → Peak pollutant emissions due to turbo-lag. → Significant bio-diesel effects on combustion behavior and stability. → Negative effects on NO emissions for both blends. → Positive effects on smoke emissions only for n-butanol blend. -- Abstract: The control of transient emissions from turbocharged diesel engines is an important objective for automotive manufacturers, as stringent criteria for exhaust emissions must be met. Starting, in particular, is a process of significant importance owing to its major contribution to the overall emissions during a transient test cycle. On the other hand, bio-fuels are getting impetus today as renewable substitutes for conventional fuels, especially in the transport sector. In the present work, experimental tests were conducted at the authors' laboratory on a bus/truck, turbocharged diesel engine in order to investigate the formation mechanisms of nitric oxide (NO), smoke, and combustion noise radiation during hot starting for various alternative fuel blends. To this aim, a fully instrumented test bed was set up, using ultra-fast response analyzers capable of capturing the instantaneous development of emissions as well as various other key engine and turbocharger parameters. The experimental test matrix included three different fuels, namely neat diesel fuel and two blends of diesel fuel with either bio-diesel (30% by vol.) or n-butanol (25% by vol.). With reference to the neat diesel fuel case during the starting event, the bio-diesel blend resulted in deterioration of both pollutant emissions as well as increased combustion instability, while the n-butanol (normal butanol) blend decreased significantly exhaust gas opacity but increased notably NO emission.

  13. Modelling and analysis of global coal markets

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trueby, Johannes

    2013-01-01

    International Steam Coal Trade. In this paper, we analyse steam coal market equilibria in the years 2006 and 2008 by testing for two possible market structure scenarios: perfect competition and an oligopoly setup with major exporters competing in quantities. The assumed oligopoly scenario cannot explain market equilibria for any year. While we find that the competitive model simulates market equilibria well in 2006, the competitive model is not able to reproduce real market outcomes in 2008. The analysis shows that not all available supply capacity was utilised in 2008. We conclude that either unknown capacity bottlenecks or more sophisticated non-competitive strategies were the cause for the high prices in 2008. Chapter 4 builds upon the findings of the analysis in chapter 3 and adds a more detailed representation of domestic markets. The corresponding essay is titled Nations as Strategic Players in Global Commodity Markets: Evidence from World Coal Trade. In this chapter we explore the hypothesis that export policies and trade patterns of national players in the steam coal market are consistent with non-competitive market behaviour. We test this hypothesis by developing a static equilibrium model which is able to model coal producing nations as strategic players. We explicitly account for integrated seaborne trade and domestic markets. The global steam coal market is simulated under several imperfect market structure setups. We find that trade and prices of a China - Indonesia duopoly fits the real market outcome best and that real Chinese export quotas in 2008 were consistent with simulated exports under a Cournot-Nash strategy. Chapter 5 looks at the long-term effect of Chinese energy system planning decisions. The time horizon is 2006 to 2030. The analysis in this chapter combines a dynamic equilibrium model with the scenario analysis technique. The corresponding essay is titled Coal Lumps vs. Electrons: How Do Chinese Bulk Energy Transport Decisions Affect the Global

  14. Modelling and analysis of global coal markets

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Trueby, Johannes

    2013-01-17

    International Steam Coal Trade. In this paper, we analyse steam coal market equilibria in the years 2006 and 2008 by testing for two possible market structure scenarios: perfect competition and an oligopoly setup with major exporters competing in quantities. The assumed oligopoly scenario cannot explain market equilibria for any year. While we find that the competitive model simulates market equilibria well in 2006, the competitive model is not able to reproduce real market outcomes in 2008. The analysis shows that not all available supply capacity was utilised in 2008. We conclude that either unknown capacity bottlenecks or more sophisticated non-competitive strategies were the cause for the high prices in 2008. Chapter 4 builds upon the findings of the analysis in chapter 3 and adds a more detailed representation of domestic markets. The corresponding essay is titled Nations as Strategic Players in Global Commodity Markets: Evidence from World Coal Trade. In this chapter we explore the hypothesis that export policies and trade patterns of national players in the steam coal market are consistent with non-competitive market behaviour. We test this hypothesis by developing a static equilibrium model which is able to model coal producing nations as strategic players. We explicitly account for integrated seaborne trade and domestic markets. The global steam coal market is simulated under several imperfect market structure setups. We find that trade and prices of a China - Indonesia duopoly fits the real market outcome best and that real Chinese export quotas in 2008 were consistent with simulated exports under a Cournot-Nash strategy. Chapter 5 looks at the long-term effect of Chinese energy system planning decisions. The time horizon is 2006 to 2030. The analysis in this chapter combines a dynamic equilibrium model with the scenario analysis technique. The corresponding essay is titled Coal Lumps vs. Electrons: How Do Chinese Bulk Energy Transport Decisions Affect the Global

  15. Marketing and Distributive Education Curriculum Planning Guide.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Northern Illinois Univ., DeKalb. Dept. of Business Education and Administration Services.

    This planning guide in marketing and distributive education is designed to provide the curriculum coordinator and instructor with a basis for planning a comprehensive program in the career field of marketing. Such programs require competencies in sales, sales promotion, buying, transporting, storing, financing, marketing research, and management.…

  16. Blended Learning and Student Engagement in an Urban High School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Courtney

    2017-01-01

    A metropolitan school district wanted to understand blended learning as it existed in one of their high schools. Blended learning had been school-wide for four years, and district administrators wanted to know how students, teachers, and school administrators perceived blended learning and its impact on student engagement. This was a…

  17. Inkjet-Printed Organic Transistors Based on Organic Semiconductor/Insulating Polymer Blends

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kwon, Yoon-Jung; Park, Yeong Don; Lee, Wi Hyoung

    2016-01-01

    Recent advances in inkjet-printed organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) based on organic semiconductor/insulating polymer blends are reviewed in this article. Organic semiconductor/insulating polymer blends are attractive ink candidates for enhancing the jetting properties, inducing uniform film morphologies, and/or controlling crystallization behaviors of organic semiconductors. Representative studies using soluble acene/insulating polymer blends as an inkjet-printed active layer in OFETs are introduced with special attention paid to the phase separation characteristics of such blended films. In addition, inkjet-printed semiconducting/insulating polymer blends for fabricating high performance printed OFETs are reviewed. PMID:28773772

  18. Comparison of Model Reliabilities from Single-Step and Bivariate Blending Methods

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Taskinen, Matti; Mäntysaari, Esa; Lidauer, Martin

    2013-01-01

    Model based reliabilities in genetic evaluation are compared between three methods: animal model BLUP, single-step BLUP, and bivariate blending after genomic BLUP. The original bivariate blending is revised in this work to better account animal models. The study data is extracted from...... be calculated. Model reliabilities by the single-step and the bivariate blending methods were higher than by animal model due to genomic information. Compared to the single-step method, the bivariate blending method reliability estimates were, in general, lower. Computationally bivariate blending method was......, on the other hand, lighter than the single-step method....

  19. Determination of the density and the viscosities of biodiesel-diesel fuel blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Alptekin, Ertan; Canakci, Mustafa [Department of Mechanical Education, Kocaeli University, 41380 Kocaeli (Turkey); Alternative Fuels R and D Center, Kocaeli University, 41040 Kocaeli (Turkey)

    2008-12-15

    In this study, commercially available two different diesel fuels were blended with the biodiesels produced from six different vegetable oils (sunflower, canola, soybean, cottonseed, corn oils and waste palm oil). The blends (B2, B5, B10, B20, B50 and B75) were prepared on a volume basis. The key fuel properties such as density and viscosities of the blends were measured by following ASTM test methods. Generalized equations for predicting the density and viscosities for the blends were given and a mixing equation, originally proposed by Arrhenius and described by Grunberg and Nissan, was used to predict the viscosities of the blends. For all blends, it was found that there is an excellent agreement between the measured and estimated values of the density and viscosities. According to the results, the density and viscosities of the blends increased with the increase of biodiesel concentration in the fuel blend. (author)

  20. Blended Identities: Identity Work, Equity and Marginalization in Blended Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heikoop, Will

    2013-01-01

    This article is a theoretical study of the self-presentation strategies employed by higher education students online; it examines student identity work via profile information and avatars in a blended learning environment delivered through social networking sites and virtual worlds. It argues that students are faced with difficult choices when…

  1. IMPACT OF ROAD TRANSPORT ON AGRICULTURAL ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Osondu

    2012-03-09

    Mar 9, 2012 ... transport has both positive and negative impact on agricultural development in the study area. However ... Keywords: Rural Development, Marketing, Transportation, Agricultural .... motorcycle and public transport (lorries, pick-.

  2. Change Spectroscopic, thermal and mechanical studies of PU/PVC blends

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hezma, A.M. [Spectroscopy Department, Physics Division, National Research Center, Giza (Egypt); Elashmawi, I.S. [Spectroscopy Department, Physics Division, National Research Center, Giza (Egypt); Physic Department, Faculty of Science, Taibah University, Al-Ula (Saudi Arabia); Rajeh, A., E-mail: a.rajeh88@yahoo.com [Physic Department, Faculty of Science, Amran University, Sa' dah (Yemen); Physics Department, Faculty of science, Mansoura University, Mansoura (Egypt); Kamal, Mustafa [Physics Department, Faculty of science, Mansoura University, Mansoura (Egypt)

    2016-08-15

    Blends of polyurethane (PU) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) with different concentrations were prepared by casting method. The effects of PU on PVC blends was examined by Fourier transform-infrared (FTIR), Ultra-violet visible studies (UV/VIS.), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Thermogravimetric (TGA), Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and mechanical properties (stress–strain curve). The interaction between PU and PVC was examined by FT-IR through the absorbance of the N–H groups and was correlated to mechanical/thermal properties. Ultra-violet visible said that optical energy gap decrease with increasing concentration of PU. Differential scanning calorimetry results was observed a single glass transition temperature (T{sub g}) for blends this confirming existence miscibility within the blends. The causes for best thermal stability of some blends may be described by measurements of interactions between C=O groups of PU and the α-hydrogen of PVC or a dipole–dipole –C=O..Cl–C– interactions. Significant alterations in FTIR, X-ray and DSC examination shows an interactions between blends had good miscibility. X-ray shows some alterations in the intensity with additional PU. PU change the mechanical behavior of PVC through of the blends. When polyurethane content increase causes polyvinyl chloride tensile strength decreases and elongation at break increase.

  3. Blended Learning Educational Format for Third-Year Pediatrics Clinical Rotation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Langenau, Erik E; Lee, Robert; Fults, Marci

    2017-04-01

    Traditional medical education is shifting to incorporate learning technologies and online educational activities with traditional face-to-face clinical instruction to engage students, especially at remote clinical training sites. To describe and evaluate the effectiveness of the blended learning format (combining online and face-to-face instruction) for third-year osteopathic medical students during their pediatric rotation. Third-year medical students who completed the 4-week clerkship in pediatrics during the 2014-2015 academic year were divided into a standard learning group and a blended learning group with online activities (discussion boards, blogs, virtual patient encounters, narrated video presentations, and online training modules). Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Achievement Test scores and final course grades were compared between the standard learning and blended learning groups. Students in the blended learning group completed a postsurvey regarding their experiences. Of 264 third-year students who completed the 4-week clerkship in pediatrics during the 2014-2015 academic year, 78 (29.5%) participated in the blended learning supplement with online activities. Of 53 students who completed the postsurvey in the blended learning group, 44 (83.0%) agreed or strongly agreed that "The integration of e-learning and face-to-face learning helped me learn pediatrics." Open-ended comments supported this overall satisfaction with the course format; however, 26 of 100 comments reflected a desire to increase the amount of clinical exposure and face-to-face time with patients. No statistical differences were seen between the standard learning (n=186) and blended learning (n=78) groups with regard to Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Achievement Test scores (P=.321). Compared with the standard learning group, more students in the blended learning group received a final course grade of honors (P=.015). Results of this study support the use of blended learning in a

  4. Extrudability and Consolidation of Blends between CGM and DDGS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    C. J. R. Verbeek

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available During the last decade, the global biofuels industry has experienced exponential growth. By-products such as high protein corn gluten meal (CGM and high fibre distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS have grown in parallel. CGM has been shown to be suitable as a biopolymer; the high fibre content of DDGS reduces its effectiveness, although it is considerably cheaper. In this study, the processing behaviour of CGM and DDGS blends was evaluated and resulting extrudate properties were determined. Prior to processing, urea was used as a denaturant. DDGS : CGM ratios of 0, 33, 50, 66, and 100% were processed in a single screw extruder, which solely used dissipative heating. Blends containing DDGS were less uniformly consolidated and resulted in more dissipative heating. Blends showed multiple glass transitions, which is characteristic of mechanically compatible blends. Transmission electron microscopy revealed phase separation on a microscale, although distinct CGM or DDGS phases could not be identified. On a macroscale, optical microscopy suggested that CGM-rich blends were better consolidated, supported by visual observations of a more continuous extrudate formed during extrusion. Future work should aim to also characterize the mechanical properties of these blends to assess their suitability as either bioplastic feedstock or pelletized livestock feed.

  5. A Phenomenology of ‘Blending in’: Beyond Emotional Regulation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katie Creighton

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The phenomenon of devaluing of self for adolescent girls has been highlighted in previous qualitative research in a US cultural context. Carol Gilligan and her colleagues have documented a loss of connection to self and loss of voice. ‘Blending in’ pertains to such a loss of connection and voice. ‘Blending in’ emerges from many aspects of 8 Irish females’ retrospective qualitative phenomenological accounts of their adolescent experiences. These features of blending in include: a dumbing down of intellectual ability in order to fit in, a desire to be hidden in the group to ‘fade into the background’, to not stand out as being different, fear of being labelled by others and fear of challenging others. Blending in gives phenomenological support to Gilligan’s (1990 accounts of silencing and loss of relation to self in adolescent girls, to a rendering of self as other. This phenomenological exploration is resonant also with de Beauvoir’s Second Sex and to a loss of capacity for introversion in Western culture, echoing Jung (1921. Blending in requires firmer addressing in social and emotional education (SEE, especially regarding challenge to self-management as emotional impulse and behaviour regulation. Self-management as blending in risks being a process of loss of voice and alienation of self.

  6. Durability of Gamma Irradiated Polymer Impregnated Blended Cement Pastes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Khattab, M.M.; Abdel-Rahman, H.A.; Younes, M.M.

    2010-01-01

    This study is focusing on durability and performance of the neat blended cement paste as well as those of the polymer-impregnated paste towards seawater and various concentrations of magnesium sulfate solutions up to 6 months of curing. The neat blended cement paste is prepared by a partial substitution of ordinary Portland cement with 5% of active rice husk ash (RHA). These samples were cured under tap water for 7 days. Similar samples were impregnated with unsaturated polyester resin (UPE) and subjected to various doses of gamma rays ranging from 10 to 50 kGy. The results showed that the irradiated impregnated specimens gave higher values of compressive strength than the neat blended cement paste specimens. On immersing the neat blended cement specimens and polymer impregnated specimens especially that irradiated at 30 kGy in seawater and different concentrations of magnesium sulfate solutions up to 6 months of curing, the results showed that the polymer impregnated blended cement (OPC-RHA-UPE) paste have a good resistance towards aggressive media as compared to the neat blended cement (OPC-RHA) paste. The results also indicated that the sea water has a greater corrosive effect than the magnesium sulfate solutions. These results were confirmed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP)

  7. Morphological, rheological and mechanical characterization of polypropylene nanocomposite blends.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosales, C; Contreras, V; Matos, M; Perera, R; Villarreal, N; García-López, D; Pastor, J M

    2008-04-01

    In the present work, the effectiveness of styrene/ethylene-butylene/styrene rubbers grafted with maleic anhydride (MA) and a metallocene polyethylene (mPE) as toughening materials in binary and ternary blends with polypropylene and its nanocomposite as continuous phases was evaluated in terms of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), oscillatory shear flow and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMA). The flexural modulus and heat distortion temperature values were determined as well. A metallocene polyethylene and a polyamide-6 were used as dispersed phases in these binary and ternary blends produced via melt blending in a corotating twin-screw extruder. Results showed that the compatibilized blends prepared without clay are tougher than those prepared with the nanocomposite of PP as the matrix phase and no significant changes in shear viscosity, melt elasticity, flexural or storage moduli and heat distortion temperature values were observed between them. However, the binary blend with a nanocomposite of PP as matrix and metallocene polyethylene phase exhibited better toughness, lower shear viscosity, flexural modulus, and heat distortion temperature values than that prepared with polyamide-6 as dispersed phase. These results are related to the degree of clay dispersion in the PP and to the type of morphology developed in the different blends.

  8. Transportation charges in the gas industry

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Price, C.

    1994-01-01

    British Gas was privatized in 1986, a monopoly with no direct competition and only very light regulation of the tariff market. The regulator had an obligation to enable competition to develop in the unregulated, large-quantity, contract market. Competitors required access to the BG-owned transportation network. The government has recently rejected the recommendation of divestiture of the supply business, but has accelerated the advent of competition to the domestic market. This paper considers the role of BG's transport charges in these developments, using its past behaviour as a guide, and identifying the issues for future regulation and development of the gas market. (Author)

  9. BENCHMARKING FOR THE ROMANIAN HEAVY COMMERCIAL VEHICLES MARKET

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pop Nicolae Alexandru

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available The globalization has led to a better integration of international markets of goods, services and capital markets, fact which leads to a significant increase of investments in those regions with low labor cost and with access to commercial routes. The development of international trade has imposed a continuous growth of the volumes of transported goods and the development of a transport system, able to stand against the new pressure exercised by cost, time and space. The solution to efficient transport is the intermodal transportation relying on state-of-the-art technological platforms, which integrates the advantages specific to each means of transportation: flexibility for road transportation, high capacity for railway, low costs for sea, and speed for air transportation. Romania’s integration in the pan-European transport system alongside with the EU’s enlargement towards the east will change Romania’s positioning into a central one. The integrated governmental program of improving the intermodal infrastructure will ensure fast railway, road and air connections. For the Danube harbors and for the sea ports, EU grants and allowances will be used thus increasing Romania’s importance in its capacity as one of Europe’s logistical hubs. The present paper intends to use benchmarking, the management and strategic marketing tool, in order to realize an evaluation of the Romanian heavy commercial vehicles market, within European context. Benchmarking encourages change in a complex and dynamic context where a permanent solution cannot be found. The different results stimulate the use of benchmarking as a solution to reduce gaps. MAN’s case study shows the dynamics of the players on the Romanian market for heavy commercial vehicles, when considering the strong growth of Romanian exported goods but with a modest internal demand, a limited but developing road infrastructure, and an unfavorable international economical context together with

  10. Preparation and Characterization of HPMC/PVP Blend Films Plasticized with Sorbitol

    OpenAIRE

    Somashekarappa, H.; Prakash, Y.; Hemalatha, K.; Demappa, T.; Somashekar, R.

    2013-01-01

    The aim of this present work is to investigate the effect of plasticizers like Sorbitol on microstructural and mechanical properties of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) and Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) blend films. The pure blend and plasticized blend films were prepared by solution casting method and investigated using wide angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) method. WAXS analysis confirms that the plasticizers can enter into macromolecular blend structure and destroy the crystallinity of the f...

  11. Theory of polymer blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Curro, J.G.; Schweizer, K.S.

    1989-01-01

    We have recently developed a new theoretical approach to the study of polymer liquids. The theory is based on the ''reference interaction site model'' (RISM theory) of Chandler and Andersen, which has been successful in describing the structure of small molecule liquids. We have recently extended our polymer RISM theory to the case of polymer blends. In the present investigation we have applied this theory to two special binary blends: (1) the athermal mixture where we isolate structural effects, and (2) the isotopic mixture in which structurally identical polymer chains interact with dissimilar attractive interactions. By studying these two special cases we are able to obtain insights into the molecular factors which control the miscibility in polymer mixtures. 18 refs., 2 figs

  12. Effects of ethanol-diesel fuel blends on the performance and exhaust emissions of heavy duty DI diesel engine

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rakopoulos, D.C.; Rakopoulos, C.D.; Kakaras, E.C.; Giakoumis, E.G.

    2008-01-01

    An experimental investigation is conducted to evaluate the effects of using blends of ethanol with conventional diesel fuel, with 5% and 10% (by vol.) ethanol, on the performance and exhaust emissions of a fully instrumented, six-cylinder, turbocharged and after-cooled, heavy duty, direct injection (DI), Mercedes-Benz engine, installed at the authors' laboratory, which is used to power the mini-bus diesel engines of the Athens Urban Transport Organization sub-fleet with a view to using bio-ethanol produced from Greek feedstock. The tests are conducted using each of the above fuel blends, with the engine working at two speeds and three loads. Fuel consumption, exhaust smokiness and exhaust regulated gas emissions such as nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and total unburned hydrocarbons are measured. The differences in the measured performance and exhaust emissions of the two ethanol-diesel fuel blends from the baseline operation of the engine, i.e. when working with neat diesel fuel, are determined and compared. Theoretical aspects of diesel engine combustion combined with the widely differing physical and chemical properties of the ethanol against those for the diesel fuel, are used to aid the correct interpretation of the observed engine behavior

  13. Modification of combustion behaviour and NO emissions by coal blending

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rubiera, Fernando; Arenillas, Ana; Arias, Borja; Pis, Jose J. [Department of Energy and Environment, Instituto Nacional del Carbon, CSIC, Apartado 73, 33080 Oviedo (Spain)

    2002-06-20

    Combustion profiles determined by TGA and experiments in a laminar entrained flow reactor (EFR) were used in this work to assess the relative combustion reactivities of different rank coals and their binary coal blends. The combustion behaviour of coal blends in TGA was greatly influenced by coal rank and the proportion of each component in the blend. Higher volatile coals exerted more influence in the low-temperature region and less reactive coals in the char combustion zone. The results in the EFR indicated that coal blends burnout and NO emissions show additivity in the case of similar nature coals. When one of the components was a high-rank coal, the burnout of the blend exhibited, in some cases, positive synergistic effects, while a clear deviation from linearity was found in NO emissions.

  14. Positron annihilation lifetime study of interfaces in ternary polymer blends

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Meghala, D; Ramya, P; Pasang, T; Raj, J M; Ranganathaiah, C; Williams, J F

    2013-01-01

    A new method based on positron lifetime spectroscopy is developed to characterize individual interfaces in ternary polymer blends and hence determine the composition dependent miscibility level. The method owes its origin to the Kirkwood-Risemann-Zimm (KRZ) model for the evaluation of the hydrodynamic interaction parameters (α ij ) which was used successfully for a binary blend with a single interface. The model was revised for the present work for ternary polymer blends to account for three interfaces. The efficacy of this method is shown for two ternary blends namely poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile)/poly (ethylene-co-vinylacetate)/poly(vinyl chloride) (SAN/EVA/PVC) and polycaprolactone /poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile)/poly(vinyl chloride) (PCL/SAN/PVC) at different compositions. An effective hydrodynamic interaction parameter, α eff , was introduced to predict the overall miscibility of ternary blends.

  15. Controlled release of tocopherols from polymer blend films

    Science.gov (United States)

    Obinata, Noe

    Controlled release packaging has great potential to increase storage stability of foods by releasing active compounds into foods continuously over time. However, a major limitation in development of this technology is the inability to control the release and provide rates useful for long term storage of foods. Better understanding of the factors affecting active compound release is needed to overcome this limitation. The objective of this research was to investigate the relationship between polymer composition, polymer processing method, polymer morphology, and release properties of active compounds, and to provide proof of principle that compound release is controlled by film morphology. A natural antioxidant, tocopherol was used as a model active compound because it is natural, effective, heat stable, and soluble in most packaging polymers. Polymer blend films were produced from combination of linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) and high density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), or polystyrene (PS) with 3000 ppm mixed tocopherols using conventional blending method and innovative blending method, smart blending with a novel mixer using chaotic advection. Film morphologies were visualized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Release of tocopherols into 95% ethanol as a food simulant was measured by UV/Visible spectrophotometry or HPLC, and diffusivity of tocopherols in the polymers was estimated from this data. Polymer composition (blend proportions) and processing methods have major effects on film morphology. Four different types of morphologies, dispersed, co-continuous, fiber, and multilayer structures were developed by either conventional extrusion or smart blending. With smart blending of fixed polymer compositions, different morphologies were progressively developed with fixed polymer composition as the number of rod rotations increased, providing a way to separate effects of polymer composition and morphology. The different morphologies

  16. Liberalising the European natural gas market

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mulder, M.

    2002-01-01

    Europe's natural gas market is changing radically. The several national markets dominated by monopolistic suppliers are integrating into one European market in which production and trade are subject to competition, while transport through the networks will be unbundled and placed under regulatory influence. What will be the consequences of these changes on natural gas prices, supply security and the environment?

  17. Low-Temperature Miscibility of Ethanol-Gasoline-Water Blends in Flex Fuel Applications

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Johansen, T.; Schramm, Jesper

    2009-01-01

    The miscibility of blends of gasoline and hydrous ethanol was investigated experimentally at - 25 degrees C and - 2 degrees C. Furthermore, the maximum water content was found for ethanol in flex fuel blends. The results strongly indicate that blends containing ethanol with a water content above...... that of the ethanol/water azeotrope (4.4% water by mass) can be used as Flex Fuel blends together with gasoline at ambient temperatures of 25 degrees C and 2 degrees C, without phase separation occurring. Additionally, it was shown that the ethanol purity requirement of ethanol-rich flex fuel blends falls...... with increasing ethanol content in the gasoline-rich flex fuel blend....

  18. Exploring new health markets: experiences from informal providers of transport for maternal health services in Eastern Uganda

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bloom Gerald

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Although a number of intermediate transport initiatives have been used in some developing countries, available evidence reveals a dearth of local knowledge on the effect of these rural informal transport mechanisms on access to maternal health care services, the cost of implementing such schemes and their scalability. This paper, attempts to provide insights into the functioning of the informal transport markets in facilitating access to maternal health care. It also demonstrates the role that higher institutions of learning can play in designing projects that can increase the utilization of maternal health services. Objectives To explore the use of intermediate transport mechanisms to improve access to maternal health services, with emphasis on the benefits and unintended consequences of the transport scheme, as well as challenges in the implementation of the scheme. Methods This paper is based on the pilot phase to inform a quasi experimental study aimed at increasing access to maternal health services using demand and supply side incentives. The data collection for this paper included qualitative and quantitative methods that included focus group interviews, review of project documents and facility level data. Results There was a marked increase in attendance of antenatal, and delivery care services, with the contracted transporters playing a leading role in mobilizing mothers to attend services. The project also had economic spill-over effects to the transport providers, their families and community generally. However, some challenges were faced including difficulty in setting prices for paying transporters, and poor enforcement of existing traffic regulations. Conclusions and implications The findings indicate that locally existing resources such as motorcycle riders, also known as “boda boda” can be used innovatively to reduce challenges caused by geographical inaccessibility and a poor transport network with

  19. Experimental investigation on Performance and Emission Characteristics of J20, P20, N20 Biodiesel blends and Sound Characteristics of P20 Biodiesel blend Used in Single Cylinder Diesel Engine

    Science.gov (United States)

    rajasekar, R.; karthik, N.; Xavier, Goldwin

    2017-05-01

    Present work provides the effect of biodiesel blends and Sound Characteristics of P20 Biodiesel blend compared with Performance and emission Characteristics of diesel. Methods and analysis biodiesel blends was prepared by the Transesterification Process. Experiments were conducted in single cylinder constant speed direct injection diesel engine for various test fuels. Research is mainly focused on pongamia oil. It was observed that a 20% Pongamia oil blends and its properties were similar to diesel. The results showed that 20% Pongamia oil blends gave better performance, less in noise and emission compared with ester of Jatropha and neem oil blends. Hence Pongamia blends can be used in existing diesel engine without compromising the engine performance.

  20. Reactive modification of polyesters and their blends

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wan, Chen

    2004-12-01

    As part of a broader research effort to investigate the chemical modification of polyesters by reactive processing a low molecular weight (MW) unsaturated polyester (UP) and a higher MW saturated polyester, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), alone or blended with polypropylene (PP) were melt processed in a batch mixer and continuous twin screw extruders. Modification was monitored by on-line rheology and the products were characterized primarily by off-line rheology, morphology and thermal analysis. Efforts were made to establish processing/property relationships and provide an insight of the accompanying structural changes. The overall response of the reactively modified systems was found to be strongly dependent on the component characteristics, blend composition, type and concentrations of reactive additives and processing conditions. The work concluded that UP can be effectively modified through reactive melt processing. Its melt viscosity and MW can be increased through chemical reactions between organic peroxides (POX) and chain unsaturation or between MgO and carboxyl/hydroxyl end groups. Reactive blending of PP/UP blends through peroxide modification gave finer and more uniform morphology than unreacted blends and at a given PP/UP weight ratio more thermoplastic elastomers-like rheological behavior. This is due to the continuously decreasing viscosity ratio of PP/UP towards unity by the competing reactions between POX and the blend components and formation of PP-UP copolymers which serve as in-situ compatibilizers to promote better interfacial adhesion. Kinetics of the competing reactions were analyzed through a developed model. In addition to POX concentration and mixing efficiency, rheology and morphology of UP/PP bends were significantly affected by the addition of inorganic and organic coagents. Addition of coagents such as a difunctional maleimide, MgO and/or an anhydride functionalized PP during reactive blending offers effective means for tailoring