WorldWideScience

Sample records for higher efficiency active

  1. Efficiency assessment models of higher education institution staff activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    K. A. Dyusekeyev

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The paper substantiates the necessity of improvement of university staff incentive system under the conditions of competition in the field of higher education, the necessity to develop a separate model for the evaluation of the effectiveness of the department heads. The authors analysed the methods for assessing production function of units. The advantage of the application of the methods to assess the effectiveness of border economic structures in the field of higher education is shown. The choice of the data envelopment analysis method to solve the problem has proved. The model for evaluating of university departments activity on the basis of the DEAmethodology has developed. On the basis of operating in Russia, Kazakhstan and other countries universities staff pay systems the structure of the criteria system for university staff activity evaluation has been designed. For clarification and specification of the departments activity efficiency criteria a strategic map has been developed that allowed us to determine the input and output parameters of the model. DEA-methodology using takes into account a large number of input and output parameters, increases the assessment objectivity by excluding experts, receives interim data to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the evaluated object.

  2. Considerations for higher efficiency and productivity in research activities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Forero, Diego A; Moore, Jason H

    2016-01-01

    There are several factors that are known to affect research productivity; some of them imply the need for large financial investments and others are related to work styles. There are some articles that provide suggestions for early career scientists (PhD students and postdocs) but few publications are oriented to professors about scientific leadership. As academic mentoring might be useful at all levels of experience, in this note we suggest several key considerations for higher efficiency and productivity in academic and research activities. More research is needed into the main work style features that differentiate highly productive scientists and research groups, as some of them could be innate and others could be transferable. As funding agencies, universities and research centers invest large amounts of money in order to have a better scientific productivity, a deeper understanding of these factors will be of high academic and societal impact.

  3. IMPROVEMENT OF QUALITY ASSURANCE SYSTEM ACTIVITIES OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Z. M. Sultalieva

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Abstract. The aim of the article is the improvement of quality assessment system of higher education institutions in the aspect of management. The problems of quality improvement are revealed and classified. The analysis of criteria assessment sets used to define the efficiency of higher education institutions activity is carried out. The components of quality of higher education institutions activity are specified. The structural model of quality assessment system of higher education institutions activity is offered. The analysis of macro environment of a university based on the method of strategic management is carried out, i.e. PEST analysis. As a result of the research a new model of macro criteria model of quality assessment system of higher education institutions, characterizing quality management as an approach to university efficiency is offered, moreover, this system can define the level of its competitiveness in the aspect of quality management. 

  4. Cost Efficiency in Public Higher Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robst, John

    This study used the frontier cost function framework to examine cost efficiency in public higher education. The frontier cost function estimates the minimum predicted cost for producing a given amount of output. Data from the annual Almanac issues of the "Chronicle of Higher Education" were used to calculate state level enrollments at two-year and…

  5. Higher Efficiency HVAC Motors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Flynn, Charles Joseph [QM Power, Inc., Kansas City, MO (United States)

    2018-02-13

    failure prone capacitors from the power stage. Q-Sync’s simpler electronics also result in higher efficiency because it eliminates the power required by the PCB to perform the obviated power conversions and PWM processes after line synchronous operating speed is reached in the first 5 seconds of operation, after which the PWM circuits drop out and a much less energy intensive “pass through” circuit takes over, allowing the grid-supplied AC power to sustain the motor’s ongoing operation.

  6. IMPACT OF ROMANIAN HIGHER EDUCATION FUNDING POLICY ON UNIVERSITY EFFICIENCY

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    CRETAN Georgiana Camelia

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available The issues of higher education funding policy and university operating efficiency are hot points on the actual public agenda worldwide as the pressures exercised upon the public resources increased, especially in the aftermath of the last economic crisis. Concerned with the improvement of the funding mechanism through which government allocates the public funds in order to meet the national core objectives within the area of higher education, the policy makers adjusted the funding policy by diversifying the criteria used in distributing the funds to public universities. Thus, the aim of this research is to underline both the impact and the consequences the public funding patterns of higher education have on the relative efficiency of public funded higher education institutions, across time. Moreover, the research conducted aims to determine whether the changes occurred within the Romanian public funding methodology of higher education institutions improved the relative efficiency scores of public funded universities, before and after the economic crisis of 2008. Thus, on one hand we have underlined the changes brought to the Romanian public funding mechanism of higher education during the years of 2007, 2009 and 2010 compared to the year of 2006, using the content analysis, and on the other hand we assessed and compared the relative efficiency scores of each selected public funded university using a multiple input - multiple output linear programming model, by employing the Data Envelopment Analysis technique. The findings of the research undertaken emphasized that a more performance oriented funding mechanism improves the efficiency scores of public universities. The results of the research undertaken could be used either by the policy makers within the area of higher education or by the administrative management of public universities in order to correlate the funding with the results obtained and/or the objectives assumed by both the

  7. Improving extraction efficiency of the third integer resonant extraction using higher order multipoles

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brown, K. A. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Schoefer, V. [Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Tomizawa, M. [High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK), Tsukuba (Japan)

    2017-03-09

    The new accelerator complex at J-PARC will operate with both high energy and very high intensity proton beams. With a design slow extraction efficiency of greater than 99% this facility will still be depositing significant beam power onto accelerator components [2]. To achieve even higher efficiencies requires some new ideas. The design of the extraction system and the accelerator lattice structure leaves little room for improvement using conventional techniques. In this report we will present one method for improving the slow extraction efficiency at J-PARC by adding duodecapoles or octupoles to the slow extraction system. We will review the theory of resonant extraction, describe simulation methods, and present the results of detailed simulations. From our investigations we find that we can improve extraction efficiency and thereby reduce the level of residual activation in the accelerator components and surrounding shielding.

  8. Retrofitting the 5045 Klystron for Higher Efficiency

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jensen, Aaron; Fazio, Michael; Haase, Andy; Jongewaard, Erik; Kemp, Mark; Neilson, Jeff

    2015-01-01

    The 5045 klystron has been in production and accelerating particles at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory for over 25 years. Although the design has undergone some changes there are still significant opportunities for improvement in performance. Retrofitting the 5045 for higher efficiencies and a more mono-energetic spent beam profile is presented.

  9. ALTERNATIVE APPROACHES TO EFFICIENCY EVALUATION OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Furková, Andrea

    2013-09-01

    Full Text Available Evaluation of efficiency and ranking of higher education institutions is very popular and important topic of public policy. The assessment of the quality of higher education institutions can stimulate positive changes in higher education. In this study we focus on assessment and ranking of Slovak economic faculties. We try to apply two different quantitative approaches for evaluation Slovak economic faculties - Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA as an econometric approach and PROMETHEE II as multicriteria decision making method. Via SFA we examine faculties’ success from scientific point of view, i.e. their success in area of publications and citations. Next part of analysis deals with assessing of Slovak economic sciences faculties from overall point of view through the multicriteria decision making method. In the analysis we employ panel data covering 11 economic faculties observed over the period of 5 years. Our main aim is to point out other quantitative approaches to efficiency estimation of higher education institutions.

  10. Higher Education and Efficiency in Europe: A Comparative Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sánchez-Pérez, Rosario

    2012-01-01

    This paper analyses the efficiency of higher education in equalizing the feasible wages obtained for men and women in the labour market. To do that, It is estimated two stochastic frontiers. The first one measures the effect of higher education inside the group of men and women for six European countries. The results indicate that in Denmark,…

  11. Energy efficiency interventions in UK higher education institutions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Altan, Hasim

    2010-01-01

    This paper provides an insight into energy efficiency interventions studies, focusing on issues arising in UK higher education institutions (HEIs) in particular. Based on a review of the context for energy efficiency and carbon reduction programmes in the UK and the trends in higher education sector, existing external and internal policies and initiatives and their relevant issues are extensively discussed. To explore the efficacy of some internal intervention strategies, such as technical, non-technical and management interventions, a survey was conducted among UK higher education institutions between February and April 2008. Consultation responses show that there are a relatively high percentage of institutions (83%) that have embarked on both technical and non-technical initiatives, which is a demonstration to the joined-up approach in such area. Major barriers for intervention studies are also identified, including lack of methodology, non-clarity of energy demand and consumption issues, difficulty in establishing assessment boundaries, problems with regards to indices and their effectiveness and so on. Besides establishing clear targets for carbon reductions within the sector, it is concluded that it is important to develop systems for effectively measuring and evaluating the impact of different policies, regulations and schemes in the future as the first step to explore. - Research Highlights: → The research provides an insight into energy efficiency interventions studies, focusing particularly on issues arising in UK higher education institutions (HEIs). → Based on a review of the context for energy efficiency and carbon reduction programmes in the UK and the trends in higher education sector, existing external and internal policies and initiatives, and their relevant issues are extensively discussed. → To explore the efficacy of some internal intervention strategies, such as technical, non-technical and management interventions, a survey was conducted

  12. Phosphorus Processing—Potentials for Higher Efficiency

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ludwig Hermann

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available In the aftermath of the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs and the Paris Agreement (COP21 by virtually all United Nations, producing more with less is imperative. In this context, phosphorus processing, despite its high efficiency compared to other steps in the value chain, needs to be revisited by science and industry. During processing, phosphorus is lost to phosphogypsum, disposed of in stacks globally piling up to 3–4 billion tons and growing by about 200 million tons per year, or directly discharged to the sea. Eutrophication, acidification, and long-term pollution are the environmental impacts of both practices. Economic and regulatory framework conditions determine whether the industry continues wasting phosphorus, pursues efficiency improvements or stops operations altogether. While reviewing current industrial practice and potentials for increasing processing efficiency with lower impact, the article addresses potentially conflicting goals of low energy and material use as well as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA as a tool for evaluating the relative impacts of improvement strategies. Finally, options by which corporations could pro-actively and credibly demonstrate phosphorus stewardship as well as options by which policy makers could enforce improvement without impairing business locations are discussed.

  13. Sustainability in Chinese Higher Educational Institutions’ Social Science Research: A Performance Interface toward Efficiency

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Xianmei Wang

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Sustainability issues in higher educational institutions’ (HEIs research, especially in the social science field, have attracted increasing levels of attention in higher education administration in recent decades as HEIs are confronted with a growing pressure worldwide to increase the efficiency of their research activities under a limited volume and relatively equitable division of public funding resources. This paper introduces a theoretical analysis framework based on a data envelopment analysis, separating the social science research process into a foundation stage and a construction stage, and then projecting each HEI into certain quadrants to form several clusters according to their overall and stage efficiencies and corresponding Malmquist Productivity Indices. Furthermore, the interfaces are formed in each cluster as feasible potential improvement directions. The empirical results in detail are demonstrated from a data set of Chinese HEIs in Jiangsu Province over the Twelfth Five-Year period as offering a closer approximation to the “China social science research best practice”.

  14. A Matching Activity When Entering Higher Education: Ongoing Guidance for the Students or Efficiency Instrument for the School?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mittendorff, Kariene; Faber, Marike; Staman, Laura

    2017-01-01

    In order to lower dropout rates and stimulate student success in higher education, the Dutch government implemented a new law demanding that every higher education institute offer a matching activity to applying students. This article evaluates how students and teachers experience this matching activity. Data were collected in a Dutch university…

  15. The effect of merger and consolidation activities on the efficiency of electricity distribution regions in Turkey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Çelen, Aydın

    2013-01-01

    In this study, we analyze the efficiency performances of Turkish electricity distribution companies throughout 2002 and 2009 in the stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) framework. Our more specific goal is to measure how the efficiency performances of the electricity distribution regions were affected by the mergers between distribution regions occurred in 2005. The results demonstrate that efficiencies of the companies serving to mostly the residential customers are higher than those of other companies. However, the positive impact of residential customers on the efficiencies decreased significantly following the mergers between electricity distribution companies. In contrast, the positive impact of higher customer density on efficiency also decreased, but insignificantly following the restructuring activities in the market in 2005. Our study also witnesses that the positive impact of the mergers on the efficiencies decreases as the proportion of sales to residential customers in regions increases. In contrast, the restructuring activities of 2005 increased equally the efficiencies of the companies serving in the regions with higher and lower customer densities. - Highlights: • We analyze efficiency performances of Turkish electricity distribution companies. • The efficiencies of companies serving to mostly residential customers are higher. • Positive impact of residential customers on the efficiencies dropped after mergers. • Positive impact of customer density also decreased, but insignificantly. • Positive impact of mergers on efficiency decreases as sales to residents increase

  16. The economical efficiency of private investments in higher education in Russia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elena Maksyutina

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available The article investigates the economical efficiency of investments in higher education in modern conditions of Russia. The beginning of the article includes a characteristic of the existing empiric research concerning the efficiency of investments in human capital assets. Further the author of the article introduces the results of pay off calculation of private investments in higher education. The result of the research was that in modern conditions of Russia investments in higher education are exceedingly advantageous. High norms of higher education feedback and short period of pay off of these investments explain the reasons of continuously growing demand for it on the part of the population, especially young people. The article proves that the level of population education in Russia is quite high, however accumulated human capital asset is used insufficiently effective. Many people with higher education are forced to take jobs not requiring higher education.  Sharp shift in educational behavior of Russian people raises new demands to labor market. Graduates of higher educational institutions, appearing on a labor market, form qualitatively different demands towards it. But tempo of Russian economics development today can not provide job positions for all graduates of higher educational institutions. That is why structural change of economics is needed.

  17. Achieving Efficient Spectrum Usage in Passive and Active Sensing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Huaiyi

    Increasing demand for supporting more wireless services with higher performance and reliability within the frequency bands that are most conducive to operating cost-effective cellular and mobile broadband is aggravating current electromagnetic spectrum congestion. This situation motivates technology and management innovation to increase the efficiency of spectral use. If primary-secondary spectrum sharing can be shown possible without compromising (or while even improving) performance in an existing application, opportunities for efficiency may be realizable by making the freed spectrum available for commercial use. While both active and passive sensing systems are vitally important for many public good applications, opportunities for increasing the efficiency of spectrum use can be shown to exist for both systems. This dissertation explores methods and technologies for remote sensing systems that enhance spectral efficiency and enable dynamic spectrum access both within and outside traditionally allocated bands.

  18. Energy Efficiency of Higher Education Buildings: A Case Study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Soares, Nelson; Pereira, Luísa Dias; Ferreira, João; Conceição, Pedro; da Silva, Patrícia Pereira

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: This paper aims to propose an energy efficiency plan (with technical and behavioural improvement measures) for a Portuguese higher education building--the Teaching Building of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Coimbra (FEUC). Design/methodology/approach: The study was developed in the context of both the "Green…

  19. High efficiency of CO2-activated graphite felt as electrode for vanadium redox flow battery application

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Yu-Chung; Chen, Jian-Yu; Kabtamu, Daniel Manaye; Lin, Guan-Yi; Hsu, Ning-Yih; Chou, Yi-Sin; Wei, Hwa-Jou; Wang, Chen-Hao

    2017-10-01

    A simple method for preparing CO2-activated graphite felt as an electrode in a vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) was employed by the direct treatment in a CO2 atmosphere at a high temperature for a short period. The CO2-activated graphite felt demonstrates excellent electrochemical activity and reversibility. The VRFB using the CO2-activated graphite felts in the electrodes has coulombic, voltage, and energy efficiencies of 94.52%, 88.97%, and 84.15%, respectively, which is much higher than VRFBs using the electrodes of untreated graphite felt and N2-activated graphite felt. The efficiency enhancement was attributed to the higher number of oxygen-containing functional groups on the graphite felt that are formed during the CO2-activation, leading to improving the electrochemical behaviour of the resultant VRFB.

  20. Reducing barriers to energy efficiency in the German higher education sector. Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schleich, J.; Boede, U.

    2000-12-01

    This report describes the empirical research into barriers to energy efficiency in the German higher education (HE) sector. It is one of nine such reports in the BARRIERS project. The report contains description and analysis of six case studies of energy management in German universities. The results are analysed using the theoretical framework developed for the BARRIERS project (Sorrell et al., 2000). The report also provides brief recommendations on how these barriers to the rational use of energy (RUE) may be overcome and how energy efficiency within the sector may be improved. The results of the study for the higher education sector in Germany are summarised in this executive summary under the following headings: - Characterising the higher education sector; - Case studies of energy management in the German higher education sector; - Evidence of barriers in the German higher education sector; - The role of energy service companies in the higher education sector; - Policy implications. (orig.)

  1. Reducing barriers to energy efficiency in the German higher education sector. Executive summary

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Schleich, J.; Boede, U.

    2000-12-01

    This report describes the empirical research into barriers to energy efficiency in the German higher education (HE) sector. It is one of nine such reports in the BARRIERS project. The report contains description and analysis of six case studies of energy management in German universities. The results are analysed using the theoretical framework developed for the BARRIERS project (Sorrell et al., 2000). The report also provides brief recommendations on how these barriers to the rational use of energy (RUE) may be overcome and how energy efficiency within the sector may be improved. The results of the study for the higher education sector in Germany are summarised in this executive summary under the following headings: - Characterising the higher education sector; - Case studies of energy management in the German higher education sector; - Evidence of barriers in the German higher education sector; - The role of energy service companies in the higher education sector; - Policy implications. (orig.)

  2. Muscle activity and masticatory efficiency with bilateral extension base removable partial dentures with different cusp angles.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Omiri, Mahmoud K

    2018-03-01

    Whether masticatory efficiency and electromyographic activity are influenced by type of artificial teeth and food is unclear. The purpose of this clinical study was to evaluate the influence of extension base removable partial dentures (RPDs) with different cusp angles: anatomic (33 degrees), semianatomic (20 degrees), and nonanatomic (0 degrees) teeth on masticatory efficiency and muscle activity during the mastication of test foods with different textures. Twelve participants with RPDs were selected to perform masticatory efficiency and electromyographic tests. Surface electromyograms (EMGs) were used to record the activities of the masseter and temporalis muscles during the mastication of different types of test foods. The maximal voltage and duration were measured on the integrated EMG signal in each muscle during food mastication, and the mean reading of both sides was then recorded. Analysis of variance and the Tukey post hoc test were used to perform statistical analyses (α=.05). The masticatory efficiency of RPDs with nonanatomic teeth was significantly inferior to that of RPDs with anatomic and semianatomic teeth (P.05). Also, muscle activity (according to EMG) with RPDs with NA teeth was significantly higher than that with anatomic and semianatomic teeth (P<.05). RPDs with NA teeth were associated with higher EMG muscle activity and reduced masticatory efficiency than anatomic or semianatomic teeth. Copyright © 2017 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. CNTs-Modified Nb3O7F Hybrid Nanocrystal towards Faster Carrier Migration, Lower Bandgap and Higher Photocatalytic Activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Fei; Li, Zhen; Yan, Aihua; Zhao, Hui; Liang, Huagen; Gao, Qingyu; Qiang, Yinghuai

    2017-01-06

    Novel semiconductor photocatalysts have been the research focus and received much attention in recent years. The key issues for novel semiconductor photocatalysts are to effectively harvest solar energy and enhance the separation efficiency of the electron-hole pairs. In this work, novel Nb 3 O 7 F/CNTs hybrid nanocomposites with enhanced photocatalytic activity have been successfully synthesized by a facile hydrothermal plus etching technique. The important finding is that appropriate pH values lead to the formation of Nb 3 O 7 F nanocrystal directly. A general strategy to introdue interaction between Nb 3 O 7 F and CNTs markedly enhances the photocatalytic activity of Nb 3 O 7 F. Comparatively, Nb 3 O 7 F/CNTs nanocomposites exhibit higher photodegradation efficiency and faster photodegradation rate in the solution of methylene blue (MB) under visible-light irradiation. The higher photocatalytic activity may be attributed to more exposed active sites, higher carrier migration and narrower bandgap because of good synergistic effect. The results here may inspire more engineering, new design and facile fabrication of novel photocatalysts with highly photocatalytic activity.

  4. Optimization of Multi-layer Active Magnetic Regenerator towards Compact and Efficient Refrigeration

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lei, Tian; Engelbrecht, Kurt; Nielsen, Kaspar Kirstein

    2016-01-01

    Magnetic refrigerators can theoretically be more efficient than current vapor compression systems and use no vapor refrigerants with global warming potential. The core component, the active magnetic regenerator (AMR) operates based on the magnetocaloric effect of magnetic materials and the heat r....... In addition, simulations are carried out to investigate the potential of applying nanofluid in future magnetic refrigerators.......Magnetic refrigerators can theoretically be more efficient than current vapor compression systems and use no vapor refrigerants with global warming potential. The core component, the active magnetic regenerator (AMR) operates based on the magnetocaloric effect of magnetic materials and the heat...... their Curie temperature. Simulations are implemented to investigate how to layer the FOPT materials for obtaining higher cooling capacity. Moreover, based on entropy generation minimization, optimization of the regenerator geometry and related operating parameters is presented for improving the AMR efficiency...

  5. CIGS cells with metallized front contact: Longer cells and higher efficiency

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Deelen, J. van; Frijters, C.

    2017-01-01

    We have investigated the benefit of a patterned metallization on top of a transparent conductive oxide in CIGS thin-film solar panels. It was found that cells with a grid have a higher efficiency compared to cells with only a TCO. This was observed for all cell lengths used. Furthermore, metallic

  6. Towards Efficient Search for Activity Trajectories

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Zheng, Kai; Shang, Shuo; Yuan, Jing

    2013-01-01

    , recent proliferation in location-based web applications (e.g., Foursquare, Facebook) has given rise to large amounts of trajectories associated with activity information, called activity trajectory. In this paper, we study the problem of efficient similarity search on activity trajectory database. Given...

  7. Efficiency and Effectiveness in Higher Education: A Report by the Universities UK Efficiency and Modernisation Task Group

    Science.gov (United States)

    Universities UK, 2011

    2011-01-01

    Effectiveness, efficiency and value for money are central concerns for the higher education sector. In England, decisions made by the current Government will effect a radical change in the funding for teaching. Institutions will be managing a reduction in public funding for teaching and the transition to the new system of graduate contributions,…

  8. Efficiency, Costs, Rankings and Heterogeneity: The Case of US Higher Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agasisti, Tommaso; Johnes, Geraint

    2015-01-01

    Among the major trends in the higher education (HE) sector, the development of rankings as a policy and managerial tool is of particular relevance. However, despite the diffusion of these instruments, it is still not clear how they relate with traditional performance measures, like unit costs and efficiency scores. In this paper, we estimate a…

  9. Achieving higher efficiency of production through knowledge management via social capital management

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jana Plchová

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available The article shows a new approach – how to reach higher efficiency in the production from knowledge management via managing social capital through measurement, motivation and stimulation. The test in a real company on the Toyota system implementation is de-scribed. The active involvement of people is an important part of the Toyota system success. This is obvious in Japan but creates a big problem in Europe. These problems were tested in order to answer the following questions: 1. Is it possible to measure the social system level before the application of the system?, 2. Is it possible to evaluate the necessary level of the social system for successful implementation in advance?, 3. Is it possible to cultivate the social system to the desired level? We try to answer all of these questions adopting the Kopčaj Spiral Management approach. The practical results on an existing company are presented together with managerial recommendations.

  10. Efficient sensor selection for active information fusion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Yongmian; Ji, Qiang

    2010-06-01

    In our previous paper, we formalized an active information fusion framework based on dynamic Bayesian networks to provide active information fusion. This paper focuses on a central issue of active information fusion, i.e., the efficient identification of a subset of sensors that are most decision relevant and cost effective. Determining the most informative and cost-effective sensors requires an evaluation of all the possible subsets of sensors, which is computationally intractable, particularly when information-theoretic criterion such as mutual information is used. To overcome this challenge, we propose a new quantitative measure for sensor synergy based on which a sensor synergy graph is constructed. Using the sensor synergy graph, we first introduce an alternative measure to multisensor mutual information for characterizing the sensor information gain. We then propose an approximated nonmyopic sensor selection method that can efficiently and near-optimally select a subset of sensors for active fusion. The simulation study demonstrates both the performance and the efficiency of the proposed sensor selection method.

  11. Beyond Frontiers: Comparing the Efficiency of Higher Education Decision-Making Units across More than One Country

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agasisti, Tommaso; Johnes, Geraint

    2009-01-01

    We employ Data Envelopment Analysis to compute the technical efficiency of Italian and English higher education institutions. Our results show that, in relation to the country-specific frontier, institutions in both countries are typically very efficient. However, institutions in England are more efficient than those in Italy when we compare…

  12. Can More Environmental Information Disclosure Lead to Higher Eco-Efficiency? Evidence from China

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yantuan Yu

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The present paper investigates the impact of pollution information transparency index (PITI on eco-efficiency using a novel panel dataset covering 109 key environmental protection prefecture-level cities in China over the period 2008–2015. We apply an extended data envelopment analysis (DEA model, simultaneously incorporating metafrontier, undesirable outputs and super efficiency into slack-based measure (Meta-US-SBM to estimate eco-efficiency. Then, the bootstrap Granger causality approach is utilized to test the unidirectional Granger causal relationship running from PITI to eco-efficiency. Results of DEA model show that there exist significant spatiotemporal disparities of eco-efficiency, on average, the eco-efficiency in eastern region is relative higher than those of central/western region. Estimates of ordinary least square (OLS method, quantile regression, and spatial Durbin model document that the evidence of an inverted-U-shaped relation between PITI and eco-efficiency is supported, and the turning points vary from 0.3370 to 0.4540 with different model specifications. Finally, supplementary analysis of panel threshold model also supports the robust findings. Policy implications are presented based on the empirical results.

  13. Energy Efficiency Center - Overview

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Obryk, E.

    2000-01-01

    Full text: The Energy Efficiency Center (EEC) activities have been concentrated on Energy Efficiency Network (SEGE), education and training of energy auditors. EEC has started studies related to renewable fuels (bio fuel, wastes) and other topics related to environment protection. EEC has continued close collaboration with Institute for Energy Technology, Kjeller, Norway. It has been organized and conducted Seminar and Workshop on ''How to Reduce Energy and Water Cost in Higher Education Buildings'' for general and technical managers of the higher education institutions. This Seminar was proceeded by the working meeting on energy efficiency strategy in higher education at the Ministry of National Education. EEC has worked out proposal for activities of Cracow Regional Agency for Energy Efficiency and Environment and has made offer to provide services for this Agency in the field of training, education and consulting. The vast knowledge and experiences in the field of energy audits have been used by the members of EEC in lecturing at energy auditors courses authorized by the National Energy Efficiency Agency (KAPE). Altogether 20 lectures have been delivered. (author)

  14. The ratio of nurse consultation and physician efficiency index of senior rheumatologists is significantly higher than junior physicians in rheumatology residency training

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Emamifar, Amir; van Bui Hansen, Morten Hai; Jensen Hansen, Inger Marie

    2017-01-01

    To elucidate the difference between ratios of nurse consultation sought by senior rheumatologists and junior physicians in rheumatology residency training, and also to evaluate physician efficiency index respecting patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Data regarding outpatient visits for RA...... patients between November 2013 and 2015 were extracted. The mean interval (day) between consultations, the nurse/physician visits ratio, and physician efficiency index (nurse/physician visits ratio × mean interval) for each senior and junior physicians were calculated. Disease Activity Score in 28 joints....../physician visits ratio (P = .01) and mean efficiency index (P = .04) of senior rheumatologists were significantly higher than that of junior physicians. Regression analysis showed a positive correlation between physician postgraduate experience and physician efficiency index adjusted for DAS28 at baseline...

  15. Method of oocyte activation affects cloning efficiency in pigs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Whitworth, Kristin M; Li, Rongfeng; Spate, Lee D; Wax, David M; Rieke, August; Whyte, Jeffrey J; Manandhar, Gaurishankar; Sutovsky, Miriam; Green, Jonathan A; Sutovsky, Peter; Prather, Randall S

    2009-05-01

    The following experiments compared the efficiency of three fusion/activation protocols following somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) with porcine somatic cells transfected with enhanced green fluorescent protein driven by the chicken beta-actin/rabbit beta-globin hybrid promoter (pCAGG-EGFP). The three protocols included electrical fusion/activation (NT1), electrical fusion/activation followed by treatment with a reversible proteasomal inhibitor MG132 (NT2) and electrical fusion in low Ca(2+) followed by chemical activation with thimerosal/dithiothreitol (NT3). Data were collected at Days 6, 12, 14, 30, and 114 of gestation. Fusion rates, blastocyst-stage mean cell numbers, recovery rates, and pregnancy rates were calculated and compared between protocols. Fusion rates were significantly higher for NT1 and NT2 compared to NT3 (P NT1 (71.4%, n = 28; P 0.05). All fusion/activation treatments produced live, pCAGG-EGFP positive piglets from SCNT. Treatment with MG132 after fusion/activation of reconstructed porcine embryos was the most effective method when comparing the overall pregnancy rates. The beneficial effect of NT2 protocol may be due to the stimulation of proteasomes that infiltrate donor cell nucleus shortly after nuclear transfer. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  16. Enhancing efficiency of production cost on seafood process with activity based management method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tarigan, U.; Tarigan, U. P. P.

    2018-02-01

    The efficiency of production costs has an important impact maintaining company presence in the business world, as well as in the face of increasingly sharp global competition. It was done by identifying and reducing non-value-added activities to decrease production costs and increase profits. The study was conducted at a company engaged in the production of squid (seafood). It has a higher product price than the market as Rp 50,000 per kg while the market price of squid is only Rp 35,000 per kg. The price of the product to be more expensive compared with market price, and thereby a lot more consumers choose the lower market price. Based on the discussions conducted, the implementation of Activity Based Management was seen in the reduction of activities that are not added value in the production process. Since each activities consumers cost, the reduction of nonvalue-added activities has effects on the decline of production cost. The production’s decline costs mainly occur in the reduction of material transfer costs. The results showed that there was an increase after the improvement of 2.60%. Increased production cost efficiency causes decreased production costs and increased profits.

  17. Self-Evaluation of the Scientific Activity of a Higher Educational Institution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rayevnyeva Olena V.

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The article is dedicated to the problem of self-evaluation of the scientific activity of a higher educational institution (HEI as a component of its overall ranking evaluation. On the basis of a potentially effective approach to studying this problem, there proposed a system of indicators for evaluating the scientific activity of a HEI, which makes it possible to determine the potential of its scientific activity in terms of staff and resource provision, and the efficiency — in terms of quality of the training of scientific staff (students, graduate students, young scientists, etc., financial results of scientific activity and publication activity. To obtain an integral ranking score of the scientific activity of a HEI, the use of the taxonomic method is justified, the necessity of applying weight coefficients of the significance of primary indicators is determined. The approbation of the approach was carried out on the basis of the data of S. Kuznets KhNEU for the period of 2013-2016, which made it possible to obtain not only point estimates of the integral indicator of the scientific activity of an HEI but also determine the trends in its changes and identify their reasons. The proposed approach to the self-evaluation of the scientific activity of a HEI allows its administration to develop effective management solutions to increase the level of scientific activity of its scientific and pedagogical, and scientific staff, which will provide additional competitive advantages in the national and world educational space.

  18. Marketing activities of higher education institutions

    OpenAIRE

    Varađanin Vladimir

    2017-01-01

    Public sector marketing is a modern-day scientific discipline which is getting more and more attention. Institutions of higher education provide a specific kind of services to their users, which makes these institutions a part of the public sector. Due to dynamic changes in the environment, the demands and needs of higher education institution's users change, which makes it necessary to monitor these changes through certain marketing activities and adjust to them in order to satisfy the users...

  19. Trophic assimilation efficiency markedly increases at higher trophic levels in four-level host-parasitoid food chain.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sanders, Dirk; Moser, Andrea; Newton, Jason; van Veen, F J Frank

    2016-03-16

    Trophic assimilation efficiency (conversion of resource biomass into consumer biomass) is thought to be a limiting factor for food chain length in natural communities. In host-parasitoid systems, which account for the majority of terrestrial consumer interactions, a high trophic assimilation efficiency may be expected at higher trophic levels because of the close match of resource composition of host tissue and the consumer's resource requirements, which would allow for longer food chains. We measured efficiency of biomass transfer along an aphid-primary-secondary-tertiary parasitoid food chain and used stable isotope analysis to confirm trophic levels. We show high efficiency in biomass transfer along the food chain. From the third to the fourth trophic level, the proportion of host biomass transferred was 45%, 65% and 73%, respectively, for three secondary parasitoid species. For two parasitoid species that can act at the fourth and fifth trophic levels, we show markedly increased trophic assimilation efficiencies at the higher trophic level, which increased from 45 to 63% and 73 to 93%, respectively. In common with other food chains, δ(15)N increased with trophic level, with trophic discrimination factors (Δ(15)N) 1.34 and 1.49‰ from primary parasitoids to endoparasitic and ectoparasitic secondary parasitoids, respectively, and 0.78‰ from secondary to tertiary parasitoids. Owing to the extraordinarily high efficiency of hyperparasitoids, cryptic higher trophic levels may exist in host-parasitoid communities, which could alter our understanding of the dynamics and drivers of community structure of these important systems. © 2016 The Authors.

  20. ICT energy efficiency in higher education. Continuous measurement and monitoring

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ter Hofte, H. [Novay, Enschede (Netherlands)

    2011-11-15

    Power consumption of information and communications technology (ICT) is rising rapidly worldwide. Reducing (the growth in) energy demand helps to achieve sustainability goals in the area of energy resource depletion, energy security, economy, and ecology. Various governments and industry consortia have set out policies and agreements to reduce the (growth in) demand for energy. In the MJA3 agreements in the Netherlands, various organizations, including all 14 universities and 39 universities of applied sciences pledged to achieve 30% increase in energy efficiency in 2020 compared to 2005. In this report, we argue that using the number of kilowatt-hours of final electricity used for ICT per enrolled student per day (kWh/st/d), should be used as the primary metric for ICT energy efficiency in higher education. For other uses of electricity than ICT in higher education, we express electricity use in kilowatthours per person per day (kWh/p/d). Applying continuous monitoring and management of ICT energy is one approach one could take to increase ICT energy efficiency in education. In households, providing direct (i.e. real-time) feedback about energy use typically results in 5-15% energy savings, whereas indirect feedback (provided some time after consumption occurs), results in less energy savings, typically 0-10%. Continuous measurement of ICT electricity use can be done in a variety of ways. In this report, we distinguish and describe four major measurement approaches: (1) In-line meters, which require breaking the electrical circuit to install the meter; (2) clamp-on-meters, which can be wrapped around a wire; (3) add-ons to existing energy meters, which use analog or digital ports of existing energy meters; (4) software-only measurement, which uses existing network interfaces, protocols and APIs. A measurement approach can be used at one or more aggregation levels: at building level (to measure all electrical energy used in a building, e.g. a datacenter); at

  1. Economic efficiency of e-learning in higher education: An industrial approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jordi Vilaseca

    2008-07-01

    Full Text Available Little work has been yet done to analyse if e-learning is an efficiency way in economic terms to produce higher education, especially because there are not available data in official statistics. Despite of these important constrains, this paper aims to contribute to the study of economic efficiency of e-learning through the analysis of a sample of e-learning universities during a period of time (1997-2002. We have wanted to obtain some empirical evidence to understand if e-learning is a feasible model of providing education for universities and which are the variables that allow for feasibility attainment. The main findings are: 1 that the rise of the number of students enrolled is consistent with increasing labour productivity rates; 2 that cost labour savings are explained by the improvement of universities’ economic efficiency (or total factor productivity; and 3 that improvement of total factor productivity in e-learning production is due to the attainment of scale economies, but also to two organisational innovations: outsourcing processes that leads to the increase of variable costs consistent with decreasing marginal costs, and the sharing of assets’ control and use that allow for a rise in assets rotation.

  2. Efficient Fludarabine-Activating PNP From Archaea as a Guidance for Redesign the Active Site of E. Coli PNP.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cacciapuoti, Giovanna; Bagarolo, Maria Libera; Martino, Elisa; Scafuri, Bernardina; Marabotti, Anna; Porcelli, Marina

    2016-05-01

    The combination of the gene of purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) from Escherichia coli and fludarabine represents one of the most promising systems in the gene therapy of solid tumors. The use of fludarabine in gene therapy is limited by the lack of an enzyme that is able to efficiently activate this prodrug which, consequently, has to be administered in high doses that cause serious side effects. In an attempt to identify enzymes with a better catalytic efficiency than E. coli PNP towards fludarabine to be used as a guidance on how to improve the activity of the bacterial enzyme, we have selected 5'-deoxy-5'-methylthioadenosine phosphorylase (SsMTAP) and 5'-deoxy-5'-methylthioadenosine phosphorylase II (SsMTAPII), two PNPs isolated from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus. Substrate specificity and catalytic efficiency of SsMTAP and SsMTAPII for fludarabine were analyzed by kinetic studies and compared with E. coli PNP. SsMTAP and SsMTAPII share with E. coli PNP a comparable low affinity for the arabinonucleoside but are better catalysts of fludarabine cleavage with k(cat)/K(m) values that are 12.8-fold and 6-fold higher, respectively, than those reported for the bacterial enzyme. A computational analysis of the interactions of fludarabine in the active sites of E. coli PNP, SsMTAP, and SsMTAPII allowed to identify the crucial residues involved in the binding with this substrate, and provided structural information to improve the catalytic efficiency of E. coli PNP by enzyme redesign. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  3. Higher Physical Activity is Associated with Increased Attentional Network Connectivity in the Healthy Elderly

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Geon Ha Kim

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the potential alterations in structural network properties related to physical activity (PA in healthy elderly. We recruited 76 elderly individuals with normal cognition from Samsung Medical Center in Seoul, Korea. All participants underwent the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery and 3.0T brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI. Participants were subdivided into quartiles according to the International Physical Activity Questionnaire scores, which represents the amount of PA. Through graph theory based analyses, we compared global and local network topologies according to PA quartile. The higher PA group demonstrated better performance in speed processing compared to the lower PA group. Regional nodal strength also significantly increased in the higher PA group, which involved the bilateral middle frontal, bilateral inferior parietal, right medial orbitofrontal, right superior and middle temporal gyri. These results were further replicated when the highest and the lowest quartile groups were compared in terms of regional nodal strengths and local efficiency. Our findings that the regional nodal strengths associated with the attentional network were increased in the higher PA group suggest the preventive effects of PA on age-related cognitive decline, especially in attention.

  4. The Role of Activator-Activator Interactions In Reducing in Low-Voltage-Cathodoluminescence Efficiency in Eu and Tb Doped Phosphors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    SEAGER, CARLETON H.; TALLANT, DAVID R.

    1999-01-01

    High resolution measurements of spectrally resolved cathodoluminescence (CL) decay have been made in several commercial and experimental phosphors doped with Eu and Tb at beam energies ranging from 0.8 to 4 keV. CL emission from the lowest two excited states of both rare earth activators was compared to the decay of photoluminescence (PL) after pulsed laser excitation. We find that, at long times after the cessation of electron excitation, the CL decay rates are comparable to those measured in PL, at short times, the decay process is considerably faster and has a noticeable dependence on the energy of the electron beam. These beam energy effects are largest for the higher excited states and for phosphors with larger activator concentrations. Measurements of the experimental phosphors over a range of activator fractions from 0.1 to 0.002 show that the beam energy dependence of the steady-state CL efficiency is larger for higher excited states and weakens as the activator concentration is reduced. The latter effect is strongest for Y 2 SiO 5 :Tb, but also quite evident in Y 2 O 3 :Eu. We suggest that the electron beam dependence of both the decay lifetimes and the steady state CL efficiency may be due to interaction of nearby excited states which occurs as a result of the large energy deposition rate for low energy electrons. This picture-for non-radiative quenching of rare earth emission is an excited state analog of the well-known (ground state-excited state) concentration quenching mechanism

  5. Post-weaning feed efficiency decreased in progeny of higher milk yielding beef cows.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mulliniks, J T; Edwards, S R; Hobbs, J D; McFarlane, Z D; Cope, E R

    2018-02-01

    Current trends in the beef industry focus on selecting production traits with the purpose of maximizing calf weaning weight; however, such traits may ultimately decrease overall post-weaning productivity. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of actual milk yield in mature beef cows on their offspring's dry matter intake (DMI), BW, average daily gain, feed conversion ratio (FCR) and residual feed intake (RFI) during a ~75-day backgrounding feeding trial. A period of 24-h milk production was measured with a modified weigh-suckle-weigh technique using a milking machine. After milking, cows were retrospectively classified as one of three milk yield groups: Lower (6.57±1.21 kg), Moderate (9.02±0.60 kg) or Higher (11.97±1.46 kg). Calves from Moderate and Higher milk yielding dams had greater (Pfeeding phase; however, day 75 BW were not different (P=0.36) between Lower and Moderate calves. Body weight gain was greater (P=0.05) for Lower and Moderate calves from the day 0 BW to day 35 BW compared with Higher calves. Overall DMI was lower (P=0.03) in offspring from Lower and Moderate cows compared with their Higher milking counterparts. With the decreased DMI, FCR was lower (P=0.03) from day 0 to day 35 in calves from Lower and Moderate milk yielding dams. In addition, overall FCR was lower (P=0.02) in calves from Lower and Moderate milk yielding dams compared with calves from Higher milk yielding dams. However, calving of Lower milk yielding dams had an increased (P=0.04) efficiency from a negative RFI value compared with calves from Moderate and Higher milking dams. Results from this study suggest that increased milk production in beef cows decreases feed efficiency during a 75-day post-weaning, backgrounding period of progeny.

  6. Why do French civil-law countries have higher levels of financial efficiency?

    OpenAIRE

    Asongu Simplice

    2011-01-01

    The dominance of English common-law countries in prospects for financial development in the legal-origins debate has been debunked by recent findings. Using exchange rate regimes and economic/monetary integration oriented hypotheses, this paper proposes an “inflation uncertainty theory” in providing theoretical justification and empirical validity as to why French civil-law countries have higher levels of financial allocation efficiency. Inflation uncertainty, typical of floating exchange rat...

  7. Efficient and Effective Change Principles in Active Videogames

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Straker, Leon M; Fenner, Ashley A; Howie, Erin K; Feltz, Deborah L; Gray, Cindy M; Lu, Amy Shirong; Mueller, Florian Floyd; Simons, Monique; Barnett, Lisa M

    Active videogames have the potential to enhance population levels of physical activity but have not been successful in achieving this aim to date. This article considers a range of principles that may be important to the design of effective and efficient active videogames from diverse discipline

  8. Efficient and Effective Change Principles in Active Videogames

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Straker, L.M.; Fenner, A.A.; Howie, E.K.; Feltz, D.L.; Gray, C.M.; Lu, A.S.; Mueller, F.F.; Simons, M.; Barnett, L.M.

    2015-01-01

    Active videogames have the potential to enhance population levels of physical activity but have not been successful in achieving this aim to date. This article considers a range of principles that may be important to the design of effective and efficient active videogames from diverse discipline

  9. Selection of index complex for the NPP operator activity efficiency

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kolesnik, A I; Chertorizhskij, E A

    1984-01-01

    Preconditions for choice of NPP operator activity efficiency index are determined. Results of the choice are given and a method for determination of generalized and particular parameters by means of which NPP operator activity efficiency can be estimated is considered. An algorithm of diagnosis of reason for unsuccess of operator activity based on assessment of psychological factors of complicacy is suggested.

  10. Activity-Based Costing Systems for Higher Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Day, Dennis H.

    1993-01-01

    Examines traditional costing models utilized in higher education and pinpoints shortcomings related to proper identification of costs. Describes activity-based costing systems as a superior alternative for cost identification, measurement, and allocation. (MLF)

  11. A Novel Energy-Efficient Approach for Human Activity Recognition.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zheng, Lingxiang; Wu, Dihong; Ruan, Xiaoyang; Weng, Shaolin; Peng, Ao; Tang, Biyu; Lu, Hai; Shi, Haibin; Zheng, Huiru

    2017-09-08

    In this paper, we propose a novel energy-efficient approach for mobile activity recognition system (ARS) to detect human activities. The proposed energy-efficient ARS, using low sampling rates, can achieve high recognition accuracy and low energy consumption. A novel classifier that integrates hierarchical support vector machine and context-based classification (HSVMCC) is presented to achieve a high accuracy of activity recognition when the sampling rate is less than the activity frequency, i.e., the Nyquist sampling theorem is not satisfied. We tested the proposed energy-efficient approach with the data collected from 20 volunteers (14 males and six females) and the average recognition accuracy of around 96.0% was achieved. Results show that using a low sampling rate of 1Hz can save 17.3% and 59.6% of energy compared with the sampling rates of 5 Hz and 50 Hz. The proposed low sampling rate approach can greatly reduce the power consumption while maintaining high activity recognition accuracy. The composition of power consumption in online ARS is also investigated in this paper.

  12. Frontopolar cortex and decision-making efficiency: comparing brain activity of experts with different professional background during an exploration-exploitation task

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Daniella eLaureiro-Martínez

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available An optimal balance between efficient exploitation of available resources and creative exploration of alternatives is critical for adaptation and survival. Previous studies associated these behavioral drives with, respectively, the dopaminergic mesocorticolimbic system and frontopolar-intraparietal networks. We study the activation of these systems in two age and gender-matched groups of experienced decision-makers differing in prior professional background, with the aim to understand the neural bases of individual differences in decision-making efficiency (performance divided by response time. We compare brain activity of entrepreneurs (who currently manage the organization they founded based on their venture idea and managers (who are constantly involved in making strategic decisions but have no venture experience engaged in a gambling-task assessing exploitative vs. explorative decision-making. Compared with managers, entrepreneurs showed higher decision-making efficiency, and a stronger activation in regions of frontopolar cortex previously associated with explorative choice. Moreover, activity across a network of regions previously linked to explore/exploit tradeoffs explained individual differences in choice efficiency. These results suggest new avenues for the study of individual differences in the neural antecedents of efficient decision-making.

  13. Higher-order force moments of active particles

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nasouri, Babak; Elfring, Gwynn J.

    2018-04-01

    Active particles moving through fluids generate disturbance flows due to their activity. For simplicity, the induced flow field is often modeled by the leading terms in a far-field approximation of the Stokes equations, whose coefficients are the force, torque, and stresslet (zeroth- and first-order force moments) of the active particle. This level of approximation is quite useful, but may also fail to predict more complex behaviors that are observed experimentally. In this study, to provide a better approximation, we evaluate the contribution of the second-order force moments to the flow field and, by reciprocal theorem, present explicit formulas for the stresslet dipole, rotlet dipole, and potential dipole for an arbitrarily shaped active particle. As examples of this method, we derive modified Faxén laws for active spherical particles and resolve higher-order moments for active rod-like particles.

  14. Exploring the efficiency potential for an active magnetic regenerator

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Eriksen, Dan; Engelbrecht, Kurt; Haffenden Bahl, Christian Robert

    2016-01-01

    A novel rotary state of the art active magnetic regenerator refrigeration prototype was used in an experimental investigation with special focus on efficiency. Based on an applied cooling load, measured shaft power, and pumping power applied to the active magnetic regenerator, a maximum second-la...... and replacing the packed spheres with a theoretical parallel plate regenerator. Furthermore, significant potential efficiency improvements through optimized regenerator geometries are estimated and discussed......., especially for the pressure drop, significant improvements can be made to the machine. However, a large part of the losses may be attributed to regenerator irreversibilities. Considering these unchanged, an estimated upper limit to the second-law efficiency of 30% is given by eliminating parasitic losses...

  15. Regulation of higher-activity NARM wastes by EPA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bandrowski, M.S.

    1988-01-01

    The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is currently developing standards for the disposal of low-level radioactive waste (LLW). As part of this Standard, EPA is including regulations for the disposal of naturally occurring and accelerator-produced radioactive material (NARM) wastes not covered under the Atomic Energy Act (AEA). The regulations will cover only higher-activity NARM wastes, defined as NARM waste with specific activity exceeding two nanocuries per gram. The proposed regulations will specify that NARM wastes exceeding the above limits, except for specific exempted items, must be disposed of in regulated radioactive waste disposal facilities. The proposed EPA regulations for NARM wastes will be discussed, as well as the costs and benefits of the regulation, how it will be implemented by EPA, and the rationale for covering only higher-activity NARM wastes exceeding two nanocuries per gram

  16. Removal efficiency of methylene blue using activated carbon from waste banana stem: Study on pH influence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Misran, E.; Bani, O.; Situmeang, E. M.; Purba, A. S.

    2018-02-01

    The effort to remove methylene blue in artificial solution had been conducted using adsorption process. The abundant banana stem waste was utilized as activated carbon precursor. This study aimed to analyse the influence of solution pH to removal efficiency of methylene blue using activated carbon from banana stem as adsorbent. Activated carbon from banana stem was obtained by chemical activation using H3PO4 solution. Proximate analysis result showed that the activated carbon has 47.22% of fixed carbon. This value exhibited that banana stem was a potential adsorbent precursor. Methylene blue solutions were prepared at initial concentration of 50 ppm. The influence of solution pH was investigated with the use of 0.2 g adsorbent for 100 mL dye solution. The adsorption was conducted using shaker with at a constant rate of 100 rpm at room temperature for 90 minutes. The results showed that solution pH influenced the adsorption. The activated carbon from banana stem demonstrated satisfying performance since removal efficiencies of methylene blue were higher than 99%.

  17. Marketing activities of higher education institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Varađanin Vladimir

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Public sector marketing is a modern-day scientific discipline which is getting more and more attention. Institutions of higher education provide a specific kind of services to their users, which makes these institutions a part of the public sector. Due to dynamic changes in the environment, the demands and needs of higher education institution's users change, which makes it necessary to monitor these changes through certain marketing activities and adjust to them in order to satisfy the users' needs. Each higher education institution sets its own goals which, broadly speaking, are to meet their own needs, the needs of students and the society as a whole. Therefore, when formulating a strategy for achieving the objectives of higher education institutions, it is necessary to have timely information from the environment. The modern approach to business puts forward the service users' needs. When it comes to institutions of higher education, the users are primarily students, who thus get the most attention. Keeping this in mind, we have conducted a research among students in order to identify the choice factors influencing their higher education institution selection process. The results obtained should provide guidelines for creating an adequate marketing mix in order to gain competitive advantage on the market for higher education. In the research descriptive and comparative methods were used. In the practical part of the research, survey technique was applied by means of a non-standardized questionnaire. The research results imply that the analysis of the factors influencing the process of selecting the higher education institution enables the creation of an adequate combination of instruments in a marketing mix which can then be used as an instrument for gaining competitive advantage.

  18. Recurrent activity in higher order, modality non-specific brain regions

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lou, Hans Olav Christensen; Joensson, Morten; Biermann-Ruben, Katja

    2011-01-01

    It has been proposed that the workings of the brain are mainly intrinsically generated recurrent neuronal activity, with sensory inputs as modifiers of such activity in both sensory and higher order modality non-specific regions. This is supported by the demonstration of recurrent neuronal activity...... in the visual system as a response to visual stimulation. In contrast recurrent activity has never been demonstrated before in higher order modality non-specific regions. Using magneto-encephalography and Granger causality analysis, we tested in a paralimbic network the hypothesis that stimulation may enhance...... causal recurrent interaction between higher-order, modality non-specific regions. The network includes anterior cingulate/medial prefrontal and posterior cingulate/medial parietal cortices together with pulvinar thalami, a network known to be effective in autobiographic memory retrieval and self...

  19. Implementation of ICT in Higher Education as Interacting Activity Systems

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nyvang, Tom

    2006-01-01

    Implementation of ICT in higher education is not a trivial process. It is however a process leading to a number of challenges and problems. The paper develops a theoretical model of the implementation of ICT in higher education based on activity theory and on a case study in a Danish university...... activity and an educational activity. Based on the model and case study the paper suggest a framework of challenges that must be met for an implementation to succeed....

  20. Clinical research in dermatology: resources and activities associated with a higher scientific productivity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Molina-Leyva, Alejandro; Descalzo, Miguel A; García-Doval, Ignacio

    2018-03-06

    Clinical research papers and their derived metrics can be useful to assess the scientific production of medical and research centers. Diverse factors are probably associated to differences in scientific production. But there are scarce studies analyzing them. Resources are limited and have to be distributed efficiently. The objective of this study is to explore what resources and activities are potentially associated with a higher scientific productivity. A bibliometric study was performed to obtain information about scientific productivity. Papers included had to meet criteria to be considered clinical research in dermatology, additionally had to be published between the years 2005-2014, had to be included in Pubmed or Embase and had to include a Spanish center of dermatology as the correspondence address. Information about research resources and activities of the year 2015 was gathered by means of an online survey sent to the authors identified in the bibliometric study. The search strategy returned 8617 papers and only 1104 of them (12.81%) met the inclusion criteria. 63 out of 113 centers responded to the survey (55.75%). Factors associated with a higher scientific productivity were: the size of the resident program, the amount of time specifically dedicated to research, a lower clinical workload, and the number of clinical trials performed in the last year. We have demonstrated that some factors are associated with a higher scientific productivity. Residency program, more research staff, clinical workload redistribution and research motivation/initiatives are key strategies that could improve scientific productivity of a center.

  1. How efficient are municipalities in activating cash-help recipients in Denmark

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Weatherall, James; Beltov, Tor

    Previous studies do not analyse activation starts as the parameter of interest in evaluating labour market programs. In this paper we evaluate municipality ability to activate cash-help recipients, which helps recipients gain the necessary skills vital to future regular employment in Denmark...... policy (ALMP) practices and organisation can only determine activation participation to a certain extent because unemployed cash-help recipient ability affects participation in activation. Municipalities can improve activation efficiency levels in the future by emulating the efficient municipalities...

  2. Methodical Approach to Diagnostics of Efficiency of Production Economic Activity of an Enterprise

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhukov Andrii V.

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The article offers developments of a methodical approach to diagnostics of efficiency of production economic activity of an enterprise, which, unlike the existing ones, is realised through the following stages: analysis of the enterprise external environment; analysis of the enterprise internal environment; identification of components of efficiency of production economic activity for carrying out complex diagnostics by the following directions: efficiency of subsystems of the enterprise production economic activity, efficiency of use of separate types of resources and socio-economic efficiency; scorecard formation; study of tendencies of change of indicators; identification of cause-effect dependencies between the main components of efficiency for diagnosing reasons of its level; diagnosing deviations of indicator values from their optimal values; development of a managerial decision on preserving and increasing efficiency of production economic activity of the enterprise.

  3. Assessment of participation in higher education team working activities

    OpenAIRE

    Andreu Andrés, María Angeles; García-Casas, Miguel

    2014-01-01

    [EN] Since among the competences which are most valued by engineering corporations are the ability to make decisions, the capacity for teamwork, one’s initiative and the capacity for solving problems together with an efficient communication, an experience based on active learning and team-working in which participants had to put them into practice was carried out. Before starting the experience with an active learning strategy, students had to decide on what they understood by participation i...

  4. HTR plus modern turbine technology for higher efficiencies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barnert, H.; Kugeler, K.

    1996-01-01

    The recent efficiency race for natural gas fired power plants with gas-plus steam-turbine-cycle, is shortly reviewed. The question 'can the HTR compete with high efficiencies?' is answered: Yes, it can - in principle. The gas-plus steam-turbine cycle, also called combi-cycle, is proposed to be taken into consideration here. A comparative study on the efficiency potential is made; it yields 54.5% at 1,050 deg. C gas turbine-inlet temperature. The mechanisms of release versus temperature in the HTR are summarized from the safety report of the HTR MODUL. A short reference is made to the experiences from the HTR-Helium Turbine Project HHT, which was performed in the Federal Republic of Germany in 1968 to 1981. (author). 8 figs,. 1 tab

  5. HTR plus modern turbine technology for higher efficiencies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Barnert, H; Kugeler, K [Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH (Germany). Inst. fuer Sicherheitsforschung und Reaktortechnik

    1996-08-01

    The recent efficiency race for natural gas fired power plants with gas-plus steam-turbine-cycle, is shortly reviewed. The question `can the HTR compete with high efficiencies?` is answered: Yes, it can - in principle. The gas-plus steam-turbine cycle, also called combi-cycle, is proposed to be taken into consideration here. A comparative study on the efficiency potential is made; it yields 54.5% at 1,050 deg. C gas turbine-inlet temperature. The mechanisms of release versus temperature in the HTR are summarized from the safety report of the HTR MODUL. A short reference is made to the experiences from the HTR-Helium Turbine Project HHT, which was performed in the Federal Republic of Germany in 1968 to 1981. (author). 8 figs,. 1 tab.

  6. Relation Between Higher Physical Activity and Public Transit Use

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vernez Moudon, Anne; Kang, Bumjoon; Hurvitz, Philip M.; Zhou, Chuan

    2014-01-01

    Objectives. We isolated physical activity attributable to transit use to examine issues of substitution between types of physical activity and potential confounding of transit-related walking with other walking. Methods. Physical activity and transit use data were collected in 2008 to 2009 from 693 Travel Assessment and Community study participants from King County, Washington, equipped with an accelerometer, a portable Global Positioning System, and a 7-day travel log. Physical activity was classified into transit- and non–transit-related walking and nonwalking time. Analyses compared physical activity by type between transit users and nonusers, between less and more frequent transit users, and between transit and nontransit days for transit users. Results. Transit users had more daily overall physical activity and more total walking than did nontransit users but did not differ on either non–transit-related walking or nonwalking physical activity. Most frequent transit users had more walking time than least frequent transit users. Higher physical activity levels for transit users were observed only on transit days, with 14.6 minutes (12.4 minutes when adjusted for demographics) of daily physical activity directly linked with transit use. Conclusions. Because transit use was directly related to higher physical activity, future research should examine whether substantive increases in transit access and use lead to more physical activity and related health improvements. PMID:24625142

  7. Recovery Efficiency Test Project: Phase 1, Activity report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Overbey, W.K. Jr.; Wilkins, D.W.; Keltch, B.; Saradji, B.; Salamy, S.P.

    1988-04-01

    This report is the second volume of the Recovery Efficiency Test Phase I Report of Activities. Volume 1 covered selection, well planning, drilling, coring, logging and completion operations. This volume reports on well testing activities, reclamation activities on the drilling site and access roads, and the results of physical and mechanical properties tests on the oriented core material obtained from a horizontal section of the well. 3 refs., 21 figs., 10 tabs.

  8. Active sources in the cutoff of centrifugal fans to reduce the blade tones at higher-order duct mode frequencies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neise, W.; Koopmann, G. H.

    1991-01-01

    A previously developed (e.g., Neise and Koopmann, 1984; Koopmann et al., 1988) active noise control technique in which the unwanted acoustic signals from centrifugal fans are suppressed by placing two externally driven sources near the cutoff of the casing was applied to the frequency region where not only plane sound waves are propagational in the fan ducts but also higher-order acoustic modes. Using a specially designed fan noise testing facility, the performance of two fans (280-mm impeller diam and 508 mm diam) was monitored with static pressure taps mounted peripherally around the inlet nozzle. Experimental results show that the aerodynamically generated source pressure field around the cutoff is too complex to be successfully counterimaged by only two active sources introduced in this region. It is suggested that, for an efficient application of this noise control technique in the higher-order mode frequency regime, it is neccessary to use an active source involving larger number of individually driven loudspeakers.

  9. Enzymatic digestive activity and absorption efficiency in Tagelus dombeii upon Alexandrium catenella exposure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fernández-Reiriz, M. J.; Navarro, J. M.; Cisternas, B. A.; Babarro, J. M. F.; Labarta, U.

    2013-12-01

    We analyzed absorption efficiency (AE) and digestive enzyme activity (amylase, cellulase complex, and laminarinase) of the infaunal bivalve Tagelus dombeii originating from two geographic sites, Corral-Valdivia and Melinka-Aysén, which have different long-term paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) exposure rates. We report the effects of past feeding history (origin) on T. dombeii exposed to a mixed diet containing the toxic dinoflagellate Alexandrium catenella and another dinoflagellate-free control diet over a 12-day period in the laboratory. Absorption efficiency values of T. dombeii individuals that experienced PSP exposure in their habitat (Melinka-Aysén) remained unchanged during exposure to toxic food in the laboratory. In contrast, T. dombeii from a non-PSP exposure field site (Corral-Valdivia) showed a significant reduction in AE with toxic exposure time. This study established that the amylase and cellulase complexes were the most important enzymes in the digestive glands of Tagelus from both sites. The temporal evolution of enzymatic activity under toxic diet was fitted to exponential (amylase and cellulase) and to a logarithmic (laminarinase) models. In all fits, we found significant effect of origin in the model parameters. At the beginning of the experiment, higher enzymatic activity was observed for clams from Corral-Valdivia. The amylase activity decreased with time exposure for individuals from Corral and increased for individuals from Melinka. Cellulase activity did not vary over time for clams from Corral, but increased for individuals from Melinka and laminarinase activity decreased over time for individuals from Corral and remained unchanged over time for Melinka. A feeding history of exposure to the dinoflagellate A. catenella was reflected in the digestive responses of both T. dombeii populations.

  10. Theoretical and methodological grounds of formation of the efficient system of higher education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Raevneva Elena V.

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available The goal of the article lies in generalisation of the modern theoretical and methodological, methodical and instrumentation provision of building of efficient system of higher education. Analysis of literature on the problems of building educational systems shows that there is a theoretical and methodological and instrumentation level of study of this issue. The article considers a theoretical and methodological level of the study and specifies theories and philosophic schools, concepts, educational paradigms and scientific approaches used during formation of the educational paradigm. The article considers models of education and models and technologies of learning as instrumental provision. In the result of the analysis the article makes a conclusion that the humanistic paradigm, which is based on the competency building approach and which assumes the use of modern (innovation technologies of learning, should be in the foundation of reformation of the system of higher education. The prospect of further studies in this directions is formation of competences of potential specialists (graduates of higher educational establishments with consideration of requirements of employers and market in general.

  11. Analyzing the Approaches to the Interpretation of Efficiency of Activity of Enterprises

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gerasymov Oleksandr K.

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available The article is aimed at studying, systematizing and analyzing scientific approaches to the definition of the category of «efficiency», evolution of the formation and development of scientific schools, defining of the basic and the general theories of efficiency: economic, dynamic, statistical, adaptive, and synergistic. The results of the study show that there is no uniform approach to understanding the concept of «efficiency» in the current circumstances. Efficiency presents itself as an indicator of the development of actor (phenomenon and works as an incentive for implementing entrepreneurial activity. Efficiency is the target guideline of managerial activities for leaders of enterprises who direct their activities towards substantiation, necessity, justification, and sufficiency. Prospect for further research in this area is the development of an organizational-economic mechanism for the marketing provision of enterprise, as well as a methodical approach to assessing the efficiency of the enterprise performance along with its marketing subsystem.

  12. Efficient peroxydisulfate activation process not relying on sulfate radical generation for water pollutant degradation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Tao; Chen, Yin; Wang, Yuru; Le Roux, Julien; Yang, Yang; Croué, Jean-Philippe

    2014-05-20

    Peroxydisulfate (PDS) is an appealing oxidant for contaminated groundwater and toxic industrial wastewaters. Activation of PDS is necessary for application because of its low reactivity. Present activation processes always generate sulfate radicals as actual oxidants which unselectively oxidize organics and halide anions reducing oxidation capacity of PDS and producing toxic halogenated products. Here we report that copper oxide (CuO) can efficiently activate PDS under mild conditions without producing sulfate radicals. The PDS/CuO coupled process is most efficient at neutral pH for decomposing a model compound, 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP). In a continuous-flow reaction with an empty-bed contact time of 0.55 min, over 90% of 2,4-DCP (initially 20 μM) and 90% of adsorbable organic chlorine (AOCl) can be removed at the PDS/2,4-DCP molar ratio of 1 and 4, respectively. Based on kinetic study and surface characterization, PDS is proposed to be first activated by CuO through outer-sphere interaction, the rate-limiting step, followed by a rapid reaction with 2,4-DCP present in the solution. In the presence of ubiquitous chloride ions in groundwater/industrial wastewater, the PDS/CuO oxidation shows significant advantages over sulfate radical oxidation by achieving much higher 2,4-DCP degradation capacity and avoiding the formation of highly chlorinated degradation products. This work provides a new way of PDS activation for contaminant removal.

  13. Efficient peroxydisulfate activation process not relying on sulfate radical generation for water pollutant degradation

    KAUST Repository

    Zhang, Tao

    2014-05-20

    Peroxydisulfate (PDS) is an appealing oxidant for contaminated groundwater and toxic industrial wastewaters. Activation of PDS is necessary for application because of its low reactivity. Present activation processes always generate sulfate radicals as actual oxidants which unselectively oxidize organics and halide anions reducing oxidation capacity of PDS and producing toxic halogenated products. Here we report that copper oxide (CuO) can efficiently activate PDS under mild conditions without producing sulfate radicals. The PDS/CuO coupled process is most efficient at neutral pH for decomposing a model compound, 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP). In a continuous-flow reaction with an empty-bed contact time of 0.55 min, over 90% of 2,4-DCP (initially 20 μM) and 90% of adsorbable organic chlorine (AOCl) can be removed at the PDS/2,4-DCP molar ratio of 1 and 4, respectively. Based on kinetic study and surface characterization, PDS is proposed to be first activated by CuO through outer-sphere interaction, the rate-limiting step, followed by a rapid reaction with 2,4-DCP present in the solution. In the presence of ubiquitous chloride ions in groundwater/industrial wastewater, the PDS/CuO oxidation shows significant advantages over sulfate radical oxidation by achieving much higher 2,4-DCP degradation capacity and avoiding the formation of highly chlorinated degradation products. This work provides a new way of PDS activation for contaminant removal. © 2014 American Chemical Society.

  14. Increasing emitter efficiency in 3.3-kV enhanced trench IGBTs for higher short-circuit capability

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Reigosa, Paula Diaz; Iannuzzo, Francesco; Rahimo, Munaf

    2018-01-01

    In this paper, a 3.3-kV Enhanced Trench IGBT has been designed with a high emitter efficiency, for improving its short-circuit robustness. The carrier distribution profile has been shaped in a way that it is possible to increase the electric field at the surface of the IGBT, and thereby, counteract...... the Kirk Effect onset. This design approach is beneficial for mitigating high-frequency oscillations, typically observed in IGBTs under short-circuit conditions. The effectiveness of the proposed design rule is validated by means of mixed-mode device simulations. Then, two IGBTs have been fabricated...... with different emitter efficiencies and tested under short circuit, validating that the high-frequency oscillations can be mitigated, with higher emitter efficiency IGBT designs....

  15. Prediction and design of efficient exciplex emitters for high-efficiency, thermally activated delayed-fluorescence organic light-emitting diodes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Xiao-Ke; Chen, Zhan; Zheng, Cai-Jun; Liu, Chuan-Lin; Lee, Chun-Sing; Li, Fan; Ou, Xue-Mei; Zhang, Xiao-Hong

    2015-04-08

    High-efficiency, thermally activated delayed-fluorescence organic light-emitting diodes based on exciplex emitters are demonstrated. The best device, based on a TAPC:DPTPCz emitter, shows a high external quantum efficiency of 15.4%. Strategies for predicting and designing efficient exciplex emitters are also provided. This approach allow prediction and design of efficient exciplex emitters for achieving high-efficiency organic light-emitting diodes, for future use in displays and lighting applications. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  16. An efficient visible and UV-light-activated B–N-codoped TiO2 photocatalytic film for solar depollution prepared via a green method

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu Qingchi; Zhang Yan; He Ziming; Loo, Say Chye Joachim; Tan, Timothy Thatt Yang

    2012-01-01

    This work reports an efficient visible and UV-light-activated boron and nitrogen codoped TiO 2 porous film prepared via a “green” and direct coating approach. Such photocatalyst is highly promising for solar depollution application due to its efficient photocatalytic activities in both visible and UV spectrum. The preparation method avoids the use of organic solvents, which are usually more expensive and hazardous compared with water. Using stearic acid as the model organic pollutant, the visible-light photocatalytic activity of optimized porous B–N-codoped TiO 2 film (p-3B–N–TiO 2 ) is 3 times higher than that of porous N-doped TiO 2 (p-N–TiO 2 ) film, while its UV photocatalytic activity is almost double that of p-N–TiO 2 film and comparable to that of porous TiO 2 . The enhancement in photocatalytic activity is attributed to higher surface area due to the porous structure, improved visible-light absorption attributed to interstitially substituted boron atoms, and coexistence of boron and nitrogen dopants which may reduce Ti 3+ recombination centers.

  17. Higher-fidelity yet efficient modeling of radiation energy transport through three-dimensional clouds

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hall, M.L.; Davis, A.B.

    2005-01-01

    Accurate modeling of radiative energy transport through cloudy atmospheres is necessary for both climate modeling with GCMs (Global Climate Models) and remote sensing. Previous modeling efforts have taken advantage of extreme aspect ratios (cells that are very wide horizontally) by assuming a 1-D treatment vertically - the Independent Column Approximation (ICA). Recent attempts to resolve radiation transport through the clouds have drastically changed the aspect ratios of the cells, moving them closer to unity, such that the ICA model is no longer valid. We aim to provide a higher-fidelity atmospheric radiation transport model which increases accuracy while maintaining efficiency. To that end, this paper describes the development of an efficient 3-D-capable radiation code that can be easily integrated into cloud resolving models as an alternative to the resident 1-D model. Applications to test cases from the Intercomparison of 3-D Radiation Codes (I3RC) protocol are shown

  18. Phosphorus Processing—Potentials for Higher Efficiency

    OpenAIRE

    Ludwig Hermann; Fabian Kraus; Ralf Hermann

    2018-01-01

    In the aftermath of the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement (COP21) by virtually all United Nations, producing more with less is imperative. In this context, phosphorus processing, despite its high efficiency compared to other steps in the value chain, needs to be revisited by science and industry. During processing, phosphorus is lost to phosphogypsum, disposed of in stacks globally piling up to 3–4 billion tons and growing by about 200 million ...

  19. Active link selection for efficient semi-supervised community detection

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yang, Liang; Jin, Di; Wang, Xiao; Cao, Xiaochun

    2015-01-01

    Several semi-supervised community detection algorithms have been proposed recently to improve the performance of traditional topology-based methods. However, most of them focus on how to integrate supervised information with topology information; few of them pay attention to which information is critical for performance improvement. This leads to large amounts of demand for supervised information, which is expensive or difficult to obtain in most fields. For this problem we propose an active link selection framework, that is we actively select the most uncertain and informative links for human labeling for the efficient utilization of the supervised information. We also disconnect the most likely inter-community edges to further improve the efficiency. Our main idea is that, by connecting uncertain nodes to their community hubs and disconnecting the inter-community edges, one can sharpen the block structure of adjacency matrix more efficiently than randomly labeling links as the existing methods did. Experiments on both synthetic and real networks demonstrate that our new approach significantly outperforms the existing methods in terms of the efficiency of using supervised information. It needs ~13% of the supervised information to achieve a performance similar to that of the original semi-supervised approaches. PMID:25761385

  20. Energy Efficient Thermal Management for Natural Gas Engine Aftertreatment via Active Flow Control

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    David K. Irick; Ke Nguyen; Vitacheslav Naoumov; Doug Ferguson

    2006-04-01

    The project is focused on the development of an energy efficient aftertreatment system capable of reducing NOx and methane by 90% from lean-burn natural gas engines by applying active exhaust flow control. Compared to conventional passive flow-through reactors, the proposed scheme cuts supplemental energy by 50%-70%. The system consists of a Lean NOx Trap (LNT) system and an oxidation catalyst. Through alternating flow control, a major amount of engine exhaust flows through a large portion of the LNT system in the absorption mode, while a small amount of exhaust goes through a small portion of the LNT system in the regeneration or desulfurization mode. By periodically reversing the exhaust gas flow through the oxidation catalyst, a higher temperature profile is maintained in the catalyst bed resulting in greater efficiency of the oxidation catalyst at lower exhaust temperatures. The project involves conceptual design, theoretical analysis, computer simulation, prototype fabrication, and empirical studies. This report details the progress during the first twelve months of the project. The primary activities have been to develop the bench flow reactor system, develop the computer simulation and modeling of the reverse-flow oxidation catalyst, install the engine into the test cell, and begin design of the LNT system.

  1. Coral-like CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites with efficient enzyme-mimetic activity for biosensing application

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mu, Jianshuai; Zhao, Xin; Li, Jie [College of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Inorganic-Organic Hybrid Functional Material Chemistry, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Structure and Performance for Functional Molecules, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin 300387 (China); Yang, En-Cui, E-mail: encui_yang@163.com [College of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Inorganic-Organic Hybrid Functional Material Chemistry, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Structure and Performance for Functional Molecules, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin 300387 (China); Zhao, Xiao-Jun, E-mail: xiaojun_zhao15@163.com [College of Chemistry, Key Laboratory of Inorganic-Organic Hybrid Functional Material Chemistry, Ministry of Education, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Structure and Performance for Functional Molecules, Tianjin Normal University, Tianjin 300387 (China); Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering, Tianjin 300071 (China)

    2017-05-01

    Development of nanomaterials-based enzymatic mimics has gained considerable attention in recent years, because of their low cost, high stability and efficiently catalytic ability. Here, CeO{sub 2} was successfully incorporated into the coral-like NiO nanostructures assembled by nanoflakes with high surface area, forming the coral-like CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites. The morphology and composition of CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites were characterized by XRD, SEM, element mapping and XPS. The results of characterization showed that cerium was highly dispersed in the coral-like NiO nanostructures. The peroxidase-like activity of CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites was investigated, and they exhibited enhanced peroxidase-like activity in comparison to that of pure NiO or CeO{sub 2}. The catalytic activity was dependent on the cerium content, and the optimal content was 2.5%. The enhanced catalytic activity of CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites arised from their high ability of electron transfer because of cerium incorporation. The catalytic performance of CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites was evaluated by steady-state kinetic, which showed that the CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites exhibited higher affinity for the substrates and similar catalytic efficiency compared with natural peroxidase. Based on the efficient peroxidase-like activity, CeO{sub 2}/NiO was used for H{sub 2}O{sub 2} determination. The constructed colorimetric H{sub 2}O{sub 2} sensor had fast response for only 5 min, a wide linear range from 0.05 to 40 mM and a low detection limit with 0.88 μM. The CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites were expected to have potential applications in clinical diagnosis and biotechnology as enzymatic mimics. - Highlights: • Coral-like CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites with different Ce content were synthesized. • CeO{sub 2} was highly dispersed in the NiO matrixes with high surface area. • CeO{sub 2}/NiO nanocomposites exhibited efficient peroxidase-like activity. • A colorimetric H{sub 2}O

  2. Efficient adsorption of Hg (II) ions in water by activated carbon modified with melamine

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qin, Hangdao; Meng, Jingling; Chen, Jing

    2018-04-01

    Removal of Hg (II) ions from industrial wastewater is important for the water treatment, and adsorption is an efficient treatment process. Activated carbon (AC) was modified with melamine, which introduced nitrogen-containing functional groups onto AC surface. Original AC and melamine modified activated carbon (ACM) were characterized by elemental analysis, N2 adsorption-desorption, determination of the pH of the point of zero charge (pHpzc) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and their performance in the adsorption of Hg(II) ions was investigated. Langmuir model fitted the experimental data of equilibrium isotherms well. ACM showed the higher Hg (II) ions adsorption capacity, increasing more than more than 1.8 times compared to the original one. Moreover, ACM showed a wider pH range for the maximum adsorption than the parent AC.

  3. Activated Carbon-Fly Ash-Nanometal Oxide Composite Materials: Preparation, Characterization, and Tributyltin Removal Efficiency

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olushola S. Ayanda

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The physicochemical properties, nature, and morphology of composite materials involving activated carbon, fly ash, nFe3O4, nSiO2, and nZnO were investigated and compared. Nature and morphology characterizations were carried out by means of scanning electron and transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Other physicochemical characterizations undertaken were CNH analysis, ash content, pH, point of zero charge, and surface area and porosity determination by BET. Experimental results obtained revealed that activated carbon, nSiO2, activated carbon-fly ash, activated carbon-fly ash-nFe3O4, activated carbon-fly ash-nSiO2, and activated carbon-fly ash-nZnO composite materials exhibited net negative charge on their surfaces while fly ash, nFe3O4, and nZnO possessed net positive charge on their surfaces. Relatively higher removal efficiency (>99% of TBT was obtained for all the composite materials compared to their respective precursors except for activated carbon. These composite materials therefore offer great potential for the remediation of TBT in wastewaters.

  4. Higher-order chaotic oscillator using active bessel filter

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lindberg, Erik; Mykolaitis, Gytis; Bumelien, Skaidra

    2010-01-01

    A higher-order oscillator, including a nonlinear unit and an 8th-order low-pass active Bessel filter is described. The Bessel unit plays the role of "three-in-one": a delay line, an amplifier and a filter. Results of hardware experiments and numerical simulation are presented. Depending...

  5. Brazilian savanna fruits contain higher bioactive compounds content and higher antioxidant activity relative to the conventional red delicious apple.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Egle Machado de Almeida Siqueira

    Full Text Available The bioactive compounds content and the antioxidant activity (AA of twelve fruits native to the Cerrado were compared with the Red Delicious apple by means of the antiradical efficiency (using the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazil assay/DPPH, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP and the β-carotene/linoleic system. The antiradical efficiency (AE and the kinetic parameters (Efficient concentration/EC50 and time needed to reach the steady state to EC50 concentration/TEC50 of the DPPH curve were also evaluated for comparison with the Trolox equivalent (TE values. A strong, significant and positive correlation was observed between the TE and AE values, whereas a weak and negative correlation was observed between TE and EC50, suggesting that the values of AE and TE are more useful for the determination of antiradical activity in fruits than the widely used EC50. The total phenolic content found in the fruits corresponded positively to their antioxidant activity. The high content of bioactive compounds (flavanols, anthocyanins or vitamin C relative to the apple values found in araticum, cagaita, cajuzinho, jurubeba, lobeira, magaba and tucum corresponded to the high antioxidant activity of these fruits. Flavanols and anthocyanins may be the main bioactive components in these Cerrado fruits. The daily consumption of at least seven of the twelve Cerrado fruits studied, particularly, araticum, cagaita, lobeira and tucum, may confer protection against oxidative stress, and thus, they may prevent chronic diseases and premature aging. The findings of this study should stimulate demand, consumption and cultivation of Cerrado fruits and result in sustainable development of the region where this biome dominates.

  6. Energy-Efficient Real-Time Human Activity Recognition on Smart Mobile Devices

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jin Lee

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays, human activity recognition (HAR plays an important role in wellness-care and context-aware systems. Human activities can be recognized in real-time by using sensory data collected from various sensors built in smart mobile devices. Recent studies have focused on HAR that is solely based on triaxial accelerometers, which is the most energy-efficient approach. However, such HAR approaches are still energy-inefficient because the accelerometer is required to run without stopping so that the physical activity of a user can be recognized in real-time. In this paper, we propose a novel approach for HAR process that controls the activity recognition duration for energy-efficient HAR. We investigated the impact of varying the acceleration-sampling frequency and window size for HAR by using the variable activity recognition duration (VARD strategy. We implemented our approach by using an Android platform and evaluated its performance in terms of energy efficiency and accuracy. The experimental results showed that our approach reduced energy consumption by a minimum of about 44.23% and maximum of about 78.85% compared to conventional HAR without sacrificing accuracy.

  7. Activity-Based Management System Implementation in Higher Education Institution: Benefits and Challenges

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ismail, Noor Azizi

    2010-01-01

    Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to discuss how activity-based costing (ABC) technique can be applied in the context of higher education institutions. It also discusses the obstacles and challenges to the successful implementation of activity-based management (ABM) in the higher education environment. Design/methodology/approach: This paper…

  8. Conversion Efficiency of Photosynthetically Active Radiation Into Acacia mearnsii Biomass

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elder Eloy

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT The objective of this experiment was to determine the conversion efficiency of intercepted photosynthetically active radiation into biomass of Acacia mearnsii De Wild. seedlings. A forest species, plastic tubes (90 cm3, and 11 evaluation periods (up to 180 days after emergence were used in this study. The leaf area index (LAI, total dry biomass (BIO, global solar radiation (GSR, cumulative intercepted photosynthetically active radiation (PARic, and conversion efficiency of radiation (εb were determined using a pyranometer (LI200X, LICOR. The value of εb in BIO seedlings of Acacia mearnsii was 7.76 g MJ-1. LAI was directly related to the efficiency of PARic, and this influenced the development, production potential and accumulation of BIO. The value of GSR flow was 11.81 MJ m-2 day-1, while the value inside the greenhouse was 6.26 MJ m-2 day-1.

  9. An efficient visible and UV-light-activated B-N-codoped TiO{sub 2} photocatalytic film for solar depollution prepared via a green method

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Xu Qingchi; Zhang Yan; He Ziming [Nanyang Technological University, School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering (Singapore); Loo, Say Chye Joachim, E-mail: joachimloo@ntu.edu.sg [Nanyang Technological University, School of Materials Science and Engineering (Singapore); Tan, Timothy Thatt Yang, E-mail: tytan@ntu.edu.sg [Nanyang Technological University, School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering (Singapore)

    2012-08-15

    This work reports an efficient visible and UV-light-activated boron and nitrogen codoped TiO{sub 2} porous film prepared via a 'green' and direct coating approach. Such photocatalyst is highly promising for solar depollution application due to its efficient photocatalytic activities in both visible and UV spectrum. The preparation method avoids the use of organic solvents, which are usually more expensive and hazardous compared with water. Using stearic acid as the model organic pollutant, the visible-light photocatalytic activity of optimized porous B-N-codoped TiO{sub 2} film (p-3B-N-TiO{sub 2}) is 3 times higher than that of porous N-doped TiO{sub 2} (p-N-TiO{sub 2}) film, while its UV photocatalytic activity is almost double that of p-N-TiO{sub 2} film and comparable to that of porous TiO{sub 2}. The enhancement in photocatalytic activity is attributed to higher surface area due to the porous structure, improved visible-light absorption attributed to interstitially substituted boron atoms, and coexistence of boron and nitrogen dopants which may reduce Ti{sup 3+} recombination centers.

  10. USE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES IN EDUCATIONAL EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES IN HIGHER TOURIST INSTITUTIONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuliia O. Matviyiv-Lozynska

    2013-04-01

    Full Text Available The article deals with extracurricular educational activities in higher educational establishment of tourism profile with information technologies usage. It is known that extracurricular activities of higher educational establishment has an impact on the professional activities of future specialists in the tourism industry, as is in the process of extracurricular activities students can put into practice the obtained knowledge and skills. The task of teachers is to build a learning process, in particular activities outside classrooms as its component, so that the students were interested in it. In the modern world of tourism prosperity it is very difficult to do without the usage of multimedia technologies (internet, media, etc.

  11. Antioxidant potential of curcumin-related compounds studied by chemiluminescence kinetics, chain-breaking efficiencies, scavenging activity (ORAC) and DFT calculations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slavova-Kazakova, Adriana K; Angelova, Silvia E; Veprintsev, Timur L; Denev, Petko; Fabbri, Davide; Dettori, Maria Antonietta; Kratchanova, Maria; Naumov, Vladimir V; Trofimov, Aleksei V; Vasil’ev, Rostislav F

    2015-01-01

    Summary This study compares the ability to scavenge different peroxyl radicals and to act as chain-breaking antioxidants of monomers related to curcumin (1): dehydrozingerone (2), zingerone (3), (2Z,5E)-ethyl 2-hydroxy-6-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-4-oxohexa-2,5-dienoate (4), ferulic acid (5) and their corresponding C 2-symmetric dimers 6–9. Four models were applied: model 1 – chemiluminescence (CL) of a hydrocarbon substrate used for determination of the rate constants (k A) of the reactions of the antioxidants with peroxyl radicals; model 2 – lipid autoxidation (lipidAO) used for assessing the chain-breaking antioxidant efficiency and reactivity; model 3 – oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), which yields the activity against peroxyl radicals generated by an azoinitiator; model 4 – density functional theory (DFT) calculations at UB3LYP/6-31+G(d,p) level, applied to explain the structure–activity relationship. Dimers showed 2–2.5-fold higher values of k A than their monomers. Model 2 gives information about the effects of the side chains and revealed much higher antioxidant activity for monomers and dimers with α,β-unsaturated side chains. Curcumin and 6 in fact are dimers of the same monomer 2. We conclude that the type of linkage between the two “halves” by which the molecule is made up does not exert influence on the antioxidant efficiency and reactivity of these two dimers. The dimers and the monomers demonstrated higher activity than Trolox (10) in aqueous medium (model 3). A comparison of the studied compounds with DL-α-tocopherol (11), Trolox and curcumin is made. All dimers are characterized through lower bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) than their monomers (model 4), which qualitatively supports the experimental results. PMID:26425195

  12. Antioxidant potential of curcumin-related compounds studied by chemiluminescence kinetics, chain-breaking efficiencies, scavenging activity (ORAC and DFT calculations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriana K. Slavova-Kazakova

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available This study compares the ability to scavenge different peroxyl radicals and to act as chain-breaking antioxidants of monomers related to curcumin (1: dehydrozingerone (2, zingerone (3, (2Z,5E-ethyl 2-hydroxy-6-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl-4-oxohexa-2,5-dienoate (4, ferulic acid (5 and their corresponding C2-symmetric dimers 6–9. Four models were applied: model 1 – chemiluminescence (CL of a hydrocarbon substrate used for determination of the rate constants (kA of the reactions of the antioxidants with peroxyl radicals; model 2 – lipid autoxidation (lipidAO used for assessing the chain-breaking antioxidant efficiency and reactivity; model 3 – oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC, which yields the activity against peroxyl radicals generated by an azoinitiator; model 4 – density functional theory (DFT calculations at UB3LYP/6-31+G(d,p level, applied to explain the structure–activity relationship. Dimers showed 2–2.5-fold higher values of kA than their monomers. Model 2 gives information about the effects of the side chains and revealed much higher antioxidant activity for monomers and dimers with α,β-unsaturated side chains. Curcumin and 6 in fact are dimers of the same monomer 2. We conclude that the type of linkage between the two “halves” by which the molecule is made up does not exert influence on the antioxidant efficiency and reactivity of these two dimers. The dimers and the monomers demonstrated higher activity than Trolox (10 in aqueous medium (model 3. A comparison of the studied compounds with DL-α-tocopherol (11, Trolox and curcumin is made. All dimers are characterized through lower bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs than their monomers (model 4, which qualitatively supports the experimental results.

  13. Antioxidant potential of curcumin-related compounds studied by chemiluminescence kinetics, chain-breaking efficiencies, scavenging activity (ORAC) and DFT calculations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Slavova-Kazakova, Adriana K; Angelova, Silvia E; Veprintsev, Timur L; Denev, Petko; Fabbri, Davide; Dettori, Maria Antonietta; Kratchanova, Maria; Naumov, Vladimir V; Trofimov, Aleksei V; Vasil'ev, Rostislav F; Delogu, Giovanna; Kancheva, Vessela D

    2015-01-01

    This study compares the ability to scavenge different peroxyl radicals and to act as chain-breaking antioxidants of monomers related to curcumin (1): dehydrozingerone (2), zingerone (3), (2Z,5E)-ethyl 2-hydroxy-6-(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-4-oxohexa-2,5-dienoate (4), ferulic acid (5) and their corresponding C 2-symmetric dimers 6-9. Four models were applied: model 1 - chemiluminescence (CL) of a hydrocarbon substrate used for determination of the rate constants (k A) of the reactions of the antioxidants with peroxyl radicals; model 2 - lipid autoxidation (lipidAO) used for assessing the chain-breaking antioxidant efficiency and reactivity; model 3 - oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), which yields the activity against peroxyl radicals generated by an azoinitiator; model 4 - density functional theory (DFT) calculations at UB3LYP/6-31+G(d,p) level, applied to explain the structure-activity relationship. Dimers showed 2-2.5-fold higher values of k A than their monomers. Model 2 gives information about the effects of the side chains and revealed much higher antioxidant activity for monomers and dimers with α,β-unsaturated side chains. Curcumin and 6 in fact are dimers of the same monomer 2. We conclude that the type of linkage between the two "halves" by which the molecule is made up does not exert influence on the antioxidant efficiency and reactivity of these two dimers. The dimers and the monomers demonstrated higher activity than Trolox (10) in aqueous medium (model 3). A comparison of the studied compounds with DL-α-tocopherol (11), Trolox and curcumin is made. All dimers are characterized through lower bond dissociation enthalpies (BDEs) than their monomers (model 4), which qualitatively supports the experimental results.

  14. Efficient and Effective Change Principles in Active Videogames.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Straker, Leon M; Fenner, Ashley A; Howie, Erin K; Feltz, Deborah L; Gray, Cindy M; Lu, Amy Shirong; Mueller, Florian Floyd; Simons, Monique; Barnett, Lisa M

    2015-02-01

    Active videogames have the potential to enhance population levels of physical activity but have not been successful in achieving this aim to date. This article considers a range of principles that may be important to the design of effective and efficient active videogames from diverse discipline areas, including behavioral sciences (health behavior change, motor learning, and serious games), business production (marketing and sales), and technology engineering and design (human-computer interaction/ergonomics and flow). Both direct and indirect pathways to impact on population levels of habitual physical activity are proposed, along with the concept of a game use lifecycle. Examples of current active and sedentary electronic games are used to understand how such principles may be applied. Furthermore, limitations of the current usage of theoretical principles are discussed. A suggested list of principles for best practice in active videogame design is proposed along with suggested research ideas to inform practice to enhance physical activity.

  15. Efficient and Effective Change Principles in Active Videogames

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fenner, Ashley A.; Howie, Erin K.; Feltz, Deborah L.; Gray, Cindy M.; Lu, Amy Shirong; Mueller, Florian “Floyd”; Simons, Monique; Barnett, Lisa M.

    2015-01-01

    Abstract Active videogames have the potential to enhance population levels of physical activity but have not been successful in achieving this aim to date. This article considers a range of principles that may be important to the design of effective and efficient active videogames from diverse discipline areas, including behavioral sciences (health behavior change, motor learning, and serious games), business production (marketing and sales), and technology engineering and design (human–computer interaction/ergonomics and flow). Both direct and indirect pathways to impact on population levels of habitual physical activity are proposed, along with the concept of a game use lifecycle. Examples of current active and sedentary electronic games are used to understand how such principles may be applied. Furthermore, limitations of the current usage of theoretical principles are discussed. A suggested list of principles for best practice in active videogame design is proposed along with suggested research ideas to inform practice to enhance physical activity. PMID:26181680

  16. Efficiency optimization of wireless power transmission systems for active capsule endoscopes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhiwei, Jia; Guozheng, Yan; Jiangpingping; Zhiwu, Wang; Hua, Liu

    2011-10-01

    Multipurpose active capsule endoscopes have drawn considerable attention in recent years, but these devices continue to suffer from energy limitations. A wireless power supply system is regarded as a practical way to overcome the power shortage problem in such devices. This paper focuses on the efficiency optimization of a wireless energy supply system with size and safety constraints. A mathematical programming model in which these constraints are considered is proposed for transmission efficiency, optimal frequency and current, and overall system effectiveness. To verify the feasibility of the proposed method, we use a wireless active capsule endoscope as an illustrative example. The achieved efficiency can be regarded as an index for evaluating the system, and the proposed approach can be used to direct the design of transmitting and receiving coils.

  17. Efficiency optimization of wireless power transmission systems for active capsule endoscopes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhiwei, Jia; Guozheng, Yan; Jiangpingping; Zhiwu, Wang; Hua, Liu

    2011-01-01

    Multipurpose active capsule endoscopes have drawn considerable attention in recent years, but these devices continue to suffer from energy limitations. A wireless power supply system is regarded as a practical way to overcome the power shortage problem in such devices. This paper focuses on the efficiency optimization of a wireless energy supply system with size and safety constraints. A mathematical programming model in which these constraints are considered is proposed for transmission efficiency, optimal frequency and current, and overall system effectiveness. To verify the feasibility of the proposed method, we use a wireless active capsule endoscope as an illustrative example. The achieved efficiency can be regarded as an index for evaluating the system, and the proposed approach can be used to direct the design of transmitting and receiving coils

  18. Evaluation of Organic Matter Removal Efficiency and Microbial Enzyme Activity in Vertical-Flow Constructed Wetland Systems

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Qiaoling Xu

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available In this study, enzyme activities and their relationships to organics purification were investigated in three different vertical flow constructed wetlands, namely system A (planting Pennisetum sinese Roxb, system B (planting Pennisetum purpureum Schum., and system C (no plant. These three wetland systems were fed with simulation domestic sewage at an influent flow rate of 20 cm/day. The results showed that the final removal efficiency of Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD in these three systems was 87%, 85% and 63%, respectively. Planting Pennisetum sinese Roxb and Pennisetum purpureum Schum. could improve the amount of adsorption and interception for organic matter in the substrate, and the amount of interception of organic matter in planting the Pennisetum sinese Roxb system was higher than that in planting the Pennisetum purpureum Schum. system. The activities of enzymes (urease, phosphatase and cellulase in systems A and B were higher than those in system C, and these enzyme activities in the top layer (0–30 cm were significantly higher than in the other layers. The correlations between the activities of urease, phosphatase, cellulase and the COD removal rates were R = 0.815, 0.961 and 0.973, respectively. It suggests that using Pennisetum sinese Roxb and Pennisetum purpureum Schum. as wetland plants could promote organics removal, and the activities of urease, phosphatase and cellulase in those three systems were important indicators for COD purification from wastewater. In addition, 0–30 cm was the main function layer. This study could provide a theoretical basis for COD removal in the wetland system and supply new plant materials for selection.

  19. Active Site Flexibility as a Hallmark for Efficient PET Degradation by I. sakaiensis PETase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fecker, Tobias; Galaz-Davison, Pablo; Engelberger, Felipe; Narui, Yoshie; Sotomayor, Marcos; Parra, Loreto P; Ramírez-Sarmiento, César A

    2018-03-27

    Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is one of the most-consumed synthetic polymers, with an annual production of 50 million tons. Unfortunately, PET accumulates as waste and is highly resistant to biodegradation. Recently, fungal and bacterial thermophilic hydrolases were found to catalyze PET hydrolysis with optimal activities at high temperatures. Strikingly, an enzyme from Ideonella sakaiensis, termed PETase, was described to efficiently degrade PET at room temperature, but the molecular basis of its activity is not currently understood. Here, a crystal structure of PETase was determined at 2.02 Å resolution and employed in molecular dynamics simulations showing that the active site of PETase has higher flexibility at room temperature than its thermophilic counterparts. This flexibility is controlled by a novel disulfide bond in its active site, with its removal leading to destabilization of the catalytic triad and reduction of the hydrolase activity. Molecular docking of a model substrate predicts that PET binds to PETase in a unique and energetically favorable conformation facilitated by several residue substitutions within its active site when compared to other enzymes. These computational predictions are in excellent agreement with recent mutagenesis and PET film degradation analyses. Finally, we rationalize the increased catalytic activity of PETase at room temperature through molecular dynamics simulations of enzyme-ligand complexes for PETase and other thermophilic PET-degrading enzymes at 298, 323, and 353 K. Our results reveal that both the binding pose and residue substitutions within PETase favor proximity between the catalytic residues and the labile carbonyl of the substrate at room temperature, suggesting a more favorable hydrolytic reaction. These results are valuable for enabling detailed evolutionary analysis of PET-degrading enzymes and for rational design endeavors aiming at increasing the efficiency of PETase and similar enzymes toward plastic

  20. Investment Strategy and Efficiency of Investment Activity of European Insurers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhabynets Olga Yo.

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available The article studies investment strategy and efficiency of investment activity of European insurance companies. In particular, it analyses the share of investments of insurance companies of Europe in GDP, investment portfolio of European insurers and its structure, contribution of insurance companies – leaders of investment activity – into the European investment portfolio. It studies influence of the financial crisis upon investment strategy of European insurers and analyses efficiency of investment activity of European insurers in risk insurance and life insurance. The article proves that investment business models of insurance companies are capable of resisting crisis phenomena more efficiently than other financial institutions. It marks out that measures of insurance companies that are directed at increase of profitability of investments require from them both significant expenditures on creation of the system of investment risk management and open access to different categories of financial assets and markets, which influences the general risk level, taken upon by an insurance company. The author draws a conclusion that, taking into account recent developments, European insurers should focus on equity and investment risk management, finding new possibilities for their (investments growth and also adaptation of new systems and operations for solution of these important tasks.

  1. Employability and work-related learning activities in higher education

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Magnell, Marie; Kolmos, Anette

    2017-01-01

    The focus of this paper is on how academic staff perceive their roles and responsibilities regarding work-related learning, and how they approach and implement work-related learning activities in curricula across academic environments in higher education. The study is based on case studies...

  2. Removal efficiency of radioactive methyl iodide on TEDA-impregnated activated carbons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gonzalez-Garcia, C.M.; Gonzalez, J.F.; Roman, S.

    2011-01-01

    Activated carbons were prepared by different series of carbon dioxide and steam activation from walnut shells for their optimal use as radioactive methyl iodide adsorbents in Nuclear Plants. The knowledge of the most favourable textural characteristics of the activated carbons was possible by the previous study of the commercial activated carbon currently used for this purpose. In order to increase their methyl iodide affinity, the effect of triethylenediamine impregnation was studied at 5 and 10 wt.%. The results obtained indicated that in both cases the adsorption efficiency is markedly improved by the addition of impregnant, which allows the adsorbate uptake to occur not only by physical adsorption, via non-specific interactions (as in non-impregnated carbons) but also by the specific interaction of triethylenediamine with radioactive methyl iodide. Methyl iodide retention efficiencies up to 98.1% were achieved. (author)

  3. Building Better Buildings: Sustainable Building Activities in California Higher Education Systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sowell, Arnold; Eichel, Amanda; Alevantis, Leon; Lovegreen, Maureen

    2003-01-01

    This article outlines the activities and recommendations of California's sustainable building task force, discusses sustainable building activities in California's higher education systems, and highlights key issues that California is grappling with in its implementation of sustainable building practices. (EV)

  4. A NEW NETWORK FOR HIGHER-TEMPERATURE GAS-PHASE CHEMISTRY. I. A PRELIMINARY STUDY OF ACCRETION DISKS IN ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Harada, Nanase; Herbst, Eric; Wakelam, Valentine

    2010-01-01

    We present a new interstellar chemical gas-phase reaction network for time-dependent kinetics that can be used for modeling high-temperature sources up to ∼800 K. This network contains an extended set of reactions based on the Ohio State University (OSU) gas-phase chemical network. The additional reactions include processes with significant activation energies, reverse reactions, proton exchange reactions, charge exchange reactions, and collisional dissociation. Rate coefficients already in the OSU network are modified for H 2 formation on grains, ion-neutral dipole reactions, and some radiative association reactions. The abundance of H 2 O is enhanced at high temperature by hydrogenation of atomic O. Much of the elemental oxygen is in the form of water at T ≥ 300 K, leading to effective carbon-rich conditions, which can efficiently produce carbon-chain species such as C 2 H 2 . At higher temperatures, HCN and NH 3 are also produced much more efficiently. We have applied the extended network to a simplified model of the accretion disk of an active galactic nucleus.

  5. Active carbon supported molybdenum carbides for higher alcohols synthesis from syngas

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wu, Qiongxiao; Chiarello, Gian Luca; Christensen, Jakob Munkholt

    This work provides an investigation of the high pressure CO hydrogenation to higher alcohols on K2CO3 promoted active carbon supported molybdenum carbide. Both activity and selectivity to alcohols over supported molybdenum carbides increased significantly compared to bulk carbides in literatures...

  6. Combining activity and economic efficiency

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fersch, Barbara

    “hot” concepts in Danish long-term care is (everyday-) rehabilitation of the frail elderly, which several municipalities have tried out in pilot projects and otherwise introduced over the last couple of years. The paper draws upon qualitative interviews with administrative leaders and local politicians...... kind of all-in-one solution everyone is profiting of: The older people would profit from a higher quality of living, that enables a more active and self-determined life. The municipalities (i.e. the public system) would be saving money, because the frail older people would need less care services...

  7. Walls of straw – the cyber risks to higher education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Phillip Wood

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available Globally, in every facet of life, advances in communications technology and our reliance on computers and the internet allow us to live and work more efficiently than ever before. Higher education relies on the development of knowledge and the need to conduct and communicate research activity. Universities are often bound in research activity to business, government and other organizations whose interests need to be protected and managed. But is there a disparity in approach? Is research activity, security and the protection of privileged, proprietary and classified information appropriately implemented and managed in higher education? In this article the author questions: are there gaps open to cyberattack?

  8. Arbiters of Effectiveness and Efficiency: The Frames and Strategies of Management Consulting Firms in US Higher Education Reform

    Science.gov (United States)

    McClure, Kevin R.

    2017-01-01

    A growing number of public colleges and universities in the United States have hired management consulting firms to help develop strategies aimed at increasing institutional effectiveness and efficiency. The purpose of this paper is to explore the frames and strategies of consultants in US public higher education reform efforts. Drawing upon a…

  9. MODEL TESTING OF LOW PRESSURE HYDRAULIC TURBINE WITH HIGHER EFFICIENCY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. K. Nedbalsky

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available A design of low pressure turbine has been developed and it is covered by an invention patent and a useful model patent. Testing of the hydraulic turbine model has been carried out when it was installed on a vertical shaft. The efficiency was equal to 76–78 % that exceeds efficiency of the known low pressure blade turbines. 

  10. Efficiency Wages and the Business Cycle

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Canton, E.J.F.

    1995-01-01

    This paper presents a simple efficiency wage model to explain the transmission from exogenous productivity shocks to levels of economic activity. Higher real wages and rising unemployment induce workers to increase their effort. The disciplining effect of unemployment on the effort level has an

  11. Energy efficient smartphone-based activity recognition using fixed-point arithmetic

    OpenAIRE

    Anguita, Davide; Ghio, Alessandro; Oneto, Luca; Llanas Parra, Francesc Xavier; Reyes Ortiz, Jorge Luis

    2013-01-01

    In this paper we propose a novel energy efficient approach for the recognition of human activities using smartphones as wearable sensing devices, targeting assisted living applications such as remote patient activity monitoring for the disabled and the elderly. The method exploits fixed-point arithmetic to propose a modified multiclass Support Vector Machine (SVM) learning algorithm, allowing to better pre- serve the smartphone battery lifetime with respect to the conventional flo...

  12. High-efficiency white organic light-emitting diodes using thermally activated delayed fluorescence

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nishide, Jun-ichi; Hiraga, Yasuhide; Nakanotani, Hajime; Adachi, Chihaya

    2014-01-01

    White organic light-emitting diodes (WOLEDs) have attracted much attention recently, aimed for next-generation lighting sources because of their high potential to realize high electroluminescence efficiency, flexibility, and low-cost manufacture. Here, we demonstrate high-efficiency WOLED using red, green, and blue thermally activated delayed fluorescence materials as emissive dopants to generate white electroluminescence. The WOLED has a maximum external quantum efficiency of over 17% with Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage coordinates of (0.30, 0.38).

  13. Appraising the Cost Efficiency of Higher Technological and Vocational Education Institutions in Taiwan Using the Metafrontier Cost-Function Model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lu, Yung-Hsiang; Chen, Ku-Hsieh

    2013-01-01

    This paper aims at appraising the cost efficiency and technology of institutions of higher technological and vocational education. Differing from conventional literature, it considers the potential influence of inherent discrepancies in output quality and characteristics of school systems for institutes of technology (ITs) and universities of…

  14. Photocatalytic efficiency of titania photocatalysts in saline waters

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Albrbar Asma Juma

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The photocatalytic efficiency of the recently synthesized TiO2 powder, named P160, of the degradation of dye Dye C.I. Reactive orange 16 in natural and artificial seawater was investigated in comparison to its efficiency in deionized water and the efficiency of a standard TiO2 powder Degusa P25. It was shown that the photocatalytic efficiency of P160 was slightly higher than that of P25, probably due to slightly higher specific surface area, higher pore volume and larger pores of the powder P160. The efficiency of both photocatalysts in natural and artificial seawater was significantly lower than that in deionized water. The overall rate of dye degradation for both types of photocatalysts is litle higher in artificial seawater than in natural seawater, which shows the influence of organic compounds naturally present in seawater on the photocatalysts activity. A saturation Langmuir-type relationship between the initial degradation rate and the initial dye concentration indicates that the adsorption plays a role in the photocatalytic reaction. The photodegradation rate constant k, which represents the maximum reaction rate, has similar values for P25 and P160 in all types of water due to the similar properties of the photocatalysts. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br III 45019

  15. Kinesiotaping enhances the rate of force development but not the neuromuscular efficiency of physically active young men.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Magalhães, Igor; Bottaro, Martim; Mezzarane, Rinaldo André; Neto, Frederico Ribeiro; Rodrigues, Bruno A; Ferreira-Júnior, João B; Carregaro, Rodrigo Luiz

    2016-06-01

    Investigations on the effects of KT on human performance have been increasing in the last few years. However, there is a paucity of studies investigating its effects on neuromuscular efficiency (NME) and rate of force development (RFD). To evaluate the NME and RFD of the soleus and gastrocnemius muscles in physically active individuals under KT application. Twenty young males (79.7±8.2kg; 1.78±0.05m; 24.7±4.4years) performed three conditions in a randomized order: (1) Baseline (BL, no tape); (2) Activation (ACTIKT, tape for muscle activation); and (3) Inhibition (INHIKT, tape for muscle inhibition). The tape was applied along the lateral and medial border of gastrocnemius with 30% tension for 48h. Peak torque (PT), RFD and NME were measured at BL and 48h after ACTIKT and INHIKT by performing a maximum isometric contraction. The RFD was significantly higher in ACTIKT compared to BL at 0-30 (P=0.010), 0-50 (P=0.008) and 0-100ms (P=0.007). The PT and NME did not differ among conditions (P>0.05). KT applied for muscle activation yielded a higher RFD during the initial phase of the muscle contraction. However, KT has no enhancement effect on NME and peak torque. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. [Analysis of cost and efficiency of a medical nursing unit using time-driven activity-based costing].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lim, Ji Young; Kim, Mi Ja; Park, Chang Gi

    2011-08-01

    Time-driven activity-based costing was applied to analyze the nursing activity cost and efficiency of a medical unit. Data were collected at a medical unit of a general hospital. Nursing activities were measured using a nursing activities inventory and classified as 6 domains using Easley-Storfjell Instrument. Descriptive statistics were used to identify general characteristics of the unit, nursing activities and activity time, and stochastic frontier model was adopted to estimate true activity time. The average efficiency of the medical unit using theoretical resource capacity was 77%, however the efficiency using practical resource capacity was 96%. According to these results, the portion of non-added value time was estimated 23% and 4% each. The sums of total nursing activity costs were estimated 109,860,977 won in traditional activity-based costing and 84,427,126 won in time-driven activity-based costing. The difference in the two cost calculating methods was 25,433,851 won. These results indicate that the time-driven activity-based costing provides useful and more realistic information about the efficiency of unit operation compared to traditional activity-based costing. So time-driven activity-based costing is recommended as a performance evaluation framework for nursing departments based on cost management.

  17. Correlations between specific patterns of spontaneous activity and stimulation efficiency in degenerated retina.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christine Haselier

    Full Text Available Retinal prostheses that are currently used to restore vision in patients suffering from retinal degeneration are not adjusted to the changes occurring during the remodeling process of the retina. Recent studies revealed abnormal rhythmic activity in the retina of genetic mouse models of retinitis pigmentosa. Here we describe this abnormal activity also in a pharmacologically-induced (MNU mouse model of retinal degeneration. To investigate how this abnormal activity affects the excitability of retinal ganglion cells, we recorded the electrical activity from whole mounted retinas of rd10 mice and MNU-treated mice using a microelectrode array system and applied biphasic current pulses of different amplitude and duration to stimulate ganglion cells electrically. We show that the electrical stimulation efficiency is strongly reduced in degenerated retinas, in particular when abnormal activity such as oscillations and rhythmic firing of bursts of action potentials can be observed. Using a prestimulus pulse sequence, we could abolish rhythmic retinal activity. Under these conditions, the stimulation efficiency was enhanced in a few cases but not in the majority of tested cells. Nevertheless, this approach supports the idea that modified stimulation protocols could help to improve the efficiency of retinal prostheses in the future.

  18. Efficiency and cutoff values of the Voice Activity and Participation Profile for nonteachers and teachers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zambon, Fabiana; Moreti, Felipe; Vargas, Aline Cristina Tafarelo; Behlau, Mara

    2015-01-01

    To identify the efficiency characteristics and cutoff values of the dimensions of the Voice Activity and Participation Profile (VAPP) protocol, which discriminates the dysphonic and vocally healthy individuals; to verify if the cutoff values remain the same for a sample of teachers. Efficiency characteristics and cutoff values of VAPP data from 171 subjects were analyzed by receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve: 90 teachers (60 dysphonic and 30 vocally healthy individuals, with a similar mean age, p=0.418) and 81 nonteachers (48 dysphonic and 33 vocally healthy individuals, with a similar mean age, p=0.934). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) and the cutoff values of the total score of VAPP for discriminating the individuals with and without dysphonia are different for the nonteachers and teachers. The nonteachers presented AUC=0.986 (pteachers presented AUC=0.872 (pteachers, being higher for the teachers but with greater sensitivity and specificity for the nonteachers, and can be used to screen large populations with the risk of voice disorders.

  19. Sparse Contextual Activation for Efficient Visual Re-Ranking.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bai, Song; Bai, Xiang

    2016-03-01

    In this paper, we propose an extremely efficient algorithm for visual re-ranking. By considering the original pairwise distance in the contextual space, we develop a feature vector called sparse contextual activation (SCA) that encodes the local distribution of an image. Hence, re-ranking task can be simply accomplished by vector comparison under the generalized Jaccard metric, which has its theoretical meaning in the fuzzy set theory. In order to improve the time efficiency of re-ranking procedure, inverted index is successfully introduced to speed up the computation of generalized Jaccard metric. As a result, the average time cost of re-ranking for a certain query can be controlled within 1 ms. Furthermore, inspired by query expansion, we also develop an additional method called local consistency enhancement on the proposed SCA to improve the retrieval performance in an unsupervised manner. On the other hand, the retrieval performance using a single feature may not be satisfactory enough, which inspires us to fuse multiple complementary features for accurate retrieval. Based on SCA, a robust feature fusion algorithm is exploited that also preserves the characteristic of high time efficiency. We assess our proposed method in various visual re-ranking tasks. Experimental results on Princeton shape benchmark (3D object), WM-SRHEC07 (3D competition), YAEL data set B (face), MPEG-7 data set (shape), and Ukbench data set (image) manifest the effectiveness and efficiency of SCA.

  20. Enhanced efficiency in the excitation of higher modes for atomic force microscopy and mechanical sensors operated in liquids

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Penedo, M., E-mail: mapenedo@imm.cnm.csic.es; Hormeño, S.; Fernández-Martínez, I.; Luna, M.; Briones, F. [IMM-Instituto de Microelectrónica de Madrid (CNM-CSIC), Isaac Newton 8, PTM, E-28760 Tres Cantos, Madrid (Spain); Raman, A. [Birck Nanotechnology Center and School of Mechanical Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47904 (United States)

    2014-10-27

    Recent developments in dynamic Atomic Force Microscopy where several eigenmodes are simultaneously excited in liquid media are proving to be an excellent tool in biological studies. Despite its relevance, the search for a reliable, efficient, and strong cantilever excitation method is still in progress. Herein, we present a theoretical modeling and experimental results of different actuation methods compatible with the operation of Atomic Force Microscopy in liquid environments: ideal acoustic, homogeneously distributed force, distributed applied torque (MAC Mode™), photothermal and magnetostrictive excitation. From the analysis of the results, it can be concluded that magnetostriction is the strongest and most efficient technique for higher eigenmode excitation when using soft cantilevers in liquid media.

  1. AgI/Ag3PO4 hybrids with highly efficient visible-light driven photocatalytic activity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Katsumata, Hideyuki; Hayashi, Takahiro; Taniguchi, Masanao; Suzuki, Tohru; Kaneco, Satoshi

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 hybrid was prepared via an in situ anion-exchange method. • AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 displays the excellent photocatalytic activity under visible light. • AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 readily transforms to be Ag@AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 system. • h + and O 2 ·− play the major role in the AO 7 decolorization over AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 . • The activity enhancement is ascribed to a Z-scheme system composed of Ag 3 PO 4 , Ag and AgI. - Abstract: Highly efficient visible-light-driven AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 hybrid photocatalysts with different mole ratios of AgI were prepared via an in situ anion-exchange method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS) and photoluminescence (PL) technique. Under visible light irradiation (>420 nm), the AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 photocatalysts displayed the higher photocatalytic activity than pure Ag 3 PO 4 and AgI for the decolorization of acid orange 7 (AO 7). Among the hybrid photocatalysts, AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 with 80% of AgI exhibited the highest photocatalytic activity for the decolorization of AO 7. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results revealed that AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 readily transformed to be Ag@AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 system while the photocatalytic activity of AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 remained after 5 recycling runs. In addition, the quenching effects of different scavengers displayed that the reactive h + and O 2 ·− play the major role in the AO 7 decolorization. The photocatalytic activity enhancement of AgI/Ag 3 PO 4 hybrids can be ascribed to the efficient separation of electron–hole pairs through a Z-scheme system composed of Ag 3 PO 4 , Ag and AgI, in which Ag nanoparticles act as the charge separation center

  2. Efficiency of moso bamboo charcoal and activated carbon for adsorbing radioactive iodine

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chien, Chuan-Chi; Huang, Ying-Pin; Wang, Wie-Chieh [ITRI South, Industrial Technology Research Institute, Tainan (China); Chao, Jun-Hsing; Wei, Yuan-Yao [Nuclear Science and Technology Development Center, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu (China)

    2011-02-15

    Preventing radioactive pollution is a troublesome problem but an urgent concern worldwide because radioactive substances cause serious health-related hazards to human being. The adsorption method has been used for many years to concentrate and remove radioactive pollutants; selecting an adequate adsorbent is the key to the success of an adsorption-based pollution abatement system. In Taiwan, all nuclear power plants use activated carbon as the adsorbent to treat radiation-contaminated air emission. The activated carbon is entirely imported; its price and manufacturing technology are entirely controlled by international companies. Taiwan is rich in bamboo, which is one of the raw materials for high-quality activated carbon. Thus, a less costly activated carbon with the same or even better adsorptive capability as the imported adsorbent can be made from bamboo. The objective of this research is to confirm the adsorptive characteristics and efficiency of the activated carbon made of Taiwan native bamboo for removing {sup 131}I gas from air in the laboratory. The study was conducted using new activated carbon module assembled for treating {sup 131}I-contaminated air. The laboratory results reveal that the {sup 131}I removal efficiency for a single-pass module is as high as 70%, and the overall efficiency is 100% for four single-pass modules operated in series. The bamboo charcoal and bamboo activated carbon have suitable functional groups for adsorbing {sup 131}I and they have greater adsorption capacities than commercial activated carbons. Main mechanism is for trapping of radioiodine on impregnated charcoal, as a result of surface oxidation. When volatile radioiodine is trapped by potassium iodide-impregnated bamboo charcoal, the iodo-compound is first adsorbed on the charcoal surface, and then migrates to iodide ion sites where isotope exchange occurs. (Copyright copyright 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

  3. Technical efficiency of FDI firms in the Vietnamese manufacturing sector

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vu Hoang Duong

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available The study examines technical efficiency of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI firms in the Vietnamese manufacturing sector by applying stochastic production frontier model and making use of cross-sectional data in the period 2009-2013. The average level of technical efficiency of FDI firms is about 60% and it is higher than that of domestic firms (including private firms and state-owned firms. In addition, the study also analyses correlation between technical efficiency of FDI firms and other factors. It finds that there are positive correlations between FDI technical efficiency and net revenue per labour, firm’s age or export activities in 2013. However, the study is unable to find evidence of a relationship between FDI technical efficiency and infrastructure or firm’s investment activities.

  4. ENZIME ACTIVITY OF HIGHER BASIDIOMYCETES MUSHROOM GRIFOLA FRONDOSA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    А. Бухало

    2011-02-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this work was a revelation and evaluation of spectrum and activity of hydrolytic enzymes of higher basidiomycetes  Grifola frondosa in a surface and submerged culture. 8 strains of  Gf. frondosa,  mushrooms from culture collection of mushrooms at the M.G. Kholodny Institute of  Вotany National  Academy of Sciences of the Ukraine were object of investigation. Researches were conducted by standard microbiological, biochemical and biotechnological methods. All strains  on agar mediums were shown the  following enzymes: amylase, caseinase, polygalacturonase, pectattranselyminase, glucosidase, urease,  xylanase, lipase  and endoglucanase. The demonstration of oxidizing enzymes of laccase and tyrosinase  depended on a culture and did not depend on composition of medium. The estimation of presence and level of activity of hydrolytic enzymes at submerged cultivation indicate primary influence of components of complex nourishing medium on enzyme activity of Gr. frondosa. Strains biochemical features show up in the case of  oxidizing enzymes on agar mediums and for endo-1,4-β-glucanase on liquid mediums with glucose and molasses.

  5. Selected Private Higher Educational Institutions in Metro Manila: A DEA Efficiency Measurement

    Science.gov (United States)

    de Guzman, Maria Corazon Gwendolyn N.; Cabana, Emilyn

    2009-01-01

    This paper measures the technical efficiency of 16 selected colleges and universities in Metro Manila, Philippines, using academic data for the SY 2001-2005. Using the data envelopment analysis (DEA), on average, schools posted 0.807 index score and need additional 19.3% efficiency growth to be efficient. Overall, there are top four efficient…

  6. Impact of higher energy efficiency standards on housing affordability in Alberta

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2010-07-01

    As a result of changes to provincial and national building and energy costs, the impact of increasing energy efficiency standards on housing affordability has been questioned. Determining housing affordability is a complicated process. This report presented the results of a costing analysis completed for upgrades of EnerGuide 80 levels of energy efficiency in homes in Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta. The elements of residential construction were identified. In order to better understand the cost impact of energy efficiency upgrades on a home, pricing data was obtained. Costing elements that were examined included housing price indexes; construction material price indexes; unionized trade wages; and land value. Specifically, the report presented the new housing price index analysis using material and labour costs. An analysis of energy efficiency improvement was then presented in terms of lifecycle costs (capital costs and life cycle costing results). It was concluded that although the price of labour and materials is increasing, the value of land is the primary driver for rising house prices. The price of housing is strongly correlated to the price of land and not the price of labour or materials. In addition, moving to EnerGuide 80 levels of energy efficiency for housing in Alberta made homes more affordable for homebuyers by lowering their total monthly housing costs. 4 tabs., 3 figs., 3 appendices.

  7. Construction and Characterization of Vitreoscilla Hemoglobin (VHb) with Enhanced Peroxidase Activity for Efficient Degradation of Textile Dye.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Zidong; Li, Wei; Li, Haichao; Zhang, Jing; Zhang, Yuebin; Cao, Yufeng; Ma, Jianzhang; Li, Zhengqiang

    2015-09-01

    Pollution resulting from the discharge of textile dyes into water systems has become a major global concern. Because peroxidases are known for their ability to decolorize and detoxify textile dyes, the peroxidase activity of Vitreoscilla hemoglobin (VHb) has recently been studied. It is found that VHb and variants of this enzyme show great promise for enzymatic decolorization of dyes and may play a role in achieving their successful removal from industrial wastewater. The level of VHb peroxidase activity correlates with two amino acid residues present within the conserved distal pocket, at positions 53 and 54. In this work, sitedirected mutagenesis of these residues was performed and resulted in improved VHb peroxidase activity. The double mutant, Q53H/P54C, shows the highest dye decolorization and removal efficiency, with 70% removal efficiency within 5 min. UV spectral studies of Q53H/P54C reveals a more compact structure and an altered porphyrin environment (λSoret = 413 nm) relative to that of wild-type VHb (λSoret = 406), and differential scanning calorimetry data indicate that the VHb variant protein structure is more stable. In addition, circular dichroism spectroscopic studies indicate that this variant's increased protein structural stability is due to an increase in helical structure, as deduced from the melting temperature, which is higher than 90°C. Therefore, the VHb variant Q53H/P54C shows promise as an excellent peroxidase, with excellent dye decolorization activity and a more stable structure than wild-type VHb under high-temperature conditions.

  8. Compact, Energy-Efficient High-Frequency Switched Capacitor Neural Stimulator With Active Charge Balancing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hsu, Wen-Yang; Schmid, Alexandre

    2017-08-01

    Safety and energy efficiency are two major concerns for implantable neural stimulators. This paper presents a novel high-frequency, switched capacitor (HFSC) stimulation and active charge balancing scheme, which achieves high energy efficiency and well-controlled stimulation charge in the presence of large electrode impedance variations. Furthermore, the HFSC can be implemented in a compact size without any external component to simultaneously enable multichannel stimulation by deploying multiple stimulators. The theoretical analysis shows significant benefits over the constant-current and voltage-mode stimulation methods. The proposed solution was fabricated using a 0.18 μm high-voltage technology, and occupies only 0.035 mm 2 for a single stimulator. The measurement result shows 50% peak energy efficiency and confirms the effectiveness of active charge balancing to prevent the electrode dissolution.

  9. Normal weight children have higher cognitive performance – Independent of physical activity, sleep, and diet

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hjorth, Mads F.; Sørensen, Louise B.; Andersen, Rikke

    2016-01-01

    % of expected learning within one school year (P breakfast consumption, fewer sleep problems, higher CRF, less total physical activity, more sedentary time, and less light physical activity were associated with higher cognitive performance independently of each other in at least one of the three...

  10. Active load sharing technique for on-line efficiency optimization in DC microgrids

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Sanseverino, E. Riva; Zizzo, G.; Boscaino, V.

    2017-01-01

    Recently, DC power distribution is gaining more and more importance over its AC counterpart achieving increased efficiency, greater flexibility, reduced volumes and capital cost. In this paper, a 24-120-325V two-level DC distribution system for home appliances, each including three parallel DC......-DC converters, is modeled. An active load sharing technique is proposed for the on-line optimization of the global efficiency of the DC distribution network. The algorithm aims at the instantaneous efficiency optimization of the whole DC network, based on the on-line load current sampling. A Look Up Table......, is created to store the real efficiencies of the converters taking into account components tolerances. A MATLAB/Simulink model of the DC distribution network has been set up and a Genetic Algorithm has been employed for the global efficiency optimization. Simulation results are shown to validate the proposed...

  11. Development of a low-cost biogas filtration system to achieve higher-power efficient AC generator

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mojica, Edison E.; Ardaniel, Ar-Ar S.; Leguid, Jeanlou G.; Loyola, Andrea T.

    2018-02-01

    The paper focuses on the development of a low-cost biogas filtration system for alternating current generator to achieve higher efficiency in terms of power production. A raw biogas energy comprises of 57% combustible element and 43% non-combustible elements containing carbon dioxide (36%), water vapor (5%), hydrogen sulfide (0.5%), nitrogen (1%), oxygen (0 - 2%), and ammonia (0 - 1%). The filtration system composes of six stages: stage 1 is the water scrubber filter intended to remove the carbon dioxide and traces of hydrogen sulfide; stage 2 is the silica gel filter intended to reduce the water vapor; stage 3 is the iron sponge filter intended to remove the remaining hydrogen sulfide; stage 4 is the sodium hydroxide solution filter intended to remove the elemental sulfur formed during the interaction of the hydrogen sulfide and the iron sponge and for further removal of carbon dioxide; stage 5 is the silica gel filter intended to further eliminate the water vapor gained in stage 4; and, stage 6 is the activated carbon filter intended to remove the carbon dioxide. The filtration system was able to lower the non-combustible elements by 72% and thus, increasing the combustible element by 54.38%. The unfiltered biogas is capable of generating 16.3 kW while the filtered biogas is capable of generating 18.6 kW. The increased in methane concentration resulted to 14.11% increase in the power output. The outcome resulted to better engine performance in the generation of electricity.

  12. Threats to the Human Capacity of Regional Higher Education Institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Evgeny Valentinovich Romanov

    2018-03-01

    Full Text Available In recent years, the sphere of science and education in Russia undergoes significant reforms. However, the existing framework guiding the development of the higher education contradict the Strategy of Scientific and Technological Development of Russia. These contradictions concern the conditions for building an integral system of personnel reserve and recruitment, which is necessary for the scientific and technological development of the country. The change of the funding model and the transition to two-tier higher education contribute to the outflow of talented youth to the cities where branded universities are concentrated. It creates threats to the human capacity of regional higher education institutions (both regarding staffing number, and regarding personnel reserve. Decreasing trend in number of students because of the federal budget appropriation and the existing system of per capita funding for regional higher education institutions are the threats for regional higher education. These threats can result in permanent reduction of the number of academic teaching staff and in potential decline in quality of education due to increasing teachers’ workloads. The transition to the two-tier model of university education has changed the approach to evaluating the efficiency of scientific research. The number of publications in the journals, which are indexed in the Web of Science and Scopus, has increased, but the patent activity of the leading higher education institutions has decreased many times. The ratio of number of articles to the number of the granted patents in the leading Russian universities significantly exceeds a similar indicator of the leading foreign universities. It can be regarded as «brain drain». Furthermore, this fact explains why the specific weight of income from the results of intellectual activity in total income in the majority of the Russian universities is close to zero. Regional higher education institutions need

  13. Numerical Optimization of a Bifacial Bi-Glass Thin-Film a-Si:H Solar Cell for Higher Conversion Efficiency

    Science.gov (United States)

    Berrian, Djaber; Fathi, Mohamed; Kechouane, Mohamed

    2018-02-01

    Bifacial solar cells that maximize the energy output per a square meter have become a new fashion in the field of photovoltaic cells. However, the application of thin-film material on bifacial solar cells, viz., thin-film amorphous hydrogenated silicon ( a- Si:H), is extremely rare. Therefore, this paper presents the optimization and influence of the band gap, thickness and doping on the performance of a glass/glass thin-film a- Si:H ( n- i- p) bifacial solar cell, using a computer-aided simulation tool, Automat for simulation of hetero-structures (AFORS-HET). It is worth mentioning that the thickness and the band gap of the i-layer are the key parameters in achieving higher efficiency and hence it has to be handled carefully during the fabrication process. Furthermore, an efficient thin-film a- Si:H bifacial solar cell requires thinner and heavily doped n and p emitter layers. On the other hand, the band gap of the p-layer showed a dramatic reduction of the efficiency at 2.3 eV. Moreover, a high bifaciality factor of more than 92% is attained, and top efficiency of 10.9% is revealed under p side illumination. These optimizations demonstrate significant enhancements of the recent experimental work on thin-film a- Si:H bifacial solar cells and would also be useful for future experimental investigations on an efficient a- Si:H thin-film bifacial solar cell.

  14. Factor Analysis on Criteria Affecting Lean Retrofit for Energy Efficient Initiatives in Higher Learning Institution Buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abidin Nur IzieAdiana

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The expansion of Higher Learning Institution (HLI is a global concerns on energy demand due to campus act like a small city. Intensive mode of operation of a building is correlated to the energy utilization. Improvement in the current energy efficiency is crucial effort to minimize the environmental effect through minimisation of energy in operation by retrofitting and upgrade the existing building system or components to be more efficient. Basically, there are three recommended steps for the improvement known as lean initiatives, green technology and clean energy in response to becoming zero energy solutions for building. The deliberation of this paper is aimed to highlight the criteria affecting in retrofitting of existing building in HLI with lean initiatives in order to achieve energy efficiency and reduction of energy comsumption. Attention is devoted to reviewing the lean energy retrofitting initiatives criteria for daylighting (side lighting, daylighting (skylight and glazing. The questionnaire survey was employed and distributed to the architects who has an expertise in green building design. Factor analysis was adopted as a method of analysis by using Principal Component with Varimax Rotation. The result is presented through summarizing the sub-criteria according to its importance with a factor loading 0.50 and above. The result found that majority of the criteria developed achieved the significant factor loading value and in accordance with the protocal of analysis. In conclusion the results from analysis of this paper assists the stakeholders in assessing the significant criteria based on the desired lean energy retrofitting initiatives and also provides a huge contribution for future planning improvement in existing buildings to become an energy efficient building.

  15. Relationship of Nitrogen Use Efficiency with the Activities of Enzymes Involved in Nitrogen Uptake and Assimilation of Finger Millet Genotypes Grown under Different Nitrogen Inputs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nidhi Gupta

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Nitrogen responsiveness of three-finger millet genotypes (differing in their seed coat colour PRM-1 (brown, PRM-701 (golden, and PRM-801 (white grown under different nitrogen doses was determined by analyzing the growth, yield parameters and activities of nitrate reductase (NR, glutamine synthetase (GS, glutamate synthase; GOGAT, and glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH at different developmental stages. High nitrogen use efficiency and nitrogen utilization efficiency were observed in PRM-1 genotype, whereas high nitrogen uptake efficiency was observed in PRM-801 genotype. At grain filling nitrogen uptake efficiency in PRM-1 negatively correlated with NR, GS, GOGAT activities whereas it was positively correlated in PRM-701 and PRM-801, however, GDH showed a negative correlation. Growth and yield parameters indicated that PRM-1 responds well at high nitrogen conditions while PRM-701 and PRM-801 respond well at normal and low nitrogen conditions respectively. The study indicates that PRM-1 is high nitrogen responsive and has high nitrogen use efficiency, whereas golden PRM-701 and white PRM-801 are low nitrogen responsive genotypes and have low nitrogen use efficiency. However, the crude grain protein content was higher in PRM-801 genotype followed by PRM-701 and PRM-1, indicating negative correlation of nitrogen use efficiency with source to sink relationship in terms of seed protein content.

  16. THE RISK INSURANCE EFFICIENCY OF BUSINESS ACTIVITY IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    O. Lobova

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The necessity of business activity insurance in the agricultural sector is grounded in this article. Different types of agricultural risks are described. The principles, on which the efficiency of agricultural insurance is based, are determined. Such as: voluntary; the farmers interest; risk management; multivariate product line; promote farmers efficient; equal access to subsidies from farmers; balance; transparency and coordination of the subsidies transfer; creating a reliable and multi-level system of insurance coverage; binding institute of independent examination. The different ways to determine the effectiveness of insurance are considered.

  17. Inventory of U.S.-led International Activities on Building Energy Efficiency Initial Findings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Delgado, Alison; Evans, Meredydd

    2010-04-01

    Several U.S. Government agencies promote energy efficiency in buildings internationally. The types and scope of activities vary by agency. Those with the largest role include the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. Department of State and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Both USAID and the Department of State have a substantial presence overseas, which may present some complementarities with the Department of Energy’s efforts to reach out to other countries. Generally speaking, USAID focuses on capacity building and policy issues; the Department of State focuses on broad diplomatic efforts and some targeted grants in support of these efforts, and EPA has more targeted roles linked to ENERGY STAR appliances and a few other activities. Several additional agencies are also involved in trade-related efforts to promote energy efficiency in buildings. These include the Department of Commerce, the Export-Import Bank, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Trade and Development Agency (TDA). This initial synthesis report is designed to summarize broad trends and activities relating to international cooperation on energy efficiency in buildings, which can help the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) in developing its own strategy in this area. The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will develop a more complete synthesis report later in 2010 as it populates a database on international projects on building energy efficiency.

  18. Evaluation of the Higher Education Active Community Fund Project in Bournemouth

    OpenAIRE

    Apostolakis, Christos

    2005-01-01

    This report evaluates the Higher Education Active Community Fund (HEACF) Project from its first year in September 2002 to May 2005.The principle objective of the study was to evaluate the implementation of the HEACF project, its impact and its capacity to achieve the aims during this time. Based on research evidence the HEACF project introduced a holistic and systematic way of organising and developing volunteer activity at Bournemouth University. In addition to this, the project provided an ...

  19. Highly efficient electroluminescence from a solution-processable thermally activated delayed fluorescence emitter

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wada, Yoshimasa; Kubo, Shosei; Suzuki, Katsuaki; Kaji, Hironori, E-mail: kaji@scl.kyoto-u.ac.jp [Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Shizu, Katsuyuki [Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011 (Japan); Center for Organic Photonics and Electronics Research (OPERA), Kyushu University, 744 Motooka, Nishi, Fukuoka 819-0395 (Japan); Tanaka, Hiroyuki [Center for Organic Photonics and Electronics Research (OPERA), Kyushu University, 744 Motooka, Nishi, Fukuoka 819-0395 (Japan); Adachi, Chihaya [Center for Organic Photonics and Electronics Research (OPERA), Kyushu University, 744 Motooka, Nishi, Fukuoka 819-0395 (Japan); Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), ERATO, Adachi Molecular Exciton Engineering Project, 744 Motooka, Nishi, Fukuoka 819-0395 (Japan)

    2015-11-02

    We developed a thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) emitter, 2,4,6-tris(4-(9,9-dimethylacridan-10-yl)phenyl)-1,3,5-triazine (3ACR-TRZ), suitable for use in solution-processed organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). When doped into 4,4′-bis(carbazol-9-yl)biphenyl (CBP) host at 16 wt. %, 3ACR-TRZ showed a high photoluminescence quantum yield of 98%. Transient photoluminescence decay measurements of the 16 wt. % 3ACR-TRZ:CBP film confirmed that 3ACR-TRZ exhibits efficient TADF with a triplet-to-light conversion efficiency of 96%. This high conversion efficiency makes 3ACR-TRZ attractive as an emitting dopant in OLEDs. Using 3ACR-TRZ as an emitter, we fabricated a solution-processed OLED exhibiting a maximum external quantum efficiency of 18.6%.

  20. Exergy Analysis of the Musculoskeletal System Efficiency during Aerobic and Anaerobic Activities

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gabriel Marques Spanghero

    2018-02-01

    Full Text Available The first and second laws of thermodynamics were applied to the human body in order to evaluate the quality of the energy conversion during muscle activity. Such an implementation represents an important issue in the exergy analysis of the body, because there is a difficulty in the literature in evaluating the performed power in some activities. Hence, to have the performed work as an input in the exergy model, two types of exercises were evaluated: weight lifting and aerobic exercise on a stationary bicycle. To this aim, we performed a study of the aerobic and anaerobic reactions in the muscle cells, aiming at predicting the metabolic efficiency and muscle efficiency during exercises. Physiological data such as oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, skin and internal temperatures and performed power were measured. Results indicated that the exergy efficiency was around 4% in the weight lifting, whereas it could reach values as high as 30% for aerobic exercises. It has been shown that the stationary bicycle is a more adequate test for first correlations between exergy and performance indices.

  1. The antimicrobial efficiency of silver activated sorbents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Đolić, Maja B.; Rajaković-Ognjanović, Vladana N.; Štrbac, Svetlana B.; Rakočević, Zlatko Lj.; Veljović, Đorđe N.; Dimitrijević, Suzana I.; Rajaković, Ljubinka V.

    2015-01-01

    aqueous phase and microbial cell removal caused by the Ag + -ions from the solid phase (activated surface sites). The results indicated that disinfection process significantly depended on the microbial-activated sites interactions on the modified surface. The chemical state of the activating agent had crucial impact to the inhibition rate. The characterization of the native and modified sorbents was performed by X-ray diffraction technique, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscope. The concentration of adsorbed and released ions was determined by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy and mass spectrometry. The antimicrobial efficiency of activated sorbents was related not only to the concentration of the activating agent, but moreover on the surface characteristics of the material, which affects the distribution and the accessibility of the activating agent.

  2. Exploring the smallest active fragment of HsQSOX1b and finding a highly efficient oxidative engine.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wenyun Zheng

    Full Text Available Human quiescin-sulfhydryl oxidase 1 isoform b (HsQSOX1b is a highly efficient, multiple-domain enzyme that directly inserts disulfide bonds into client protein. However, previous studies have focused mainly on the catalytic activity of the whole protein rather than its domain structure. In this research, we dissected the structure and function of HsQSOX1b and explored its mechanism as a highly efficient sulfhydryl oxidase by analyzing the truncated variants. The results showed that the first HsQSOX1b thioredoxin domain was essential for thiol oxidase activity. The smallest active fragment (SAQ was identified to consist of a helix-rich region (HRR and an essential for respiration and viability/augmenter of liver regeneration (ERV/ALR domain, which remained highly active to oxidize an artificial non-thiol substrate but not small molecular and protein thiols. Our study clearly demonstrated that SAQ is a highly efficient oxidative engine, which shows high efficiency in the de novo disulfide formation and oxygen reduction and that this more efficient oxidative engine is necessary for the highly efficient catalysis of QSOXs compared to Erv1 and Erv2. This study will help address the roles of different HsQSOX1b domains in de novo disulfide formation and encourage the engineering of more efficient QSOX variants for the in vitro folding of disulfide-containing proteins.

  3. Tariff regulation with energy efficiency goals

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abrardi, Laura; Cambini, Carlo

    2015-01-01

    We study the optimal tariff structure that could induce a regulated utility to promote energy efficiency by its customers given that it is privately informed about the effectiveness of its effort on demand reduction. The regulator should optimally offer a menu of incentive compatible two-part tariffs. If the firm's energy efficiency activities have a high impact on demand reduction, the consumer should pay a high fixed fee but a low per unit price, approximating the tariff structure to a decoupling policy, which strengthens the firm's incentives to pursue energy conservation. Instead, if the firm's effort to adopt energy efficiency actions is scarcely effective, the tariff is characterized by a low fixed fee but a high price per unit of energy consumed, thus shifting the incentives for energy conservation on consumers. The optimal tariff structure also depends on the cost of the consumer's effort (in case the consumer can also adopt energy efficiency measures) and on the degree of substitutability between the consumer's and the firm's efforts. - Highlights: • We study the optimal tariff structure that induces an utility to adopt energy efficiency activities. • The regulator optimally offer a menu of incentive compatible two-part tariffs. • If energy efficiency activities have a high effectiveness, decoupling emerges as a solution. • If the energy efficiency actions are less effective, the tariff has a higher per unit price and lower fixed fee. • The optimal tariff structure also depends on the degree of substitutability between the consumer's and the firm's efforts

  4. An efficient top-down approach for the fabrication of large-aspect-ratio g-C3N4 nanosheets with enhanced photocatalytic activities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tong, Jincheng; Zhang, Li; Li, Fei; Li, Mingming; Cao, Shaokui

    2015-09-28

    Graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) nanosheets with large aspect ratios were fabricated from bulk g-C3N4 through an efficient top-down approach of moderate disintegration-exfoliation using diluted H2SO4 as an "efficient knife". By prior disintegration in a diluted H2SO4 solution, the exfoliation of bulk g-C3N4 was effectively accelerated. The as-prepared g-C3N4 nanosheets possess a two-dimensional (2D) thin-layer structure with seven-atom thickness, a large lateral size of about 1 μm, and a high specific surface area of 80 m(2) g(-1). Compared with the bulk precursor, the g-C3N4 nanosheets showed much higher efficiency of photogenerated charge transfer and separation, and consequently exhibited enhanced photocatalytic activity toward hydrogen evolution and pollutant decomposition under both full-sunlight and visible-light irradiation.

  5. Efficient Active Contour and K-Means Algorithms in Image Segmentation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J.R. Rommelse

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we discuss a classic clustering algorithm that can be used to segment images and a recently developed active contour image segmentation model. We propose integrating aspects of the classic algorithm to improve the active contour model. For the resulting CVK and B-means segmentation algorithms we examine methods to decrease the size of the image domain. The CVK method has been implemented to run on parallel and distributed computers. By changing the order of updating the pixels, it was possible to replace synchronous communication with asynchronous communication and subsequently the parallel efficiency is improved.

  6. Artificial Chemical Reporter Targeting Strategy Using Bioorthogonal Click Reaction for Improving Active-Targeting Efficiency of Tumor.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yoon, Hong Yeol; Shin, Min Lee; Shim, Man Kyu; Lee, Sangmin; Na, Jin Hee; Koo, Heebeom; Lee, Hyukjin; Kim, Jong-Ho; Lee, Kuen Yong; Kim, Kwangmeyung; Kwon, Ick Chan

    2017-05-01

    Biological ligands such as aptamer, antibody, glucose, and peptide have been widely used to bind specific surface molecules or receptors in tumor cells or subcellular structures to improve tumor-targeting efficiency of nanoparticles. However, this active-targeting strategy has limitations for tumor targeting due to inter- and intraheterogeneity of tumors. In this study, we demonstrated an alternative active-targeting strategy using metabolic engineering and bioorthogonal click reaction to improve tumor-targeting efficiency of nanoparticles. We observed that azide-containing chemical reporters were successfully generated onto surface glycans of various tumor cells such as lung cancer (A549), brain cancer (U87), and breast cancer (BT-474, MDA-MB231, MCF-7) via metabolic engineering in vitro. In addition, we compared tumor targeting of artificial azide reporter with bicyclononyne (BCN)-conjugated glycol chitosan nanoparticles (BCN-CNPs) and integrin α v β 3 with cyclic RGD-conjugated CNPs (cRGD-CNPs) in vitro and in vivo. Fluorescence intensity of azide-reporter-targeted BCN-CNPs in tumor tissues was 1.6-fold higher and with a more uniform distribution compared to that of cRGD-CNPs. Moreover, even in the isolated heterogeneous U87 cells, BCN-CNPs could bind artificial azide reporters on tumor cells more uniformly (∼92.9%) compared to cRGD-CNPs. Therefore, the artificial azide-reporter-targeting strategy can be utilized for targeting heterogeneous tumor cells via bioorthogonal click reaction and may provide an alternative method of tumor targeting for further investigation in cancer therapy.

  7. Physical activity in schizophrenia is higher in the first episode than in subsequent ones

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sebastian eWalther

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Schizophrenia is frequently associated with abnormal motor behavior, particularly hypokinesia. The course of the illness tends to deteriorate in the first years. We aimed to assess gross motor activity in patients with a first episode (n = 33 and multiple episodes (n = 115 of schizophrenia spectrum disorders using wrist actigraphy. First episode patients were younger, had higher motor activity and reduced negative symptom severity. Covarying for age, chlorpromazine equivalents and negative symptoms, first episode patients still had higher motor activity. This was also true after excluding patients with schizophreniform disorder from the analyses. In first episode patients but not in patients with multiple episodes, motor activity was correlated with antipsychotic dosage. In conclusion, after controlling for variables related to disorder chronicity, patients with first episodes were still more active than patients with multiple episodes. Thus, reduced motor activity is a marker of deterioration in the course of schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

  8. Cutting efficiency of Reciproc and waveOne reciprocating instruments.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Plotino, Gianluca; Giansiracusa Rubini, Alessio; Grande, Nicola M; Testarelli, Luca; Gambarini, Gianluca

    2014-08-01

    The aim of the present study was to evaluate the cutting efficiency of 2 new reciprocating instruments, Reciproc and WaveOne. Twenty-four new Reciproc R25 and 24 new WaveOne Primary files were activated by using a torque-controlled motor (Silver Reciproc) and divided into 4 groups (n = 12): group 1, Reciproc activated by Reciproc ALL program; group 2, Reciproc activated by WaveOne ALL program; group 3, WaveOne activated by Reciproc ALL program; and group 4, WaveOne activated by WaveOne ALL program. The device used for the cutting test consisted of a main frame to which a mobile plastic support for the handpiece is connected and a stainless steel block containing a Plexiglas block (inPlexiglass, Rome, Italy) against which the cutting efficiency of the instruments was tested. The length of the block cut in 1 minute was measured in a computerized program with a precision of 0.1 mm. Means and standard deviations of each group were calculated, and data were statistically analyzed with 1-way analysis of variance and Bonferroni test (P cutting efficiency than WaveOne Primary for both the movements used (P cutting efficiency than WaveOne instruments used with their proper reciprocating motion (P .05). Reciproc instruments demonstrated statistically higher cutting efficiency than WaveOne instruments. Copyright © 2014 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  9. Properties of Arctic Aerosol Particles and Residuals of Warm Clouds: Cloud Activation Efficiency and the Aerosol Indirect Effect

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zelenyuk, A.; Imre, D. G.; Leaitch, R.; Ovchinnikov, M.; Liu, P.; Macdonald, A.; Strapp, W.; Ghan, S. J.; Earle, M. E.

    2012-12-01

    Single particle mass spectrometer, SPLAT II, was used to characterize the size, composition, number concentration, density, and shape of individual Arctic spring aerosol. Background particles, particles above and below the cloud, cloud droplet residuals, and interstitial particles were characterized with goal to identify the properties that separate cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) from background aerosol particles. The analysis offers a comparison between warm clouds formed on clean and polluted days, with clean days having maximum particle concentrations (Na) lower than ~250 cm-3, as compared with polluted days, in which maximum concentration was tenfold higher. On clean days, particles were composed of organics, organics mixed with sulfates, biomass burning (BB), sea salt (SS), and few soot and dust particles. On polluted days, BB, organics associated with BB, and their mixtures with sulfate dominated particle compositions. Based on the measured compositions and size distributions of cloud droplet residuals, background aerosols, and interstitial particles, we conclude that these three particle types had virtually the same compositions, which means that cloud activation probabilities were surprisingly nearly composition independent. Moreover, these conclusions hold in cases in which less than 20% or more than 90% of background particles got activated. We concluded that for the warm clouds interrogated in this study particle size played a more important factor on aerosol CCN activity. Comparative analysis of all studied clouds reveals that aerosol activation efficiency strongly depends on the aerosol concentrations, such that at Na <200 cm-3, nearly all particles activate, and at higher concentrations the activation efficiency is lower. For example, when Na was greater than 1500 cm-3, less than ~30% of particles activated. The data suggest that as the number of nucleated droplets increases, condensation on existing droplets effectively competes with particle

  10. Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence in Polymers: A New Route toward Highly Efficient Solution Processable OLEDs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nikolaenko, Andrey E; Cass, Michael; Bourcet, Florence; Mohamad, David; Roberts, Matthew

    2015-11-25

    Efficient intermonomer thermally activated delayed fluorescence is demonstrated for the first time, opening a new route to achieving high-efficiency solution processable polymer light-emitting device materials. External quantum efficiency (EQE) of up to 10% is achieved in a simple fully solution-processed device structure, and routes for further EQE improvement identified. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  11. Nanostructured CoP: An efficient catalyst for degradation of organic pollutants by activating peroxymonosulfate

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Luo, Rui; Liu, Chao; Li, Jiansheng, E-mail: lijsh@mail.njust.edu.cn; Wang, Jing; Hu, Xingru; Sun, Xiuyun; Shen, Jinyou; Han, Weiqing; Wang, Lianjun

    2017-05-05

    Highlights: • The CoP/PMS system was first presented for decomposition of pollutants. • CoP exhibited dramatic catalytic activity. • Broadened pH range and favorable anti-interference of anions were achieved. • A possible mechanism for activation of PMS by CoP was proposed. - Abstract: A new catalyst system of CoP/peroxymonosulfate (PMS) is presented, which achieved significant improvement in catalytic activity. Nanostructured CoP, obtained by a simple solid-state reaction, exhibited dramatic catalytic activity with 97.2% degradation of orange II of 100 ppm within 4 min. Moreover, the high efficiency could be reached for other phenolic pollutants, i.e., phenol and 4-chlorophenol. The reaction rate is much higher than the most reported catalysts. Effect of parameters on catalytic activity of the catalyst was studied in detail. Notably, initial pH of the solution had a slight negative effect on the catalytic performance over the pH range 4.07–10.92, suggesting that CoP has the great adaptability of pH. CoP/PMS demonstrated excellent anti-interference performance toward anions (Cl{sup −}, NO{sub 3}{sup −}, and HCO{sub 3}{sup −}). In addition, the pathway of degradation of orange II is proposed by analyzing its intermediates. Based on the XPS spectra of CoP, the identification of the reactive species (·OH and SO{sub 4}·{sup −}) by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) analysis and quenching tests, a possible mechanism for activation of PMS by CoP was proposed. Considering the dramatic catalytic activity, a wide range of pH catalyst suited, CoP is believed to provide robust support for the promising industrial application of AOPs.

  12. ANALYSIS OF MARKETING TOOLS AND ACTIVITIES WITHIN EDUCATIONAL SERVICES ORGANIZATIONS, IN ORDER TO INCREASE THEIR EFFICIENCY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Barbu Andreea Mihaela

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Romanian education, which is an important pillar for human resource forming process and the basis for economic development, suffered a lot of changes in the last decades. The main factors that have influenced the undergraduate and university training programs are the political and social-cultural ones. Educational services organizations are facing various challenges as: creating and maintaining a good institutional image, managing all types of resources efficiently, motivating the academic personnel, satisfying the community needs and supporting the public policy. The marketing tools and activities help these entities to improve the educational programs and adapt them to the individual needs of the clients, to keep under control the production costs, which are limited by the small public budget and to perform and promote these services efficiently, leading to an increased organizational performance. The paper begins by presenting the current situation of higher education in Romania, underlining the fierce competition among the universities, the increased market potential and the financing sources. It continues by mentioning the advantages of strategic marketing planning for universities, as superior results and effectiveness, improved decision making and multiple benefits for the people involved. The paper reveals also the characteristics of segmenting and positioning on higher education market and the specific of marketing mix. Thereby, educational product is more easily adapted to customer needs when it is designed in collaboration with existing and future students, their parents, with other universities in the field or even with graduates. Students themselves can contribute to the increase the quality of their education. Price may be a factor of choice when future student chooses to pursue a university course, especially in those situations where the price does not include only the payment of annual fees for education. Distribution takes into

  13. Exploiting Software Tool Towards Easier Use And Higher Efficiency

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lin, G. H.; Su, J. T.; Deng, Y. Y.

    2006-08-01

    In developing countries, using data based on instrument made by themselves in maximum extent is very important. It is not only related to maximizing science returns upon prophase investment -- deep accumulations in every aspects but also science output. Based on the idea, we are exploiting a software (called THDP: Tool of Huairou Data Processing). It is used for processing a series of issues, which is met necessary in processing data. This paper discusses its designed purpose, functions, method and specialities. The primary vehicle for general data interpretation is through various techniques of data visualization, techniques of interactive. In the software, we employed Object Oriented approach. It is appropriate to the vehicle. it is imperative that the approach provide not only function, but do so in as convenient a fashion as possible. As result of the software exploiting, it is not only easier to learn data processing for beginner and more convenienter to need further improvement for senior but also increase greatly efficiency in every phrases include analyse, parameter adjusting, result display. Under frame of virtual observatory, for developing countries, we should study more and newer related technologies, which can advance ability and efficiency in science research, like the software we are developing

  14. Routes to increasing efficiency and reducing the cost of thin-film solar panels

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Deelen, J. van; Barink, M.; Klerk, L.; Voorthuijzen, P.; Hovestad, A.

    2015-01-01

    Most development work in the laboratory is dedicated to efficiency enhancements at the cell level; improvements in efficiency can lead to higher cost-competitiveness of PV. However, the cost of panel manufacturing is an important aspect as well. For CIGS panels the deposition of the active layer is

  15. National report card on energy efficiency : 2. annual report card on government activities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2000-01-01

    This second annual report card produced by the Canadian Energy Efficiency Alliance is a means by which to monitor the efforts of Canada's federal, provincial and territorial governments in energy efficiency activities. The Alliance works in partnership with manufacturers, utilities, governments, builders, labour, consumer groups and environmental organizations. Energy efficiency is one of the primary tools governments can use to meet the Kyoto climate change commitment. The issue of climate change was examined in greater depth in this second annual report card. Ten specific measures that each government should take in order to be efficiency leaders were identified. These included minimum standards and regulations for buildings and appliances, supporting energy efficiency in the marketplace, and leadership programs to improve energy efficiency and achieve emission reduction targets. Efficiency in transportation was not included in this report card. A brief summary of what the federal government, as well as each provincial and territorial government are doing to promote energy efficiency was included. Each jurisdiction was given a grade. The Yukon received the highest mark of A minus. Saskatchewan received the lowest, and only failed mark. It was emphasized that public and private utilities also play a key role in supporting energy efficiency in Canada. 2 tabs

  16. Shrew trap efficiency

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Gambalemoke, Mbalitini; Mukinzi, Itoka; Amundala, Drazo

    2008-01-01

    We investigated the efficiency of four trap types (pitfall, Sherman LFA, Victor snap and Museum Special snap traps) to capture shrews. This experiment was conducted in five inter-riverine forest blocks in the region of Kisangani. The total trapping effort was 6,300, 9,240, 5,280 and 5,460 trap......, our results indicate that pitfall traps are the most efficient for capturing shrews: not only do they have a higher efficiency (yield), but the taxonomic diversity of shrews is also higher when pitfall traps are used....

  17. Developments in Transnational Research Collaborations: Evidence from U.S. Higher-education Activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter H Koehn

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available In our knowledge-driven era, multiple and mutual benefits accrue from transnational research linkages. The article identifies important directions in transnational research collaborations involving U.S. universities revealed by key dimensions of 369 projects profiled on a U.S. higher-education association’s database. Project initiators, principal research fields, regional and country distributions, and the sources and amounts of funding for different types of transnational research activity are selected for analysis. The balanced total portfolio of reported current research projects by region suggests that U.S. university principal investigators increasingly recognize the value of collaborative knowledge generation in the Global South as well as in other OECD countries. The data also show concentrations in the distribution of transnational research projects by principal field of activity that could exacerbate intra-regional asymmetries. The multi-institutional data draw attention to the often unnoticed, but vital, role that higher-education institutions play in supporting transnational research endeavors that address issues of current and future global concern. The conclusion considers wider implications for higher-education involvement in transnational knowledge generation and calls for increased symmetry in collaborative research ventures.

  18. Human Development Index and Efficiency level of Social Security Hospitals

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    H. Sepehrdost

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Introduction & Objective: Hospitals as one of the main institutions providing health care services play an important role in the health system and allocate a high percentage of health sector's budget to them. This study aimed to answer whether social security hospitals efficiency levels are the same for all provinces in Iran? And whether any relationship exists between the human development indexes (HDI of the provinces and technical efficiency levels of the hospitals?Materials & Methods: Data envelopment analysis model has been used to measure technical efficiency of 65 social security hospitals, including small hospitals (working with lower than one hundred active beds and large hospitals (working with over one hundred active beds during the years 2007 to 2009. Further, the relationship between human development index and technical efficiency of hospitals in the provinces has been analyzed.Results: Results show that the average technical efficiency of small and large hospitals working in low and medium HDI provinces (0.912 and 0.937 are more than the average technical efficiency of hospitals in higher HDI provinces (0.870 and 0.887.Conclusion: It is recommended that social security organization concentrated distribute its hospital services in provinces with lower HDI and higher density of population living under the coverage of organization’s insurance. This will eventually puts its positive effects on per capita income of people, as well as more equitable distribution of income. (Sci J Hamadan Univ Med Sci 2012;19(1:32-38

  19. Commercially Available Activated Carbon Fiber Felt Enables Efficient Solar Steam Generation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Haoran; He, Yurong; Hu, Yanwei; Wang, Xinzhi

    2018-03-21

    Sun-driven steam generation is now possible and has the potential to help meet future energy needs. Current technologies often use solar condensers to increase solar irradiance. More recently, a technology for solar steam generation that uses heated surface water and low optical concentration is reported. In this work, a commercially available activated carbon fiber felt is used to generate steam efficiently under one sun illumination. The evaporation rate and solar conversion efficiency reach 1.22 kg m -2 h -1 and 79.4%, respectively. The local temperature of the evaporator with a floating activated carbon fiber felt reaches 48 °C. Apart from the high absorptivity (about 94%) of the material, the evaporation performance is enhanced thanks to the well-developed pores for improved water supply and steam escape and the low thermal conductivity, which enables reduced bulk water temperature increase. This study helps to find a promising material for solar steam generation using a water evaporator that can be produced economically (∼6 $/m 2 ) with long-term stability.

  20. "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life!" - Higher Hypomania Scores Are Associated with Higher Mental Toughness, Increased Physical Activity, and Lower Symptoms of Depression and Lower Sleep Complaints.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jahangard, Leila; Rahmani, Anahita; Haghighi, Mohammad; Ahmadpanah, Mohammad; Sadeghi Bahmani, Dena; Soltanian, Ali R; Shirzadi, Shahriar; Bajoghli, Hafez; Gerber, Markus; Holsboer-Trachsler, Edith; Brand, Serge

    2017-01-01

    Background: In the present study, we explored the associations between hypomania, symptoms of depression, sleep complaints, physical activity and mental toughness. The latter construct has gained interest for its association with a broad variety of favorable behavior in both clinical and non-clinical samples. Subjects and Methods: The non-clinical sample consisted of 206 young adults ( M = 21.3 years; age range: 18-24 years; 57.3% males). They completed questionnaires covering hypomania, mental toughness, symptoms of depression, physical activity, and sleep quality. Results: Higher hypomania scores were associated with higher mental toughness, increased physical activity, lower symptoms of depression and lower sleep complaints. No gender differences were observed. Higher hypomania scores were predicted by higher scores of mental toughness subscales of control and challenge, and physical activity. Conclusion: The pattern of results suggests that among a non-clinical sample of young adults, self-rated hypomania scores were associated with higher scores on mental toughness and physical activity, along with lower depression and sleep complaints. The pattern of results further suggests that hypomania traits are associated with a broad range of favorable psychological, behavioral and sleep-related traits, at least among a non-clinical sample of young adults.

  1. Modelling borders of expediency of use of money funds for ensuring efficiency of marketing activity of industrial enterprises

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vereshchahіna Hanna V.

    2013-03-01

    Full Text Available The article offers improvement of methods of determining the limit exceeding which additional attraction of money funds does not ensure efficiency of marketing activity. These methods are based on the use of theoretical approach based on analysis of change of marginal utility. This approach lies in: 1 the use of the correlation-regression analysis of dependency of change of indicators of efficiency of enterprise activity on change of the volume of resources (money funds directed at conduct of marketing activity; and 2 determination of first derivatives (extreme values, if possible of relevant functions. Practical use of the offered methods allows determination of the maximum volume of investments into the marketing activity required for ensuring its efficiency.

  2. Measures for improving the adoption of higher efficiency appliances in Indonesian households: An analysis of lifetime use and decision-making in the purchase of electrical appliances

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wijaya, Muhammad Ery; Tezuka, Tetsuo

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► We observe human psychosocial variables regarding purchase of electrical appliances. ► Two cities with different cultures are subject of this study – Bandung and Yogyakarta. ► Differences in the lifetime of appliances can be attributed to the cultural. ► Ads and store’s staff have the greatest impact on people’s choice of appliances. ► Adoption of higher-efficiency appliances could be implemented based on each culture. - Abstract: One approach to decreasing electricity consumption is to facilitate the replacement of older appliances with new, higher-efficiency. The objectives of this paper are to compare and analyse the replacement of appliances in two cities of Indonesia – Yogyakarta and Bandung – that are characterised by different cultural backgrounds, ethnicities, and decision-making processes in the household purchase of electrical appliances. A questionnaire survey method was employed to obtain information on behavioural economics and human psychosocial variables such as attitudes, beliefs and perceived benefits regarding the replacement and purchase of electrical appliances. The results show that refrigerators in Yogyakarta have a longer lifetime than in Bandung. However, in Bandung, air conditioners, electric fans, rice cookers, and water pumps have a longer lifetime than in Yogyakarta. These differences in the lifetime of appliances can be attributed to the cultural differences within the two cities that are reflected in the manner in which people use electrical appliances as well as to their lack of knowledge regarding appliance operation. An analysis of the factors influencing the purchase of appliances indicated that people in Yogyakarta show a greater awareness of the benefits of adopting higher-efficiency appliances than do persons in Bandung. The following suggestions could be implemented to improve the strategy of encouraging the adoption of higher-efficiency appliances: (1) in Yogyakarta, energy labelling could be

  3. Optimisation of the Management of Higher Activity Waste in the UK - 13537

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Walsh, Ciara; Buckley, Matthew [Nuclear Decommissioning Authority, Building 587, Curie Avenue, Harwell Oxford, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0RH (United Kingdom)

    2013-07-01

    The Upstream Optioneering project was created in the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (UK) to support the development and implementation of significant opportunities to optimise activities across all the phases of the Higher Activity Waste management life cycle (i.e. retrieval, characterisation, conditioning, packaging, storage, transport and disposal). The objective of the Upstream Optioneering project is to work in conjunction with other functions within NDA and the waste producers to identify and deliver solutions to optimise the management of higher activity waste. Historically, optimisation may have occurred on aspects of the waste life cycle (considered here to include retrieval, conditioning, treatment, packaging, interim storage, transport to final end state, which may be geological disposal). By considering the waste life cycle as a whole, critical analysis of assumed constraints may lead to cost savings for the UK Tax Payer. For example, it may be possible to challenge the requirements for packaging wastes for disposal to deliver an optimised waste life cycle. It is likely that the challenges faced in the UK are shared in other countries. It is therefore likely that the opportunities identified may also apply elsewhere, with the potential for sharing information to enable value to be shared. (authors)

  4. Enhancing the functional and economical efficiency of a novel combined thermo chemical disperser disintegration of waste activated sludge for biogas production.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kavitha, S; Jayashree, C; Adish Kumar, S; Kaliappan, S; Rajesh Banu, J

    2014-12-01

    In this investigation, an effort was made to pretreat surplus waste activated sludge (WAS) inexpensively by a novel combined process involving thermo chemical disperser pretreatment. This pretreatment was found to be efficient at a specific energy (SE) consumption of 3360.94 kJ/kg TS, with the chemical oxygen demand (COD) solubilization of 20%. This was comparatively higher than thermo chemically treated sludge where the solubilization was found to be 15.5% at a specific energy consumption of 10,330 kJ/kg TS respectively. Higher production of volatile fatty acids (VFA) (675 mg/L) in anaerobic fermentation of pretreated WAS indicates better hydrolysis performance. The biogas production potential of sludge pretreated through this combined technique was found to be 0.455 (L/gVS) and comparatively higher than thermo chemically pretreated sludge. Economic investigation provides 90% net energy savings in this combined pretreatment. Therefore, this combined process was considered to be potentially effective and economical in sludge disintegration. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Water Availability as a Measure of Cellulose Hydrolysis Efficiency

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hsieh, Chia-Wen

    of sugars, salts, and surfactants impact the water relaxation time. Systems with high concentrations of sugars and salts tend to have low water availability, as these form strong interactions with water to keep their solubility, leaving less water available for hydrolysis. Thus, cellulase performance...... decreases. However, the addition of surfactants such as polyethylene glycol (PEG) increases the water mobility, leading to higher water availability, and ultimately higher glucose production. More specifically, the higher water availability boosts the activity of processive cellulases. Thus, water...... availability is vital for efficient hydrolysis, especially at high dry matter content where water availability is low. At high dry matter content, cellulase activity changes water interactions with biomass, affecting the water mobility. While swelling and fiber loosening also take place during hydrolysis...

  6. The effect of mouth breathing on chewing efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nagaiwa, Miho; Gunjigake, Kaori; Yamaguchi, Kazunori

    2016-03-01

    To examine the effect of mouth breathing on chewing efficiency by evaluating masticatory variables. Ten adult nasal breathers with normal occlusion and no temporomandibular dysfunction were selected. Subjects were instructed to bite the chewing gum on the habitual side. While breathing through the mouth and nose, the glucide elution from the chewing gum, number of chewing strokes, duration of chewing, and electromyography (EMG) activity of the masseter muscle were evaluated as variables of masticatory efficiency. The durations required for the chewing of 30, 60, 90, 120, 180, and 250 strokes were significantly (P chewing stroke between nose and mouth breathings. The glucide elution rates for 1- and 3-minute chewing were significantly (P chewing between nose and mouth breathings. While chewing for 1, 3, and 5 minutes, the chewing stroke and EMG activity of the masseter muscle were significantly (P chewing to obtain higher masticatory efficiency when breathing through the mouth. Therefore, mouth breathing will decrease the masticatory efficiency if the duration of chewing is restricted in everyday life.

  7. Study on the establishment of efficient plan for regulatory activities at NPPs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lee, Sang Hun; Son, Mun Gyu [Korea Association for Nuclear Technology, Taejon (Korea, Republic of); Kang, Chang Sun; Yun, Jeong Ik; Ko, Hyun Seok; Lee, Young Wook [Seoul National Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2001-03-15

    In-operation regulatory activities at sites are very important and it should be improved to cope with accidents efficiently and quickly. In case of site survey and safety regulatory inspection regulatory system based on not regulatory headquarter but site regional office should be constructed. In other words, safety assurance and pending problem management considering site situation are needed. In this study, regulatory system at Nuclear Power Plant sites all over the world were reviewed and effective regulatory system of Korea are suggested to maximize the efficiency of license and regulatory manpower and consider the interest of local government and residents.

  8. A Critical Analysis of Accountability in Higher Education: Its Relevance to Evaluation of Higher Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kai, Jiang

    2009-01-01

    Accountability, which is closely related to evaluation of efficiency, effectiveness, and performance, requires proving that higher education has achieved planned results and performance in an effective manner. Highlighting efficiency and effectiveness and emphasizing results and outcomes are the basic characteristics of accountability in higher…

  9. High Efficiency, Transparent, Reusable, and Active PM2.5 Filters by Hierarchical Ag Nanowire Percolation Network.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeong, Seongmin; Cho, Hyunmin; Han, Seonggeun; Won, Phillip; Lee, Habeom; Hong, Sukjoon; Yeo, Junyeob; Kwon, Jinhyeong; Ko, Seung Hwan

    2017-07-12

    Air quality has become a major public health issue in Asia including China, Korea, and India. Particulate matters are the major concern in air quality. We present the first environmental application demonstration of Ag nanowire percolation network for a novel, electrical type transparent, reusable, and active PM2.5 air filter although the Ag nanowire percolation network has been studied as a very promising transparent conductor in optoelectronics. Compared with previous particulate matter air filter study using relatively weaker short-range intermolecular force in polar polymeric nanofiber, Ag nanowire percolation network filters use stronger long-range electrostatic force to capture PM2.5, and they are highly efficient (>99.99%), transparent, working on an active mode, low power consumption, antibacterial, and reusable after simple washing. The proposed new particulate matter filter can be applied for a highly efficient, reusable, active and energy efficient filter for wearable electronics application.

  10. Efficient diode-end-pumped actively Q-switched Nd:YAG/SrWO4/KTP yellow laser.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cong, Zhenhua; Zhang, Xingyu; Wang, Qingpu; Liu, Zhaojun; Li, Shutao; Chen, Xiaohan; Zhang, Xiaolei; Fan, Shuzhen; Zhang, Huaijin; Tao, Xutang

    2009-09-01

    An efficient intracavity frequency-doubled Raman laser was obtained by using an SrWO(4) Raman medium, an Nd:YAG ceramic gain medium, and a KTP frequency-doubling medium. Three laser cavities, including a two-mirror cavity, a three-mirror coupled cavity, and a folded cavity, were investigated. With the coupled cavity, a 2.93 W, 590 nm laser was obtained at an incident pump power of 16.2 W and a pulse repetition frequency of 20 kHz; the corresponding conversion efficiency was 18.1%. The highest conversion efficiency of 19.2% was obtained at an incident pump power of 14.1 W and a pulse repetition frequency of 15 kHz. The obtained maximum output power and conversion efficiency were much higher than the results previously obtained with intracavity frequency-doubled solid-state Raman lasers.

  11. Efficient Control of Active Transformers for Increasing the PV Hosting Capacity of LV Grids

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hashemi Toghroljerdi, Seyedmostafa; Østergaard, Jacob; Degner, Thomas

    2016-01-01

    . The potential interferences between the operation of active transformers and the reactive power absorption by PV inverters are investigated, and a voltage droop control approach is proposed for the efficient control of these transformers during high PV generation periods. The proposed method can potentially...... increase the PV hosting capacity of the grid, while eliminating the need for a complex and centralized controller. The voltages of specific locations or the grid state estimations provide adequate data for adjustments of the droop parameters. The simulations and field test results associated...... with the implementation of the proposed method to a newly developed active LV grid with high PV penetration in Felsberg, Germany, confirm the efficiency of the proposed method....

  12. An efficient acetylation of dextran using in situ activated acetic anhydride with iodine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    MUHAMMAD A. HUSSAIN

    2010-02-01

    Full Text Available A facile, efficient, cost-effective and solvent-free acetylation method has been developed for the acetylation of dextran. Dextran acetates were successfully synthesized using different molar ratios of acetic anhydride in the presence of iodine as a catalyst without the use of any solvent. The reactions were realized at 50 °C for 3 h under stirring and nitrogen. This efficient method yielded highly pure and organosoluble dextran esters. The reaction appears highly effective for obtaining higher degrees of substitution (DS with great efficiency. Under solvent-free conditions, dextran triacetates were efficiently synthesized. It was also observed that the molar ratio can easily control the DS of pendant groups onto the polymer backbone. Hence, a range of products with varying DS were successfully designed, purified and characterized. Covalent attachment of the pendant groups onto the polymer backbone was verified by spectroscopic techniques. Thermogravimetric analysis indicated that the obtained dextran esters were thermally as stable as dextran. The DS of the pendant groups onto the polymer backbone was calculated using standard acid base titration after saponification. Furthermore, all products were thoroughly characterized by thermal analysis (TG and DTG, and FTIR and 1H-NMR spectroscopic analysis.

  13. Optimization of chemical regeneration procedures of spent activated carbon

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Naser Ghasemzadeh

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available The chemical regeneration of granular activated carbon exhausted in a petrochemical wastewater unit was investigated. Gas chromatography and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy demonstrated that spent activated carbon carries large types of organic and inorganic materials. Diverse chemical solvents were adopted in comparison with traditional chemical solvents and regeneration efficiency was investigated for each approach. The optimum procedure and optimum condition including temperature, concentration of solvent, and time were determined. The regenerated activated carbon was used in the adsorption of methylene blue (MB in order to find its regeneration efficiency. The regeneration efficiency can be identified by comparing of amount of MB absorbed by the fresh and regenerated activated carbon. The best acidic regenerator was hydrofluoric acid. The higher the temperature causes the faster desorption rate and consequently, the higher regeneration efficiency. The regeneration efficiency increased by means of an increase in the time of regeneration and solvent concentration, but there was an optimum time and solvent concentration for regeneration. The optimum temperature, solvent concentration and regeneration time obtained was 80 ⁰C, 3 molar and 3 hours, respectively.

  14. Anaerobic digestion of post-hydrothermal liquefaction wastewater for improved energy efficiency of hydrothermal bioenergy processes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhou, Yan; Schideman, Lance; Zheng, Mingxia; Martin-Ryals, Ana; Li, Peng; Tommaso, Giovana; Zhang, Yuanhui

    2015-01-01

    Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a promising process for converting wet biomass and organic wastes into bio-crude oil. It also produces an aqueous product referred to as post-hydrothermal liquefaction wastewater (PHWW) containing up to 40% of the original feedstock carbon, which reduces the overall energy efficiency of the HTL process. This study investigated the feasibility of using anaerobic digestion (AD) to treat PHWW, with the aid of activated carbon. Results showed that successful AD occurred at relatively low concentrations of PHWW (≤ 6.7%), producing a biogas yield of 0.5 ml/mg CODremoved, and ∼53% energy recovery efficiency. Higher concentrations of PHWW (≥13.3%) had an inhibitory effect on the AD process, as indicated by delayed, slower, or no biogas production. Activated carbon was shown to effectively mitigate this inhibitory effect by enhancing biogas production and allowing digestion to proceed at higher PHWW concentrations (up to 33.3%), likely due to sequestering toxic organic compounds. The addition of activated carbon also increased the net energy recovery efficiency of AD with a relatively high concentration of PHWW (33.3%), taking into account the energy for producing activated carbon. These results suggest that AD is a feasible approach to treat PHWW, and to improve the energy efficiency of the HTL processes.

  15. NARINGENIN ENHANCED EFFICIENCY OF GUS ACTIVITY IN Passiflora mollissima (H.B.K. Bailey

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    G.O. Cancino

    2004-06-01

    Full Text Available The flavonoid naringenin has been investigated as a possible vir gene inducer in Agrobacterium-mediated transformation in Passiflora mollissima, P. giberti and Nicotiana tabacum cv. Xanthi. The transformation efficiency percentage of explants showing blue GUS expression and the extent of staining following inoculation with Agrobacterium tumefaciens strains EHA 105 and 1065, carrying gus and nptII genes was enhanced with the supplementation of the co-cultivation medium with naringenin. Supplementation of medium with 100µM (strain EHA 105 and 300 µM (strain 1065 naringenin was most effective at enhancing mean (±s.e.m., n=3 GUS activity in leaf explants (20.3 ± 2.4%, strain EHA; 105; 6.0 ± 0.57%, strain 1065 and nodal segments (16.7 ± 2.4% strain EHA 105; 8.3 ± 0.57% strain 1065 of P. mollissima. In P. giberti and N. tabacum maximum GUS activity was obtained in leaf and root explants with 100µM naringenin for both strains analysed. Additionally, when naringenin was added to Luria Bertani (LB medium, both bacterial growth via optical density and colony forming units were higher when compared to control. This is the first report of the use of naringenin to enhance gene transfer from Agrobacterium to plants. These findings suggest that naringenin can be used as an alternative to acetosyringone for vir gene induction in Agrobacterium. This approach may be especially useful in plants that are generally recalcitrant to Agrobacterium-mediatedtransformation.

  16. Energy conservation in industrial buildings. Higher energy efficiency with smart control systems; Energieeinsparung im Gewerbebau. Hoehere Energieeffizienz durch 'intelligente' Regeltechnik

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mayer, Edgar [CentraLine c/o Honeywell GmbH, Schoenaich (Germany)

    2009-07-01

    With smart control systems, the energy conservation potential of industrial buildings could be fully utilized. This means, e.g., that classic control algorithms must be replaced by new solutions. New methods will ensure higher energy efficiency with maximum comfort; they will also prolong the service life and the inspection intervals of the technical facilities. (orig.)

  17. High-efficiency electroluminescence and amplified spontaneous emission from a thermally activated delayed fluorescent near-infrared emitter

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kim, Dae-Hyeon; D'Aléo, Anthony; Chen, Xian-Kai; Sandanayaka, Atula D. S.; Yao, Dandan; Zhao, Li; Komino, Takeshi; Zaborova, Elena; Canard, Gabriel; Tsuchiya, Youichi; Choi, Eunyoung; Wu, Jeong Weon; Fages, Frédéric; Brédas, Jean-Luc; Ribierre, Jean-Charles; Adachi, Chihaya

    2018-02-01

    Near-infrared organic light-emitting diodes and semiconductor lasers could benefit a variety of applications including night-vision displays, sensors and information-secured displays. Organic dyes can generate electroluminescence efficiently at visible wavelengths, but organic light-emitting diodes are still underperforming in the near-infrared region. Here, we report thermally activated delayed fluorescent organic light-emitting diodes that operate at near-infrared wavelengths with a maximum external quantum efficiency of nearly 10% using a boron difluoride curcuminoid derivative. As well as an effective upconversion from triplet to singlet excited states due to the non-adiabatic coupling effect, this donor-acceptor-donor compound also exhibits efficient amplified spontaneous emission. By controlling the polarity of the active medium, the maximum emission wavelength of the electroluminescence spectrum can be tuned from 700 to 780 nm. This study represents an important advance in near-infrared organic light-emitting diodes and the design of alternative molecular architectures for photonic applications based on thermally activated delayed fluorescence.

  18. A Studi on High Plant Systems Course with Active Learning in Higher Education Through Outdoor Learning to Increase Student Learning Activities

    OpenAIRE

    Nur Rokhimah Hanik, Anwari Adi Nugroho

    2015-01-01

    Biology learning especially high plant system courses needs to be applied to active learning centered on the student (Active Learning In Higher Education) to enhance the students' learning activities so that the quality of learning for the better. Outdoor Learning is one of the active learning invites students to learn outside of the classroom by exploring the surrounding environment. This research aims to improve the students' learning activities in the course of high plant systems through t...

  19. Higher exercise intensity delays postexercise recovery of impedance-derived cardiac sympathetic activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Michael, Scott; Jay, Ollie; Graham, Kenneth S; Davis, Glen M

    2017-08-01

    Systolic time intervals (STIs) provide noninvasive insights into cardiac sympathetic neural activity (cSNA). As the effect of exercise intensity on postexercise STI recovery is unclear, this study investigated the STI recovery profile after different exercise intensities. Eleven healthy males cycled for 8 min at 3 separate intensities: LOW (40%-45%), MOD (75%-80%), and HIGH (90%-95%) of heart-rate (HR) reserve. Bio-impedance cardiography was used to assess STIs - primarily pre-ejection period (PEP; inversely correlated with cSNA), as well as left ventricular ejection time (LVET) and PEP:LVET - during 10 min seated recovery immediately postexercise. Heart-rate variability (HRV), i.e., natural-logarithm of root mean square of successive differences (Ln-RMSSD), was calculated as an index of cardiac parasympathetic neural activity (cPNA). Higher preceding exercise intensity elicited a slower recovery of HR and Ln-RMSSD (p return to baseline by 10 min following any intensity (p ≤ 0.009). Recovery of STIs was also slower following higher intensity exercise (p ≤ 0.002). By 30 s postexercise, higher preceding intensity resulted in a lower PEP (98 ± 14 ms, 75 ± 6 ms, 66 ± 5 ms for LOW, MOD, and HIGH, respectively, p fashion. While exercise intensity must be considered, acute recovery may be a valuable period during which to concurrently monitor these noninvasive indices, to identify potentially abnormal cardiac autonomic responses.

  20. NAC selectively inhibit cancer telomerase activity: A higher redox homeostasis threshold exists in cancer cells

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pengying Li

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Telomerase activity controls telomere length, and this plays an important role in stem cells, aging and tumors. Antioxidant was shown to protect telomerase activity in normal cells but inhibit that in cancer cells, but the underlying mechanism is elusive. Here we found that 7721 hepatoma cells held a higher redox homeostasis threshold than L02 normal liver cells which caused 7721 cells to have a higher demand for ROS; MnSOD over-expression in 7721 decreased endogenous reactive oxygen species (ROS and inhibited telomerase activity; Akt phosphorylation inhibitor and NAC both inhibited 7721 telomerase activity. The over-elimination of ROS by NAC resulted in the inhibition of Akt pathway. Our results suggest that ROS is involved in the regulation of cancer telomerase activity through Akt pathway. The different intracellular redox homeostasis and antioxidant system in normal cells and tumor cells may be the cause of the opposite effect on telomerase activity in response to NAC treatment. Our results provide a theoretical base of using antioxidants selectively inhibit cancer telomerase activity. Findings of the present study may provide insights into novel approaches for cancer treatment.

  1. Energy efficiency and human activity: Past trends, future prospects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Schipper, L.; Meyers, S.; Howarth, R.B.; Steiner, R.

    1992-01-01

    This book, sponsored by the Stockholm Environmental Institute (SEI), presents a detailed analysis of changes in world energy use over the past twenty years. It considers the future prospects of energy demand, and discusses ways of restraining growth in consumption in order to meet environmental and economic development goals. Based on a decade of research by the authors and their colleagues at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory in collaboration with the SEI, it presents information on energy use and the forces shaping it in the industrial, developing, and formerly planned economies. Looking separately at industry, passenger travel, freight transport, and the residential and service sectors, the authors describe the impact on energy use of growth in activity, structural change, and change in energy intensities, and discuss the role of energy prices and energy conservation policies in the industrial countries and the former Soviet Union. The book presents an overview of the potential for improving energy efficiency, and discusses the policies that could help realize the potential. While calling for strong action by governments and the private sector, the authors stress the importance of considering the full range of factors that will shape realization of the energy efficiency potential around the world

  2. Co-emergence of multi-scale cortical activities of irregular firing, oscillations and avalanches achieves cost-efficient information capacity.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dong-Ping Yang

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available The brain is highly energy consuming, therefore is under strong selective pressure to achieve cost-efficiency in both cortical connectivities and activities. However, cost-efficiency as a design principle for cortical activities has been rarely studied. Especially it is not clear how cost-efficiency is related to ubiquitously observed multi-scale properties: irregular firing, oscillations and neuronal avalanches. Here we demonstrate that these prominent properties can be simultaneously observed in a generic, biologically plausible neural circuit model that captures excitation-inhibition balance and realistic dynamics of synaptic conductance. Their co-emergence achieves minimal energy cost as well as maximal energy efficiency on information capacity, when neuronal firing are coordinated and shaped by moderate synchrony to reduce otherwise redundant spikes, and the dynamical clusterings are maintained in the form of neuronal avalanches. Such cost-efficient neural dynamics can be employed as a foundation for further efficient information processing under energy constraint.

  3. A HIGHER EFFICIENCY OF CONVERTING GAS TO STARS PUSHES GALAXIES AT z ∼ 1.6 WELL ABOVE THE STAR-FORMING MAIN SEQUENCE

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Silverman, J. D.; Rujopakarn, W. [Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (WPI), The University of Tokyo Institutes for Advanced Study, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8583 (Japan); Daddi, E.; Liu, D. [Laboratoire AIM, CEA/DSM-CNRS-Universite Paris Diderot, Irfu/Service d’Astrophysique, CEA Saclay (France); Rodighiero, G. [Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Universita di Padova, vicolo Osservatorio, 3, I-35122 Padova (Italy); Sargent, M. [Astronomy Centre, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sussex, Brighton BN1 9QH (United Kingdom); Renzini, A. [Instituto Nazionale de Astrofisica, Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, v.co dell’Osservatorio 5, I-35122 Padova (Italy); Feruglio, C. [IRAM—Institut de RadioAstronomie Millimétrique, 300 rue de la Piscine, F-38406 Saint Martin d’Hères (France); Kashino, D. [Division of Particle and Astrophysical Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya 464-8602 (Japan); Sanders, D. [Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii, 2680 Woodlawn Drive, Honolulu, HI 96822 (United States); Kartaltepe, J. [National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 N. Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719 (United States); Nagao, T. [Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Ehime University, 2-5 Bunkyo-cho, Matsuyama 790-8577 (Japan); Arimoto, N. [Subaru Telescope, 650 North A’ohoku Place, Hilo, HI-96720 (United States); Berta, S.; Lutz, D. [Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik, D-84571 Garching (Germany); Béthermin, M. [European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2, D-85748 Garching (Germany); Koekemoer, A., E-mail: john.silverman@ipmu.jp [Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD, 21218 (United States); and others

    2015-10-20

    Local starbursts have a higher efficiency of converting gas into stars, as compared to typical star-forming galaxies at a given stellar mass, possibly indicative of different modes of star formation. With the peak epoch of galaxy formation occurring at z > 1, it remains to be established whether such an efficient mode of star formation is occurring at high redshift. To address this issue, we measure the molecular gas content of seven high-redshift (z ∼ 1.6) starburst galaxies with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array and IRAM/Plateau de Bure Interferometer. Our targets are selected from the sample of Herschel far-infrared-detected galaxies having star formation rates (∼300–800 M{sub ⊙} yr{sup −1}) elevated (≳4×) above the star-forming main sequence (MS) and included in the FMOS-COSMOS near-infrared spectroscopic survey of star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 1.6 with Subaru. We detect CO emission in all cases at high levels of significance, indicative of high gas fractions (∼30%–50%). Even more compelling, we firmly establish with a clean and systematic selection that starbursts, identified as MS outliers, at high redshift generally have a lower ratio of CO to total infrared luminosity as compared to typical MS star-forming galaxies, although with a smaller offset than expected based on past studies of local starbursts. We put forward a hypothesis that there exists a continuous increase in star formation efficiency with elevation from the MS with galaxy mergers as a possible physical driver. Along with a heightened star formation efficiency, our high-redshift sample is similar in other respects to local starbursts, such as being metal rich and having a higher ionization state of the interstellar medium.

  4. Nutrigenetic Screening Strains of the Mulberry Silkworm, Bombyx mori, for Nutritional Efficiency

    OpenAIRE

    Ramesha, Chinnaswamy; Lakshmi, Hothur; Kumari, Savarapu Sugnana; Anuradha, Chevva M.; Kumar, Chitta Suresh

    2012-01-01

    The activity of sericulture is declining due the reduction of mulberry production area in sericulture practicing countries lead to adverse effects on silkworm rearing and cocoon production. Screening for nutrigenetic traits in silkworm, Bombyx mori L. (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) is an essential prerequisite for better understanding and development of nutritionally efficient breeds/hybrids, which show less food consumption with higher efficiency conversion. The aim of this study was to identify ...

  5. Efficiency of Photosynthesis in a Chl d-Utilizing Cyanobacterium is Comparable to or Higher than that in Chl a-Utilizing Oxygenic Species

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mielke, S. P.; Kiang, N. Y.; Blankenship, R. E.; Gunner, M. R.; Mauzerall, D.

    2011-01-01

    The cyanobacterium Acaryochloris marina uses chlorophyll d to carry out oxygenic photosynthesis in environments depleted in visible and enhanced in lower-energy, far-red light. However, the extent to which low photon energies limit the efficiency of oxygenic photochemistry in A. marina is not known. Here, we report the first direct measurements of the energy-storage efficiency of the photosynthetic light reactions in A. marina whole cells,and find it is comparable to or higher than that in typical, chlorophyll a-utilizing oxygenic species. This finding indicates that oxygenic photosynthesis is not fundamentally limited at the photon energies employed by A. marina, and therefore is potentially viable in even longer-wavelength light environments.

  6. An efficient higher order family of root finders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Petkovic, Ljiljana D.; Rancic, Lidija; Petkovic, Miodrag S.

    2008-06-01

    A one parameter family of iterative methods for the simultaneous approximation of simple complex zeros of a polynomial, based on a cubically convergent Hansen-Patrick's family, is studied. We show that the convergence of the basic family of the fourth order can be increased to five and six using Newton's and Halley's corrections, respectively. Since these corrections use the already calculated values, the computational efficiency of the accelerated methods is significantly increased. Further acceleration is achieved by applying the Gauss-Seidel approach (single-step mode). One of the most important problems in solving nonlinear equations, the construction of initial conditions which provide both the guaranteed and fast convergence, is considered for the proposed accelerated family. These conditions are computationally verifiable; they depend only on the polynomial coefficients, its degree and initial approximations, which is of practical importance. Some modifications of the considered family, providing the computation of multiple zeros of polynomials and simple zeros of a wide class of analytic functions, are also studied. Numerical examples demonstrate the convergence properties of the presented family of root-finding methods.

  7. Correlation between social responsibility and efficient performance in Croatian enterprises

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Neda Vitezić

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available The objective of the research is to establish if there is a correlation between efficiency and socially responsible business performance in Croatian enterprises. The research is based on the hypothesis that higher corporate efficiency affects social responsibility development in enterprises and vice versa, that socially more responsible corporate performance have a positive effect on efficiency. In their research, many authors have proved the correlation between social responsibility and financial performance, reputation of the enterprise and added value. Cases from transition countries, which transferred to market economy and focused on socially responsible management and sustainability, have not been the subject of research. The social responsibility concept implies balance between economic, ecological and social goals, which means distribution of assets on several actors, so it may be predicted that more efficient enterprises will sooner accept the sustainability concept and act more responsibly. Except for theoretical social responsibility hypothesis, the initial point in the empirical section is dynamic analysis of business activities of Croatian entrepreneurs in the period between 1993 and 2010, on the basis of which a sample of enterprises was chosen, which submit transparent reports on social responsibility. The main result obtained by univariate analysis confirms that socially more responsible enterprises have better financial results, i.e. they are more efficient, and also have better reputation. The research also had limitations in relation to qualitative determination of the social responsibility impact on efficiency. The conclusion is derived that there is a causal relationship between efficiency and social responsibility, i.e. higher efficiency level enables higher allocation of resources with the purpose of socially more responsible corporate performance and vice versa; socially responsible corporate performance have an impact on

  8. Higher energy efficient homes are associated with increased risk of doctor diagnosed asthma in a UK subpopulation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sharpe, Richard A; Thornton, Christopher R; Nikolaou, Vasilis; Osborne, Nicholas J

    2015-02-01

    The United Kingdom (UK) has one of the highest prevalence of asthma in the world, which represents a significant economic and societal burden. Reduced ventilation resulting from increased energy efficiency measures acts as a modifier for mould contamination and risk of allergic diseases. To our knowledge no previous study has combined detailed asset management property and health data together to assess the impact of household energy efficiency (using the UK Government's Standard Assessment Procedure) on asthma outcomes in an adult population residing in social housing. Postal questionnaires were sent to 3867 social housing properties to collect demographic, health and environmental information on all occupants. Detailed property data, residency periods, indices of multiple deprivation (IMD) and household energy efficiency ratings were also investigated. Logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios and confidence intervals while allowing for clustering of individuals coming from the same location. Eighteen percent of our target social housing population were recruited into our study. Adults had a mean age of 59 (SD±17.3) years and there was a higher percentage of female (59%) and single occupancy (58%) respondents. Housing demographic characteristics were representative of the target homes. A unit increase in household Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) rating was associated with a 2% increased risk of current asthma, with the greatest risk in homes with SAP >71. We assessed exposure to mould and found that the presence of a mouldy/musty odour was associated with a two-fold increased risk of asthma (OR 2.2 95%; CI 1.3-3.8). A unit increase in SAP led to a 4-5% reduction in the risk of visible mould growth and a mouldy/musty odour. In contrast to previous research, we report that residing in energy efficient homes may increase the risk of adult asthma. We report that mould contamination increased the risk of asthma, which is in agreement with existing

  9. Successful bioaugmentation of an activated sludge reactor with Rhodococcus sp. YYL for efficient tetrahydrofuran degradation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yao, Yanlai; Lu, Zhenmei; Zhu, Fengxiang; Min, Hang; Bian, Caimiao

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • Rhodococcus sp. YYL is an efficient tetrahydrofuran-degrading strain. • Strain YYL was used to augment an activated sludge system for THF degradation. • Successful bioaugmentation was achieved only by coinoculation of strain YYL and the two bacilli. • Successful bioaugmentation of the system resulted in efficient THF degradation. -- Abstract: The exchange of tetrahydrofuran (THF)-containing wastewater should significantly affect the performance of an activated sludge system. In this study, the feasibility of using THF-degrading Rhodococcus sp. strain YYL to bioaugment an activated sludge system treating THF wastewater was explored. As indicated by a DGGE analysis, strain YYL alone could not dominate the system, with the concentration of mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) decreasing to nearly half of the initial concentration after 45 d, and the microbial diversity was found to be significantly reduced. However, after the reactor was augmented with the mixed culture of strain YYL and two bacilli initially coexisting in the enriched isolation source, strain YYL quickly became dominant in the system and was incorporated into the activated sludge. The concentration of MLSS increased from 2.1 g/L to 7.3 g/L in 20 d, and the efficiency of THF removal from the system was remarkably improved. After the successful bioaugmentation, more than 95% of THF was completely removed from the wastewater when 20 mM THF was continuously loaded into the system. In conclusion, our research first demonstrates that bioaugmentation of activated sludge system for THF degradation is feasible but that successful bioaugmentation should utilize a THF-degrading mixed culture as the inoculum, in which the two bacilli might help strain YYL colonize in activated sludge by co-aggregation

  10. COBRE Research Workshop on Higher Education: Equity and Efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chicago Univ., IL.

    This document comprises 8 papers presented at the COBRE Research Workshop on Higher Education. The papers are: (1) "Schooling and Equality from Generation to Generation;" (2) "Time Series Changes in Personal Income Inequality: The United States Experience, 1939 to 1985;" (3) "Education, Income, and Ability;" (4) "Proposals for Financing Higher…

  11. Determination of the Removal Efficiency of Linear Alkyl Benzene Sulphonate Acids (LAS in Fixed Bed Aeration Tank and Conventional Activated Sludge

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Asghar Ebrahimi

    2011-03-01

    Full Text Available Linear Alkyl Benzene Sulphonate Acids (LAS are one of the anionic surfactants that are produced and used in large quantities in different countries and find their way into the natural environment through sewer systems. These compounds may potentially cause environmental hazards in such surface waters as rivers. It is, therefore, necessary to remove as much of these compounds as possible by biological processes in wastewater treatment plants. For this purpose, four parallel biological reactors were constructed that used the conventional activated sludge and aeration tanks with fixed bed on the bench scale in order to evaluate the removal efficiency of LAS. The reactors were operated under conditions similar to domestic wastewater treatment plants. Parameters of interest were measured according to standard methods and ANOVA and T-test were used for the statistical analysis of the data. The results showed that aeration tanks with fixed beds yielded higher values of LAS and COD removal and air consumption compared to the conventional activated sludge system. It was shown that the two systems studied achieved LAS removal efficiencies of 96% and 94% for an influent LAS concentration of 5 mg/L. Further, it was found that the effluents from both systems satisfied water quality standards for discharge into surface waters (

  12. Theoretical and methodological foundation of the process of students’ physical training of higher educational institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pilipej L. P.

    2013-02-01

    Full Text Available Efficiency of the existent system of physical education is considered in the higher institutes of Ukraine. Information of unsatisfactory level of physical preparedness of university entrants and graduating students of higher institutes is resulted. The lacks of construction of process of physical education are shown on the basis of normatively-command approach. Absence of the programs, which take into account motivation and terms of activity of higher institutes, disparity the requirements of integration in the river-bed of the Bologna Process, is shown. The analysis of publications is resulted in accordance with the modern scientific paradigm of construction of the system of physical education of students on the basis of methodology of synergetics. Information of the questionnaire questioning is utillized in research. Cross-correlation connections are presented between elements of physical education systems, which influence on efficiency of process. The basic requirements of construction of process of physical education of students of institutes of higher are set.

  13. Combined effects of cooled EGR and a higher geometric compression ratio on thermal efficiency improvement of a downsized boosted spark-ignition direct-injection engine

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Su, Jianye; Xu, Min; Li, Tie; Gao, Yi; Wang, Jiasheng

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Experiments for the effects of cooled EGR and two compression ratios (CR) on fuel efficiency were conducted. • The mechanism for the observed fuel efficiency behaviors by cooled EGR and high CR was clarified. • Cooled EGR offers more fuel efficiency improvement than elevating CR from 9.3 to 10.9. • Combining 18–25% cooled EGR with 10.9 CR lead to 2.1–3.5% brake thermal efficiency improvements. - Abstract: The downsized boosted spark-ignition direct-injection (SIDI) engine has proven to be one of the most promising concepts to improve vehicle fuel economy. However, the boosted engine is typically designed at a lower geometric compression ratio (CR) due to the increased knock tendency in comparison to naturally aspirated engines, limiting the potential of improving fuel economy. On the other hand, cooled exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) has drawn attention due to the potential to suppress knock and improve fuel economy. Combing the effects of boosting, increased CR and cooled EGR to further improve fuel economy within acceptable knock tolerance has been investigated using a 2.0 L downsized boosted SIDI engine over a wide range of engine operating conditions from 1000 rpm to 3000 rpm at low to high loads. To clarify the mechanism of this complicated effects, the first law of thermodynamics analysis was conducted with the inputs from GT-Power® engine simulation. Experiment results indicate that cooled EGR provides more brake thermal efficiency improvement than increasing geometric CR from 9.3 to 10.9. The benefit of brake thermal efficiency from the higher CR is limited to low load conditions. The attributes for improving brake thermal efficiency by cooled EGR include reduced heat transfer loss, reduced pumping work and increased ratio of specific heats for all the engine operating conditions, as well as higher degree of constant volume heat release only for the knock-limited high load conditions. The combined effects of 18–25% cooled EGR

  14. Influence of the particle size of activated charcoal on labeling efficiency with 67Ga-citrate for colonic transit study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wan-Yu Lin; Shih-Chuan Tsai; Kai-Yuan Cheng; Bor-Tsung Hsieh

    2008-01-01

    Indium-111 and 99m Tc have been proposed for colonic transit study, but 111 In is expensive and the half-life of 99m Tc is too short for the study. Gallium-67 citrate is inexpensive and has a suitable half-life. In our previous study, we successfully labeled 67 Ga-citrate activated charcoal, and the labeling efficiency exceeded 91% after a 96 hour incubation period. In this work, we evaluated the influence of the size of activated charcoal particles on the labeling efficiency with 67 Ga-citrate. The data showed that the influence of particle size on the labeling efficiency of activated charcoal with 67 Ga was insignificant. Both sizes of activated charcoal particles can be used for labeling with 67 Ga in colonic transit study. (author)

  15. Triangular relationship between sleep spindle activity, general cognitive ability and the efficiency of declarative learning.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Caroline Lustenberger

    Full Text Available EEG sleep spindle activity (SpA during non-rapid eye movement (NREM sleep has been reported to be associated with measures of intelligence and overnight performance improvements. The reticular nucleus of the thalamus is generating sleep spindles in interaction with thalamocortical connections. The same system enables efficient encoding and processing during wakefulness. Thus, we examined if the triangular relationship between SpA, measures of intelligence and declarative learning reflect the efficiency of the thalamocortical system. As expected, SpA was associated with general cognitive ability, e.g. information processing speed. SpA was also associated with learning efficiency, however, not with overnight performance improvement in a declarative memory task. SpA might therefore reflect the efficiency of the thalamocortical network and can be seen as a marker for learning during encoding in wakefulness, i.e. learning efficiency.

  16. Efficiency calibration of a HPGe detector for [18F] FDG activity measurements

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fragoso, Maria da Conceicao de Farias; Lacerda, Isabelle Viviane Batista de; Albuquerque, Antonio Morais de Sa

    2013-01-01

    The radionuclide 18 F, in the form of flurodeoxyglucose (FDG), is the most used radiopharmaceutical for Positron Emission Tomography (PET). Due to [ 18 F]FDG increasing demand, it is important to ensure high quality activity measurements in the nuclear medicine practice. Therefore, standardized reference sources are necessary to calibrate of 18 F measuring systems. Usually, the activity measurements are performed in re-entrant ionization chambers, also known as radionuclide calibrators. Among the existing alternatives for the standardization of radioactive sources, the method known as gamma spectrometry is widely used for short-lived radionuclides, since it is essential to minimize source preparation time. The purpose of this work was to perform the standardization of the [ 18 F]FDG solution by gamma spectrometry. In addition, the reference sources calibrated by this method can be used to calibrate and test the radionuclide calibrators from the Divisao de Producao de Radiofarmacos (DIPRA) of the Centro Regional de Ciencias Nucleares do Nordeste (CRCN-NE). Standard sources of 152 Eu, 137 Cs and 68 Ge were used for the efficiency calibration of the spectrometer system. As a result, the efficiency curve as a function of energy was determined in wide energy range from 122 to 1408 keV. Reference sources obtained by this method can be used in [ 18 F]FDG activity measurements comparison programs for PET services localized in the Brazilian Northeast region. (author)

  17. Milking technique of sup(99m)Tc generators and labeling efficiencies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Salehi, N.; Guignard, P.A.

    1985-01-01

    Increased levels of 99 Tc in generator produced sup(99m)Tc have an adverse effect on the labelling efficiency of red blood cells and human serum albumin. A two-step milking technique in which the first 1-2 ml of eluate is discarded has been found to produce higher and more constant labelling efficiency of lymphocytes and platelets than a one-step procedure. Binding efficiency of platelet-rich plasma and lymphocytes with sup(99m)Tc is greater in the two-step technique. High activity concentration in the eluate for critical labelling is between 1.5-3 ml. (U.K.)

  18. An efficient cardiac mapping strategy for radiofrequency catheter ablation with active learning.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Feng, Yingjing; Guo, Ziyan; Dong, Ziyang; Zhou, Xiao-Yun; Kwok, Ka-Wai; Ernst, Sabine; Lee, Su-Lin

    2017-07-01

    A major challenge in radiofrequency catheter ablation procedures is the voltage and activation mapping of the endocardium, given a limited mapping time. By learning from expert interventional electrophysiologists (operators), while also making use of an active-learning framework, guidance on performing cardiac voltage mapping can be provided to novice operators or even directly to catheter robots. A learning from demonstration (LfD) framework, based upon previous cardiac mapping procedures performed by an expert operator, in conjunction with Gaussian process (GP) model-based active learning, was developed to efficiently perform voltage mapping over right ventricles (RV). The GP model was used to output the next best mapping point, while getting updated towards the underlying voltage data pattern as more mapping points are taken. A regularized particle filter was used to keep track of the kernel hyperparameter used by GP. The travel cost of the catheter tip was incorporated to produce time-efficient mapping sequences. The proposed strategy was validated on a simulated 2D grid mapping task, with leave-one-out experiments on 25 retrospective datasets, in an RV phantom using the Stereotaxis Niobe ® remote magnetic navigation system, and on a tele-operated catheter robot. In comparison with an existing geometry-based method, regression error was reduced and was minimized at a faster rate over retrospective procedure data. A new method of catheter mapping guidance has been proposed based on LfD and active learning. The proposed method provides real-time guidance for the procedure, as well as a live evaluation of mapping sufficiency.

  19. The Synapse Project: Engagement in mentally challenging activities enhances neural efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDonough, Ian M; Haber, Sara; Bischof, Gérard N; Park, Denise C

    2015-01-01

    Correlational and limited experimental evidence suggests that an engaged lifestyle is associated with the maintenance of cognitive vitality in old age. However, the mechanisms underlying these engagement effects are poorly understood. We hypothesized that mental effort underlies engagement effects and used fMRI to examine the impact of high-challenge activities (digital photography and quilting) compared with low-challenge activities (socializing or performing low-challenge cognitive tasks) on neural function at pretest, posttest, and one year after the engagement program. In the scanner, participants performed a semantic-classification task with two levels of difficulty to assess the modulation of brain activity in response to task demands. The High-Challenge group, but not the Low-Challenge group, showed increased modulation of brain activity in medial frontal, lateral temporal, and parietal cortex-regions associated with attention and semantic processing-some of which were maintained a year later. This increased modulation stemmed from decreases in brain activity during the easy condition for the High-Challenge group and was associated with time committed to the program, age, and cognition. Sustained engagement in cognitively demanding activities facilitated cognition by increasing neural efficiency. Mentally-challenging activities may be neuroprotective and an important element to maintaining a healthy brain into late adulthood.

  20. Collaborative learning in higher education : design, implementation and evaluation of group learning activities

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Hei, de M.S.A.

    2016-01-01

    In higher education, group learning activities (GLAs) are frequently implemented in online, blended or face-to-face educational contexts. A major problem for the design and implementation of good quality GLAs that lead to the desired learning outcomes is that many approaches to GLAs have been

  1. Efficient degradation of trichloroethylene in water using persulfate activated by reduced graphene oxide-iron nanocomposite.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahmad, Ayyaz; Gu, Xiaogang; Li, Li; Lv, Shuguang; Xu, Yisheng; Guo, Xuhong

    2015-11-01

    Graphene oxide (GO) and nano-sized zero-valent iron-reduced graphene oxide (nZVI-rGO) composite were prepared. The GO and nZVI-rGO composite were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), and Raman spectroscopy. The size of nZVI was about 6 nm as observed by TEM. The system of nZVI-rGO and persulfate (PS) was used for the degradation of trichloroethylene (TCE) in water, and showed 26.5% more efficiency as compared to nZVI/PS system. The different parameters were studied to determine the efficiency of nZVI-rGO to activate the PS system for the TCE degradation. By increasing the PS amount, TCE removal was also improved while no obvious effect was observed by varying the catalyst loading. Degradation was decreased as the TCE initial concentration was increased from 20 to 100 mg/L. Moreover, when initial solution pH was increased, efficiency deteriorated to 80%. Bicarbonate showed more negative effect on TCE removal among the solution matrix. To better understand the effects of radical species in the system, the scavenger tests were performed. The •SO4(-) and •O2(-) were predominant species responsible for TCE removal. The nZVI-rGO-activated PS process shows potential applications in remediation of highly toxic organic contaminants such as TCE present in the groundwater. Graphical abstract Persulfate activated by reduced graphene oxide and nano-sized zero-valent iron composite can be used for efficient degradation of trichloroethylene (TCE) in water.

  2. Energy Efficient Routing and Node Activity Scheduling in the OCARI Wireless Sensor Network

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Saoucene Mahfoudh

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available Sensor nodes are characterized by a small size, a low cost, an advanced communication technology, but also a limited amount of energy. Energy efficient strategies are required in such networks to maximize network lifetime. In this paper, we focus on a solution integrating energy efficient routing and node activity scheduling. The energy efficient routing we propose, called EOLSR, selects the route and minimizes the energy consumed by an end-to-end transmission, while avoiding nodes with low residual energy. Simulation results show that EOLSR outperforms the solution selecting the route of minimum energy as well as the solution based on node residual energy. Cross-layering allows EOLSR to use information from the application layer or the MAC layer to reduce its overhead and increase network lifetime. Node activity scheduling is based on the following observation: the sleep state is the least power consuming state. So, to schedule node active and sleeping periods, we propose SERENA that colors all network nodes using a small number of colors, such that two nodes with the same color can transmit without interfering. The node color is mapped into a time slot during which the node can transmit. Consequently, each node is awake during its slot and the slots of its one-hop neighbors, and sleeps in the remaining time. We evaluate SERENA benefits obtained in terms of bandwidth, delay and energy. We also show how cross-layering with the application layer can improve the end-to-end delays for data gathering applications.

  3. The influence of external environment factors on the activity of higher educational establishments in the Russian Federation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olga Leonidovna Guzakova

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available The instability of market economy development causes continuous changes in the activity of higher educational establishments. The article deals with the processes, taking place in the system of higher professional education in the Russian Federation in recent decades. On the basis of the analysis of statistical data and normative acts of the Government and Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, the key global and national trends in higher education are identified: increasing demand for higher education, resulted in its considerable offer (the growth of quantitative indicators is not always accompanied by improvement of higher education quality; reduction in the total number of students due to the demographic situation worsening; transition to a multi-level system of higher education under the Bologna process; change in specialties patterns and directions of training specialists with higher professional education due to the economy structural reforms and labor market needs; aggravation of competition. The tendencies lead to the emergence of demographic, political and economic risks. To reduce negative impact of the external risks to the universities’ activity it is necessary to develop corresponding state educational policy in the sphere of higher education and risk management in universities

  4. Higher photosynthesis, nutrient- and energy-use efficiencies contribute to invasiveness of exotic plants in a nutrient poor habitat in northeast China.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Ming-Chao; Kong, De-Liang; Lu, Xiu-Rong; Huang, Kai; Wang, Shuo; Wang, Wei-Bin; Qu, Bo; Feng, Yu-Long

    2017-08-01

    The roles of photosynthesis-related traits in invasiveness of introduced plant species are still not well elucidated, especially in nutrient-poor habitats. In addition, little effort has been made to determine the physiological causes and consequences of the difference in these traits between invasive and native plants. To address these problems, we compared the differences in 16 leaf functional traits related to light-saturated photosynthetic rate (P max ) between 22 invasive and native plants in a nutrient-poor habitat in northeast China. The invasive plants had significantly higher P max , photosynthetic nitrogen- (PNUE), phosphorus- (PPUE), potassium- (PKUE) and energy-use efficiencies (PEUE) than the co-occurring natives, while leaf nutrient concentrations, construction cost (CC) and specific leaf area were not significantly different between the invasive and native plants. The higher PNUE contributed to higher P max for the invasive plants, which in turn contributed to higher PPUE, PKUE and PEUE. CC changed independently with other traits such as P max , PNUE, PPUE, PKUE and PEUE, showing two trait dimensions, which may facilitate acclimation to multifarious niche dimensions. Our results indicate that the invasive plants have a superior resource-use strategy, i.e. higher photosynthesis under similar resource investments, contributing to invasion success in the barren habitat. © 2017 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

  5. Rapid and efficient radiosynthesis of [123I]I-PK11195, a single photon emission computed tomography tracer for peripheral benzodiazepine receptors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pimlott, Sally L.; Stevenson, Louise; Wyper, David J.; Sutherland, Andrew

    2008-01-01

    Introduction: [ 123 I]I-PK11195 is a high-affinity single photon emission computed tomography radiotracer for peripheral benzodiazepine receptors that has previously been used to measure activated microglia and to assess neuroinflammation in the living human brain. This study investigates the radiosynthesis of [ 123 I]I-PK11195 in order to develop a rapid and efficient method that obtains [ 123 I]I-PK11195 with a high specific activity for in vivo animal and human imaging studies. Methods: The synthesis of [ 123 I]I-PK11195 was evaluated using a solid-state interhalogen exchange method and an electrophilic iododestannylation method, where bromine and trimethylstannyl derivatives were used as precursors, respectively. In the electrophilic iododestannylation method, the oxidants peracetic acid and chloramine-T were both investigated. Results: Electrophilic iododestannylation produced [ 123 I]I-PK11195 with a higher isolated radiochemical yield and a higher specific activity than achievable using the halogen exchange method investigated. Using chloramine-T as oxidant provided a rapid and efficient method of choice for the synthesis of [ 123 I]I-PK11195. Conclusions: [ 123 I]I-PK11195 has been successfully synthesized via a rapid and efficient electrophilic iododestannylation method, producing [ 123 I]I-PK11195 with a higher isolated radiochemical yield and a higher specific activity than previously achieved

  6. Improvement of methodical approaches to higher schools' marketing activity assessment on the basis of Internet technologies application

    OpenAIRE

    Elizaveta E. Tarasova; Evgeny A. Shein

    2014-01-01

    The paper substantiates the necessity of higher schools marketing activity developing on the basis of Internet technologies; suggests the technique of comprehensive assessment of functioning and quality of the site as the main tool of marketing activity on the Internet, substantiates the stages of its implementation and provides the approbation results; suggests strategic directions for the improvement of functioning and quality improvement of a higher school site, which makes it possible to ...

  7. SCIENTIFIC AND INNOVATION ACTIVITIES OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION: THE ESSENCE AND INTERACTION OF THE COMPONENTS

    OpenAIRE

    Meniailo, Viktorija

    2017-01-01

    One of the main directions of state policy in education is the development of scientific and innovation activities at institutions of higher education. It imposes on them additional features related to the inclusion of scientific activities in universities united innovative process for the creating and practical application of new knowledge. The purpose of the article is to establish the relationship between scientific and innovation activities and clarify the essence of scientific and innova...

  8. Approximate determination of efficiency for activity measurements of cylindrical samples

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Helbig, W [Nuclear Engineering and Analytics Rossendorf, Inc. (VKTA), Dresden (Germany); Bothe, M [Nuclear Engineering and Analytics Rossendorf, Inc. (VKTA), Dresden (Germany)

    1997-03-01

    Some calibration samples are necessary with the same geometrical parameters but of different materials, containing known activities A homogeniously distributed. Their densities are measured, their mass absorption coefficients may be unknown. These calibration samples are positioned in the counting geometry, for instance directly on the detector. The efficiency function {epsilon}(E) for each sample is gained by measuring the gamma spectra and evaluating all usable gamma energy peaks. From these {epsilon}(E) the common valid {epsilon}{sub geom}(E) will be deduced. For this purpose the functions {epsilon}{sub mu}(E) for these samples have to be established. (orig.)

  9. Automation of analytical processes. A tool for higher efficiency and safety

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Groll, P.

    1976-01-01

    The analytical laboratory of a radiochemical facility is usually faced with the fact that numerous analyses of a similar type must be routinely carried out. Automation of such routine analytical procedures helps in increasing the efficiency and safety of the work. A review of the requirements for automation and its advantages is given and demonstrated on three examples. (author)

  10. Mechanisms of Attracting Investments within the Activity of Higher Educational Institutions

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kuzmin Oleh Ye.

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Mechanisms of attracting innovations within the activity of higher educational institutions are considered. Features of educational innovations arising from the immanent nature of the sector are characterized. The attention is focused on the applied aspect of educational innovations. The emphasis is placed on the need for rapid adaptation of higher education of the present time to new social realities, civilizational challenges, giving consideration to trends and prospects for human development. The state of introduction of educational innovations in leading European countries and the USA, their orientation to the introduction and promotion of e-learning that has formed a powerful market with characteristics inherent in it is considered. It is pointed up that the growth of the popularity of e-schools has led to global changes in educational systems of many countries of the world. The situation of the popularization of e-learning in China and Africa is studied. There identified trends in the development of e-learning that in the long term should ensure continuous education throughout life. The state of introduction of educational innovations in the system of the higher school of Ukraine is described. The prospects of innovative processes in the sphere of education are outlined, and promising directions of attracting educational innovations are indicated.

  11. Temperature dependent investigation on optically active process of higher-order bands in irradiated silicon

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shi Yi; Nanjing Univ., JS; Wu Fengmei; Nanjing Univ., JS; Zheng Youdou; Nanjing Univ., JS; Suezawa, M.; Imai, M.; Sumino, K.

    1996-01-01

    Optically active processes of the higher-order bands (HOB) are investigated at different temperatures in fast neutron irradiated silicon using Fourier transform infrared absorption measurement. It is shown that the optically active process is nearly temperature independent below 80 K, the slow decay process remains up to a heating temperature of 180 K. The observations are analyzed in terms of the relaxation behavior of photoexcited carriers governed by fast neutron radiation induced defect clusters. (orig.)

  12. “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life!” – Higher Hypomania Scores Are Associated with Higher Mental Toughness, Increased Physical Activity, and Lower Symptoms of Depression and Lower Sleep Complaints

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leila Jahangard

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Background: In the present study, we explored the associations between hypomania, symptoms of depression, sleep complaints, physical activity and mental toughness. The latter construct has gained interest for its association with a broad variety of favorable behavior in both clinical and non-clinical samples.Subjects and Methods: The non-clinical sample consisted of 206 young adults (M = 21.3 years; age range: 18–24 years; 57.3% males. They completed questionnaires covering hypomania, mental toughness, symptoms of depression, physical activity, and sleep quality.Results: Higher hypomania scores were associated with higher mental toughness, increased physical activity, lower symptoms of depression and lower sleep complaints. No gender differences were observed. Higher hypomania scores were predicted by higher scores of mental toughness subscales of control and challenge, and physical activity.Conclusion: The pattern of results suggests that among a non-clinical sample of young adults, self-rated hypomania scores were associated with higher scores on mental toughness and physical activity, along with lower depression and sleep complaints. The pattern of results further suggests that hypomania traits are associated with a broad range of favorable psychological, behavioral and sleep-related traits, at least among a non-clinical sample of young adults.

  13. Efficient activation of T cells by human monocyte-derived dendritic cells (HMDCs pulsed with Coxiella burnetii outer membrane protein Com1 but not by HspB-pulsed HMDCs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wang Xile

    2011-09-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Background Coxiella burnetii is an obligate intracellular bacterium and the etiologic agent of Q fever; both coxiella outer membrane protein 1 (Com1 and heat shock protein B (HspB are its major immunodominant antigens. It is not clear whether Com1 and HspB have the ability to mount immune responses against C. burnetii infection. Results The recombinant proteins Com1 and HspB were applied to pulse human monocyte-derived dendritic cells (HMDCs, and the pulsed HMDCs were used to stimulate isogenic T cells. Com1-pulsed HMDCs expressed substantially higher levels of surface molecules (CD83, CD40, CD80, CD86, CD54, and CD58 and a higher level of interleukin-12 than HspB-pulsed HMDCs. Moreover, Com1-pulsed HMDCs induced high-level proliferation and activation of CD4+ and CD8+ cells, which expressed high levels of T-cell activation marker CD69 and inflammatory cytokines IFN-γ and TNF-α. In contrast, HspB-pulsed HMDCs were unable to induce efficient T-cell proliferation and activation. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that Com1-pulsed HMDCs are able to induce efficient T-cell proliferation and drive T cells toward Th1 and Tc1 polarization; however, HspB-pulsed HMDCs are unable to do so. Unlike HspB, Com1 is a protective antigen, which was demonstrated by the adoptive transfer of Com1-pulsed bone marrow dendritic cells into naive BALB/c mice.

  14. Policymaking as a Multi-Layered Activity. A Case Study from the Higher Education Sector in Norway

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ljosland, Ragnhild

    2015-01-01

    This paper deals with policymaking in the higher education sector as an activity which happens on many levels, with many and varying interests involved. As the present thematic issue highlights, language is present in higher education policymaking, whether explicitly or implicitly. This special issue's initial claim is that "Policy is what…

  15. Higher Trait Psychopathy Is Associated with Increased Risky Decision-Making and Less Coincident Insula and Striatal Activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matthew T. Sutherland

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Higher trait levels of psychopathy have been associated with both a tendency to maintain disadvantageous decision-making strategies and aberrant cortico-limbic neural activity. To explore the neural mechanisms associated with the psychopathy-related propensity to continue selecting risky choices, a non-forensic sample of participants completed a self-report psychopathy questionnaire and two runs of a risky decision-making task during H215O positron emission tomography (PET scanning. In this secondary data analysis study, we leveraged data previously collected to examine the impact of previous drug use on risky decision-making to explore the relations between self-reported psychopathy and behavioral and brain metrics during performance of the Cambridge Decision-Making Task (CDMT, in which volunteers chose between small/likely or large/unlikely potential reward outcomes. Behaviorally, we observed that psychopathy scores were differentially correlated with the percent of risky decisions made in run 1 vs. run 2 of the task. Specifically, higher levels of psychopathy, above and beyond that attributable to drug use or sex, were associated with greater tendencies to make risky selections only in the second half (run 2 of the task. In parallel, psychopathy scores negatively correlated with regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF in the right insula and right ventral striatum during run 2 of the CDMT. These exploratory outcomes suggest that greater levels of psychopathy may be associated with an inability to translate experience with negative outcomes into behavioral adaptations possibly due to decreased neural efficiency in regions related to somatic and/or reward feedback processes.

  16. Higher frequency network activity flow predicts lower frequency node activity in intrinsic low-frequency BOLD fluctuations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bajaj, Sahil; Adhikari, Bhim Mani; Dhamala, Mukesh

    2013-01-01

    The brain remains electrically and metabolically active during resting conditions. The low-frequency oscillations (LFO) of the blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signal of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) coherent across distributed brain regions are known to exhibit features of this activity. However, these intrinsic oscillations may undergo dynamic changes in time scales of seconds to minutes during resting conditions. Here, using wavelet-transform based time-frequency analysis techniques, we investigated the dynamic nature of default-mode networks from intrinsic BOLD signals recorded from participants maintaining visual fixation during resting conditions. We focused on the default-mode network consisting of the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), left middle temporal cortex (LMTC) and left angular gyrus (LAG). The analysis of the spectral power and causal flow patterns revealed that the intrinsic LFO undergo significant dynamic changes over time. Dividing the frequency interval 0 to 0.25 Hz of LFO into four intervals slow-5 (0.01-0.027 Hz), slow-4 (0.027-0.073 Hz), slow-3 (0.073-0.198 Hz) and slow-2 (0.198-0.25 Hz), we further observed significant positive linear relationships of slow-4 in-out flow of network activity with slow-5 node activity, and slow-3 in-out flow of network activity with slow-4 node activity. The network activity associated with respiratory related frequency (slow-2) was found to have no relationship with the node activity in any of the frequency intervals. We found that the net causal flow towards a node in slow-3 band was correlated with the number of fibers, obtained from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data, from the other nodes connecting to that node. These findings imply that so-called resting state is not 'entirely' at rest, the higher frequency network activity flow can predict the lower frequency node activity, and the network activity flow can reflect underlying structural

  17. Energy efficiency analyses of active flow aftertreatment systems for lean burn internal combustion engines

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zheng Ming; Reader, Graham T.

    2004-01-01

    The use of three way catalytic converters in stoichiometric burn reciprocating internal combustion engine systems has proved to be an effective and efficient method for reducing the level of criteria pollutants. However, such passive systems have not been as successful in emission amelioration when combined with lean burn engines. This is because of the thermochemical nature of the exhaust gases generated by such engines. The high content of exhaust oxygen largely negates the effectiveness of three way catalytic converters, and the comparatively low temperature of the combusted gases means that supplemental energy has to be added to these gases to enable the converter to function correctly. This requirement severely reduces the energy efficiency of conventional passive aftertreatment systems. However, initial empirical studies have indicated that a possible means of improving the performance of aftertreatment devices when used with lean burn engine systems is to use active flow control of the exhaust gases. These results are reported in this paper. This concept has been further investigated by developing an energy efficiency analysis that enables the effects on aftertreatment performance of different gas flow rates, flow reversal frequencies and monolith solid properties to be investigated. Simulation results indicate that through active thermal management, the supplemental energy consumption can be drastically reduced

  18. Using microwave heating to improve the desorption efficiency of high molecular weight VOC from beaded activated carbon.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fayaz, Mohammadreza; Shariaty, Pooya; Atkinson, John D; Hashisho, Zaher; Phillips, John H; Anderson, James E; Nichols, Mark

    2015-04-07

    Incomplete regeneration of activated carbon loaded with organic compounds results in heel build-up that reduces the useful life of the adsorbent. In this study, microwave heating was tested as a regeneration method for beaded activated carbon (BAC) loaded with n-dodecane, a high molecular weight volatile organic compound. Energy consumption and desorption efficiency for microwave-heating regeneration were compared with conductive-heating regeneration. The minimum energy needed to completely regenerate the adsorbent (100% desorption efficiency) using microwave regeneration was 6% of that needed with conductive heating regeneration, owing to more rapid heating rates and lower heat loss. Analyses of adsorbent pore size distribution and surface chemistry confirmed that neither heating method altered the physical/chemical properties of the BAC. Additionally, gas chromatography (with flame ionization detector) confirmed that neither regeneration method detectably altered the adsorbate composition during desorption. By demonstrating improvements in energy consumption and desorption efficiency and showing stable adsorbate and adsorbent properties, this paper suggests that microwave heating is an attractive method for activated carbon regeneration particularly when high-affinity VOC adsorbates are present.

  19. Controllable synthesis of mesoporous multi-shelled ZnO microspheres as efficient photocatalysts for NO oxidation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Xiaolang; Zhang, Huiqiang; Zhang, Dieqing; Miao, Yingchun; Li, Guisheng

    2018-03-01

    The successful application of hierarchically porous structure in environmental treatment has provided new insights for solving environmental problems. Hierarchically structured semiconductor materials were considered as promising photocatalysts for NO oxidation in gas phase. Multi-shelled ZnO microspheres (MMSZ) were controllably shaped with hierarchically porous structures via a facile hydrothermal route using amino acid (N-Acetyl-D-Proline) as template and post-calcination treatment. Symmetric Ostwald ripening was used to explain the morphological evolution of hierarchical nanostructure. MMSZ was proved highly efficient for oxidizing NO (400 ppb) in gas phase under UV light irradiation with a much higher photocatalytic removal rate (77.3%) than that of the as-obtained ZnO crystals with other hierachically porous structures, owing to its higher photocurrent intensity. Such greatly enhanced photocatalytic activity can be assigned to the enhanced crystallinity of ZnO, mesopores and unique multi-shelled structure. Enhanced crystallinity promotes photogenerated charges under light irradiation. Mesoporous porosity can ensure enough light scattering between the shells. Multi-shelled structure endows ZnO with higher specific surface area and high frequency of multiple light reflection, resulting in more exposed active sites, higher light utilization efficiency, and fast separation efficiency of photogenerated charge carriers. The experimental results demonstrated that the photogenerated holes (h+) are the main active species. Hierarchically structured ZnO is not only contributed to directly use solar energy to solving various problems caused by atmospheric pollution, but also has potential applications in energy converse and storage including solar cells, lithium batteries, water-splitting, etc.

  20. Parametric study on removal efficiency of impregnated activated charcoal and silver zeolite for radioactive methyl iodide

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shiomi, H.; Yuasa, Y.; Tani, A.; Ohki, M.; Nakagawa, T.

    1983-01-01

    The removal efficiency of impregnated activated charcoal and silver zeolite for radioactive methyl iodide is influenced by various parameters such as temperature, relative humidity, face velocity and packing density. This study is to evaluate the dependency of the removal efficiency on each parameter and these combined parameters, quantitatively. Four types of adsorbents, BC-727, AgX, CHC-50 and SS 208C 5KI 3 , were tested. From experimental data and mass transfer theory, an experimental equation for evaluating the removal efficiency of adsorbents was derived under a series of experiments for radioactive methyl iodine-131. It was concluded that the removal efficiency calculated from the experimental equation agreed well with the experimental value. Effects of experimental specific parameters, such as Pre-flow time, methyl iodide injection time and After-flow time, on the removal efficiency of adsorbent are also described

  1. The role of fluid intelligence and learning in analogical reasoning: How to become neurally efficient?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dix, Annika; Wartenburger, Isabell; van der Meer, Elke

    2016-10-01

    This study on analogical reasoning evaluates the impact of fluid intelligence on adaptive changes in neural efficiency over the course of an experiment and specifies the underlying cognitive processes. Grade 10 students (N=80) solved unfamiliar geometric analogy tasks of varying difficulty. Neural efficiency was measured by the event-related desynchronization (ERD) in the alpha band, an indicator of cortical activity. Neural efficiency was defined as a low amount of cortical activity accompanying high performance during problem-solving. Students solved the tasks faster and more accurately the higher their FI was. Moreover, while high FI led to greater cortical activity in the first half of the experiment, high FI was associated with a neurally more efficient processing (i.e., better performance but same amount of cortical activity) in the second half of the experiment. Performance in difficult tasks improved over the course of the experiment for all students while neural efficiency increased for students with higher but decreased for students with lower fluid intelligence. Based on analyses of the alpha sub-bands, we argue that high fluid intelligence was associated with a stronger investment of attentional resource in the integration of information and the encoding of relations in this unfamiliar task in the first half of the experiment (lower-2 alpha band). Students with lower fluid intelligence seem to adapt their applied strategies over the course of the experiment (i.e., focusing on task-relevant information; lower-1 alpha band). Thus, the initially lower cortical activity and its increase in students with lower fluid intelligence might reflect the overcoming of mental overload that was present in the first half of the experiment. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Dimerization Efficiency of Canine Distemper Virus Matrix Protein Regulates Membrane-Budding Activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bringolf, Fanny; Herren, Michael; Wyss, Marianne; Vidondo, Beatriz; Langedijk, Johannes P; Zurbriggen, Andreas; Plattet, Philippe

    2017-08-15

    Paramyxoviruses rely on the matrix (M) protein to orchestrate viral assembly and budding at the plasma membrane. Although the mechanistic details remain largely unknown, structural data suggested that M dimers and/or higher-order oligomers may facilitate membrane budding. To gain functional insights, we employed a structure-guided mutagenesis approach to investigate the role of canine distemper virus (CDV) M protein self-assembly in membrane-budding activity. Three six-alanine-block (6A-block) mutants with mutations located at strategic oligomeric positions were initially designed. While the first one includes residues potentially residing at the protomer-protomer interface, the other two display amino acids located within two distal surface-exposed α-helices proposed to be involved in dimer-dimer contacts. We further focused on the core of the dimeric interface by mutating asparagine 138 (N138) to several nonconservative amino acids. Cellular localization combined with dimerization and coimmunopurification assays, performed under various denaturing conditions, revealed that all 6A-block mutants were impaired in self-assembly and cell periphery accumulation. These phenotypes correlated with deficiencies in relocating CDV nucleocapsid proteins to the cell periphery and in virus-like particle (VLP) production. Conversely, all M-N138 mutants remained capable of self-assembly, though to various extents, which correlated with proper accumulation and redistribution of nucleocapsid proteins at the plasma membrane. However, membrane deformation and VLP assays indicated that the M-N138 variants exhibiting the most reduced dimerization propensity were also defective in triggering membrane remodeling and budding, despite proper plasma membrane accumulation. Overall, our data provide mechanistic evidence that the efficiency of CDV M dimerization/oligomerization governs both cell periphery localization and membrane-budding activity. IMPORTANCE Despite the availability of

  3. The yeast Scheffersomyces amazonensis is an efficient xylitol producer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cadete, Raquel M; Melo-Cheab, Monaliza A; Viana, Adriana L; Oliveira, Evelyn S; Fonseca, César; Rosa, Carlos A

    2016-12-01

    This study assessed the efficiency of Scheffersomyces amazonensis UFMG-CM-Y493 T , cultured in xylose-supplemented medium (YPX) and rice hull hydrolysate (RHH), to convert xylose to xylitol under moderate and severe oxygen limitation. The highest xylitol yields of 0.75 and 1.04 g g -1 in YPX and RHH, respectively, were obtained under severe oxygen limitation. However, volumetric productivity in RHH was ninefold decrease than that in YPX medium. The xylose reductase (XR) and xylitol dehydrogenase (XDH) activities in the YPX cultures were strictly dependent on NADPH and NAD + respectively, and were approximately 10% higher under severe oxygen limitation than under moderate oxygen limitation. This higher xylitol production observed under severe oxygen limitation can be attributed to the higher XR activity and shortage of the NAD + needed by XDH. These results suggest that Sc. amazonensis UFMG-CM-Y493 T is one of the greatest xylitol producers described to date and reveal its potential use in the biotechnological production of xylitol.

  4. Efficient solution of ordinary differential equations modeling electrical activity in cardiac cells.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sundnes, J; Lines, G T; Tveito, A

    2001-08-01

    The contraction of the heart is preceded and caused by a cellular electro-chemical reaction, causing an electrical field to be generated. Performing realistic computer simulations of this process involves solving a set of partial differential equations, as well as a large number of ordinary differential equations (ODEs) characterizing the reactive behavior of the cardiac tissue. Experiments have shown that the solution of the ODEs contribute significantly to the total work of a simulation, and there is thus a strong need to utilize efficient solution methods for this part of the problem. This paper presents how an efficient implicit Runge-Kutta method may be adapted to solve a complicated cardiac cell model consisting of 31 ODEs, and how this solver may be coupled to a set of PDE solvers to provide complete simulations of the electrical activity.

  5. An Efficient Higher-Order Quasilinearization Method for Solving Nonlinear BVPs

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eman S. Alaidarous

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available In this research paper, we present higher-order quasilinearization methods for the boundary value problems as well as coupled boundary value problems. The construction of higher-order convergent methods depends on a decomposition method which is different from Adomain decomposition method (Motsa and Sibanda, 2013. The reported method is very general and can be extended to desired order of convergence for highly nonlinear differential equations and also computationally superior to proposed iterative method based on Adomain decomposition because our proposed iterative scheme avoids the calculations of Adomain polynomials and achieves the same computational order of convergence as authors have claimed in Motsa and Sibanda, 2013. In order to check the validity and computational performance, the constructed iterative schemes are also successfully applied to bifurcation problems to calculate the values of critical parameters. The numerical performance is also tested for one-dimension Bratu and Frank-Kamenetzkii equations.

  6. Efficient removal of tetracycline with KOH-activated graphene from aqueous solution.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ma, Jie; Sun, Yiran; Yu, Fei

    2017-11-01

    Activated graphene absorbents with high specific surface area (SSA) were prepared by an easy KOH-activated method, and were applied in absorbing antibiotics, such as tetracycline (TC). After activation, many micropores were introduced to graphene oxide sheets, leading to higher SSA and many new oxygen-containing functional groups, which gave KOH-activated graphene excellent adsorption capacity (approx. 532.59 mg g -1 ) of TC. Further study on the adsorption mechanism showed that the Langmuir isotherm model and the pseudo-second-order kinetic model fitted with experiment data. To further understand the adsorption process, the effects of solid-liquid ratio, pH, ionic strength and coexisting ions were also investigated. The results revealed that, compared with pH and ionic strength, solid-liquid ratio and coexisting ions (Cu 2+ , CrO 4 2- ) had more significant influence over the adsorption performance. The findings provide guidance for application of KOH-activated graphene as a promising alternative adsorbent for antibiotics removal from aqueous solutions.

  7. Modified A{sup ++}-standard refrigerator with 30% reduction of energy consumption. Higher efficiency by compressor modification - Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Siegrist, M.; Stahl, S.; Ganz, J.

    2010-06-15

    This final report for the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) takes a look at how a modified refrigerator can be given a higher efficiency by modifying the compressor. The modified refrigerator was fitted with a variable-speed compressor. This compressor could be run at much lower speeds so that it was in operation for up to 90% of the time. It was shown that less electricity was consumed the more the compressor ran. The report discusses the aims of the work and presents details on the standard refrigerator used for the tests. The compressor normally used and the variable-speed compressor used in the test are described. Systems for temperature control and data acquisition during the tests are described. The results obtained are examined and the influence of various factors is discussed.

  8. Comparison of Soybean Transformation Efficiency and Plant Factors Affecting Transformation during the Agrobacterium Infection Process.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jia, Yuying; Yao, Xingdong; Zhao, Mingzhe; Zhao, Qiang; Du, Yanli; Yu, Cuimei; Xie, Futi

    2015-08-07

    The susceptibility of soybean genotype to Agrobacterium infection is a key factor for the high level of genetic transformation efficiency. The objective of this study is to evaluate the plant factors related to transformation in cotyledonary nodes during the Agrobacterium infection process. This study selected three genotypes (Williams 82, Shennong 9 and Bert) with high transformation efficiency, which presented better susceptibility to Agrobacterium infection, and three low transformation efficiency genotypes (General, Liaodou 16 and Kottman), which showed a relatively weak susceptibility. Gibberellin (GA) levels and soybean GA20ox2 and CYP707A2 transcripts of high-efficiency genotypes increased and were higher than those of low-efficiency genotypes; however, the opposite performance was shown in abscisic acid (ABA). Higher zeatin riboside (ZR) content and DNA quantity, and relatively higher expression of soybean IPT5, CYCD3 and CYCA3 were obtained in high-efficiency genotypes. High-efficiency genotypes had low methyl jasmonate (MeJA) content, polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) activity, and relatively lower expression of soybean OPR3, PPO1 and PRX71. GA and ZR were positive plant factors for Agrobacterium-mediated soybean transformation by facilitating germination and growth, and increasing the number of cells in DNA synthesis cycle, respectively; MeJA, PPO, POD and ABA were negative plant factors by inducing defence reactions and repressing germination and growth, respectively.

  9. Comparison of Soybean Transformation Efficiency and Plant Factors Affecting Transformation during the Agrobacterium Infection Process

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yuying Jia

    2015-08-01

    Full Text Available The susceptibility of soybean genotype to Agrobacterium infection is a key factor for the high level of genetic transformation efficiency. The objective of this study is to evaluate the plant factors related to transformation in cotyledonary nodes during the Agrobacterium infection process. This study selected three genotypes (Williams 82, Shennong 9 and Bert with high transformation efficiency, which presented better susceptibility to Agrobacterium infection, and three low transformation efficiency genotypes (General, Liaodou 16 and Kottman, which showed a relatively weak susceptibility. Gibberellin (GA levels and soybean GA20ox2 and CYP707A2 transcripts of high-efficiency genotypes increased and were higher than those of low-efficiency genotypes; however, the opposite performance was shown in abscisic acid (ABA. Higher zeatin riboside (ZR content and DNA quantity, and relatively higher expression of soybean IPT5, CYCD3 and CYCA3 were obtained in high-efficiency genotypes. High-efficiency genotypes had low methyl jasmonate (MeJA content, polyphenol oxidase (PPO and peroxidase (POD activity, and relatively lower expression of soybean OPR3, PPO1 and PRX71. GA and ZR were positive plant factors for Agrobacterium-mediated soybean transformation by facilitating germination and growth, and increasing the number of cells in DNA synthesis cycle, respectively; MeJA, PPO, POD and ABA were negative plant factors by inducing defence reactions and repressing germination and growth, respectively.

  10. Effect of AlSb quantum dots on efficiency of GaAs solar cell (Conference Presentation)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mansoori, Ahmad; Addamane, Sadhvikas J.; Renteria, Emma J.; Shima, Darryl M.; Hains, Christopher P.; Balakrishnan, Ganesh

    2016-09-01

    Quantum Dots (QDs) have a broad applications in science and specifically in solar cell. Many research groups show that by adding QDs with lower bandgap respect to host material, the overall absorption of sun spectrum coverage will increase. Here, we propose using QDs with higher band gap respect to host material to improve efficiency of solar cell by improving quantum efficiency. GaAs solar cells have the highest efficiency in single junction solar cells. However, the absorption of GaAs is not good enough in wavelength lower than 550nm. AlSb can absorb shorter wavelength with higher absorption coefficient and also recombination rate should be lower because of higher bandgap of AlSb respect to GaAs. We embed AlSb QDs in GaAs solar cells and results show slight improvement in quantum efficiency and also in overall efficiency. Coverage of AlSb QDs has a direct impact on quality of AlSb QDs and efficiency of cell. In the higher coverage, intermixing between GaAs and AlSb causes to shift bandgap to lower value (having AlGaSb QDs instead of pure AlSb QDs). This intermixing decrease the Voc and overall efficiency of cell. In lower coverage, AlSb can survive from intermixing and overall performance of cell improves. Optimizing growth condition of AlSb QDs is a key point for this work. By using AlSb QDs, we can decrease the thickness of active layer of GaAs solar cells and have a thinner solar cell.

  11. Study on Gait Efficiency and Energy Cost of Below Knee Amputees After Therapeutic Practices

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Durbadal Biswas

    2011-04-01

    Full Text Available An earlier research advocated that a below knee amputee (BK with conventional trans-tibial prosthesis attains higher gait efficiency at lower energy cost with therapeutic practices of proper time and co-ordination in compare to normal subjects of similar physical parameters and quality of life. The present study focused on comparative analysis of energy cost and gait efficiency between a group of below knee amputees and a control group (normal subjects without amputation to indicate the consistency of the earlier findings. The subjects were selected with similar physical parameters and quality of life. Oxygen Uptake (VO2 and Heart Rate (HR were measured by Cosmed® k4 b2 analyzer system. Gait efficiency (p < 0.0001 was found higher with lower energy cost for BK amputees after therapeutic practices than control group. The therapeutic activities contributed to efficient gait pattern for amputees ensuring proper time and co-ordination with balance in consistence to the earlier research.

  12. Active Structural Control for Aircraft Efficiency with the X-56A Aircraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ouellette, Jeffrey

    2015-01-01

    The X-56A Multi-Utility Technology Testbed is an experimental aircraft designed to study active control of flexible structures. The vehicle is easily reconfigured to allow for testing of different configurations. The vehicle is being used to study new sensor, actuator, modeling and controls technologies. These new technologies will allow for lighter vehicles and new configurations that exceed the efficiency currently achievable. A description of the vehicle and the current research efforts that it enables are presented.

  13. Transition I efficiency and victory in volleyball matches

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Herbert Ugrinowitsch

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The present study investigated the correlation between Transition Iwith victory in volleyball matches. The 2002 South-American Youth Men's Championship was recorded and the Transition I was analyzed and classified as negative, null or positive. Results of the efficiency in Transition I was calculated using t test for independent samples and compared to the efficiency between teams during each set and matches. Spearman correlation assessed the relationship between efficiency in each set and results of the matches with the final ranking in the championship. The results showed that the winning teams exhibited higher efficiency in Transition I, as well as a positive relationship of higher efficiency in Transition I with all of their results. The higher efficiency in Transition I is related to victory in volleyball matches.

  14. Studies of Some Parameters Affecting The Efficiency and Accuracy of The Neutron Activation Analysis Technique

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abdel-Haleem, A.S.; Zaghloul, R.A.; Sroor, A.; Abdel Sabour, M.F.

    2000-01-01

    The present studies deal with the optimum physical conditions which seriously affect the neutron activation analysis technique efficiency. An experimental work for the efficiency calibration of hyper pure germanium detectors especially for environmental studies is presented. This work showed that the tested parameters, under consideration, distance, mass and measured time, reveal a significant effect on the obtained data. These results, intern, affect the accuracy of the measurements. Further work on the test of other parameters is planned in our laboratory using special treatments and applying special computer programs

  15. Computationally Efficient Clustering of Audio-Visual Meeting Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hung, Hayley; Friedland, Gerald; Yeo, Chuohao

    This chapter presents novel computationally efficient algorithms to extract semantically meaningful acoustic and visual events related to each of the participants in a group discussion using the example of business meeting recordings. The recording setup involves relatively few audio-visual sensors, comprising a limited number of cameras and microphones. We first demonstrate computationally efficient algorithms that can identify who spoke and when, a problem in speech processing known as speaker diarization. We also extract visual activity features efficiently from MPEG4 video by taking advantage of the processing that was already done for video compression. Then, we present a method of associating the audio-visual data together so that the content of each participant can be managed individually. The methods presented in this article can be used as a principal component that enables many higher-level semantic analysis tasks needed in search, retrieval, and navigation.

  16. Evaluation of the efficiency and utility of recombinant enzyme-free seamless DNA cloning methods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ken Motohashi

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Simple and low-cost recombinant enzyme-free seamless DNA cloning methods have recently become available. In vivo Escherichia coli cloning (iVEC can directly transform a mixture of insert and vector DNA fragments into E. coli, which are ligated by endogenous homologous recombination activity in the cells. Seamless ligation cloning extract (SLiCE cloning uses the endogenous recombination activity of E. coli cellular extracts in vitro to ligate insert and vector DNA fragments. An evaluation of the efficiency and utility of these methods is important in deciding the adoption of a seamless cloning method as a useful tool. In this study, both seamless cloning methods incorporated inserting DNA fragments into linearized DNA vectors through short (15–39 bp end homology regions. However, colony formation was 30–60-fold higher with SLiCE cloning in end homology regions between 15 and 29 bp than with the iVEC method using DH5α competent cells. E. coli AQ3625 strains, which harbor a sbcA gene mutation that activates the RecE homologous recombination pathway, can be used to efficiently ligate insert and vector DNA fragments with short-end homology regions in vivo. Using AQ3625 competent cells in the iVEC method improved the rate of colony formation, but the efficiency and accuracy of SLiCE cloning were still higher. In addition, the efficiency of seamless cloning methods depends on the intrinsic competency of E. coli cells. The competency of chemically competent AQ3625 cells was lower than that of competent DH5α cells, in all cases of chemically competent cell preparations using the three different methods. Moreover, SLiCE cloning permits the use of both homemade and commercially available competent cells because it can use general E. coli recA− strains such as DH5α as host cells for transformation. Therefore, between the two methods, SLiCE cloning provides both higher efficiency and better utility than the iVEC method for seamless DNA plasmid

  17. Rapid and efficient radiosynthesis of [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195, a single photon emission computed tomography tracer for peripheral benzodiazepine receptors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pimlott, Sally L. [Department of Clinical Physics, West of Scotland Radionuclide Dispensary, Western Infirmary, G11 6NT Glasgow (United Kingdom)], E-mail: s.pimlott@clinmed.gla.ac.uk; Stevenson, Louise [Department of Chemistry, WestCHEM, University of Glasgow, G12 8QQ Glasgow (United Kingdom); Wyper, David J. [Institute of Neurological Sciences, Southern General Hospital, G51 4TF Glasgow (United Kingdom); Sutherland, Andrew [Department of Chemistry, WestCHEM, University of Glasgow, G12 8QQ Glasgow (United Kingdom)

    2008-07-15

    Introduction: [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195 is a high-affinity single photon emission computed tomography radiotracer for peripheral benzodiazepine receptors that has previously been used to measure activated microglia and to assess neuroinflammation in the living human brain. This study investigates the radiosynthesis of [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195 in order to develop a rapid and efficient method that obtains [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195 with a high specific activity for in vivo animal and human imaging studies. Methods: The synthesis of [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195 was evaluated using a solid-state interhalogen exchange method and an electrophilic iododestannylation method, where bromine and trimethylstannyl derivatives were used as precursors, respectively. In the electrophilic iododestannylation method, the oxidants peracetic acid and chloramine-T were both investigated. Results: Electrophilic iododestannylation produced [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195 with a higher isolated radiochemical yield and a higher specific activity than achievable using the halogen exchange method investigated. Using chloramine-T as oxidant provided a rapid and efficient method of choice for the synthesis of [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195. Conclusions: [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195 has been successfully synthesized via a rapid and efficient electrophilic iododestannylation method, producing [{sup 123}I]I-PK11195 with a higher isolated radiochemical yield and a higher specific activity than previously achieved.

  18. Making Sense of Quality Teaching and Learning in Higher Education in Ethiopia: Unfolding Existing Realities for Future Promises

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tadesse, Tefera; Manathynga, Catherine E.; Gillies, Robyn M.

    2018-01-01

    Current approaches for assessing the quality of teaching and learning in higher education focus solely on compliance and accountability, and use quantitative measures that serve as indicators of institutional effectiveness and efficiency, yet whether such approaches have linked to instructional activities or students learning in universities are…

  19. New aeration systems for higher efficiency in mine water treatment in the Lausitz region; Einsatz neuer Belueftungssysteme zur Effizienzsteigerung bei der Grubenwasserbehandlung in der Lausitz

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Janneck, E.; Glombitza, F. [G.E.O.S. Freiberg Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH, Freiberg (Germany); Schlee, K.; Arnold, I. [Vattenfall Europe Mining AG, Cottbus (Germany)

    2006-07-01

    The article presents experiences and results of the application of new aerator-systems in the mine water treatment. The processes of ferrous iron oxidation and sludge removal became more stable and efficiently by the application of the aerators. For the first time, spiral aerators were used in the Lower Lusatia lignite mining district to clean ferrous iron containing mine water. These devices lead to an enhanced iron oxidation rate under the existing conditions, where the oxygen diffusion is the rate determining step. Furthermore, the application caused increased throughput, optimal lime utilisation and better sludge thickening, which led to a higher efficiency of the mine water treatment. (orig.)

  20. Household transitions to energy efficient lighting

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mills, Bradford; Schleich, Joachim

    2014-01-01

    New energy efficient lighting technologies can significantly reduce household electricity consumption, but adoption has been slow. A unique dataset of German households is used in this paper to examine the factors associated with the replacement of old incandescent lamps (ILs) with new energy efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and light emitting diodes (LEDs). The ‘rebound’ effect of increased lamp luminosity in the transition to energy efficient bulbs is analyzed jointly with the replacement decision to account for household self-selection in bulb-type choice. Results indicate that the EU ban on ILs accelerated the pace of transition to CFLs and LEDs, while storage of bulbs significantly dampened the speed of the transition. Higher lighting needs and bulb attributes like energy efficiency, environmental friendliness, and durability spur IL replacement with CFLs or LEDs. Electricity gains from new energy efficient lighting are mitigated by 23% and 47% increases in luminosity for CFL and LED replacements, respectively. Model results suggest that taking the replacement bulb from storage and higher levels of education dampen the magnitude of these luminosity rebounds in IL to CFL transitions. - Highlights: • EU ban on ILs has fostered transitions to energy efficient lighting • Energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and durable lighting preferences make CFL and LED transitions more likely • Indicators of greater lighting needs are associated with higher propensities to replace ILs with CFLs and LEDs • For residential lighting, the rebound effect manifests itself through increases in luminosity • In IL to CLF transitions luminosity increases are lower with higher levels of education

  1. Governance Arrangement in the Ethiopian Higher Education System ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Inspired by ideological shifts and pragmatic reasons, governments around the world are experimenting quasi-market type of higher education governance. Introduction of (quasi) market elements in higher education (HE) is also justified by its presumed benefits in efficiency among others. This study had Ethiopian higher ...

  2. Wrinkles and Folds of Activated Graphene Nanosheets as Fast and Efficient Adsorptive Sites for Hydrophobic Organic Contaminants.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Jun; Chen, Baoliang; Xing, Baoshan

    2016-04-05

    To create more wrinkles and folds as available adsorption sites, graphene nanosheets (GNS) were thermally treated with KOH for morphological alteration. The surface structures and properties of the activated graphene nanosheets (AGN) were characterized by BET-N2, SEM, TEM, Raman, XRD, XPS, and FTIR. After KOH etching, the highly crystal structure was altered, self-aggregation of graphene layers were evidently relieved, and more single to few layer graphene nanosheets were created with wrinkles and folds. Also both specific surface area and micropore volume of AGN increased relative to GNS. The adsorption of AGN toward p-nitrotoluene, naphthalene and phenanthrene were greatly enhanced in comparison with GNS, and gradually promoted with increasing degree of KOH etching. Adsorption rate of organic contaminants on AGN was very fast and efficient, whereas small molecules showed higher adsorption rates due to the more porous surface of graphene. In addition to π-π interaction, the high affinities of p-nitrotoluene to AGN are suggested from strong electron charge transfer interactions between nitro groups on p-nitrotoluene and defect sites of AGN. A positively linear correlation between organic molecule uptake and the micropore volume of AGN indicated that pore-filling mechanism may play an important role in adsorption. Morphological wrinkles and folds of graphene nanosheets can be regulated to enhance the adsorption capability and kinetics for efficient pollutant removal and to selectively preconcentrate adsorbates with different sizes for detection.

  3. Efficient, deep-blue TADF-emitters for OLED display applications (Conference Presentation)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Volz, Daniel; Baumann, Thomas

    2016-09-01

    Currently, the mobile display market is strongly shifting towards AMOLED technology, in order to enable curved and flexible displays. This leads to a growing demand for highly efficient OLED emitters to reduce the power consumption and increase display resolution at the same time. While highly efficient green and red OLEDs already found their place in commercial OLED-displays, the lack of efficient blue emitters is still an issue. Consequently, the active area for blue is considerably larger than for green and red pixels, to make up for the lower efficiency. We intend to close this efficiency-gap with novel emitters based on thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) technology. Compared to state-of-the-art fluorescent dopants, the efficiency of TADF-emitters is up to four times higher. At the same time, it is possible to design them in a way to maintain deep blue emission, i.e. CIE y < 0.2. These aspects are relevant to produce efficient high resolution AMOLED displays. Apart from these direct customer benefits, our TADF technology does not contain any rare elements, which allows for the fabrication of sustainable OLED technology. In this work, we highlight one of our recently developed blue TADF materials. Basic material properties as well as first device results are discussed. In a bottom-emitting device, a CIEx/CIEy coordinate of (0.16/0.17) was achieved with efficiency values close to 20% EQE.

  4. Efficiency of chitosan (Poly-[D] Glucosamine as natural organic coagulant in pre-treatment of active carbon effluent in Panacan, Davao City

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rezel A. Cinco

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The utilization of environmental friendly coagulant is widened which can be proposed as an imperative option for water treatment. In this study, the efficiency of Chitosan, a natural organic coagulant in pre-treating Active Carbon Effluent (ACE as alternative to conventional metal based coagulants in terms of Turbidity (T, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD and Total Suspended Solid (TSS was evaluated. Collection of effluent for testing was conducted at the Philippine – Japan Active Carbon Corporation, Panacan, Davao City, Philippines. Chitosan (Deacetylated chitin; Poly- [1- 4] – β- glucosamine was obtained from Qingdao Develop Chemistry Co., Ltd., China. Suspensions added with experimental coagulant dosages (0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 5.0 and 10.0 mgL-1 were made by sediment mixer maintained at pH 5 and analyzed with the following parameters: Total Suspended Solid (TSS, Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD and Turbidity (T. The efficiency of the chitosan coagulation was found to be high in terms of turbidity (99.2%, Chemical Oxygen Demand (97.2% in 5 mg/L dose of chitosan and Total Suspended Solid (99.15% in 10 mg/L dose of chitosan. It can be concluded that Chitosan is an effective coagulant which can significantly reduce the level of turbidity, COD and TSS. A further study with different types of effluent and higher Chitosan doses are needed for recommending it for practical application as a natural organic coagulant.

  5. A CONCEPTUAL MODEL FOR EFFECTIVE DISTANCE LEARNING IN HIGHER A CONCEPTUAL MODEL FOR EFFECTIVE DISTANCE LEARNING IN HIGHER A CONCEPTUAL MODEL FOR EFFECTIVE DISTANCE LEARNING IN HIGHER EDUCATION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mehran FARAJOLLAHI

    2010-07-01

    Full Text Available The present research aims at presenting a conceptual model for effective distance learning in higher education. Findings of this research shows that an understanding of the technological capabilities and learning theories especially constructive theory and independent learning theory and communicative and interaction theory in Distance learning is an efficient factor in the planning of effective Distance learning in higher education. Considering the theoretical foundations of the present research, in the effective distance learning model, the learner is situated at the center of learning environment. For this purpose, the learner needs to be ready for successful learning and the teacher has to be ready to design the teaching- learning activities when they initially enter the environment. In the present model, group and individual active teaching-learning approach, timely feedback, using IT and eight types of interactions have been designed with respect to theoretical foundations and current university missions. From among the issues emphasized in this model, one can refer to the Initial, Formative and Summative evaluations. In an effective distance learning environment, evaluation should be part of the learning process and the feedback resulting from it should be used to improve learning. For validating the specified features, the opinions of Distance learning experts in Payame Noor, Shiraz, Science and Technology and Amirkabir Universities have been used which verified a high percentage of the statistical sample of the above mentioned features.

  6. Normal weight children have higher cognitive performance - Independent of physical activity, sleep, and diet.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hjorth, Mads F; Sørensen, Louise B; Andersen, Rikke; Dyssegaard, Camilla B; Ritz, Christian; Tetens, Inge; Michaelsen, Kim F; Astrup, Arne; Egelund, Niels; Sjödin, Anders

    2016-10-15

    Aside from the health consequences, observational studies indicate that being overweight may also negatively affect cognitive function. However, existing evidence has to a large extent not controlled for the possible confounding effect of having different lifestyles. Therefore, the objective was to examine the independent associations between weight status and lifestyle indicators with cognitive performance in 8-11year old Danish children. The analyses included 828 children (measured in 2011-2012) each having one to three measurement occasions separated by approximately 100days. Dietary intake, physical activity, sedentary time, and sleep duration were measured using dietary records and accelerometers. The Children's Sleep Habits Questionnaire was used to access sleep problems and the Andersen test was carried out to estimate cardio-respiratory fitness (CRF). Weight status (underweight, normal weight, and overweight/obese) was defined according to body mass index and cognitive performance was assessed using the d2-test of attention, a reading test, and a math test. A linear mixed model including a number of fixed and random effects was used to test associations between lifestyle indicators as well as BMI category and cognitive performance. After adjustment for demographics, socioeconomics, and multiple lifestyle indicators, normal weight children had higher cognitive test scores than overweight/obese and underweight children of up to 89% and 48% of expected learning within one school year (Pbreakfast consumption, fewer sleep problems, higher CRF, less total physical activity, more sedentary time, and less light physical activity were associated with higher cognitive performance independently of each other in at least one of the three cognitive tests (Pperformance compared to overweight/obese as well as underweight children, independent of multiple lifestyle indicators. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Measurement of cost efficiency in the European banking industry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Branka Tuškan

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we analysed and compared efficiency results in the banking industry using two different approaches: financial indicators and the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA methodology. In the indicator-based approach, we used chosen accounting ratios (Return on Assets - ROA, Return on Equity – ROE and Cost to Income Ratio - CIR and the descriptive statistics methodology to conduct analysis. In the case of DEA, a nonparametric linear programming methodology approach, expenses as input data and income as output data are used for measuring efficiency using the CCR DEA model, BCC DEA model and window analysis DEA technique. The objective of this research is ascertain whether a correlation exists between the results of the different ways of measuring efficiency. In that sense, the main purpose of this research is to draw a more precise conclusion about the efficiency of the banking industry, as tested for the period 2008–2012 on a sample of 28 European banking systems. The main difference in the obtained results is a lag of values of average accounting ratios in comparison to the results of the DEA methodology. Such a finding suggests that the DEA methodology can be useful in detecting early signs of inadequate business strategies, which can lead to the slowdown of business activity or poorer efficiency results. This can be especially important in times of an unstable financial or macroeconomic environment, as it can assist in detecting early signs of a crisis. In general, the results of both approaches suggest that banking systems in post-transition countries have a higher cost efficiency. Such systems continue to be dominantly financed through long-term deposits and are also exposed to a specific risk. They do business in a specific competitive, financial and macroeconomic environment that significantly influences the prices of financial services (i.e. higher margins, and as a consequence, leads to potentially higher banking sector earnings.

  8. Activated human primary NK cells efficiently kill colorectal cancer cells in 3D spheroid cultures irrespectively of the level of PD-L1 expression.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lanuza, Pilar M; Vigueras, Alan; Olivan, Sara; Prats, Anne C; Costas, Santiago; Llamazares, Guillermo; Sanchez-Martinez, Diego; Ayuso, José María; Fernandez, Luis; Ochoa, Ignacio; Pardo, Julián

    2018-01-01

    Haploidentical Natural Killer (NK) cells have been shown as an effective and safe alternative for the treatment of haematological malignancies with poor prognosis for which traditional therapies are ineffective. In contrast to haematological cancer cells, that mainly grow as single suspension cells, solid carcinomas are characterised by a tridimensional (3D) architecture that provide specific surviving advantages and resistance against chemo- and radiotherapy. However, little is known about the impact of 3D growth on solid cancer immunotherapy especially adoptive NK cell transfer. We have recently developed a protocol to activate ex vivo human primary NK cells using B lymphoblastic cell lines, which generates NK cells able to overcome chemoresistance in haematological cancer cells. Here we have analysed the activity of these allogeneic NK cells against colorectal (CRC) human cell lines growing in 3D spheroid culture and correlated with the expression of some of the main ligands regulating NK cell activity. Our results indicate that activated NK cells efficiently kill colorectal tumour cell spheroids in both 2D and 3D cultures. Notably, although 3D CRC cell cultures favoured the expression of the inhibitory immune checkpoint PD-L1, it did not correlate with increased resistance to NK cells. Finally, we have analysed in detail the infiltration of NK cells in 3D spheroids by microscopy and found that at low NK cell density, cell death is not observed although NK cells are able to infiltrate into the spheroid. In contrast, higher densities promote tumoural cell death before infiltration can be detected. These findings show that highly dense activated human primary NK cells efficiently kill colorectal carcinoma cells growing in 3D cultures independently of PD-L1 expression and suggest that the use of allogeneic activated NK cells could be beneficial for the treatment of colorectal carcinoma.

  9. Rigid aromatic linking moiety in cationic lipids for enhanced gene transfection efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Bing; Zhao, Rui-Mo; Zhang, Ji; Liu, Yan-Hong; Huang, Zheng; Yu, Qing-Ying; Yu, Xiao-Qi

    2017-08-18

    Although numerous cationic lipids have been developed as non-viral gene vectors, the structure-activity relationship (SAR) of these materials remains unclear and needs further investigation. In this work, a series of lysine-derived cationic lipids containing linkages with different rigidity were designed and synthesized. SAR studies showed that lipids with rigid aromatic linkage could promote the formation of tight liposomes and enhance DNA condensation, which is essential for the gene delivery process. These lipids could give much higher transfection efficiency than those containing more flexible aliphatic linkage in various cell lines. Moreover, the rigid aromatic linkage also affords the material higher serum tolerance ability. Flow cytometry assay revealed that the target lipids have good cellular uptake, while confocal microscopy observation showed weaker endosome escape than Lipofectamine 2000. To solve such problem and further increase the transfection efficiency, some lysosomotropic reagents were used to improve the endosome escape of lipoplex. As expected, higher transfection efficiency than Lipofectamine 2000 could be obtained via this strategy. Cytotoxicity assay showed that these lipids have lower toxicity in various cell lines than Lipofectamine 2000, suggesting their potential for further application. This work demonstrates that a rigid aromatic linkage might distinctly improve the gene transfection abilities of cationic lipids and affords information to construct safe and efficient gene vector towards practical application. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  10. TBAL: Technology-Based Active Learning in Higher Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ghilay, Yaron; Ghilay, Ruth

    2015-01-01

    In many institutions of higher education worldwide, faculty members manage lessons based on information transfer whereas their students become passive listeners. According to international research, passive learning has disadvantages mainly because students do not engage in the lesson. The study introduces a new model for higher education called…

  11. Marketing communications of higher education institutions in the Republic of Serbia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Popović Ana

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available In order to face increasing competition on the market and address other new challenges, higher education institutions (HEIs started to apply new business approaches which led to the development of higher education management and marketing. As efficient marketing communications are necessary for survival and development on higher education market, topics related to this field have had a distinct place in higher education marketing since the establishment of this discipline. Various strategies and activities, types and means of marketing communications have been defined in theory. The modern tendency is their integration for achievement of communication and strategic goals. After the review of marketing communications specifics in the mentioned context, the author presents the realized empirical research related to HEIs in the Republic of Serbia. Starting from the facts that domestic higher education market has widened relatively recently and competition has been significantly increasing since 2000, the author hypothesizes that numerous marketing communications activities are being used. The main research question is: Which types and means of marketing communications are used and how well are they integrated? The research relies on web sites of HEIs as main sources of information, as they are legally obligatory means of communication in Serbia. The author searches for other types and means which are embedded or at least mentioned on the websites, and treats that as indication of integration. The main research findings support the assumption on use of various types and means of marketing communications, but reveal problems in integration and show that HEIs use similar activities while innovative and original means and types of marketing communications are scarce.

  12. Level of physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness and nutritional status of higher education institution servers

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leonardo Vidal Andreato

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Objective: to evaluate the level of physical activity, cardiorespiratory fitness and nutritional status of Brazilian higher education institution servers. Method: 134 public servants (80 men and 54 women were evaluated to estimate body mass index (BMI, waist circumference (WC, waist/hip ratio (WHR, aerobic fitness and blood pressure at rest. Results: most of the servers were classified as insufficiently active (62%. BMI results show a high prevalence of obesity (39% mild and 33% moderate. WC showed a prevalence of high (30% and very high risk (27%, and WHR showed a prevalence of high (28% or very high risk (12%. The ergometric test showed that 41% of the servers presented very poor (17% or poor (24% aerobic fitness and 23%, regular aerobic fitness. Considering blood pressure, 15% of the servers presented blood pressure considered as borderline and 30% considered as hypertension. No associations were found between physical condition (active or inactive with WC (χ2 = 3.4, p = 0.179, WHR (χ2 = 7.0, p = 0.073, aerobic fitness (χ2 = 4.3, p = 0.368 and blood pressure (χ2 = 2.9, p = 0.734. Although no association was observed between physical activity and BMI (χ2 = 7.6, p = 0.062, significance values (p < 0.07 suggested an association trend, with worse ratings for the sedentary group. Closing remarks: among higher education institution servers, there is high prevalence of physical inactivity, obesity and risk factors, and the majority of the sample had aerobic fitness below recommended levels.

  13. Fast Temporal Activity Proposals for Efficient Detection of Human Actions in Untrimmed Videos

    KAUST Repository

    Heilbron, Fabian Caba; Niebles, Juan Carlos; Ghanem, Bernard

    2016-01-01

    In many large-scale video analysis scenarios, one is interested in localizing and recognizing human activities that occur in short temporal intervals within long untrimmed videos. Current approaches for activity detection still struggle to handle large-scale video collections and the task remains relatively unexplored. This is in part due to the computational complexity of current action recognition approaches and the lack of a method that proposes fewer intervals in the video, where activity processing can be focused. In this paper, we introduce a proposal method that aims to recover temporal segments containing actions in untrimmed videos. Building on techniques for learning sparse dictionaries, we introduce a learning framework to represent and retrieve activity proposals. We demonstrate the capabilities of our method in not only producing high quality proposals but also in its efficiency. Finally, we show the positive impact our method has on recognition performance when it is used for action detection, while running at 10FPS.

  14. Fast Temporal Activity Proposals for Efficient Detection of Human Actions in Untrimmed Videos

    KAUST Repository

    Heilbron, Fabian Caba

    2016-12-13

    In many large-scale video analysis scenarios, one is interested in localizing and recognizing human activities that occur in short temporal intervals within long untrimmed videos. Current approaches for activity detection still struggle to handle large-scale video collections and the task remains relatively unexplored. This is in part due to the computational complexity of current action recognition approaches and the lack of a method that proposes fewer intervals in the video, where activity processing can be focused. In this paper, we introduce a proposal method that aims to recover temporal segments containing actions in untrimmed videos. Building on techniques for learning sparse dictionaries, we introduce a learning framework to represent and retrieve activity proposals. We demonstrate the capabilities of our method in not only producing high quality proposals but also in its efficiency. Finally, we show the positive impact our method has on recognition performance when it is used for action detection, while running at 10FPS.

  15. Recent development in thermally activated desalination methods: achieving an energy efficiency less than 2.5 kWhelec/m3

    KAUST Repository

    Shahzad, Muhammad Wakil

    2015-05-19

    Water-Energy-Environment nexus is a crucial consideration when designing seawater desalination processes, particularly for the water-stressed countries where the annual water availability is less than 250 m3 per capita. Despite the thermodynamics limit for seawater desalination at normal conditions is about 0.78 to 1.09 kWhelec/m3, the specific energy consumption of desalination of real plants is found to operate at several folds higher. Today’s technological advancement in membranes, namely the reverse osmosis processes, has set an energy consumption of around 3.5–5 kWhelec/m3, while the conventional perception of thermally activated processes such as MSF and MED tends to be higher. Although the higher energetic specific consumption of MED or MSF processes appeared to be higher at 60–100 kWhthermal/m3, their true electricity equivalent has been converted, hitherto, using the energetic analyses where the work potential of working steam of the processes cannot be captured adequately. Thermally activated processes, such as MED and MSF, form the bottoming cycle of a cogeneration plant where both electricity and desalination processes operate in tandem in a cascaded manner. Only the bled-steam at lower exergy is extracted for the desalination processes. In this presentation, we demonstrate that in a cogen plant with 30% bled-steam for MED processes, the exergy destruction ratio is found to be less than 7% of the total available exergy that emanated from the boilers. By the exergetic approach, the equivalent electricity consumption of an average 75 kWhthermal/m3 would result in an electrical equivalent of less than 2.5 kWhelec/m3. Also in this presentation, the authors will elaborate the latest developments in the use of hybridization concept where the MED and the AD cycles are thermodynamically integrated and enhancing the overall efficiency of desalination. © 2015 Balaban Desalination Publications. All rights reserved.

  16. Evaluating Competitiveness of Faculties of Higher Educational Establishments in Slovakia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Rayevnyeva Olena V.

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available The problem of competitiveness of higher education, efficiency of its functioning and training graduates of higher educational establishments according to the current and future needs of the market are among the key issues of socio-economic development strategy in EU countries. The aim of the study is to determine the competitiveness of faculties of major higher educational establishments based on the use of the cluster analysis and rating evaluations provided by national experts. The paper describes the methodology of rating evaluation of faculties of higher educational establishments in Slovakia on the basis of such components as: educational process; attractiveness of the program; science and research activities; doctoral studies; attracted grants. Shortcomings of the approach to faculty rating evaluations based on the averaged value have been determined. In order to improve analysis of the competitive positions of individual faculties of higher educational establishments in Slovakia, the cluster analysis was used and the results of breaking the faculties into five groups were presented. To forecast changes in the competitive positions of faculties of higher educational establishments in Slovakia, discriminant functions enabling to determine possible qualitative changes in the state of the faculties’ competitiveness due to external or internal factors have been built.

  17. Active region dimensionality and quantum efficiencies of InGaN LEDs from temperature dependent photoluminescence transients

    Science.gov (United States)

    Can, Nuri; Okur, Serdal; Monavarian, Morteza; Zhang, Fan; Avrutin, Vitaliy; Morkoç, Hadis; Teke, Ali; Özgür, Ümit

    2015-03-01

    Temperature dependent recombination dynamics in c-plane InGaN light emitting diodes (LEDs) with different well thicknesses, 1.5, 2, and 3 nm, were investigated to determine the active region dimensionality and its effect on the internal quantum efficiencies. It was confirmed for all LEDs that the photoluminescence (PL) transients are governed by radiative recombination at low temperatures while nonradiative recombination dominates at room temperature. At photoexcited carrier densities of 3 - 4.5 x 1016 cm-3 , the room-temperature Shockley-Read-Hall (A) and the bimolecular (B) recombination coefficients (A, B) were deduced to be (9.2x107 s-1, 8.8x10-10 cm3s-1), (8.5x107 s-1, 6.6x10-10 cm3s-1), and (6.5x107 s-1, 1.4x10-10 cm3s-1) for the six period 1.5, 2, and 3 nm well-width LEDs, respectively. From the temperature dependence of the radiative lifetimes, τrad α Tn/2, the dimensionality n of the active region was found to decrease consistently with decreasing well width. The 3 nm wide wells exhibited ~T1.5 dependence, suggesting a three-dimensional nature, whereas the 1.5 nm wells were confirmed to be two-dimensional (~T1) and the 2 nm wells close to being two-dimensional. We demonstrate that a combination of temperature dependent PL and time-resolved PL techniques can be used to evaluate the dimensionality as well as the quantum efficiencies of the LED active regions for a better understanding of the relationship between active-region design and the efficiency limiting processes in InGaN LEDs.

  18. Alternative geometry for cylindrical natural draft cooling tower with higher cooling efficiency under crosswind condition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Goodarzi, M.; Ramezanpour, R.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Alternative cross sections for natural draft cooling tower were proposed. • Numerical solution was applied to study thermal and hydraulic performances. • Thermal and hydraulic performances were assessed by comparative parameters. • Cooling tower with elliptical cross section had better thermal performance under crosswind. • It could successfully used at the regions with invariant wind direction. - Abstract: Cooling efficiency of a natural draft dry cooling tower may significantly decrease under crosswind condition. Therefore, many researchers attempted to improve the cooling efficiency under this condition by using structural or mechanical facilities. In this article, alternative shell geometry with elliptical cross section is proposed for this type of cooling tower instead of usual shell geometry with circular cross section. Thermal performance and cooling efficiency of the two types of cooling towers are numerically investigated. Numerical simulations show that cooling tower with elliptical cross section improves the cooling efficiency compared to the usual type with circular cross section under high-speed wind moving normal to the longitudinal diameter of the elliptical cooling tower

  19. Innovative-Simplified Nuclear Power Plant Efficiency Evaluation with High-Efficiency Steam Injector System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shoji, Goto; Shuichi, Ohmori; Michitsugu, Mori

    2006-01-01

    It is possible to establish simplified system with reduced space and total equipment weight using high-efficiency Steam Injectors (SI) instead of low-pressure feedwater heaters in Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). The SI works as a heat exchanger through direct contact between feedwater from condensers and extracted steam from turbines. It can get higher pressure than supplied steam pressure. The maintenance and reliability are still higher than the feedwater ones because SI has no movable parts. This paper describes the analysis of the heat balance, plant efficiency and the operation of this Innovative-Simplified NPP with high-efficiency SI. The plant efficiency and operation are compared with the electric power of 1100 MWe-class BWR system and the Innovative-Simplified BWR system with SI. The SI model is adapted into the heat balance simulator with a simplified model. The results show that plant efficiencies of the Innovated-Simplified BWR system are almost equal to original BWR ones. The present research is one of the projects that are carried out by Tokyo Electric Power Company, Toshiba Corporation, and six Universities in Japan, funded from the Institute of Applied Energy (IAE) of Japan as the national public research-funded program. (authors)

  20. Energy efficiency trends and policy in Slovenia

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Al-Mansour, Fouad

    2011-01-01

    The energy dependency of Slovenia is high (52.1%), but it is a little lower than the average energy dependency in the EU 27 (53.8%). Slovenia imports all its petroleum products and natural gas and partly coal and electricity. The energy intensity of Slovenia is higher by about 50% than the average in the EU 27. The target of the EU Directive on energy end-use efficiency and energy services adopted in 2006 is to achieve a 9% improvement of EE (energy efficiency) within the period 2008-2016. The new target of the EU climate and energy package '20-20-20 plan' is a 20% increase in EE by 2020. Since 1991 the Slovenian government has been supporting energy efficiency activities. The improvement of EE was one of the targets of strategic energy documents ReSROE (Resolution on the Strategy of Use and Supply of Energy in Slovenia from 1996 and ReNEP (Resolution on the National Energy Programme) from 2004 adopted by the Slovenian National Assembly (Parliament) in previous years. The Energy Act adopted in 1999 defines the objective of energy policy as giving priority to EE and utilization of renewable energy sources. The goals of the 'National Energy Action Plan 2008-2016 (NEEAP)' adopted by the Slovenian government in 2008 include a set of energy efficiency improvement instruments in the residential, industrial, transport and tertiary sectors. The target of the NEEAP is to save final energy in the 2008-2016 period, amounting to at least 4261 GWh or 9% of baseline consumption. The indicators of energy efficiency trends show considerable improvement in the period from 1998 to 2007. The improvement of EE was reached in all sectors: manufacturing, transport and households. The paper analyses the structure, trends of energy consumption and energy efficiency indicators by sectors of economic activity. A review of energy efficiency policy and measures is described in the paper.

  1. The energy efficiency and demand side management programs as implemented by the energy efficiency division of the department of energy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anunciacion, Jesus C.

    1997-01-01

    The thrust of the Philippine energy sector. specifically the government side, is to involve the active participation of not only all the government agencies involved in energy activities but the private sector as well. This participation shall mean technical and financial participation, directly and indirectly. The Department of Energy is on the process involving the continuing update and development of a Philippine Energy Plan (PEP) which has a 30-year time scope, which will help the country monitor and determine energy supply and demand vis-a-vis the growing demands of an industrializing country like the Philippines. Among the most vital component of the PEP is the thrust to pursue national programs for energy efficiency and demand-side management. Seven energy efficiency sub-programs have been identified for implementation, with a target savings of 623 million barrels of fuel oil equivalent (MMBFOE). A cumulative net savings of 237 billion pesos shall be generated against a total investment cost of 54.5 billion pesos. The Philippine energy sector will continue to develop and implement strategies to promote the efficient utilization of energy which will cover all aspects of the energy industry. The plan is focussed on the training and education of the various sectors on the aspects involved in the implementation of energy efficiency and demand-side management elements on a more aggressive note. The implementation of technical strategies by the department will continue on a higher and more extensive level, these are: energy utilization monitoring, consultancy and engineering services, energy efficiency testing and labelling program, and demand-side management programs for each sector. In summary, the PEP, as anchored in energy efficiency and demand-side management tools, among others, will ensure a continuous energy supply at affordable prices while incorporating environmental and social considerations. (author)

  2. Resource potential methods using for efficiency of activities in the region increase

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. P. Vasiliev

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The article considers impact methods on the economic results, the effectiveness of the regional economic complex should be based on a high quality of the basic characteristics classification of the region state. Application composition techniques to ensure a comprehensive impact on the achievement of this goal should in synthesized form to union, adopt a target orientation of development of the region with the parameters objectively revealing his condition. Ensuring organizational, economic, financial and investment techniques to achieve the planned targets and requires specifying align resource potential of the region with the available capacity of the regional economic complex to promote economic growth, improve the efficiency of operations. The main characteristics of the potential resource opportunities in the region are the skill level of workers, the degree of depreciation of fixed assets and their renewability, increased innovation in the region, its branches and facilities, strengthening of competitive advantages, the annual average number of employees, the cost of fixed and current assets, financial stability. In the region the opportunity to potentially affect the ability of its structural components to achieve the financial and economic performance targets acts as efficiency ability to provide stable dynamics of regional production efficiency, enhance the level of benefits to achieve the planned efficiency used (consumed resource. Applying of certain methods or their entire structure, created to provide a comprehensive impact on the goal achievement, in the synthesized form of target orientation combines regional development with the parameters most objectively revealing his condition. Achieving the appropriate organizational, economic, financial, investment or other measures to achieve planned targets that are expressed by the level of efficiency of activity in the conditions of the most complete involvement and intensity of use in

  3. Improving The Efficiency Of Ammonia Electrolysis For Hydrogen Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Palaniappan, Ramasamy

    Given the abundance of ammonia in domestic and industrial wastes, ammonia electrolysis is a promising technology for remediation and distributed power generation in a clean and safe manner. Efficiency has been identified as one of the key issues that require improvement in order for the technology to enter the market phase. Therefore, this research was performed with the aim of improving the efficiency of hydrogen production by finding alternative materials for the cathode and electrolyte. 1. In the presence of ammonia the activity for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) followed the trend Rh>Pt>Ru>Ni. The addition of ammonia resulted in lower rates for HER for Pt, Ru, and Ni, which have been attributed to competition from the ammonia adsorption reaction. 2. The addition of ammonia offers insight into the role of metal-hydrogen underpotential deposition (M-Hupd) on HER kinetics. In addition to offering competition via ammonia adsorption it resulted in fewer and weaker M-Hupd bonds for all metals. This finding substantiates the theory that M-Hupd bonds favor HER on Pt electrocatalyst. However, for Rh results suggest that M-Hupd bond may hinder the HER. In addition, the presence of unpaired valence shell electrons is suggested to provide higher activity for HER in the presence of ammonia. 3. Bimetals PtxM1-x (M = Ir, Ru, Rh, and Ni) offered lower overpotentials for HER compared to the unalloyed metals in the presence of ammonia. The activity of HER in the presence of ammonia follows the trend Pt-Ir>Pt-Rh>Pt-Ru>Pt-Ni. The higher activity of HER is attributed to the synergistic effect of the alloy, where ammonia adsorbs onto the more electropositive alloying metal leaving Pt available for Hupd formation and HER to take place. Additionally, this supports the theory that the presence of a higher number of unpaired electrons favors the HER in the presence of ammonia. 4. Potassium polyacrylate (PAA-K) was successfully used as a substitute for aqueous KOH for ammonia

  4. Poly(vinyl alcohol) separators improve the coulombic efficiency of activated carbon cathodes in microbial fuel cells

    KAUST Repository

    Chen, Guang; Zhang, Fang; Logan, Bruce E.; Hickner, Michael A.

    2013-01-01

    enabled high coulombic efficiencies (CEs) in MFCs with activated carbon (AC) cathodes without significantly decreasing power output. MFCs with AC cathodes and PVA separators had CEs (43%-89%) about twice those of AC cathodes lacking a separator (17

  5. Mercury Emissions Capture Efficiency with Activated Carbon Injection at a Russian Coal-Fired Thermal Power Plant

    Science.gov (United States)

    This EPA-led project, conducted in collaboration with UNEP, the Swedish Environmental Institute and various Russian Institutes, that demonstrates that the mercury emission control efficiencies of activated carbon injection technologies applied at a Russian power plant burning Rus...

  6. Cobalt selenide hollow nanorods array with exceptionally high electrocatalytic activity for high-efficiency quasi-solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jin, Zhitong; Zhang, Meirong; Wang, Min; Feng, Chuanqi; Wang, Zhong-Sheng

    2018-02-01

    In quasi-solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (QSDSSCs), electron transport through a random network of catalyst in the counter electrode (CE) and electrolyte diffusion therein are limited by the grain boundaries of catalyst particles, thus diminishing the electrocatalytic performance of CE and the corresponding photovoltaic performance of QSDSSCs. We demonstrate herein an ordered Co0.85Se hollow nanorods array film as the Pt-free CE of QSDSSCs. The Co0.85Se hollow nanorods array displays excellent electrocatalytic activity for the reduction of I3- in the quasi-solid-state electrolyte with extremely low charge transfer resistance at the CE/electrolyte interface, and the diffusion of redox species within the Co0.85Se hollow nanorods array CE is pretty fast. The QSDSSC device with the Co0.85Se hollow nanorods array CE produces much higher photovoltaic conversion efficiency (8.35%) than that (4.94%) with the Co0.85Se randomly packed nanorods CE, against the control device with the Pt CE (7.75%). Moreover, the QSDSSC device based on the Co0.85Se hollow nanorods array CE presents good long-term stability with only 4% drop of power conversion efficiency after 1086 h one-sun soaking.

  7. Transforming Higher educational institution administration through ICT

    OpenAIRE

    J. Meenakumari; Dr. R. Krishnaveni

    2011-01-01

    The rapid development in Indian higher education sector has increased the focus on reforms in higher educational institution administration. Efficiency and accountability have become important elements, and the integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into the educational administration process has become a necessity. The objective of this study is to know the current extent of ICT integration in Indian higher education institutions. The factors contributing to the succes...

  8. Batteries. Higher energy density than gasoline?

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fischer, Michael; Werber, Mathew; Schwartz, Peter V.

    2009-01-01

    The energy density of batteries is two orders of magnitude below that of liquid fuels. However, this information alone cannot be used to compare batteries to liquid fuels for automobile energy storage media. Because electric motors have a higher energy conversion efficiency and lower mass than combustion engines, they can provide a higher deliverable mechanical energy density than internal combustion for most transportation applications. (author)

  9. Efficiency of emergency exercises

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zander, N.; Sogalla, M.

    2011-01-01

    In order to cope with accidents beyond the design basis within German nuclear power plants which possibly lead to relevant radiological consequences, the utilities as well as the competent authorities exist emergency organisations. The efficiency, capacity for teamwork and preparedness of such organisations should be tested by regular, efficient exercise activities. Such activities can suitably be based on scenarios which provide challenging tasks for all units of the respective emergency organisation. Thus, the demonstration and further development of the efficiency of the respective organisational structures, including their ability to collaborate, is promoted. (orig.)

  10. Efficient modeling for pulsed activation in inertial fusion energy reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sanz, J.; Yuste, P.; Reyes, S.; Latkowski, J.F.

    2000-01-01

    First structural wall material (FSW) materials in inertial fusion energy (IFE) power reactors will be irradiated under typical repetition rates of 1-10 Hz, for an operation time as long as the total reactor lifetime. The main objective of the present work is to determine whether a continuous-pulsed (CP) approach can be an efficient method in modeling the pulsed activation process for operating conditions of FSW materials. The accuracy and practicability of this method was investigated both analytically and (for reaction/decay chains of two and three nuclides) by computational simulation. It was found that CP modeling is an accurate and practical method for calculating the neutron-activation of FSW materials. Its use is recommended instead of the equivalent steady-state method or the exact pulsed modeling. Moreover, the applicability of this method to components of an IFE power plant subject to repetition rates lower than those of the FSW is still being studied. The analytical investigation was performed for 0.05 Hz, which could be typical for the coolant. Conclusions seem to be similar to those obtained for the FSW. However, further future work is needed for a final answer

  11. Calcium carbonate mediates higher lignin peroxidase activity in the culture supernatant of Streptomyces Viridosporus T7A

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    J. M. B. MACEDO

    1999-06-01

    Full Text Available Lignin peroxidase (LiP production has been extensively studied due to the potential use of this enzyme in environmental pollution control. Important aspects of the production of the enzyme by S. viridosporus T7A which have been studied include the improvement of yield and enzyme stabilization. In experiments performed in agitated flasks containing culture media composed of yeast extract as the source of nitrogen, mineral salts and different carbon sources, the use of glucose resulted in the highest values for LiP activity (350 U/L, specific LiP activity (450 U/g and productivity (7 U/L/h. As the profile obtained with glucose-containing medium suggested enzyme instability, the effect of calcium carbonate was evaluated. The addition of CaCO3 in two different concentrations, 0.5% and 5.0%, resulted in higher values of maximum LiP activity, 600 and 900 U/L, respectively. The presence of this salt also anticipated enzyme activity peaks and allowed the detection of higher enzyme activities in the extracellular medium for longer periods of time. These results indicate a positive effect of calcium carbonate on LiP production, which is extremely relevant for industrial processes.

  12. Digestive enzyme activities are higher in the shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus, than in ectothermic sharks as a result of visceral endothermy.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Newton, Kyle C; Wraith, James; Dickson, Kathryn A

    2015-08-01

    Lamnid sharks are regionally endothermic fishes that maintain visceral temperatures elevated above the ambient water temperature. Visceral endothermy is thought to increase rates of digestion and food processing and allow thermal niche expansion. We tested the hypothesis that, at in vivo temperatures, the endothermic shortfin mako shark, Isurus oxyrinchus, has higher specific activities of three digestive enzymes-gastric pepsin and pancreatic trypsin and lipase-than the thresher shark, Alopias vulpinus, and the blue shark, Prionace glauca, neither of which can maintain elevated visceral temperatures. Homogenized stomach or pancreas tissue obtained from sharks collected by pelagic longline was incubated at both 15 and 25 °C, at saturating substrate concentrations, to quantify tissue enzymatic activity. The mako had significantly higher enzyme activities at 25 °C than did the thresher and blue sharks at 15 °C. This difference was not a simple temperature effect, because at 25 °C the mako had higher trypsin activity than the blue shark and higher activities for all enzymes than the thresher shark. We also hypothesized that the thermal coefficient, or Q 10 value, would be higher for the mako shark than for the thresher and blue sharks because of its more stable visceral temperature. However, the mako and thresher sharks had similar Q 10 values for all enzymes, perhaps because of their closer phylogenetic relationship. The higher in vivo digestive enzyme activities in the mako shark should result in higher rates of food processing and may represent a selective advantage of regional visceral endothermy.

  13. Application of BiFeO3-based on nickel foam composites with a highly efficient catalytic activity and easily recyclable in Fenton-like process under microwave irradiation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Shuo; Zhang, Guangshan; Zheng, Heshan; Zheng, Yongjie; Wang, Peng

    2018-05-01

    In this study, BiFeO3 (BFO) powders decorated on nickel foam (NF) with a high catalytic activity are prepared via a one-step microwave-assisted hydrothermal method. The factors that influence the degradation of bisphenol A (BPA) with BFO/NFs as catalysts are optimized to improve the catalytic activity in a microwave-enhanced Fenton-like process. BFO/NF exhibit a superior catalytic activity with a high BPA removal ratio (98.4%) and TOC removal ratio (69.5%) within 5 min. Results indicate that NF significantly affect the improvement of the catalytic activity of BFO because it served as a source of hydroxyl radicals (•OH) during degradation. The amount of •OH generated by BFO/NF is approximately 1.65-fold higher than that by pure BFO. After six reaction cycles, the stability and reusability of •OH remain high. These findings provide new insights into the synthesis of composites on heterogeneous catalysts with high efficiency and easy recyclability for water treatment applications.

  14. Pt/Cu single-atom alloys as coke-resistant catalysts for efficient C-H activation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marcinkowski, Matthew D.; Darby, Matthew T.; Liu, Jilei; Wimble, Joshua M.; Lucci, Felicia R.; Lee, Sungsik; Michaelides, Angelos; Flytzani-Stephanopoulos, Maria; Stamatakis, Michail; Sykes, E. Charles H.

    2018-03-01

    The recent availability of shale gas has led to a renewed interest in C-H bond activation as the first step towards the synthesis of fuels and fine chemicals. Heterogeneous catalysts based on Ni and Pt can perform this chemistry, but deactivate easily due to coke formation. Cu-based catalysts are not practical due to high C-H activation barriers, but their weaker binding to adsorbates offers resilience to coking. Using Pt/Cu single-atom alloys (SAAs), we examine C-H activation in a number of systems including methyl groups, methane and butane using a combination of simulations, surface science and catalysis studies. We find that Pt/Cu SAAs activate C-H bonds more efficiently than Cu, are stable for days under realistic operating conditions, and avoid the problem of coking typically encountered with Pt. Pt/Cu SAAs therefore offer a new approach to coke-resistant C-H activation chemistry, with the added economic benefit that the precious metal is diluted at the atomic limit.

  15. Pt/Cu single-atom alloys as coke-resistant catalysts for efficient C–H activation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Marcinkowski, Matthew D.; Darby, Matthew T.; Liu, Jilei; Wimble, Joshua M.; Lucci, Felicia R.; Lee, Sungsik; Michaelides, Angelos; Flytzani-Stephanopoulos, Maria; Stamatakis, Michail; Sykes, E. Charles H.

    2018-01-08

    The recent availability of shale gas has led to a renewed interest in C-H bond activation as the first step towards synthesis of fuels and fine chemicals. Heterogeneous catalysts based on Ni and Pt can perform this chemistry, but deactivate easily due to coke formation. Cu- based catalysts are not practical for this chemistry due to high C-H activation barriers, but their weaker binding to adsorbates offers resilience to coking. Utilizing Pt/Cu single atom alloys (SAAs) we examine C-H activation in a number of systems including methyl groups, methane, and butane using a combination of simulations, surface science, and catalysis studies. We find that Pt/Cu SAAs activate C-H bonds more efficiently than Cu, are stable for days under realistic operating conditions, and avoid the problem of coking typically encountered with Pt. Pt/Cu SAAs therefore offer a new approach to coke resistant C-H activation chemistry with the added economic benefit that the precious metal is diluted at the atomic limit.

  16. Highly Efficient Method for the Synthesis of Activated Mesoporous Biocarbons with Extremely High Surface Area for High-Pressure CO2 Adsorption.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Singh, Gurwinder; Lakhi, Kripal S; Kim, In Young; Kim, Sungho; Srivastava, Prashant; Naidu, Ravi; Vinu, Ajayan

    2017-09-06

    A simple and efficient way to synthesize activated mesoporous biocarbons (AMBs) with extremely high BET surface area and large pore volume has been achieved for the first time through a simple solid state activation of freely available biomass, Arundo donax, with zinc chloride. The textural parameters of the AMB can easily be controlled by varying the activation temperature. It is demonstrated that the mesoporosity of AMB can be finely tuned with a simple adjustment of the amount of activating agent. AMB with almost 100% mesoporosity can be achieved using the activating agent and the biomass ratio of 5 and carbonization at 500 °C. Under the optimized conditions, AMB with a BET surface area of 3298 m 2 g -1 and a pore volume of 1.9 cm 3 g -1 can be prepared. While being used as an adsorbent for CO 2 capture, AMB registers an impressively high pressure CO 2 adsorption capacity of 30.2 mmol g -1 at 30 bar which is much higher than that of activated carbon (AC), multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), highly ordered mesoporous carbons, and mesoporous carbon nitrides. AMB also shows high stability with excellent regeneration properties under vacuum and temperatures of up to 250 °C. These impressive textural parameters and high CO 2 adsorption capacity of AMB clearly reveal its potential as a promising adsorbent for high-pressure CO 2 capture and storage application. Also, the simple one-step synthesis strategy outlined in this work would provide a pathway to generate a series of novel mesoporous activated biocarbons from different biomasses.

  17. BUSINESS MODEL INNOVATION IN NIGERIAN HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS

    OpenAIRE

    Nonso Ochinanwata; Patrick Oseloka Ezepue

    2017-01-01

    This paper explores business model innovation that aims to innovate the Nigerian higher education sector. A focus group and semi-structured interviews among higher education Nigerian academics, students and graduates are used to explore the new business model for Nigerian higher education. The study found that, to achieve efficient and effective innovation, Nigerian higher education institutions need to collaborate with industry, professionals and other stakeholders, such as company managemen...

  18. Fabrication of AgX-loaded Ag2CO3 (X = Cl, I) composites and their efficient visible-light-driven photocatalytic activity

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xu, Hui; Zhu, Jiaxiang; Song, Yongxiu; Zhu, Tingting; Zhao, Wenkai; Song, Yanhua; Da, Zulin; Liu, Chengbao; Li, Huaming

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • The novel AgX/Ag 2 CO 3 composites have been synthesized by ion exchange reaction. • AgX/Ag 2 CO 3 exhibit higher photoactivity and stability than that of Ag 2 CO 3 . • The band structure of AgX/Ag 2 CO 3 is beneficial to improve the photoactivity. - Abstract: The novel visible-light-driven AgX/Ag 2 CO 3 (X = Cl, I) hybrid materials were synthesized by ion exchange reaction. The physical and chemical properties of the catalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), diffuse-reflection spectra (DRS) and photocurrent techniques. The as-prepared AgX/Ag 2 CO 3 (X = Cl, I) composites showed higher photocatalytic activity than that of the pure Ag 2 CO 3 photocatalyst under visible light irradiation (λ ⩾ 400 nm) in the process of methylene blue (MB) degradation. The optimal mass percentage of AgCl and AgI in the AgX/Ag 2 CO 3 (X = Cl, I) composite was 20.54 wt% and 40 wt%, respectively. The enhancement of photocatalytic activity was attributed to the suitable band potential between AgX and Ag 2 CO 3 , which was beneficial to increase the separation efficiency of electrons and holes. Besides, the photocatalytic mechanism of AgX/Ag 2 CO 3 (X = Cl, I) composites was also proposed

  19. Agronomic efficiency and physiologic efficiency determination of Azolla-N and Urea-N applied to lowland rice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sisworo, Elsje L.; Rasjid, Havid; Sisworo, Widjang H.; Wemay, Johannis; Djawanas, Amrin

    1994-01-01

    Data from three field experiments using 15 N labelled Azolla and urea as an N source have been used to determine the agronomical and physiological efficiency of the N-Azoll and N-Urea applied tolowland rice. In general physiological efficiency of N from N-sources applied was lower than the agronomical efficiency. It seems that the increase of N-rates would enhance the agronomical and physiological efficiency of N applied to lowland rice but on the other hand the efficiency of N derived from the applied N-source decreased. Azolla+inorganic N-fertilizer when applied to lowland rice could increase rice yield expresses in dry weight of grain and straw above the control plants. Applying Azolla+inorganic N-fertilizer in the farmer's field located in West Java and West Sumatera often showed higher yields compared to when applied with inorganic N-fertilizer alone although the latter has higher total N-rates. (author). 9 refs, 8 tabs, 5 figs

  20. Efficiency of scanning automatons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shkundenkov, V.N.

    1977-01-01

    Investigated are the methods for improving the efficiency of the picture processing system based on an automatic scanner. Discussed are two types of such a system. In the first case the system contains both automatic and semi-automatic scanners. In the second case the system includes only the automatic scanners with the man-to-computer dialog facilities. For analyzing the role of the automatic scanner and the role of the operator in the processing system use is made of the processing system balance equation. It is proved that the picture processing system should be designed in two steps. The first step should, by all means, insure high efficiency in processing but the high capacity is not obligatory. The second step is aimed at higher capacity along with high efficiency. So, such a two-step designing makes it possible to solve the problem of higher capacity and lesser cost of picture processing

  1. Difference in leaf water use efficiency/photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency of Bt-cotton and its conventional peer.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Ruqing; Sun, Shucun; Liu, Biao

    2016-09-15

    This study is to test the effects of Bt gene introduction on the foliar water/nitrogen use efficiency in cotton. We measured leaf stomatal conductance, photosynthetic rate, and transpiration rate under light saturation condition at different stages of a conventional cultivar (zhongmian no. 16) and its counterpart Bt cultivar (zhongmian no. 30) that were cultured on three levels of fertilization, based on which leaf instantaneous water use efficiency was derived. Leaf nitrogen concentration was measured to calculate leaf photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency, and leaf δ(13)C was used to characterize long term water use efficiency. Bt cultivar was found to have lower stomatal conductance, net photosynthetic rates and transpiration rates, but higher instantaneous and long time water use efficiency. In addition, foliar nitrogen concentration was found to be higher but net photosynthetic rate was lower in the mature leaves of Bt cultivar, which led to lower photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency. This might result from the significant decrease of photosynthetic rate due to the decrease of stomatal conductance. In conclusion, our findings show that the introduction of Bt gene should significantly increase foliar water use efficiency but decrease leaf nitrogen use efficiency in cotton under no selective pressure.

  2. High-Intensity Interval Training Elicits Higher Enjoyment than Moderate Intensity Continuous Exercise.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jacob S Thum

    Full Text Available Exercise adherence is affected by factors including perceptions of enjoyment, time availability, and intrinsic motivation. Approximately 50% of individuals withdraw from an exercise program within the first 6 mo of initiation, citing lack of time as a main influence. Time efficient exercise such as high intensity interval training (HIIT may provide an alternative to moderate intensity continuous exercise (MICT to elicit substantial health benefits. This study examined differences in enjoyment, affect, and perceived exertion between MICT and HIIT. Twelve recreationally active men and women (age = 29.5 ± 10.7 yr, VO2max = 41.4 ± 4.1 mL/kg/min, BMI = 23.1 ± 2.1 kg/m2 initially performed a VO2max test on a cycle ergometer to determine appropriate workloads for subsequent exercise bouts. Each subject returned for two additional exercise trials, performing either HIIT (eight 1 min bouts of cycling at 85% maximal workload (Wmax with 1 min of active recovery between bouts or MICT (20 min of cycling at 45% Wmax in randomized order. During exercise, rating of perceived exertion (RPE, affect, and blood lactate concentration (BLa were measured. Additionally, the Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES was completed after exercise. Results showed higher enjoyment (p = 0.013 in response to HIIT (103.8 ± 9.4 versus MICT (84.2 ± 19.1. Eleven of 12 participants (92% preferred HIIT to MICT. However, affect was lower (p<0.05 and HR, RPE, and BLa were higher (p<0.05 in HIIT versus MICT. Although HIIT is more physically demanding than MICT, individuals report greater enjoyment due to its time efficiency and constantly changing stimulus.NCT:02981667.

  3. Pd-Pt alloys nanowires as support-less electrocatalyst with high synergistic enhancement in efficiency for methanol oxidation in acidic medium.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rana, Moumita; Patil, Pramod K; Chhetri, Manjeet; Dileep, K; Datta, Ranjan; Gautam, Ujjal K

    2016-02-01

    In a facile approach, Pd73Pt27 alloy nanowires (NWs) with large aspect ratios were synthesized in high yield by using sacrificial templates. Unlike majority of processes, our synthesis was carried out in aqueous solution with no intermittent separating stages for the products, while maintaining the NW morphology up to ∼30% of Pt. Upon evaporation of their dispersion, the NWs transform into a stable porous membrane due to self-entanglement and can be directly lifted and employed for electrocatalytic applications without external catalyst supports. We show that the NW membranes exhibit efficient electrocatalytic performance for methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) with 10 times higher mass activity and 4.4 times higher specific activity in acidic media as compared to commercial Pt catalysts. The membrane electrocatalysts is robust and exhibited very good stability with retention of ∼70% mass-activity after 4000 potential cycles. Since Pd was found to be inert towards MOR in acidic medium, our investigation provides a direct estimate of synergistic enhancement of efficiency. Over 10 times increment of mass activity appears to be significantly higher than previous investigations in various other reaction media. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. A TLBO based gradient descent learning-functional link higher order ANN: An efficient model for learning from non-linear data

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bighnaraj Naik

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available All the higher order ANNs (HONNs including functional link ANN (FLANN are sensitive to random initialization of weight and rely on the learning algorithms adopted. Although a selection of efficient learning algorithms for HONNs helps to improve the performance, on the other hand, initialization of weights with optimized weights rather than random weights also play important roles on its efficiency. In this paper, the problem solving approach of the teaching learning based optimization (TLBO along with learning ability of the gradient descent learning (GDL is used to obtain the optimal set of weight of FLANN learning model. TLBO does not require any specific parameters rather it requires only some of the common independent parameters like number of populations, number of iterations and stopping criteria, thereby eliminating the intricacy in selection of algorithmic parameters for adjusting the set of weights of FLANN model. The proposed TLBO-FLANN is implemented in MATLAB and compared with GA-FLANN, PSO-FLANN and HS-FLANN. The TLBO-FLANN is tested on various 5-fold cross validated benchmark data sets from UCI machine learning repository and analyzed under the null-hypothesis by using Friedman test, Holm’s procedure and post hoc ANOVA statistical analysis (Tukey test & Dunnett test.

  5. Metacognition and Successful Learning Strategies in Higher Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Railean, Elena, Ed.; Alev Elçi, Ed.; Elçi, Atilla, Ed.

    2017-01-01

    Metacognition plays an important role in numerous aspects of higher educational learning strategies. When properly integrated in the educational system, schools are better equipped to build more efficient and successful learning strategies for students in higher education. "Metacognition and Successful Learning Strategies in Higher…

  6. Role of executive agencies for energy efficiency with a view on activities of Serbian Energy Efficiency Agency

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Kovačić Bojan J.

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Many countries, particularly in Europe, have executive energy efficiency agencies at national, regional and local levels that are organized in different ways. For all of them, it is common that there are existing strategic needs in their countries for enhancement of conditions and measures for rational use of energy and fuels. Serbian Energy Efficiency Agency was established in 2002 within the reform of the energy sector in Serbia and its current status was defined in 2004 by the Energy Law. It contributes to the improvement of social responsibility towards energy in all structures of the state and society, by proposing energy efficiency incentives, promoting importance of energy efficiency, as well as by managing energy efficiency and renewable energy programs and projects.

  7. Evidence of more efficient whistler-mode transmission during periods of increased magnetic activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. R. Thomson

    Full Text Available In a previous study it was reported that whistler- mode signals received at Faraday, Antarctica (65°S,64°W and Dunedin, New Zealand (46°S,171°E with entry regions in Pacific longitudes (typically from the VLF transmitter NLK, Seattle, USA showed an increase in transmission of wave energy as magnetic activity increased. However, signals with entry regions in Atlantic longitudes (typically from the NSS transmitter, Annapolis, USA did not appear to show such a relationship. This paper reports the results of a study of the same two longitude ranges but with the opposite transmitter providing additional whistler-mode signal information, with L-values in the range 1.8–2.6. Transmissions from NLK once again indicate a relationship between the transmission of wave energy and magnetic activity even though the signals were propagating in Atlantic longitudes, not Pacific. Any trend in NSS events observed at Dunedin was obscured by a limited range of magnetic activity, and duct exit regions so close to the receiver that small-scale excitation effects appeared to be occurring. However, by combining data from both longitudes, i.e Pacific and Atlantic, and using only ducts with exit regions that were >500km from the receiver, NSS events were found to show the same trend as NLK events. No significant longitude-dependent or transmitter-dependent variations in duct efficiency could be detected. Duct efficiency increases by a factor of about 30 with Kp=2–8 and this result is discussed in terms of changes in wave-particle interactions and duct size.

  8. Evidence of more efficient whistler-mode transmission during periods of increased magnetic activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. R. Thomson

    1997-08-01

    Full Text Available In a previous study it was reported that whistler- mode signals received at Faraday, Antarctica (65°S,64°W and Dunedin, New Zealand (46°S,171°E with entry regions in Pacific longitudes (typically from the VLF transmitter NLK, Seattle, USA showed an increase in transmission of wave energy as magnetic activity increased. However, signals with entry regions in Atlantic longitudes (typically from the NSS transmitter, Annapolis, USA did not appear to show such a relationship. This paper reports the results of a study of the same two longitude ranges but with the opposite transmitter providing additional whistler-mode signal information, with L-values in the range 1.8–2.6. Transmissions from NLK once again indicate a relationship between the transmission of wave energy and magnetic activity even though the signals were propagating in Atlantic longitudes, not Pacific. Any trend in NSS events observed at Dunedin was obscured by a limited range of magnetic activity, and duct exit regions so close to the receiver that small-scale excitation effects appeared to be occurring. However, by combining data from both longitudes, i.e Pacific and Atlantic, and using only ducts with exit regions that were >500km from the receiver, NSS events were found to show the same trend as NLK events. No significant longitude-dependent or transmitter-dependent variations in duct efficiency could be detected. Duct efficiency increases by a factor of about 30 with Kp=2–8 and this result is discussed in terms of changes in wave-particle interactions and duct size.

  9. Pavlov's Position on Old Age within the Framework of the Theory of Higher Nervous Activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Windholz, George

    1995-01-01

    In later life, I. P. Pavlov incorporated his findings on aging into his theory of higher nervous activity. Some of the major findings showed that salivary conditioning and stimulus differentiation were difficult to establish in old dogs, but that conditioned reflexes established earlier in life persisted into old age. Pavlov hypothesized that…

  10. Efficient and silent cooling. Thermal activation of components; Effiziente und stille Kuehlung. Thermische Bauteilaktivierung

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hemmersbach, Matthias [Uponor GmbH, Ludwigsburg (Germany)

    2013-04-15

    In addition to the increasing user requirements for comfort and indoor climate, the economy is the number one planning tool in modern office buildings and commercial buildings. Under this aspect, the energy-efficient heating and cooling systems not only are an option, but rather an integral part of an economic building concept and a requirement for the successful marketing of modern real estates. A particularly interesting variant is the utilization of a concrete core activation such as Uponor Contec. Approximately 700,000 square meters of space were created annually in Germany - with a rising trend. Thereby, 70 % of the activated areas are installed in office buildings.

  11. Production and efficiency of organic compost generated by millipede activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Luiz Fernando de Sousa Antunes

    2016-05-01

    Full Text Available ABSTRACT: The putrefactive activity of organisms such as diplopods in the edaphic macrof auna can be leveraged to promote the transformation of agricultural and urban waste into a low-cost substrate for the production of vegetable seedlings. This research aimed to evaluate: (1 the quantity of Gervais millipedes ( Trigoniulus corallinus needed to produce an acceptable quantity of organic compost; (2 the main physical and chemical characteristics of different compost types; and (3 compost efficiency in the production of lettuce seedlings. The first experiment lasted 90 days and was conducted using 6.5L of Gliricidia, 6.5L of Flemingia, 13.5L of grass cuttings, 4.5L of cardboard, 4.5L of coconut husk, and 4.5L of corncob. Treatments consisting of 0, 0.10, 0.30, 0.50, and 0.90L of millipedes were applied. This experiment compared millicompost and vermicompost, using four repetitions. After 23 days, the heights of grown lettuce plants and the weights of the fresh and dry mass of above ground lettuce and of the roots were assessed. A millipede volume of 0.1L proved to be sufficient for the production of an acceptable volume of organic compost. However, the addition of greater volumes leads to increased calcium, magnesium, and phosphorous content. Millicompost has similar physicochemical characteristics those of vermicompost, and both are equally efficient as a substrate for the production of lettuce seedlings.

  12. An efficient numerical scheme for the simulation of parallel-plate active magnetic regenerators

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Torregrosa-Jaime, Bárbara; Corberán, José M.; Payá, Jorge

    2015-01-01

    A one-dimensional model of a parallel-plate active magnetic regenerator (AMR) is presented in this work. The model is based on an efficient numerical scheme which has been developed after analysing the heat transfer mechanisms in the regenerator bed. The new finite difference scheme optimally com...... to the fully implicit scheme, the proposed scheme achieves more accurate results, prevents numerical errors and requires less computational effort. In AMR simulations the new scheme can reduce the computational time by 88%....

  13. Amorphous MoS{sub x} on CdS nanorods for highly efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Li, Xiaofang; Tang, Chaowan; Zheng, Qun; Shao, Yu; Li, Danzhen, E-mail: dzli@fzu.edu.cn

    2017-02-15

    Loading cocatalyst on semiconductors was crucially necessary for improving the photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. Amorphous MoS{sub x} as a novel and noble metal-free cocatalyst was loaded on CdS nanorods by a simple photodeposition method. Efficient hydrogen evolution with amount of 15 mmol h{sup −1} g{sup −1} was observed over the MoS{sub x} modified CdS nanorods, which was about 6 times higher than that by using Pt as cocatalyst. Meanwhile, with MoS{sub x} cocatalyst, the efficiency of CdS nanorods was superior to that of CdS nanoparticles and bulk CdS. No deactivation could be observed in the efficiency of MoS{sub x} modified CdS nanorods under irradiation for successive 10 h. Further experimental results indicated that the efficient electrons transfer, low overpotential of hydrogen evolution and active S atoms over the MoS{sub x} modified CdS nanorods were responsible for the higher efficiency. Our results provided guidance for synthesizing noble metal-free materials as cocatalyst for photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. - Graphical abstract: Photodeposition of amorphous MoS{sub x} on CdS nanorods for highly efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution. - Highlights: • Amorphous MoSx cocatalyst was loaded on CdS NRs by a simple photodeposition. • MoS{sub x}/CdS NRs exhibited 6 times higher hydrogen evolution efficiency than Pt/CdS NRs. • The hydrogen evolution of MoS{sub x}/CdS NRs linearly increased with prolonging time. • Lower overpotential and efficient electron transfer were observed over MoS{sub x}/CdS NRs.

  14. How different are hospitals' responses to a financial reform? The impact on efficiency of activity-based financing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Biørn, Erik; Hagen, Terje P; Iversen, Tor; Magnussen, Jon

    2010-03-01

    For policy-makers the heterogeneity of hospital response to reforms is of crucial concern. Even though a reform may entail a positive effect on average efficiency, policy-makers will consider the reform as less attractive if the variation in hospital efficiency increases. The reason is that increased variance of efficiency across hospitals is likely to increase the impact of geography on access to hospital services. This paper examines the heterogeneity with respect to the impact of a financial reform-Activity Based Financing (ABF)-on hospital efficiency in Norway. From a theoretical model we find an ambiguous effect of hospital heterogeneity on the effect of ABF on efficiency. The data set is from a contiguous 10-year panel of 47 hospitals covering both pre-ABF years and years after its imposition. Substantial heterogeneity in the responses, as measured by both estimated and predicted coefficients, is found. We did not find any significant correlation between pre-ABF measures of efficiency and the effect of ABF on efficiency. We did however find a strongly significant correlation between the effect of ABF and post-ABF efficiency. Thus, the analysis confirms the impression that, whereas pre-ABF efficiency did not play any role in how hospitals responded to ABF, those responding generally ended up as better-performing hospitals. Hence, for the type of reform studied in this article we find that policy-makers do not need to worry about the impact of location on patients' access to hospital services.

  15. Modeling international trends in energy efficiency

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stern, David I.

    2012-01-01

    I use a stochastic production frontier to model energy efficiency trends in 85 countries over a 37-year period. Differences in energy efficiency across countries are modeled as a stochastic function of explanatory variables and I estimate the model using the cross-section of time-averaged data, so that no structure is imposed on technological change over time. Energy efficiency is measured using a new energy distance function approach. The country using the least energy per unit output, given its mix of outputs and inputs, defines the global production frontier. A country's relative energy efficiency is given by its distance from the frontier—the ratio of its actual energy use to the minimum required energy use, ceteris paribus. Energy efficiency is higher in countries with, inter alia, higher total factor productivity, undervalued currencies, and smaller fossil fuel reserves and it converges over time across countries. Globally, technological change was the most important factor counteracting the energy-use and carbon-emissions increasing effects of economic growth.

  16. Mergers in European Higher Education

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rocha, Vera; Teixeira, Pedro N.; Biscaia, Ricardo

    2018-01-01

    In recent years, mergers have been widely used in higher education (HE) to achieve a variety of purposes, ranging from problems of institutional fragmentation to the lack of financial and academic viability, and low institutional efficiency and quality. However, despite a large stream of HE...... literature addressing those issues, there has been little attention to the link between funding-related problems and merger processes. Moreover, there is very little comparative research among different higher education systems experiencing those processes. In this paper, we map and characterize the recent...

  17. Enzymes extracted from apple peels have activity in reducing higher alcohols in Chinese liquors.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Han, Qi'an; Shi, Junling; Zhu, Jing; Lv, Hongliang; Du, Shuangkui

    2014-10-01

    As the unavoidable byproducts of alcoholic fermentation, higher alcohols are unhealthy compounds widespread in alcoholic drinks. To investigate the activity of apple crude enzymes toward higher alcohols in liquors, five kinds of apple peels, namely, Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Red Star, and Jonagold, were chosen to prepare enzymes, and three kinds of Chinese liquors, namely, Xifeng (containing 45% ethanol), Taibai (containing 50% ethanol), and Erguotou (containing 56% ethanol), were tested. Enzymes were prepared in the forms of liquid solution, powder, and immobilized enzymes using sodium alginate (SA) and chitosan. The treatment was carried out at 37 °C for 1 h. The relative amounts of different alcohols (including ethanol, 1-propanol, isobutanol, 1-butanol, isoamylol, and 1-hexanol) were measured using gas chromatography (GC). Conditions for preparing SA-immobilized Fuji enzymes (SA-IEP) were optimized, and the obtained SA-IEP (containing 0.3 g of enzyme) was continuously used to treat Xifeng liquor eight times, 20 mL per time. Significant degradation rates (DRs) of higher alcohols were observed at different degrees, and it also showed enzyme specificity according to the apple varieties and enzyme preparations. After five repeated treatments, the DRs of the optimized Fuji SA-IEP remained 70% for 1-hexanol and >15% for other higher alcohols.

  18. Paired D10A Cas9 nickases are sometimes more efficient than individual nucleases for gene disruption.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gopalappa, Ramu; Suresh, Bharathi; Ramakrishna, Suresh; Kim, Hyongbum Henry

    2018-03-23

    The use of paired Cas9 nickases instead of Cas9 nuclease drastically reduces off-target effects. Because both nickases must function for a nickase pair to make a double-strand break, the efficiency of paired nickases can intuitively be expected to be lower than that of either corresponding nuclease alone. Here, we carefully compared the gene-disrupting efficiency of Cas9 paired nickases with that of nucleases. Interestingly, the T7E1 assay and deep sequencing showed that on-target efficiency of paired D10A Cas9 nickases was frequently comparable, but sometimes higher than that of either corresponding nucleases in mammalian cells. As the underlying mechanism, we found that the HNH domain, which is preserved in the D10A Cas9 nickase, has higher activity than the RuvC domain in mammalian cells. In this study, we showed: (i) the in vivo cleavage efficiency of the HNH domain of Cas9 in mammalian cells is higher than that of the RuvC domain, (ii) paired Cas9 nickases are sometimes more efficient than individual nucleases for gene disruption. We envision that our findings which were overlooked in previous reports will serve as a new potential guideline for tool selection for CRISPR-Cas9-mediated gene disruption, facilitating efficient and precise genome editing.

  19. Genetic Determinism of Fearfulness, General Activity and Feeding Behavior in Chickens and Its Relationship with Digestive Efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mignon-Grasteau, Sandrine; Chantry-Darmon, Céline; Boscher, Marie-Yvonne; Sellier, Nadine; Le Bihan-Duval, Elisabeth; Bertin, Aline

    2017-01-01

    The genetic relationships between behavior and digestive efficiency were studied in 860 chickens from a cross between two lines divergently selected on digestive efficiency. At 2 weeks of age each chick was video-recorded in the home pen to characterize general activity and feeding behavior. Tonic immobility and open-field tests were also carried out individually to evaluate emotional reactivity (i.e. the propensity to express fear responses). Digestive efficiency was measured at 3 weeks. Genetic parameters of behavior traits were estimated. Birds were genotyped on 3379 SNP markers to detect QTLs. Heritabilities of behavioral traits were low, apart from tonic immobility (0.17-0.18) and maximum meal length (0.14). The genetic correlations indicated that the most efficient birds fed more frequently and were less fearful. We detected 14 QTL (9 for feeding behavior, 3 for tonic immobility, 2 for frequency of lying). Nine of them co-localized with QTL for efficiency, anatomy of the digestive tract, feed intake or microbiota composition. Four genes involved in fear reactions were identified in the QTL for tonic immobility on GGA1.

  20. Adsorption efficiencies of calcium (II ion and iron (II ion on activated carbon obtained from pericarp of rubber fruit

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Orawan Sirichote

    2008-03-01

    Full Text Available Determination of adsorption efficiencies of activated carbon from pericarp of rubber fruit for calcium (II ion and iron (II ion has been performed by flowing the solutions of these ions through a column of activated carbon. The weights of activated carbon in 500 mL buret column (diameter 3.2 cm for flowing calcium (II ion and iron (II ion solutions were 15 g and 10 g, respectively. The initial concentration of calcium ion was prepared to be about eight times more diluted than the true concentration found in the groundwater from the lower part of southern Thailand. Calcium (II ion concentrations were analysed by EDTA titration and its initial concentration was found to be 23.55 ppm. With a flow rate of 26 mL/min, the adsorption efficiency was 11.4 % with passed through volume 4.75 L. Iron (II ion concentrations were analysed by spectrophotometric method; its initial concentration was found to be 1.5565 ppm. At a flow rate of 22 mL/min, the adsorption efficiency was 0.42 % with passed through volume of 34.0 L.

  1. Extinction cross-section suppression and active acoustic invisibility cloaking

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitri, F. G.

    2017-10-01

    Invisibility in its canonical form requires rendering a zero extinction cross-section (or energy efficiency) from an active or a passive object. This work demonstrates the successful theoretical realization of this physical effect for an active cylindrically radiating acoustic body, undergoing periodic axisymmetric harmonic vibrations near a flat rigid boundary. Radiating, amplification and extinction cross-sections of the active source are defined. Assuming monopole and dipole modal oscillations of the circular source, conditions are found where the extinction energy efficiency factor of the active source vanishes, achieving total invisibility with minimal influence of the source size. It also takes positive or negative values, depending on its size and distance from the boundary. Moreover, the amplification energy efficiency factor is negative for the acoustically-active source. These effects also occur for higher-order modal oscillations of the active source. The results find potential applications in the development of acoustic cloaking devices and invisibility.

  2. Extinction cross-section suppression and active acoustic invisibility cloaking

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mitri, F G

    2017-01-01

    Invisibility in its canonical form requires rendering a zero extinction cross-section (or energy efficiency) from an active or a passive object. This work demonstrates the successful theoretical realization of this physical effect for an active cylindrically radiating acoustic body, undergoing periodic axisymmetric harmonic vibrations near a flat rigid boundary. Radiating, amplification and extinction cross-sections of the active source are defined. Assuming monopole and dipole modal oscillations of the circular source, conditions are found where the extinction energy efficiency factor of the active source vanishes, achieving total invisibility with minimal influence of the source size. It also takes positive or negative values, depending on its size and distance from the boundary. Moreover, the amplification energy efficiency factor is negative for the acoustically-active source. These effects also occur for higher-order modal oscillations of the active source. The results find potential applications in the development of acoustic cloaking devices and invisibility. (letter)

  3. Myasthenia Gravis Impairment Index: Responsiveness, meaningful change, and relative efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barnett, Carolina; Bril, Vera; Kapral, Moira; Kulkarni, Abhaya V; Davis, Aileen M

    2017-12-05

    To study responsiveness and meaningful change of the Myasthenia Gravis Impairment Index (MGII) and its relative efficiency compared to other measures. We enrolled 95 patients receiving prednisone, IV immunoglobulin (IVIg), or plasma exchange (PLEX) and 54 controls. Patients were assessed with the MGII and other measures-including the Quantitative Myasthenia Gravis Score, Myasthenia Gravis Composite, and Myasthenia Gravis Activities of Daily Living-at baseline and 3-4 weeks after treatment. Statistical markers of responsiveness included between-groups and within-group differences, and we estimated the relative efficiency of the MGII compared to other measures. Patient-meaningful change was assessed with an anchor-based method, using the patient's impression of change. We determined the minimal detectable change (MDC) and the minimal important difference (MID) at the group and individual level. Treated patients had a higher change in MGII scores than controls (analysis of covariance p 1 favoring the MGII. The MGII demonstrated responsiveness to prednisone, IVIg, and PLEX in patients with myasthenia. There is a differential response in ocular and generalized symptoms to type of therapy. The MGII has higher relative efficiency than comparison measures and is viable for use in clinical trials. Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of the American Academy of Neurology.

  4. Intake of Lutein-Rich Vegetables Is Associated with Higher Levels of Physical Activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Georgina Crichton

    2015-09-01

    Full Text Available Levels of physical inactivity, a major contributor to burden of disease, are high in many countries. Some preliminary research suggests that circulating lutein concentrations are associated with high levels of physical activity (PA. We aimed to assess whether the intake of lutein-containing foods, including vegetables and eggs, is associated with levels of PA in two studies conducted in different countries. Dietary data and PA data collected from participants in two cross-sectional studies: the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS, conducted in Central New York, USA (n = 972, and the Observation of Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Luxembourg Study (ORISCAV-LUX (n = 1331 were analyzed. Higher intakes of lutein containing foods, including green leafy vegetables, were associated with higher levels of PA in both study sites. Increasing the consumption of lutein-rich foods may have the potential to impact positively on levels of PA. This needs to be further explored in randomized controlled trials.

  5. A new high-efficiency GaAs solar cell structure using a heterostructure back-surface field

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gale, R. P.; Fan, J. C. C.; Turner, G. W.; Chapman, R. L.

    1984-01-01

    Shallow-homojunction GaAs solar cells are fabricated with a back-surface field (BSF) produced by a GaAs/Al(0.2)Ga(0.8)As heterostructure. These cells exhibit higher open-circuit voltages and conversion efficiencies than control cells made with a p-GaAs/p(+)-GaAs BSF. Conversion efficiencies of over 22 percent (AM1, total area) have been obtained with this new structure. The use of a higher bandgap material below the active region not only provides an enhanced BSF but will also permit the implementation of two solar-cell designs: a GaAs cell with a back-surface reflector and an AlGaAs cell that can be used as the upper cell in tandem configurations.

  6. An efficient one-step condensation and activation strategy to synthesize porous carbons with optimal micropore sizes for highly selective CO₂ adsorption.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Jiacheng; Liu, Qian

    2014-04-21

    A series of microporous carbons (MPCs) were successfully prepared by an efficient one-step condensation and activation strategy using commercially available dialdehyde and diamine as carbon sources. The resulting MPCs have large surface areas (up to 1881 m(2) g(-1)), micropore volumes (up to 0.78 cm(3) g(-1)), and narrow micropore size distributions (0.7-1.1 nm). The CO₂ uptakes of the MPCs prepared at high temperatures (700-750 °C) are higher than those prepared under mild conditions (600-650 °C), because the former samples possess optimal micropore sizes (0.7-0.8 nm) that are highly suitable for CO₂ capture due to enhanced adsorbate-adsorbent interactions. At 1 bar, MPC-750 prepared at 750 °C demonstrates the best CO₂ capture performance and can efficiently adsorb CO₂ molecules at 2.86 mmol g(-1) and 4.92 mmol g(-1) at 25 and 0 °C, respectively. In particular, the MPCs with optimal micropore sizes (0.7-0.8 nm) have extremely high CO₂/N₂ adsorption ratios (47 and 52 at 25 and 0 °C, respectively) at 1 bar, and initial CO₂/N₂ adsorption selectivities of up to 81 and 119 at 25 °C and 0 °C, respectively, which are far superior to previously reported values for various porous solids. These excellent results, combined with good adsorption capacities and efficient regeneration/recyclability, make these carbons amongst the most promising sorbents reported so far for selective CO₂ adsorption in practical applications.

  7. THE MOST MASSIVE ACTIVE BLACK HOLES AT z ∼ 1.5-3.5 HAVE HIGH SPINS AND RADIATIVE EFFICIENCIES

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Trakhtenbrot, Benny

    2014-01-01

    The radiative efficiencies (η) of 72 luminous unobscured active galactic nuclei at z ∼ 1.5-3.5, powered by some of the most massive black holes (BHs), are constrained. The analysis is based on accretion disk (AD) models, which link the continuum luminosity at rest-frame optical wavelengths and the BH mass (M BH ) to the accretion rate through the AD, M-dot AD . The data are gathered from several literature samples with detailed measurements of the Hβ emission line complex, observed at near-infrared bands. When coupled with standard estimates of bolometric luminosities (L bol ), the analysis suggests high radiative efficiencies, with most of the sources showing η > 0.2, that is, higher than the commonly assumed value of 0.1, and the expected value for non-spinning BHs (η = 0.057). Even under more conservative assumptions regarding L bol (i.e., L bol = 3 × L 5100 ), most of the extremely massive BHs in the sample (i.e., M BH ≳ 3 × 10 9 M ☉ ) show radiative efficiencies which correspond to very high BH spins (a * ), with typical values well above a * ≅ 0.7. These results stand in contrast to the predictions of a ''spin-down'' scenario, in which a series of randomly oriented accretion episodes leads to a * ∼ 0. Instead, the analysis presented here strongly supports a ''spin-up'' scenario, which is driven by either prolonged accretion or a series of anisotropically oriented accretion episodes. Considering the fact that these extreme BHs require long-duration or continuous accretion to account for their high masses, it is argued that the most probable scenario for the super-massive black holes under study is that of an almost continuous sequence of randomly yet not isotropically oriented accretion episodes

  8. Cobalt phosphate-modified barium-doped tantalum nitride nanorod photoanode with 1.5% solar energy conversion efficiency

    KAUST Repository

    Li, Yanbo

    2013-10-03

    Spurred by the decreased availability of fossil fuels and global warming, the idea of converting solar energy into clean fuels has been widely recognized. Hydrogen produced by photoelectrochemical water splitting using sunlight could provide a carbon dioxide lean fuel as an alternative to fossil fuels. A major challenge in photoelectrochemical water splitting is to develop an efficient photoanode that can stably oxidize water into oxygen. Here we report an efficient and stable photoanode that couples an active barium-doped tantalum nitride nanostructure with a stable cobalt phosphate co-catalyst. The effect of barium doping on the photoelectrochemical activity of the photoanode is investigated. The photoanode yields a maximum solar energy conversion efficiency of 1.5%, which is more than three times higher than that of state-of-the-art single-photon photoanodes. Further, stoichiometric oxygen and hydrogen are stably produced on the photoanode and the counter electrode with Faraday efficiency of almost unity for 100 min. © 2013 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.

  9. Higher Physical Activity Is Associated With Lower Aortic Stiffness but Not With Central Blood Pressure

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Laursen, Anne Sofie Dam; Hansen, Anne-Louise Smidt; Wiinberg, Niels

    2015-01-01

    .47; -0.03). Associations with central systolic blood pressure and central pulse pressure were not statistically significant. We observed no difference in central hemodynamics when substituting 1 hour sedentary behavior with 1 hour light or moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. In this relatively...... was assessed by applanation tonometry, as aortic pulse wave velocity, and central blood pressure was estimated from radial waveforms. Associations between physical activity energy expenditure and central hemodynamics were examined by linear regression. Furthermore, the consequence of substituting 1 hour...... sedentary behavior with 1 hour light or moderate-to-vigorous physical activity on central hemodynamics was examined. Median physical activity energy expenditure was 28.0 kJ/kg/d (IQR: 19.8; 38.7). A 10 kJ/kg/d higher energy expenditure was associated with 0.75% lower aortic pulse wave velocity (CI: -1...

  10. Bismuth oxychloride homogeneous phasejunction BiOCl/Bi12O17Cl2 with unselectively efficient photocatalytic activity and mechanism insight

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hao, Lin; Huang, Hongwei; Guo, Yuxi; Du, Xin; Zhang, Yihe

    2017-10-01

    Fabrication of homo/hetero-junctions by coupling of wide-band gap semiconductor and narrow-band gap semiconductor is desirable as they can achieve a decent balance between photoabsorption and photo-redox ability. Herein, a n-n type bismuth oxychloride homogeneous phasejunction BiOCl/Bi12O17Cl2 was developed by facilely manipulating the basicity in a one-pot hydrothermal process. Compared with BiOCl which only responds to UV light, the photo-responsive range is remarkably extended to visible region. The BiOCl/Bi12O17Cl2 phasejunctions show much higher photocatalytic activity than the single BiOCl and Bi12O17Cl2 toward degradation of methyl orange (MO) under simulated solar light. In particular, it presented a high photo-oxidation ability in degrading diverse industrial contaminants including 2,4-dichlorophenol (2,4-DCP), phenol, bisphenol A (BPA) and tetracycline hydrochloride. Based on a series of photoelectrochemical and photoluminescence measurements, the fortified photocatalytic performance of BiOCl/Bi12O17Cl2 phasejunctions was manifested to be attributed to the efficient separation and transfer efficiencies of photoinduced electron-hole pairs because of the junctional interface formed between BiOCl and Bi12O17Cl2. The study may not only furnish a high-effective photocatalyst in the application of environment purification, but also pave a path to fabricate agnate phase-junctional photocatalyst.

  11. Criteria of psychological efficiency of realization system of psychology-pedagogical support of sports activity of sportsmen-disables

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Boyko G.

    2010-02-01

    Full Text Available Efficiency of the system of psychological pedagogical accompaniment of sporting activity is certain. In research the sportsmen of high qualification took part in sport of invalids. Prevailing high level of readiness of swimmers is rotined to self-realization in competition activity. On results procedure of self-appraisal 68,75 % sportsmen were attained optimum level of readiness, 14,58 % - base (sufficient, 14,58 % - middle (insufficient, 02,08 % - low (critical.

  12. Active Vibration Suppression of a 3-DOF Flexible Parallel Manipulator Using Efficient Modal Control

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Quan Zhang

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper addresses the dynamic modeling and efficient modal control of a planar parallel manipulator (PPM with three flexible linkages actuated by linear ultrasonic motors (LUSM. To achieve active vibration control, multiple lead zirconate titanate (PZT transducers are mounted on the flexible links as vibration sensors and actuators. Based on Lagrange’s equations, the dynamic model of the flexible links is derived with the dynamics of PZT actuators incorporated. Using the assumed mode method (AMM, the elastic motion of the flexible links are discretized under the assumptions of pinned-free boundary conditions, and the assumed mode shapes are validated through experimental modal test. Efficient modal control (EMC, in which the feedback forces in different modes are determined according to the vibration amplitude or energy of their own, is employed to control the PZT actuators to realize active vibration suppression. Modal filters are developed to extract the modal displacements and velocities from the vibration sensors. Numerical simulation and vibration control experiments are conducted to verify the proposed dynamic model and controller. The results show that the EMC method has the capability of suppressing multimode vibration simultaneously, and both the structural and residual vibrations of the flexible links are effectively suppressed using EMC approach.

  13. Pecan shell-based granular activated carbon for treatment of chemical oxygen demand (COD) in municipal wastewater.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bansode, R R; Losso, J N; Marshall, W E; Rao, R M; Portier, R J

    2004-09-01

    The present investigation was undertaken to compare the adsorption efficiency of pecan shell-based granular activated carbon with the adsorption efficiency of the commercial carbon Filtrasorb 200 with respect to uptake of the organic components responsible for the chemical oxygen demand (COD) of municipal wastewater. Adsorption efficiencies for these two sets of carbons (experimental and commercial) were analyzed by the Freundlich adsorption model. The results indicate that steam-activated and acid-activated pecan shell-based carbons had higher adsorption for organic matter measured as COD, than carbon dioxide-activated pecan shell-based carbon or Filtrasorb 200 at all the carbon dosages used during the experiment. The higher adsorption may be related to surface area as the two carbons with the highest surface area also had the highest organic matter adsorption. These results show that granular activated carbons made from agricultural waste (pecan shells) can be used with greater effectiveness for organic matter removal from municipal wastewater than a coal-based commercial carbon. Copyright 2004 Elsevier Ltd.

  14. Gymnasts and non-athletes muscle activation and torque production at the ankle joint

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Natália Batista Albuquerque Goulart

    2014-07-01

    Full Text Available http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/1980-0037.2014v16n5p555  Artistic Gymnasts (AG execute specific movements that require substantial movement control and force production at the ankle joint. This high demand might change the neuromechanical properties of the ankle joint muscles in these athletes compared to non-athlete girls (NAG. The aim of this study was to compare muscle activation and torque production at the ankle joint between AG and NAG. Ten AG (11.70 ± 1.06 years of age and 10 NAG (11.70 ± 1.49 years of age participated in the study. Electromyographic  (EMG signals of medial gastrocnemius (MG, soleus (SO and tibialis anterior (TA were obtained simultaneously to the maximal isometric plantarflexion (PFT and dorsiflexion (DFT torques of the dominant limb during a maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC at five different joint angles (20°, 10°, 0°, -10° e -20°. Neuromuscular efficiency was also calculated by the Torque/EMG ratio. AG presented higher PFT (p0.05. In addition, AG showed higher values for plantar flexion neuromuscular efficiency and smaller values of dorsiflexion neuromuscular efficiency compared to the NAG (p<0.01. Higher sports demands of AG determined higher PFT, higher plantar flexor efficiency, smaller DFT but similar activation of MG, SO and TA compared to NAG.

  15. Higher insulin sensitivity in vegans is not associated with higher mitochondrial density.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gojda, J; Patková, J; Jaček, M; Potočková, J; Trnka, J; Kraml, P; Anděl, M

    2013-12-01

    Vegans have a lower incidence of insulin resistance (IR)-associated diseases and a higher insulin sensitivity (IS) compared with omnivores. The aim of this study was to examine whether the higher IS in vegans relates to markers of mitochondrial biogenesis and to intramyocellular lipid (IMCL) content. Eleven vegans and 10 matched (race, age, sex, body mass index, physical activity and energy intake) omnivorous controls were enrolled in a case-control study. Anthropometry, bioimpedance (BIA), ultrasound measurement of visceral and subcutaneous fat layer, parameters of glucose and lipid homeostasis, hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp and muscle biopsies were performed. Citrate synthase (CS) activity, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and IMCL content were assessed in skeletal muscle samples. Both groups were comparable in anthropometric and BIA parameters, physical activity and protein-energy intake. Vegans had significantly higher glucose disposal (M-value, vegans 8.11±1.51 vs controls 6.31±1.57 mg/kg/min, 95% confidence interval: 0.402 to 3.212, P=0.014), slightly lower IMCL content (vegans 13.91 (7.8 to 44.0) vs controls 17.36 (12.4 to 78.5) mg/g of muscle, 95% confidence interval: -7.594 to 24.550, P=0.193) and slightly higher relative muscle mtDNA amount (vegans 1.36±0.31 vs controls 1.13±0.36, 95% confidence interval:-0.078 to 0.537, P=0.135). No significant differences were found in CS activity (vegans 18.43±5.05 vs controls 18.16±5.41 μmol/g/min, 95% confidence interval: -4.503 to 5.050, P=0.906). Vegans have a higher IS, but comparable mitochondrial density and IMCL content with omnivores. This suggests that a decrease in whole-body glucose disposal may precede muscle lipid accumulation and mitochondrial dysfunction in IR development.

  16. Design considerations for energy efficient, resilient, multi-layer networks

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Fagertun, Anna Manolova; Hansen, Line Pyndt; Ruepp, Sarah Renée

    2016-01-01

    measures. In this complex problem, considerations such as client traffic granularity, applied grooming policies and multi-layer resiliency add even more complexity. A commercially available network planning tool is used to investigate the interplay between different methods for resilient capacity planning......This work investigates different network design considerations with respect to energy-efficiency, under green-field resilient multi-layer network deployment. The problem of energy efficient, reliable multi-layer network design is known to result in different trade-offs between key performance....... Switching off low-utilized transport links has been investigated via a pro-active re-routing applied during the network planning. Our analysis shows that design factors such as the applied survivability strategy and the applied planning method have higher impact on the key performance indicators compared...

  17. Optimized Database of Higher Education Management Using Data Warehouse

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Spits Warnars

    2010-04-01

    Full Text Available The emergence of new higher education institutions has created the competition in higher education market, and data warehouse can be used as an effective technology tools for increasing competitiveness in the higher education market. Data warehouse produce reliable reports for the institution’s high-level management in short time for faster and better decision making, not only on increasing the admission number of students, but also on the possibility to find extraordinary, unconventional funds for the institution. Efficiency comparison was based on length and amount of processed records, total processed byte, amount of processed tables, time to run query and produced record on OLTP database and data warehouse. Efficiency percentages was measured by the formula for percentage increasing and the average efficiency percentage of 461.801,04% shows that using data warehouse is more powerful and efficient rather than using OLTP database. Data warehouse was modeled based on hypercube which is created by limited high demand reports which usually used by high level management. In every table of fact and dimension fields will be inserted which represent the loading constructive merge where the ETL (Extraction, Transformation and Loading process is run based on the old and new files.

  18. USE Efficiency: an innovative educational programme for energy efficiency in buildings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Papadopoulos, Theofilos A.; Christoforidis, Georgios C.; Papagiannis, Grigoris K.

    2017-10-01

    Power engineers are expected to play a pivotal role in transforming buildings into smart and energy-efficient structures, which is necessary since buildings are responsible for a considerable amount of the total energy consumption. To fulfil this role, a holistic approach in education is required, tackling subjects traditionally related to other engineering disciplines. In this context, USE Efficiency is an inter-institutional and interdisciplinary educational programme implemented in nine European Universities targeting energy efficiency in buildings. The educational programme effectively links professors, students, engineers and industry experts, creating a unique learning environment. The scope of the paper is to present the methodology and the general framework followed in the USE Efficiency programme. The proposed methodology can be adopted for the design and implementation of educational programmes on energy efficiency and sustainable development in higher education. End-of-course survey results showed positive feedback from the participating students, indicating the success of the programme.

  19. Size and Aging Effects on Antimicrobial Efficiency of Silver Nanoparticles Coated on Polyamide Fabrics Activated by Atmospheric DBD Plasma.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zille, Andrea; Fernandes, Margarida M; Francesko, Antonio; Tzanov, Tzanko; Fernandes, Marta; Oliveira, Fernando R; Almeida, Luís; Amorim, Teresa; Carneiro, Noémia; Esteves, Maria F; Souto, António P

    2015-07-01

    This work studies the surface characteristics, antimicrobial activity, and aging effect of plasma-pretreated polyamide 6,6 (PA66) fabrics coated with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), aiming to identify the optimum size of nanosilver exhibiting antibacterial properties suitable for the manufacture of hospital textiles. The release of bactericidal Ag(+) ions from a 10, 20, 40, 60, and 100 nm AgNPs-coated PA66 surface was a function of the particles' size, number, and aging. Plasma pretreatment promoted both ionic and covalent interactions between AgNPs and the formed oxygen species on the fibers, favoring the deposition of smaller-diameter AgNPs that consequently showed better immediate and durable antimicrobial effects against Gram-negative Escherichia coli and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. Surprisingly, after 30 days of aging, a comparable bacterial growth inhibition was achieved for all of the fibers treated with AgNPs silver. Overall, the results suggest that instead of reducing the size of the AgNPs, which is associated with higher toxicity, similar long-term effects can be achieved with larger NPs (40-60 nm), even in lower concentrations. Because the antimicrobial efficiency of AgNPs larger than 30 nm is mainly ruled by the release of Ag(+) over time and not by the size and number of the AgNPs, this parameter is crucial for the development of efficient antimicrobial coatings on plasma-treated surfaces and contributes to the safety and durability of clothing used in clinical settings.

  20. Energy efficiency through energy audit

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Esan, A. A.

    2000-08-01

    Energy is an essential factor to economic and social development and improved standards of living in developing countries. Nigeria in particular. There is a strong need for greater energy efficiency in every sector of economy in order to reduce costs. enhance competitiveness, conserve energy resources and reduce environmental impacts associated with production, distribution and use of energy. Energy auditing and monitoring has a significant role in any energy management and conservation project. Energy auditing as an important part of industrial energy management on plant level, represents a complex of activities aiming at the efficient use of energy. The activities are undertaken by a team of experts who use a set of measuring instruments to monitor and evaluate all the necessary data to elaborate a package of recommendations on improvements in the field of energy efficiency and possible product quality. The inefficient conversion and use of energy have been identified as a central problem for all developing countries, Nigeria inclusive, since they all consume significantly higher amounts of energy per unit of GDP than OECD countries. This aggravates energy-related environmental problems and is also a burden on domestic resources and foreign exchange. Energy prices have risen drastically in many developing countries, while energy intensities remain high. Price changes alone are not rapidly translating energy efficiency improvements. Identifying and removing the obstacles to greater energy efficiency should be priority for government in developing countries. This is why the Energy Commission, an apex organ of government on Energy matters in all its ramifications is out to encourage relatively low-cost energy audits for the Textile industries - such audits can identify ''good house-keeping's' measures, such as simply process improvements, that reduce energy consumption and operating costs. This will be followed by the training of plant workers/energy managers

  1. Detection efficiency characteristics of free-running InGaAs/InP single photon detector using passive quenching active reset IC

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zheng Fu; Wang Chao; Sun Zhi-Bin; Zhai Guang-Jie

    2016-01-01

    InGaAs/InP avalanche photodiodes (APD) are rarely used in a free-running regime for near-infrared single photon detection. In order to overcome the detrimental afterpulsing, we demonstrate a passive quenching active reset integrated circuit. Taking advantage of the inherent fast passive quenching process and active reset to reduce reset time, the integrated circuit is useful for reducing afterpulses and is also area-efficient. We investigate the free-running single photon detector’s afterpulsing effect, de-trapping time, dark count rate, and photon detection efficiency, and also compare with gated regime operation. After correction for deadtime and afterpulse, we find that the passive quenching active reset free-running single photon detector’s performance is consistent with gated operation. (paper)

  2. Recycling of waste bread as culture media for efficient biological treatment of wastewater

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Young-Ju; Kim, Pil-Jin; Kim, Ji-Hoon; Lee, Chang-Soo; Qureshi, T.I.

    2012-01-01

    Possibilities of recycling of waste bread as culture media for efficient biological treatment of wastewater were investigated. In order to get the highest growth of microorganism for increased contaminants' removal efficiency of the system, different compositions of waste bread and skim milk with and without adding Powdered Activated Carbon (PAC) were tested. Mixed waste bread compositions with added PAC showed relatively higher number of microorganisms than the compositions without added PAC. A composition of 40% mixed waste bread and 60% skim milk produced highest number of microorganisms with subsequent increased contaminants' removal efficiency of the system. 'Contrast' alone showed lower contaminants' removal efficiency than mixed bread compositions. Use of waste bread in the composition of skim milk reduced cost of using foreign source of nutrients in biological treatment of wastewater and also facilitated waste bread management through recycling. (author)

  3. Robust active combustion control for the optimization of environmental performance and energy efficiency

    Science.gov (United States)

    Demayo, Trevor Nat

    Criteria pollutant regulations, climate change concerns, and energy conservation efforts are placing strict constraints in the design and operation of advanced, stationary combustion systems. To ensure minimal pollutant emissions and maximal efficiency at every instant of operation while preventing reaction blowout, combustion systems need to react and adapt in real-time to external changes. This study describes the development, demonstration, and evaluation of a multivariable feedback control system, designed to maximize the performance of natural gas-fired combustion systems. A feedback sensor array was developed to monitor reaction stability and measure combustion performance as a function of NOx, CO, and O, emissions. Acoustic and UV chemiluminescent emissions were investigated for use as stability indicators. Modulated signals of CH* and CO2* chemiluminescence were found to correlate well with the onset of lean blowout. A variety of emissions sensors were tested and evaluated, including conventional CEMS', micro-fuel cells, a zirconia NOx transducer, and a rapid response predictive NOx sensor based on UV flame chemiluminescence. A dual time-scale controller was designed to actively optimize operating conditions by maximizing a multivariable performance function J using a linear direction set search algorithm. The controller evaluated J under slow, quasi steady-state conditions, while dynamically monitoring the reaction zone at high speed for pre-blowout instabilities or boundary condition violations. To establish the input control parameters, two burner systems were selected: a 30 kW air-swirl, generic research burner, and a 120 kW scaled, fuel-staged, industrial boiler burner. The parameters, chosen to most affect burner performance, consisted of air swirl intensity and excess air for the generic burner, and fuel-staging and excess air for the boiler burner. A set of optimization parameters was also established to ensure efficient and deterministic

  4. Analysis and Improvement of the Generic Higher-Order Masking Scheme of FSE 2012

    OpenAIRE

    Roy, Arnab; Venkatesh, Srinivas Vivek

    2013-01-01

    Masking is a well-known technique used to prevent block cipher implementations from side-channel attacks. Higher-order side channel attacks (e.g. higher-order DPA attack) on widely used block cipher like AES have motivated the design of efficient higher-order masking schemes. Indeed, it is known that as the masking order increases, the difficulty of side-channel attack increases exponentially. However, the main problem in higher-order masking is to design an efficient and secure technique for...

  5. Nutrigenetic screening strains of the mulberry silkworm, Bombyx mori, for nutritional efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chinnaswamy, Ramesha; Lakshmi, Hothur; Kumari, Savarapu S; Anuradha, Chebba M; Kumar, Chitta S

    2012-01-01

    The activity of sericulture is declining due the reduction of mulberry production area in sericulture practicing countries lead to adverse effects on silkworm rearing and cocoon production. Screening for nutrigenetic traits in silkworm, Bombyx mori L. (Lepidoptera: Bombycidae) is an essential prerequisite for better understanding and development of nutritionally efficient breeds/hybrids, which show less food consumption with higher efficiency conversion. The aim of this study was to identify nutritionally efficient polyvoltine silkworm strains using the germplasm breeds RMW(2), RMW(3), RMW(4), RMG(3), RMG(1), RMG(4), RMG(5), RMG(6) and APM(1) as the control. The 1(st) day of 5(th) stage silkworm larvae of polyvoltine strains were subjected to standard gravimetric analysis until spinning for three consecutive generations covering three different seasons on 19 nutrigenetic traits. Highly significant (p ≤ 0.001) differences were found among all nutrigenetic traits of polyvoltine silkworm strains in the experimental groups. The nutritionally efficient polvoltine silkworm strains were resulted by utilizing nutrition consumption index and efficiency of conversion of ingesta/cocoon traits as the index. Higher nutritional efficiency conversions were found in the polyvoltine silkworm strains on efficiency of conversion of ingesta to cocoon and shell than control. Comparatively smaller consumption index, respiration, metabolic rate with superior relative growth rate, and quantum of food ingesta and digesta requisite per gram of cocoon and shell were shown; the lowest amount was in new polyvoltine strains compared to the control. Furthermore, based on the overall nutrigenetic traits utilized as index or 'biomarkers', three polyvoltine silkworm strains (RMG(4), RMW(2), and RMW(3)) were identified as having the potential for nutrition efficiency conversion. The data from the present study advances our knowledge for the development of nutritionally efficient silkworm breeds

  6. Handedness- and brain size-related efficiency differences in small-world brain networks: a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Meiling; Wang, Junping; Liu, Feng; Chen, Heng; Lu, Fengmei; Wu, Guorong; Yu, Chunshui; Chen, Huafu

    2015-05-01

    The human brain has been described as a complex network, which integrates information with high efficiency. However, the relationships between the efficiency of human brain functional networks and handedness and brain size remain unclear. Twenty-one left-handed and 32 right-handed healthy subjects underwent a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging scan. The whole brain functional networks were constructed by thresholding Pearson correlation matrices of 90 cortical and subcortical regions. Graph theory-based methods were employed to further analyze their topological properties. As expected, all participants demonstrated small-world topology, suggesting a highly efficient topological structure. Furthermore, we found that smaller brains showed higher local efficiency, whereas larger brains showed higher global efficiency, reflecting a suitable efficiency balance between local specialization and global integration of brain functional activity. Compared with right-handers, significant alterations in nodal efficiency were revealed in left-handers, involving the anterior and median cingulate gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, angular gyrus, and amygdala. Our findings indicated that the functional network organization in the human brain was associated with handedness and brain size.

  7. 3D Printing as Learning Activity in Higher Education A case study in a robotics’ prototyping course

    OpenAIRE

    Drakoulaki, Aikaterini

    2017-01-01

    This thesis is inspired by the new opportunities new technologies provide in education and more precisely in higher education. There is a general focus in higher education on supporting student learning beyond learning the existing knowledge, so that students are prepared for taking part in knowledge- generating activities in their future working environment. Technologies can offer new opportunities for exploring and constructing knowledge. The focus of this study is on 3D printing as a learn...

  8. More efficient integrated safeguards by applying a reasonable detection probability for maintaining low presence probability of undetected nuclear proliferating activities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Otsuka, Naoto

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • A theoretical foundation is presented for more efficient Integrated Safeguards (IS). • Probability of undetected nuclear proliferation activities should be maintained low. • For nations under IS, the probability to start proliferation activities is very low. • The fact can decrease the detection probability of IS by dozens of percentage points. • The cost of IS per nation can be cut down by reducing inspection frequencies etc. - Abstract: A theoretical foundation is presented for implementing more efficiently the present International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) integrated safeguards (ISs) on the basis of fuzzy evaluation of the probability that the evaluated nation will continue peaceful activities. It is shown that by determining the presence probability of undetected nuclear proliferating activities, nations under IS can be maintained at acceptably low proliferation risk levels even if the detection probability of current IS is decreased by dozens of percentage from the present value. This makes it possible to reduce inspection frequency and the number of collected samples, allowing the IAEA to cut costs per nation. This will contribute to further promotion and application of IS to more nations by the IAEA, and more efficient utilization of IAEA resources from the viewpoint of whole IS framework

  9. Efficient photocatalytic activity with carbon-doped SiO2 nanoparticles

    KAUST Repository

    Zhang, Dongen

    2013-01-01

    Photocatalysis provides a \\'green\\' approach to completely eliminate various kinds of contaminants that are fatal for current environmental and energy issues. Semiconductors are one of the most frequently used photocatalysts as they can absorb light over a wide spectral range. However, it is also well known that naked SiO2 is not an efficient photocatalyst due to its relatively large band gap, which could only absorb shortwave ultraviolet light. In this report, nanoscale particles of carbon-doped silicon dioxide (C-doped SiO2) for use in photocatalysis were successfully prepared by a facile one-pot thermal process using tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) as the source of both silicon and carbon. These particles were subsequently characterized by thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, standard and high resolution transmission electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The C-doped SiO2 displayed outstanding photocatalytic properties, as evidenced by its catalysis of Rhodamine B degradation under near-UV irradiation. We propose that carbon doping of the SiO2 lattice creates new energy states between the bottom of the conduction band and the top of the valence band, which narrows the band gap of the material. As a result, the C-doped SiO2 nanoparticles exhibit excellent photocatalytic activities in a neutral environment. The novel synthesis reported herein for this material is both energy efficient and environmentally friendly and as such shows promise as a technique for low-cost, readily scalable industrial production. © 2013 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

  10. PEG capped methotrexate silver nanoparticles for efficient anticancer activity and biocompatibility.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Muhammad, Zarmina; Raza, Abida; Ghafoor, Sana; Naeem, Ayesha; Naz, Syeda Sohaila; Riaz, Sundus; Ahmed, Wajiha; Rana, Nosheen Fatima

    2016-08-25

    Nanocarriers endow tremendous benefits to the drug delivery systems depending upon the specific properties of either component. These benefits include, increase in the drug blood retention time, reduced efflux, additional toxicity and targeted delivery. Methotrexate (MTX) is clinically used for cancer treatment. Higher dosage of MTX results in hepatic and renal toxicity. In this study methotrexate silver nanoparticles (Ag-MTX) coated with polyethylene glycol (PEG) are synthesized and characterized. Their anticancer activity and biocompatibility is also evaluated. Ag-MTX nanoparticles are synthesized by chemical reduction method. They are characterized by Ultraviolet-Visible Spectroscopy and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy. Average size of PEG coated Ag-MTX nanoparticles (PEG-Ag-MTX nanoparticles) is 12nm. These particles exhibited improved anticancer activity against MCF-7 cell line. Hemolytic activity of these particles was significantly less than MTX. PEG-Ag-MTX nanoparticles are potential nanocarrier of methotrexate which may offer MTX based cancer treatment with reduced side effects. In-vivo investigations should be carried out to explore them in detail. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Actigraphy-Derived Daily Rest-Activity Patterns and Body Mass Index in Community-Dwelling Adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cespedes Feliciano, Elizabeth M; Quante, Mirja; Weng, Jia; Mitchell, Jonathan A; James, Peter; Marinac, Catherine R; Mariani, Sara; Redline, Susan; Kerr, Jacqueline; Godbole, Suneeta; Manteiga, Alicia; Wang, Daniel; Hipp, J Aaron

    2017-12-01

    To examine associations between 24-hour rest-activity patterns and body mass index (BMI) among community-dwelling US adults. Rest-activity patterns provide a field method to study exposures related to circadian rhythms. Adults (N = 578) wore an actigraph on their nondominant wrist for 7 days. Intradaily variability and interdaily stability (IS), M10 (most active 10-hours), L5 (least active 5-hours), and relative amplitude (RA) were derived using nonparametric rhythm analysis. Mesor, acrophase, and amplitude were calculated from log-transformed count data using the parametric cosinor approach. Participants were 80% female and mean (standard deviation) age was 52 (15) years. Participants with higher BMI had lower values for magnitude, RA, IS, total sleep time (TST), and sleep efficiency. In multivariable analyses, less robust 24-hour rest-activity patterns as represented by lower RA were consistently associated with higher BMI: comparing the bottom quintile (least robust) to the top quintile (most robust 24-hour rest-activity pattern) of RA, BMI was 3-kg/m2 higher (p = .02). Associations were similar in magnitude to an hour less of TST (1-kg/m2 higher BMI) or a 10% decrease in sleep efficiency (2-kg/m2 higher BMI), and independent of age, sex, race, education, and the duration of rest and/or activity. Lower RA, reflecting both higher night activity and lower daytime activity, was associated with higher BMI. Independent of the duration of rest or activity during the day or night, 24-hour rest, and activity patterns from actigraphy provide aggregated measures of activity that associate with BMI in community-dwelling adults. © Sleep Research Society 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Sleep Research Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

  12. Repair of DNA DSB in higher eukaryotes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, H.; Perrault, A.R.; Takeda, Y.; Iliakis, G.

    2003-01-01

    Cells of higher eukaryotes process within minutes double strand breaks (DSBs) in their genome using a NHEJ apparatus that engages DNA-PKcs, Ku, DNA ligase IV, XRCC4, and other as of yet unidentified factors. Although chemical inhibition, or mutation, in any of these factors delays processing, cells ultimately remove the majority of DNA DSBs using an alternative pathway operating with slower kinetics. This alternative pathway is active in mutants deficient in genes of the RAD52 epistasis group. We proposed, therefore, that it reflects an alternative form of NHEJ that operates as a backup (B-NHEJ) to the DNA-PK- dependent (D-NHEJ) pathway, rather than homology directed repair of DSBs. We studied the role of Ku and DNA-PKcs in the coordination of these pathways using as a model end joining of restriction endonuclease linearized plasmid DNA in whole cell extracts. Efficient error-free endjoining observed in such in-vitro reactions is strongly inhibited by anti-Ku antibodies. The inhibition requires DNA-PKcs, despite that fact that Ku efficiently binds DNA ends in the presence of antibodies, or in the absence of DNA-PKcs. Strong inhibition of DNA endjoining is also mediated by wortmannin, an inhibitor of DNA-PKcs, in the presence but not in the absence of Ku, and this inhibition can be rescued by pre-incubating the reaction with double stranded oligonucleotides. The results are compatible with a role of Ku in directing endjoining to a DNA-PK dependent pathway, mediated by efficient end binding and productive interactions with DNA-PKcs. On the other hand, efficient end joining is observed in extracts of cells lacking DNA-PKcs, as well as in Ku-depleted extracts sugggesting the operation of alternative pathways. Extracts depleted of Ku and DNA-PKcs rejoin blunt ends, as well as homologous ends with 3' or 5' protruding single strands with similar efficiency, but addition of Ku suppresses joining of blunt ends and homologous ends with 3' overhangs. We propose that the

  13. Fiscal 1999 report on basic research for promotion of joint implementation programs. Research on potential for higher energy efficiency through instrumentation, control, and energy saving equipment (Research report); 1999 nendo keisoku seigyo oyobi sho energy kiki ni yoru sho energy potential chosa hokokusho

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2000-03-01

    As part of the 'clean development mechanism (CDM)' activities to be conducted by advanced nations jointly with developing nations, a survey is conducted of potential for higher energy efficiency, the effect of greenhouse gas reduction, and the effect of related investments in Egypt's textile (dyeing) industry. As the result, it is found that the Egyptian textile (dyeing) industry is rich in potential for higher energy efficiency and that intensification of energy management with importance attached to instrumentation will be quite effective. Private plants, though small in scale, enjoy a high operating rate and are full of life. As for their energy management, however, though management oriented instrumentation is found to stay without being scattered or lost in case of newly introduced equipment, normal operation is impeded by damaged parts which are not duly repaired or replaced. As for state operated plants, they are large in scale and are provided with some leading-edge facilities. Many of them are obsolete, however, and a privatization plan is under consideration, these discouraging investors and reducing vitality. Operation control or quality control are not sufficiently practiced in the administration of plants, and they need improvement. (NEDO)

  14. Design of efficient loadcell for measurement of mechanical impact by piezoelectric PVDF film sensor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Priyanka Guin

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Conversion efficiency of mechanical impact into electrical voltage remains ever increasing demand for piezoelectric PVDF film sensor. For a given film sensor, the output voltage produced due to mechanical impact is highly dependent on the direction of stretching (or compressing and active area of the film sensor. More is the active area of the film; higher will be the output voltage. It is shown that the active area is significantly increased due to the ridge-like shape given at the inner surfaces of the plates of sandwich type loadcell and as a result of which higher conversion efficiency is obtained. The effectiveness of the ridge-like shape is confirmed statistically by conducting two factorial design of experiment in which shape and material of the loadcell are considered as the two factors with 2×4 matrix. In case of loadcell made of glass plates, more than 100% increase in the output voltage is observed for ridge-like shape in comparison to its plain counterpart. Both the bandwidth and frequency range of the output signal is found to be independent and dependent of the loadcell materials for indirect and direct impact with the loadcell respectively. The merits and demerits of the fabricated loadcells are discussed.

  15. READINESS OF TEACHERS FOR THE ORGANIZATION OF EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES OF STUDENTS AT HIGHER EDUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENT OF ECONOMICS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    L. V. Vishnevetskaja

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available The urgency of the article, its theoretical and practical importance are caused by the existing contradiction between the state order for the formation of socially active person and lack of scientifically-practical workings out in the field of pedagogical support of the organization of extracurricular socially useful activity of the students. The settlement of the contradiction is possible in the presence of teachers specially prepared for the given process.Purpose. The purpose of the article is the theoretical substantiation and experimental estimation of teachers’ readiness for the organization of extracurricular activities of students in higher education establishments of economics.Methodology, Results. Complex application of theoretical (element and the structural analysis, comparison, generalization and empirical (questioning, testing, the expert estimation, included pedagogical supervision methods has allowed to define the essence of investigated concept as integrative personal formation, to develop criteria and its indicators of its formation and experimentally estimate the level of readiness of teaching staff for the organization of students’ extracurricular activities in higher education establishments of economics.Practical implications. The results of the research can be widely used in the work of curators of academic groups, tutors, teachers-organizers, in the system of training and advanced training of teaching staff.

  16. RESEARCHES CONCERNING THE ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY ACHIEVED SUCCESSIVE TO THE APPLICATION OF BIOLOGICALLY-ACTIVE PRODUCTS IN SMOOTH BROME CROP

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    ELENA PEł

    2008-05-01

    Full Text Available Within any branch of material production, the supervision of the economic effects caused by the applied technologies is an essential requirement. Not only related to the productive activity, but also related to scientific research, designing and other fields of activity, the final goal is represented by the achievement of immediate or far off economic effects. The introduction and generalization into production of the newest technologies of forage production must rely upon calculations of economic efficiency, too. The objective of these calculations is to offer to any producer the possibility to choose among the optimal technologic variants, with great productions per surface unit, of high quality and low costs. The calculations of economic efficiency were carried out during the three years of experimentation. The economic efficiency obtained after the application of biostimulants in smooth brome during the first year of production is expressed through the achievement of a profit per surface unit of 75.85 – 127.00 €/ha. Successive to the calculations of economic efficiency, during the second year of production, the profit per surface unit recorded values between 79.10 – 153.10 €/ha depending upon the applied biostimulant, and during the third year of production the profit obtained per surface unit was 211.05 – 270.70 €/ha.

  17. Encapsulation Efficiency, Oscillatory Rheometry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Z. Mohammad Hassani

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available Nanoliposomes are one of the most important polar lipid-based nanocarriers which can be used for encapsulation of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic active compounds. In this research, nanoliposomes based on lecithin-polyethylene glycol-gamma oryzanol were prepared by using a modified thermal method. Only one melting peak in DSC curve of gamma oryzanol bearing liposomes was observed which could be attributed to co-crystallization of both compounds. The addition of gamma oryzanol, caused to reduce the melting point of 5% (w/v lecithin-based liposome from 207°C to 163.2°C. At high level of lecithin, increasing of liposome particle size (storage at 4°C for two months was more obvious and particle size increased from 61 and 113 to 283 and 384 nanometers, respectively. The encapsulation efficiency of gamma oryzanol increased from 60% to 84.3% with increasing lecithin content. The encapsulation stability of oryzanol in liposome was determined at different concentrations of lecithin 3, 5, 10, 20% (w/v and different storage times (1, 7, 30 and 60 days. In all concentrations, the encapsulation stability slightly decreased during 30 days storage. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM images showed relatively spherical to elliptic particles which indicated to low extent of particles coalescence. The oscillatory rheometry showed that the loss modulus of liposomes were higher than storage modulus and more liquid-like behavior than solid-like behavior. The samples storage at 25°C for one month, showed higher viscoelastic parameters than those having been stored at 4°C which were attributed to higher membrane fluidity at 25°C and their final coalescence.Nanoliposomes are one of the most important polar lipid based nanocarriers which can be used for encapsulation of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic active compounds. In this research, nanoliposomes based on lecithin-polyethylene glycol-gamma oryzanol were prepared by using modified thermal method. Only one

  18. Improving Efficiency Using Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing Methodology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tibor, Laura C; Schultz, Stacy R; Menaker, Ronald; Weber, Bradley D; Ness, Jay; Smith, Paula; Young, Phillip M

    2017-03-01

    The aim of this study was to increase efficiency in MR enterography using a time-driven activity-based costing methodology. In February 2015, a multidisciplinary team was formed to identify the personnel, equipment, space, and supply costs of providing outpatient MR enterography. The team mapped the current state, completed observations, performed timings, and calculated costs associated with each element of the process. The team used Pareto charts to understand the highest cost and most time-consuming activities, brainstormed opportunities, and assessed impact. Plan-do-study-act cycles were developed to test the changes, and run charts were used to monitor progress. The process changes consisted of revising the workflow associated with the preparation and administration of glucagon, with completed implementation in November 2015. The time-driven activity-based costing methodology allowed the radiology department to develop a process to more accurately identify the costs of providing MR enterography. The primary process modification was reassigning responsibility for the administration of glucagon from nurses to technologists. After implementation, the improvements demonstrated success by reducing non-value-added steps and cost by 13%, staff time by 16%, and patient process time by 17%. The saved process time was used to augment existing examination time slots to more accurately accommodate the entire enterographic examination. Anecdotal comments were captured to validate improved staff satisfaction within the multidisciplinary team. This process provided a successful outcome to address daily workflow frustrations that could not previously be improved. A multidisciplinary team was necessary to achieve success, in addition to the use of a structured problem-solving approach. Copyright © 2016 American College of Radiology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  19. Higher Order Loess Terracettes and Related Ungulate Activities in Western Pottawattamie County, Iowa

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weihs, B. J.

    2009-12-01

    Terracettes are small, quasi-parallel, staircase-like, stepped landforms. They are generally less than a meter in tread width and riser height and as long as 300 meters, located transversely along slopes. Many theories purport to explain the mechanisms that cause them, including animal disturbance, soil creep, solifluction (gelifluction), slumping and rotational slippage, regolith control, vegetation control, subsidence, and anthropogenic or tectonic activities. This thesis was aimed at morphologically characterizing terracettes in the western Iowa Loess Hills, with an emphasis on further classifying the forms morphogenetically. Onsite observations suggest that terracettes in this area are highly associated with anthropogenically induced grazing of domestic ungulates such as cattle, horses, and sheep, as well as deer. A new class of terracette (higher order or mega-terracette) is proposed that characterizes (and differentiates) the study area forms based on size, in that the study area contains terracettes that are an order above those discussed by other authors (sub-meter). This new addition to the current standard (tear terracettes-risers bare of vegetation, and normal terracettes-normal to the slope), as suggested by Anderson (1972), will add to the local understanding of the forms, and especially to the theory of polygenesis in which terracettes can result from a host of processes. This new class of terracette (mega) is higher magnitude, and directly related to ungulate activities such as geophagy, soil transport (from hooves), compaction, smearing, pawing, and wallowing (dust bathing) as well as the effects of variable soil moisture on erosion of the forms used by the animals. High magnitude terracettes in western Pottawattamie County, Iowa

  20. Technology performance evaluation of scientific and educational activities of scientific-pedagogical staff in higher education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bechvaya Maria, R.

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available This paper proposes a performance assessment tool research and teaching staff on the basis of a rating system that allows for the analysis of the results of key personnel of the higher school for criteria and determine the size of incentive payments. The rating model wage researchers and teachers bases on strengthening the incentive function of wages, aimed at personalization of scientific and educational activities of employees, which in modern conditions is the most relevant for use. The functions of stimulation, such as economic, moral and social are considered. The analysis methodologies for assessing university in the world and national rankings on the basis of which formed a system of indicators for assessing the activities of academic staff of higher education is represented. The necessity of development of an information system through which it is possible to carry out comprehensive analysis, that is to monitor the number of registered employees, to determine the share indices in the total ranking, to conduct the ranking points received by employees by industry and science in the context of structural units. The proposed information system is one element of technology assessment of effectiveness of the academic staff designed to evaluate the effectiveness of their activities and incentives, allows the analysis of criteria, based on which can be applied informed management decisions regarding the development of social and labor relations in the highest school.

  1. Climbing Mount Efficiency--small steps, not giant leaps towards higher cloning success in farm animals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Oback, Björn

    2008-07-01

    Despite more than a decade of research efforts, farm animal cloning by somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is still frustratingly inefficient. Inefficiency manifests itself at different levels, which are currently not well integrated. At the molecular level, it leads to widespread genetic, epigenetic and transcriptional aberrations in cloned embryos. At the organismal level, these genome-wide abnormalities compromise development of cloned foetuses and offspring. Specific molecular defects need to be causally linked to specific cloned phenotypes, in order to design specific treatments to correct them. Cloning efficiency depends on the ability of the nuclear donor cell to be fully reprogrammed into an embryonic state and the ability of the enucleated recipient cell to carry out the reprogramming reactions. It has been postulated that reprogrammability of the somatic donor cell epigenome is influenced by its differentiation status. However, direct comparisons between cells of divergent differentiation status within several somatic lineages have found no conclusive evidence for this. Choosing somatic stem cells as donors has not improved cloning efficiency, indicating that donor cell type may be less critical for cloning success. Different recipient cells, on the other hand, vary in their reprogramming ability. In bovine, using zygotes instead of oocytes has increased cloning success. Other improvements in livestock cloning efficiency include better coordinating donor cell type with cell cycle stage and aggregating cloned embryos. In the future, it will be important to demonstrate if these small increases at every step are cumulative, adding up to an integrated cloning protocol with greatly improved efficiency.

  2. Typology of efficiency of functioning of enterprise

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    I.I. Svitlyshyn

    2015-03-01

    Full Text Available Measuring and estimation of the efficiency of functioning of enterprises of agrarian sector traditionally performed by applying only some of its types, which focuses mainly on operating activity. Investment and financial activity, as inalienable constituent of economic process of enterprise, remain regardless thus. In addition, in scientific literature and practical activity to research of efficiency focuses on the stages «production-exchange». The stages of «distribution» and «consumption» at the level of enterprise are not examined. This distorts the results of measuring and estimation of efficiency and makes uneffective proposals for its growth. Coming from what, approach is worked out to determination and systematization of basic types of efficiency of functioning of enterprises of agrarian sector. Approach is based on the offered model, that system represents all stages and types of economic activity of the enterprise. The basic lines of efficiency are interpreted on every stage and in the cut of types of economic activity of enterprise. It allows to provide a complexity and system during its measuring and estimation.

  3. 78 FR 37995 - Energy Efficiency Standards for Manufactured Housing

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-06-25

    ... Efficiency Standards for Manufactured Housing AGENCY: Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy... in receiving information that relates to the relationship between energy efficiency and indoor air... higher energy efficiencies, and possible enforcement models for the DOE standards. This notice identifies...

  4. Market liberalization in the European Natural Gas Market. The importance of capacity constraints and efficiency differences

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Brakman, S. [University of Groningen, Faculty of Economics, Department of International Economics and Business, P.O. Box 800, 9700 AV Groningen (Netherlands); Van Marrewijk, C.; Van Witteloostuijn, A. [Utrecht University, Utrecht School of Economics, Janskerkhof 12, 3512 BL Utrecht (Netherlands)

    2009-06-15

    In the European Union, energy markets are increasingly being liberalized. A case in point is the European natural gas industry. The general expectation is that more competition will lead to lower prices and higher volumes, and hence higher welfare. This paper indicates that this might not happen for at least two reasons. First, energy markets, including the market for natural gas, are characterized by imperfect competition and increasing costs to develop new energy sources. As a result, new entrants in the market are less efficient than incumbent firms. Second, energy markets, again including the market for natural gas, are associated with capacity constraints. Prices are determined in residual markets where the least efficient firms are active. This is likely to lead to price increases, rather than decreases.

  5. Inter-domain synergism is required for efficient feeding of cellulose chain into active site of cellobiohydrolase Cel7A

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kont, Riin; Kari, Jeppe; Borch, Kim

    2016-01-01

    systems. TrCel7A consists of catalytic domain (CD) and a smaller carbohydrate binding module (CBM) connected through the glycosylated linker peptide. A tunnel shaped active site rests in the CD and contains 10 glucose unit binding sites. The active site of TrCel7A is lined with four Trp residues with two...... to Ala substitution on on-rates was strongly dependent on the presence of the CBM-linker. This compensation between CBM-linker and Trp-38 indicates synergism between CBM-linker and CD in feeding the cellulose chain into the active site. The inter-domain synergism was pre-requisite for the efficient......Structural polysaccharides like cellulose and chitin are abundant and their enzymatic degradation to soluble sugars is an important route in green chemistry. Processive glycoside hydrolases (GHs), like cellobiohydrolase Cel7A of Trichoderma reesei (TrCel7A) are key components of efficient enzyme...

  6. METHODOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO THE ANALYSIS OF EFFICIENCY OF CASH FLOW MANAGEMENT IN INVESTMENT ACTIVITY OF THE ENTERPRISES

    OpenAIRE

    I. Magdych

    2015-01-01

    The article explores the methodological approaches to the analysis of cash flows in investment activity of the enterprise; the system of motion net cash flows, reflecting the impact of cash management efficiency on the amount and source of investment cash flows of the enterprise; analytical model of definition of effectiveness of cash management of the enterprise is proposed, based on the selected principals of modeling, comprehensive analysis of cash flows in investing activities and their o...

  7. The efficiency of superficially active compounds on the process of decontamination in animals exposed to various doses of ionizing radiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kossakowski, S.

    1977-01-01

    The efficiency of some superficially active compounds on the process of decontamination was investigated in swine exposed to various doses of ionizing radiation (300, 600 R), and then contaminated with 90 Sr, 131 I, 137 Cs, and 144 Ce. The results revealed that the time factor after irradiation was more important for the efficiency of decontamination than the doses of radiation. (author)

  8. Energy efficiency of mobile soft robots.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shui, Langquan; Zhu, Liangliang; Yang, Zhe; Liu, Yilun; Chen, Xi

    2017-11-15

    The performance of mobile soft robots is usually characterized by their locomotion/velocity efficiency, whereas the energy efficiency is a more intrinsic and fundamental criterion for the performance evaluation of independent or integrated soft robots. In this work, a general framework is established to evaluate the energy efficiency of mobile soft robots by considering the efficiency of the energy source, actuator and locomotion, and some insights for improving the efficiency of soft robotic systems are presented. Proposed as the ratio of the desired locomotion kinetic energy to the input mechanical energy, the energy efficiency of locomotion is found to play a critical role in determining the overall energy efficiency of soft robots. Four key factors related to the locomotion energy efficiency are identified, that is, the locomotion modes, material properties, geometric sizes, and actuation states. It is found that the energy efficiency of most mobile soft robots reported in the literature is surprisingly low (mostly below 0.1%), due to the inefficient mechanical energy that essentially does not contribute to the desired locomotion. A comparison of the locomotion energy efficiency for several representative locomotion modes in the literature is presented, showing a descending ranking as: jumping ≫ fish-like swimming > snake-like slithering > rolling > rising/turning over > inchworm-like inching > quadruped gait > earthworm-like squirming. Besides, considering the same locomotion mode, soft robots with lower stiffness, higher density and larger size tend to have higher locomotion energy efficiency. Moreover, a periodic pulse actuation instead of a continuous actuation mode may significantly reduce the input mechanical energy, thus improving the locomotion energy efficiency, especially when the pulse actuation matches the resonant states of the soft robots. The results presented herein indicate a large and necessary space for improving the locomotion energy

  9. The Economic Aspects of Improving the Efficiency of Activities of Ukrainian Enterprises

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Naboka Serhii O.

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available The only possibility to ensure a high rate of growth of economic efficiency of production is a result of transition to a predominantly intensive type of development, especially for domestic enterprises in current conditions. The article considers, which concrete factors of the external environment of enterprise impact its activity in the present time and on the territory of Ukraine, and also substantiates the necessity of transition to the mode of «intensification». Scientific novelty consists in approbation of the method of research of the degree of intensification of activity on the example of one of the enterprises of Kharkiv, carrying out foreign economic activity. The system of the scientific and special methods was used: system approach; methods of analysis and synthesis of grouping; economic-mathematical method – the method of analysis of production intensification – to determine the degree of intensity/extensiveness of production at the researched enterprise. The calculations allowed to determine that the relative saving of the aggregate resources at the researched enterprise, using this method, amounted to more than 16 million UAH. Thus, it is possible to speak about expediency of use of the presented method in practice, especially in view of the current condition of enterprises of Ukraine.

  10. Efficient Active Sensing with Categorized Further Explorations for a Home Behavior-Monitoring Robot

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wenwei Yu

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Mobile robotics is a potential solution to home behavior monitoring for the elderly. For a mobile robot in the real world, there are several types of uncertainties for its perceptions, such as the ambiguity between a target object and the surrounding objects and occlusions by furniture. The problem could be more serious for a home behavior-monitoring system, which aims to accurately recognize the activity of a target person, in spite of these uncertainties. It detects irregularities and categorizes situations requiring further explorations, which strategically maximize the information needed for activity recognition while minimizing the costs. Two schemes of active sensing, based on two irregularity detections, namely, heuristic-based and template-matching-based irregularity detections, were implemented and examined for body contour-based activity recognition. Their time cost and accuracy in activity recognition were evaluated through experiments in both a controlled scenario and a home living scenario. Experiment results showed that the categorized further explorations guided the robot system to sense the target person actively. As a result, with the proposed approach, the robot system has achieved higher accuracy of activity recognition.

  11. Efficiency of the Macedonian banking sector

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Naumovska Elena

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The subject of this paper is to measure the efficiency of the Macedonian banking sector by applying two approaches: firstly, comparative analysis on the efficiency indicators of the banking sector in the Republic of Macedonia and the countries of Central and Southeastern Europe (CSEE and secondly, Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA. The aim is to provide directions and guidelines for further strengthening of the Macedonian banking sector. According to the comparative analysis of the efficiency indicators (net interest margin and operating costs of the Macedonian banking sector and the countries of CSEE, the countries whose banking sector shows lower operating costs are characterized with a higher level of financial deepening and greater degree of financial intermediation. The high interest margins direct towards unsuitable allocation of financial resources and insufficient competitiveness in the domestic banking sector. When applying the DEA approach, it can be stated that the group of large banks marks the highest efficiency within the Macedonian banking sector. The high concentration degree of banking activities within the group of large banks with a leading role in determining the interest rates, results in a rigid interest policy of the banks. In the direction of strengthening the efficiency of the Macedonian banking sector as a whole, the obtained results show that it is necessary for the banks to be further consolidated so as to utilize the advantages of the economies of scale, increase competitiveness, offer a diversified structure of products, invest in new contemporary software solutions that will allow reinforcement of their employees’ productivity and long-term reduction of the operating costs, as well.

  12. The higher level of complexity of K-Ras4B activation at the membrane.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jang, Hyunbum; Banerjee, Avik; Chavan, Tanmay S; Lu, Shaoyong; Zhang, Jian; Gaponenko, Vadim; Nussinov, Ruth

    2016-04-01

    Is nucleotide exchange sufficient to activate K-Ras4B? To signal, oncogenic rat sarcoma (Ras) anchors in the membrane and recruits effectors by exposing its effector lobe. With the use of NMR and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we observed that in solution, farnesylated guanosine 5'-diphosphate (GDP)-bound K-Ras4B is predominantly autoinhibited by its hypervariable region (HVR), whereas the GTP-bound state favors an activated, HVR-released state. On the anionic membrane, the catalytic domain adopts multiple orientations, including parallel (∼180°) and perpendicular (∼90°) alignments of the allosteric helices, with respect to the membrane surface direction. In the autoinhibited state, the HVR is sandwiched between the effector lobe and the membrane; in the active state, with membrane-anchored farnesyl and unrestrained HVR, the catalytic domain fluctuates reinlessly, exposing its effector-binding site. Dimerization and clustering can reduce the fluctuations. This achieves preorganized, productive conformations. Notably, we also observe HVR-autoinhibited K-Ras4B-GTP states, with GDP-bound-like orientations of the helices. Thus, we propose that the GDP/GTP exchange may not be sufficient for activation; instead, our results suggest that the GDP/GTP exchange, HVR sequestration, farnesyl insertion, and orientation/localization of the catalytic domain at the membrane conjointly determine the active or inactive state of K-Ras4B. Importantly, K-Ras4B-GTP can exist in active and inactive states; on its own, GTP binding may not compel K-Ras4B activation.-Jang, H., Banerjee, A., Chavan, T. S, Lu, S., Zhang, J., Gaponenko, V., Nussinov, R. The higher level of complexity of K-Ras4B activation at the membrane. © FASEB.

  13. Measuring efficiency in logistics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Milan Milovan Andrejić

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Dynamic market and environmental changes greatly affect operating of logistics systems. Logistics systems have to realize their activities and processes in an efficient way. The main objective of this paper is to analyze different aspects of efficiency measurement in logistics and to propose appropriate models of measurement. Measuring efficiency in logistics is a complex process that requires consideration of all subsystems, processes and activities as well as the impact of various financial, operational, environmental, quality and other factors. The proposed models have a basis in the Data Envelopment Analysis method. They could help managers in decision making and corrective actions processes. The tests and results of the model show the importance of input and output variables selection.

  14. Energy and human activity: Steps toward a sustainable future

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1992-01-01

    The potential for improving energy efficiency is enormous, but exploitation of this resource has slowed in recent years. This is regrettable for several reasons. First, not incorporating higher efficiency now often means passing up opportunities that will be more expensive or even impossible to implement in the future. This is especially true for long-lived capital, such as new buildings. Second, reduced research and development into new efficiency options will make it more difficult to accelerate the pace of efficiency improvements in the future. Finally, the flow of more efficient technologies to the non-OECD countries will be hindered by the slowdown in efficiency improvement in the OECD countries. Well-designed policies can help recapture the momentum that has been lost. Some key steps for stimulating more careful use of energy are: rationalize energy pricing and gradually internalize environmental externalities; improve present energy-using capital; implement energy-efficiency standards or agreements for new products and buildings; encourage higher energy efficiency in new products and buildings; promote international cooperation for R ampersand D technology transfer; adjust policies that encourage energy-intensive activities; and promote population restraint worldwide. 25 refs

  15. Synthesis of Mn-intercalated layered titanate by exfoliation–flocculation approach and its efficient photocatalytic activity under visible–light

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fu, Jie; Tian, Yanlong; Chang, Binbin; Li, Gengnan; Xi, Fengna; Dong, Xiaoping

    2012-01-01

    A novel Mn-intercalated layered titanate as highly active photocatalyst in visible-light region has been synthesized via a convenient and efficient exfoliation–flocculation approach with divalent Mn ions and monolayer titanate nanosheets. The 0.91 nm interlayer spacing of obtained photocatalyst is in accordance with the sum of the thickness of titanate nanosheet and the diameter of Mn ions. The yellow photocatalyst shows a spectral response in visible-light region and the calculated band gap is 2.59 eV. The photocatalytic performance of this material was evaluated by degradation and mineralization of an aqueous dye methylene blue under visible-light irradiation, and an enhanced photocatalytic activity in comparison with protonated titanate as well as the P25 TiO 2 and N-doped TiO 2 was obtained. Additionally, the layered structure is retained, no dye ions intercalating occurs during the photocatalysis process, and a ∼90% photocatalytic activity can be remained after reusing 3 cycles. - Graphical abstract: Mn-intercalated layered titanate as a novel and efficient visible-light harvesting photocatalyst was synthesized via a convenient and efficient exfoliation–flocculation approach in a mild condition. Highlights: ► Mn-intercalated titanate has been prepared by exfoliation–flocculation approach. ► The as-prepared catalyst shows spectral response in the visible-light region. ► Heat treatment at certain temperature enables formation of Mn-doped TiO 2 . ► Dye can be degradated effectively by the catalyst under visible light irradiation.

  16. Scholarly activities in hospitality and tourism higher education among private higher institutions in Australia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Edmund Goh

    2013-05-01

    Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to explore the notion of scholarship and develop research and scholarship strategies among Private Higher Institutions delivering Tourism and Hospitality degree programs in Australia. In doing so, this paper confronts the traditional view of research publications as the only form of scholarship by traditional universities. This paper argues that the purpose of scholarship should be focused towards improving a teacher’s teaching and learning process. These new knowledge need not be limited through peer reviewed journals only, but can be achieved through less formal means of communication such as fieldtrips to industry and attending conferences. This paper utilizes the six Scholarship key points as defined on P. 19 of the National Protocols for Higher Education Approval Processes in Australia by MCEETYA  to investigate methods to capture scholarship beyond traditional research publications. DOI: 10.18870/hlrc.v3i2.108

  17. A Time of Quiet Activism: Research, Practice, and Policy in American Women's Higher Education, 1945-1965

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eisenmann, Linda

    2005-01-01

    This article reflects on three narratives that affected American women's participation in higher education during the first twenty years after World War II. In hindsight, the educators of the 1950s and early 1960s may seem gratuitously meek and self-effacing. In comparison to later efforts, their activism can appear unnecessarily limited and too…

  18. Comparative efficiency of chemical and radiation mutagens on two Cicer arietinum Rhizobial strains

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Khare, A K; Shinde, D A; Nayak, M L [Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya, Indore (India)

    1982-03-01

    A comparison of efficacy due to chemical and radiation mutagens on morphology, nutritional totipotence and symbiotic character of two Cicer arietinum rhizobia has been made. The mutants produced as a result of radiations (gamma and UV rays) differed from parents in that, the mutant colony size was bigger and gelatinase activity was higher. The mutants were not deficient nutritionally, had wider host range and the size and number of nodules produced were higher. Radiation mutagenic effects were more pronounced than chemical mutagens. The mutants derived from chemicals were not as efficient as radiation mutants although they were better than parents in total nodulation.

  19. Encouraging energy efficiency: Policies and programs

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anon.

    1992-01-01

    Successfully overcoming the barriers to higher energy efficiency requires development of policies designed for specific users and locations. Reform of energy pricing, which entails removing subsidies and beginning internalization of externalities, is critical to give technology producers and users proper signals for investment and management decisions. But while a rise in energy prices increases the amount of energy-efficiency improvement that is cost-effective, it does not remove other barriers that deter investment. Minimum efficiency standards or agreements can raise the market floor, and are important because they affect the entire market in the near-term. But they may not raise the celining very much, and do little to push the efficiency frontier. To accomplish these goals, incentives and other market-development strategies are needed. Utility programs in particular can play a key role in pushing energy efficiency beyond the level where users are likely to invest on their own. Policies, programs, and pricing should complement one another. Pricing reform alone will not overcome the many entrenched barriers to higher energy efficiency, but trying to accelerate energy efficiency improvement without addressing energy pricing problems will lead to limited success. Whether tagerting new equipment or management of existing systems, policies must reflect a thorough understanding of the particular system and an awareness of the motivations of the actors. 25 refs

  20. Parametric Study of High-Efficiency and Low-Emission Gas Burners

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shuhn-Shyurng Hou

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of three significant parameters, namely, swirl flow, loading height, and semi-confined combustion flame, on thermal efficiency and CO emissions of a swirl flow gas burner. We focus particularly on the effects of swirl angle and inclination angle on the performance of the swirl flow burner. The results showed that the swirl flow burner yields higher thermal efficiency and emits lower CO concentration than those of the conventional radial flow burner. A greater swirl angle results in higher thermal efficiency and CO emission. With increasing loading height, the thermal efficiency increases but the CO emission decreases. For a lower loading height (2 or 3 cm, the highest efficiency occurs at the inclination angle 15°. On the other hand, at a higher loading height, 4 cm, thermal efficiency increases with the inclination angle. Moreover, the addition of a shield can achieve a great increase in thermal efficiency, about 4-5%, and a decrease in CO emissions for the same burner (swirl flow or radial flow.

  1. Improving efficiency of transport fuels production by thermal hydrolysis of waste activated sludge

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gulshin, Igor

    2017-10-01

    The article deals with issues of transport biofuels. Transport biofuels are an important element of a system of energy security. Moreover, as part of a system it is inextricably linked to the urban, rural or industrial infrastructure. The paper discusses methods of increasing the yield of biogas from anaerobic digesters at wastewater treatment plants. The thermal hydrolysis method was considered. The main advantages and drawbacks of this method were analyzed. The experimental biomass (from SNDOD-bioreactor) and high-organic substrate have been previously studied by respirometry methods. A biomethane potential of the investigated organic substrate has high rates because of substrate composition (the readily biodegradable substrate in the total composition takes about 85%). Waste activated sludge from SNDOD-bioreactor can be used for biofuel producing with high efficiency especially with pre-treatment like a thermal hydrolysis. Further studies have to consider the possibility of withdrawing inhibitors from waste activated sludge.

  2. Development of electrical efficiency measurement techniques for 10 kW-class SOFC system: Part I. Measurement of electrical efficiency

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tanaka, Yohei; Momma, Akihiko; Kato, Ken; Negishi, Akira; Takano, Kiyonami; Nozaki, Ken; Kato, Tohru

    2009-01-01

    Measurement techniques to estimate electrical efficiency of 10 kW-class SOFC systems fueled by town-gas were developed and demonstrated for a system developed by Kansai Electric Power Company and Mitsubishi Materials Corporation under a NEDO project. Higher heating value of the fuel was evaluated with a transportable gas sampling unit and conventional gas chromatography in AIST laboratory with thermal-conductivity and flame-ionization detectors, leading to mean value 44.69 MJ m -3 on a volumetric base for ideal-gas at the standard state (0 deg. C, 101.325 kPa). Mass-flow-rate of the fuel was estimated as 33.04 slm with a mass-flow meter for CH 4 , which was calibrated to correct CH 4 flow-rate and effect of sensitivity change and to obtain conversion factor from CH 4 to town-gas. Without calibration, systematic effect would occur by 8% in flow-rate measurement in the case for CH 4 . Power output was measured with a precision power analyzer, a virtual three phase starpoint adapter, and tri-axial shunts. Power of fundamental wave (60 Hz) was estimated as 10.14 kW, considering from total active power, total higher harmonic distortion factor, and power consumption at the starpoint adapter. The electrical efficiency was presumed to be 41.2% (HHV), though this mean value will be complete only when uncertainty estimation is accompanied

  3. Applications of Data Mining in Higher Education

    OpenAIRE

    Monika Goyal; Rajan Vohra

    2012-01-01

    Data analysis plays an important role for decision support irrespective of type of industry like any manufacturing unit and educations system. There are many domains in which data mining techniques plays an important role. This paper proposes the use of data mining techniques to improve the efficiency of higher education institution. If data mining techniques such as clustering, decision tree and association are applied to higher education processes, it would help to improve students performa...

  4. The Main Directions of Improving the Management of the Higher Education System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Terovanesov Mykhajlo R.

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available The article is aimed at determining the mechanisms of improving the management of the system of higher education in the context of the current regulatory support, which will be the means to solve the problem of inefficient functioning, lack of financing, and low quality of higher education. The factors, causing negative impact on development of the higher education system were analyzed, the most important of which are the lack of financing and the shortcomings of the legal support of the education sector. It has been determined that a shortage of funds and lack of communication between the education sphere and employers reduces the efficiency of management of the system of higher education. The legal support of the educational activities requires improvement due to the declarative nature of individual provisions on the management of the system of higher education. Consideration of the legal factor is necessary for regulating the decentralization of management in the education sphere, improvement of financing, perfection of the system of control of the education quality. Ways for decentralizing the management of the education sphere, increasing its effectiveness, and improving the economic status of higher education institutions, have been suggested. The scientific-practical recommendations have been formulated to attract potential consumers of educational services to reforming the higher education system and increasing its effectiveness.

  5. Status and prospects in higher alcohols synthesis from syngas.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luk, Ho Ting; Mondelli, Cecilia; Ferré, Daniel Curulla; Stewart, Joseph A; Pérez-Ramírez, Javier

    2017-03-06

    Higher alcohols are important compounds with widespread applications in the chemical, pharmaceutical and energy sectors. Currently, they are mainly produced by sugar fermentation (ethanol and isobutanol) or hydration of petroleum-derived alkenes (heavier alcohols), but their direct synthesis from syngas (CO + H 2 ) would comprise a more environmentally-friendly, versatile and economical alternative. Research efforts in this reaction, initiated in the 1930s, have fluctuated along with the oil price and have considerably increased in the last decade due to the interest to exploit shale gas and renewable resources to obtain the gaseous feedstock. Nevertheless, no catalytic system reported to date has performed sufficiently well to justify an industrial implementation. Since the design of an efficient catalyst would strongly benefit from the establishment of synthesis-structure-function relationships and a deeper understanding of the reaction mechanism, this review comprehensively overviews syngas-based higher alcohols synthesis in three main sections, highlighting the advances recently made and the challenges that remain open and stimulate upcoming research activities. The first part critically summarises the formulations and methods applied in the preparation of the four main classes of materials, i.e., Rh-based, Mo-based, modified Fischer-Tropsch and modified methanol synthesis catalysts. The second overviews the molecular-level insights derived from microkinetic and theoretical studies, drawing links to the mechanisms of Fischer-Tropsch and methanol syntheses. Finally, concepts proposed to improve the efficiency of reactors and separation units as well as to utilise CO 2 and recycle side-products in the process are described in the third section.

  6. Exergy and economic analysis of a pyramid-shaped solar water purification system: Active and passive cases

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kianifar, Ali; Zeinali Heris, Saeed; Mahian, Omid

    2012-01-01

    An exergy analysis has been conducted to show the effect of a small fan on the exergy efficiency in a pyramid-shaped solar still. The tests were carried out in Mashhad (36° 36′ N), for two solar still systems. One of them was equipped with a small fan (active system), to enhance the evaporation rate while the other one was tested in passive condition (no fan). To examine the effects of radiation and water depth on exergy efficiency, experiments in two seasons and two different depths of water in the solar still basin were performed. The results show that during summer, active unit has higher exergy efficiency than passive one while in winter there is no considerable difference between the exergy efficiency of the units. Results also reveal that the exergy efficiency is higher when the water depth in the basin is lower. Finally, the economic analysis shows a considerable reduction in production cost of the water (8–9%) when the active system is used. -- Highlights: ► Using a small fan in the solar still; reduces the productive cost of fresh water up to 9%. ► Effects of the fan and basin depth on the exergy efficiency during summer and winter were examined. ► Utilizing an active system will increase the daily productivity of fresh water by 20%.

  7. Which Are the Determinants of Online Students' Efficiency in Higher Education?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Castillo-Merino, David; Serradell-Lopez, Enric; González-González, Inés

    International literature shows that the positive effect on students performance from the adoption of innovations in the technology of teaching and learning do not affect all teaching methods and learning styles equally, as it depends on university strategy and policy towards Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) adoption, students abilities, technology uses in the educational process by teachers and students, or the selection of a methodology that matches with digital uses. This paper provides empirical answers to these questions with data from online students at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC). An empirical model based on structural equations has been defined to explain complex relationships between variables. Our results show that motivation is the main variable affecting online students' performance. It appears as a latent variable influenced by students' perception of efficiency, a driver for indirect positive and significant effect on students' performance from students' ability in ICT uses.

  8. The effect of temperature on the efficiency of industrial wastewater nitrification and its (genotoxicity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gnida Anna

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available The paper deals with the problem of the determination of the effects of temperature on the efficiency of the nitrification process of industrial wastewater, as well as its toxicity to the test organisms. The study on nitrification efficiency was performed using wastewater from one of Polish chemical factories. The chemical factory produces nitrogen fertilizers and various chemicals. The investigated wastewater was taken from the influent to the industrial mechanical-biological wastewater treatment plant (WWTP. The WWTP guaranteed high removal efficiency of organic compounds defined as chemical oxygen demand (COD but periodical failure of nitrification performance was noted in last years of the WWTP operation. The research aim was to establish the cause of recurring failures of nitrification process in the above mentioned WWTP. The tested wastewater was not acutely toxic to activated sludge microorganisms. However, the wastewater was genotoxic to activated sludge microorganisms and the genotoxicity was greater in winter than in spring time. Analysis of almost 3 years’ period of the WWTP operation data and laboratory batch tests showed that activated sludge from the WWTP under study is very sensitive to temperature changes and the nitrification efficiency collapses rapidly under 16°C. Additionally, it was calculated that in order to provide the stable nitrification, in winter period the sludge age (SRT in the WWTP should be higher than 35 days.

  9. Highly efficient degradation of thidiazuron with Ag/AgCl- activated carbon composites under LED light irradiation

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yang, Yisi [College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128 (China); Hubei Key Laboratory for Processing and Application of Catalytic Materials, Huanggang Normal University, Huanggang 438000 (China); College of Chemical Engineering, Huanggang Normal University, Huanggang 438000 (China); Zhang, Yan [Hubei Key Laboratory for Processing and Application of Catalytic Materials, Huanggang Normal University, Huanggang 438000 (China); College of Chemical Engineering, Huanggang Normal University, Huanggang 438000 (China); Dong, Mingguang; Yan, Ting; Zhang, Maosheng [College of Chemical Engineering, Huanggang Normal University, Huanggang 438000 (China); Zeng, Qingru, E-mail: 40083763@qq.com [College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128 (China)

    2017-08-05

    Highlights: • Photocatalytic degradation of thidiazuron was performed in a neutral water matrix. • This was carried out in the presence of Ag/AgCl-activated carbon composites and LED light. • The pH effect and the dominant active species were explored. • Degradation products and pathways in water were studied for the first time. - Abstract: Thidiazuron (TDZ; 1-phenyl-3-(1,2,3-thiadiazol-5-yl)urea) is one of the most widely used defoliant and easy to dissolve in surface water. Risk associated with the pesticide is not clearly defined, so it is important to remove/degrade TDZ with an efficient and environment friendly technology. Here, we investigated the use of Ag/AgCl-activated carbon (Ag/AgCl–AC) composites in photocatalytic degradation of TDZ under LED light. By the synergic effect of Ag/AgCl and AC, the optimum Ag/carbon weight ratio of 2:1 exhibited superior visible-light photocatalytic activity, the highest removal efficiency was close to 91% in pH 7 matrix. Different types of Ag/AgCl–AC composites were tested, all showed much faster photodegradation kinetics than bare Ag/AgCl in 210 min. The degradation products as identified by HPLC–MS revealed that the hydroxylation by hydroxyl radicals and that of oxidation by superoxide radicals as well as holes were the two main pathways for TDZ degradation. Results revealed that the adsorption concentrated TDZ molecules and the photocatalytically generated radicals rapidly degradated TDZ, the two contributions functioned together for removal of the pollutant from water.

  10. Highly efficient degradation of thidiazuron with Ag/AgCl- activated carbon composites under LED light irradiation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yang, Yisi; Zhang, Yan; Dong, Mingguang; Yan, Ting; Zhang, Maosheng; Zeng, Qingru

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • Photocatalytic degradation of thidiazuron was performed in a neutral water matrix. • This was carried out in the presence of Ag/AgCl-activated carbon composites and LED light. • The pH effect and the dominant active species were explored. • Degradation products and pathways in water were studied for the first time. - Abstract: Thidiazuron (TDZ; 1-phenyl-3-(1,2,3-thiadiazol-5-yl)urea) is one of the most widely used defoliant and easy to dissolve in surface water. Risk associated with the pesticide is not clearly defined, so it is important to remove/degrade TDZ with an efficient and environment friendly technology. Here, we investigated the use of Ag/AgCl-activated carbon (Ag/AgCl–AC) composites in photocatalytic degradation of TDZ under LED light. By the synergic effect of Ag/AgCl and AC, the optimum Ag/carbon weight ratio of 2:1 exhibited superior visible-light photocatalytic activity, the highest removal efficiency was close to 91% in pH 7 matrix. Different types of Ag/AgCl–AC composites were tested, all showed much faster photodegradation kinetics than bare Ag/AgCl in 210 min. The degradation products as identified by HPLC–MS revealed that the hydroxylation by hydroxyl radicals and that of oxidation by superoxide radicals as well as holes were the two main pathways for TDZ degradation. Results revealed that the adsorption concentrated TDZ molecules and the photocatalytically generated radicals rapidly degradated TDZ, the two contributions functioned together for removal of the pollutant from water.

  11. SPECIFIC FEATURES OF HIGHER EFFICIENCY IN FUNCTIONING OF ROAD-TRANSPORT COMPLEX IN THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. G. Solodkaya

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The road-transport complex objectively reflects the essence of efficient transportation process which is carried out by transport facilities along the highways. The complex  emphasizes an equivalent contribution of transport facilities and highways in a unified transportation process. Efficiency of the state economy rigidly depends on availability of the developed and well-functioning network of highways. Countries with the developed economy which have generally finished creation of national highway networks continue to invest money in public road systems that stimulates development of industrial sectors, agriculture and trade, etc. Their progress and efficient functioning is possible only with the balanced, overall development of the road-transport complex of the country. Functioning of the road-transport complex is inextricable connected with the operation of automotive transport and road infrastructure. Interaction of these two components of the unified economic system is determined by technical characteristics of the automotive transport and transport and operational indices of  the highways. Development of methods for optimum organization of management for functioning of the road complex is considered as an important problem of the national economy while forming market economy mechanisms. Further growth of capital expenditures including  investments will be needed in order to ensure such road conditions that meet the requirements of modern and perspective road traffic. Management of the highway network conditions presupposes a selection of such set of regulatory impacts on road conditions which will allow to minimize expenses in the road-transport complex. Elaboration and realization of the most efficient repair measures serve as such regulatory impact. The purpose is achieved while solving the problem pertaining to minimization of expenses on  transportations in the road-transport complex in the process of the realization of the most

  12. Use of radio-active phosphorus in determining the efficiency of fertilizer utilization by cacao plantation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahenkorah, Y.

    1975-01-01

    Both 32 P labelled phosphate solution and superphosphate were used in studying 1) in situ root distribution and activity of twenty year old Amelonado cacao (Theobroma Cacao L.) during wet and dry seasons, and 2) the efficiency of fertilizer utilization by the cacao plantation. The 32 P content of the leaves was used to determine patterns of root activity. Uptake of 32 P was greatest during the wet season and root activity highest within the upper 3 cm soil layer in both wet and dry seasons. Highest 32 P activity was obtained at a distance of 120-160 cm, and lowest at 91 cm from the base of the tree. For maximum utilization of phosphate fertilizer by a plantation of twenty year old Amelonado cacao, planted at 240 cm x 240 cm spacing, the fertilizer should be broadcast during the wet season. Under low soil moisture conditions, the placement of 32 P labelled superphosphate provides information on the relative availability of fertilizer or soil phosphorus and does not necessarily reflect the activity of the root profile. Active roots of cacao tend to be more extensive and are capable of exploring a much larger area than hitherto expected

  13. Enhancement of phytochemical content and drying efficiency of onions (Allium cepa L.) through blanching.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ren, Feiyue; Perussello, Camila A; Zhang, Zhihang; Gaffney, Michael T; Kerry, Joseph P; Tiwari, Brijesh K

    2018-03-01

    This study investigated the effect of blanching (60, 70 and 80 °C for 1, 3, 5 and 10 min) combined with oven drying at 60 °C on the phenolic compounds, antioxidant activity, colour and drying characteristics (drying time, drying rate constant, effective moisture diffusivity and activation energy) of onion slices. Blanching of onion slices at 60 °C for 3 min and at 70 °C for 1 min prior to drying increased their bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity compared to the control samples and other treatments. Eighteen drying models were evaluated. The Modified Page and two-term exponential models best represented the drying data. The effective diffusivity ranged from 3.32 × 10 -11 m 2 s -1 (control) to 5.27 × 10 -11 m 2 s -1 , 5.01 × 10 -11 m 2 s -1 , and 4.74 × 10 -11 m 2 s -1 for onions blanched at 60 °C, 70 °C and 80 °C, respectively. The higher activation energy was observed for the control (unblanched) sample and slightly lower values were found for 1 min- and 3 min-blanched samples, confirming the higher drying efficiency as a result of the blanching pre-treatment. The use of blanching as a pre-treatment before drying of onions resulted in enhanced phytochemical content and drying efficiency. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

  14. Renewable energy and macroeconomic efficiency of OECD and non-OECD economies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chien, Taichen; Hu, Jin-Li

    2007-01-01

    This article analyzes the effects of renewable energy on the technical efficiency of 45 economies during the 2001-2002 period through data envelopment analysis (DEA). In our DEA model, labor, capital stock, and energy consumption are the three inputs and real GDP is the single output. Increasing the use of renewable energy improves an economy's technical efficiency. Conversely, increasing the input of traditional energy decreases technical efficiency. Compared to non-OECD economies, OECD economies have higher technical efficiency and a higher share of geothermal, solar, tide, and wind fuels in renewable energy. However, non-OECD economies have a higher share of renewable energy in their total energy supply than OECD economies

  15. Environmental efficiency of energy, materials, and emissions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yagi, Michiyuki; Fujii, Hidemichi; Hoang, Vincent; Managi, Shunsuke

    2015-09-15

    This study estimates the environmental efficiency of international listed firms in 10 worldwide sectors from 2007 to 2013 by applying an order-m method, a non-parametric approach based on free disposal hull with subsampling bootstrapping. Using a conventional output of gross profit and two conventional inputs of labor and capital, this study examines the order-m environmental efficiency accounting for the presence of each of 10 undesirable inputs/outputs and measures the shadow prices of each undesirable input and output. The results show that there is greater potential for the reduction of undesirable inputs rather than bad outputs. On average, total energy, electricity, or water usage has the potential to be reduced by 50%. The median shadow prices of undesirable inputs, however, are much higher than the surveyed representative market prices. Approximately 10% of the firms in the sample appear to be potential sellers or production reducers in terms of undesirable inputs/outputs, which implies that the price of each item at the current level has little impact on most of the firms. Moreover, this study shows that the environmental, social, and governance activities of a firm do not considerably affect environmental efficiency. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  16. An easy and efficient permeabilization protocol for in vivo enzyme activity assays in cyanobacteria

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rasmussen, Randi Engelberth; Erstad, Simon Matthé; Ramos Martinez, Erick Miguel

    2016-01-01

    microbial cell factories. Better understanding of the activities of enzymes involved in the central carbon metabolism would lead to increasing product yields. Currently cell-free lysates are the most widely used method for determination of intracellular enzyme activities. However, due to thick cell walls...... used directly in the assays, the permeabilized cells exhibited the enzyme activities that are comparable or even higher than those detected for cell-free lysates. Moreover, the permeabilized cells could be stored at -20 °C without losing the enzyme activities. The permeabilization process...... for permeabilization of the cyanobacteria Synechococcus sp. PCC 7002 and Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803, and determination of two intracellular enzymes, ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/decarboxylase (Rubisco) and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH), that play pivotal roles in the central carbon metabolism...

  17. Efficient Method for the Determination of the Activation Energy of the Iodide-Catalyzed Decomposition of Hydrogen Peroxide

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sweeney, William; Lee, James; Abid, Nauman; DeMeo, Stephen

    2014-01-01

    An experiment is described that determines the activation energy (E[subscript a]) of the iodide-catalyzed decomposition reaction of hydrogen peroxide in a much more efficient manner than previously reported in the literature. Hydrogen peroxide, spontaneously or with a catalyst, decomposes to oxygen and water. Because the decomposition reaction is…

  18. Water-activated graphite felt as a high-performance electrode for vanadium redox flow batteries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kabtamu, Daniel Manaye; Chen, Jian-Yu; Chang, Yu-Chung; Wang, Chen-Hao

    2017-02-01

    A simple, green, novel, time-efficient, and potentially cost-effective water activation method was employed to enhance the electrochemical activity of graphite felt (GF) electrodes for vanadium redox flow batteries (VRFBs). The GF electrode prepared with a water vapor injection time of 5 min at 700 °C exhibits the highest electrochemical activity for the VO2+/VO2+ couple among all the tested electrodes. This is attributed to the small, controlled amount of water vapor that was introduced producing high contents of oxygen-containing functional groups, such as sbnd OH groups, on the surface of the GF fibers, which are known to be electrochemically active sites for vanadium redox reactions. Charge-discharge tests further confirm that only 5 min of GF water activation is required to improve the efficiency of the VRFB cell. The average coulombic efficiency, voltage efficiency, and energy efficiency are 95.06%, 87.42%, and 83.10%, respectively, at a current density of 50 mA cm-2. These voltage and energy efficiencies are determined to be considerably higher than those of VRFB cells assembled using heat-treated GF electrodes without water activation and pristine GF electrodes.

  19. Methanol removal efficiency and bacterial diversity of an activated carbon biofilter.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Babbitt, Callie W; Pacheco, Adriana; Lindner, Angela S

    2009-12-01

    Motivated by the need to establish an economical and environmentally friendly methanol control technology for the pulp and paper industry, a bench-scale activated carbon biofiltration system was developed. This system was evaluated for its performance in removing methanol from an artificially contaminated air stream and characterized for its bacterial diversity over time, under varied methanol loading rates, and in different spatial regions of the filter. The biofilter system, composed of a novel packing mixture, provided an excellent support for growth and activity of methanol-degrading bacteria, resulting in approximately 100% methanol removal efficiency for loading rates of 1-17 g/m(3) packing/h, when operated both with and without inoculum containing enriched methanol-degrading bacteria. Although bacterial diversity and abundance varied over the length of the biofilter, the populations present rapidly formed a stable community that was maintained over the entire 138-day operation of the system and through variable operating conditions, as observed by PCR-DGGE methods that targeted all bacteria as well as specific methanol-oxidizing microorganisms. Phylogenetic analysis of bands excised and sequenced from DGGE gels indicated that the biofilter system supported a diverse community of methanol-degrading bacteria, with high similarity to species in the genera Methylophilus (beta-proteobacteria), Hyphomicrobium and Methylocella (both alpha-proteobacteria).

  20. The higher level of complexity of K-Ras4B activation at the membrane

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jang, Hyunbum; Banerjee, Avik; Chavan, Tanmay S.; Lu, Shaoyong; Zhang, Jian; Gaponenko, Vadim; Nussinov, Ruth

    2016-01-01

    Is nucleotide exchange sufficient to activate K-Ras4B? To signal, oncogenic rat sarcoma (Ras) anchors in the membrane and recruits effectors by exposing its effector lobe. With the use of NMR and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we observed that in solution, farnesylated guanosine 5′-diphosphate (GDP)-bound K-Ras4B is predominantly autoinhibited by its hypervariable region (HVR), whereas the GTP-bound state favors an activated, HVR-released state. On the anionic membrane, the catalytic domain adopts multiple orientations, including parallel (∼180°) and perpendicular (∼90°) alignments of the allosteric helices, with respect to the membrane surface direction. In the autoinhibited state, the HVR is sandwiched between the effector lobe and the membrane; in the active state, with membrane-anchored farnesyl and unrestrained HVR, the catalytic domain fluctuates reinlessly, exposing its effector-binding site. Dimerization and clustering can reduce the fluctuations. This achieves preorganized, productive conformations. Notably, we also observe HVR-autoinhibited K-Ras4B-GTP states, with GDP-bound-like orientations of the helices. Thus, we propose that the GDP/GTP exchange may not be sufficient for activation; instead, our results suggest that the GDP/GTP exchange, HVR sequestration, farnesyl insertion, and orientation/localization of the catalytic domain at the membrane conjointly determine the active or inactive state of K-Ras4B. Importantly, K-Ras4B-GTP can exist in active and inactive states; on its own, GTP binding may not compel K-Ras4B activation.—Jang, H., Banerjee, A., Chavan, T. S, Lu, S., Zhang, J., Gaponenko, V., Nussinov, R. The higher level of complexity of K-Ras4B activation at the membrane. PMID:26718888

  1. High-efficiency airfoil rudders applied to submarines

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    ZHOU Yimei

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available Modern submarine design puts forward higher and higher requirements for control surfaces, and this creates a requirement for designers to constantly innovate new types of rudder so as to improve the efficiency of control surfaces. Adopting the high-efficiency airfoil rudder is one of the most effective measures for improving the efficiency of control surfaces. In this paper, we put forward an optimization method for a high-efficiency airfoil rudder on the basis of a comparative analysis of the various strengths and weaknesses of the airfoil, and the numerical calculation method is adopted to analyze the influence rule of the hydrodynamic characteristics and wake field by using the high-efficiency airfoil rudder and the conventional NACA rudder comparatively; at the same time, a model load test in a towing tank was carried out, and the test results and simulation calculation obtained good consistency:the error between them was less than 10%. The experimental results show that the steerage of a high-efficiency airfoil rudder is increased by more than 40% when compared with the conventional rudder, but the total resistance is close:the error is no more than 4%. Adopting a high-efficiency airfoil rudder brings much greater lifting efficiency than the total resistance of the boat. The results show that high-efficiency airfoil rudder has obvious advantages for improving the efficiency of control, giving it good application prospects.

  2. Re-engineering change in higher education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Allen

    1999-01-01

    Full Text Available Business Process Re-engineering (BPR is being used in a number of UK Higher Education Institutions (HEIs as a change management strategy. Whilst the focus of these HEIs is on re-engineering administrative services, there are also tentative attempts to redesign teaching and learning. This paper adopts a case study approach to determine the applicability of BPR to HEIs. The research started from a broad research question: How does organisational culture in HEIs impact on the implementation of BPR programmes? The conclusions drawn from the research are that the organisational culture and structure of HEIs limit the degree of change sought from a BPR project: the focus of the case study HEIs was on incremental process improvement of administrative services. The projects in these institutions were not about radical change. BPR techniques are shown to have something to offer HEIs in terms of co-ordinating administrative activities, but the emphasis on IT and processes in project design means the human resources change necessary for significant gains in efficiency is unlikely.

  3. Scholarly Activities in Hospitality and Tourism Higher Education among Private Higher Institutions in Australia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Goh, Edmund

    2013-01-01

    The purpose of this paper is to explore the notion of scholarship and develop research and scholarship strategies among Private Higher Institutions delivering Tourism and Hospitality degree programs in Australia. In doing so, this paper confronts the traditional view of research publications as the only form of scholarship by traditional…

  4. Economic efficiency analysis of electron accelerator for irradiation processing

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shi Huidong; Chen Ronghui

    2003-01-01

    The fixed assets, running cost and economic efficiency were discussed in this paper. For building electron accelerator of 10 MeV and 3 kW, the running cost is one time higher than building cobalt source at 2.22 x 10 15 Bq, but economic efficiency of building a electron accelerator is much higher than building a cobalt source

  5. Efficient perovskite/organic integrated solar cells with extended photoresponse to 930 nm and enhanced near-infrared external quantum efficiency of over 50.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guo, Qiang; Liu, Hao; Shi, Zhenzhen; Wang, Fuzhi; Zhou, Erjun; Bian, Xingming; Zhang, Bing; Alsaedi, Ahmed; Hayat, Tasawar; Tan, Zhan'ao

    2018-02-15

    Enhancing the light-harvesting activity is an effective way to improve the power conversion efficiency of solar cells. Although rapid enhancement in the PCE up to a value of 22.1% has been achieved for perovskite solar cells, only part of the sunlight, i.e., with wavelengths below 800-850 nm is utilized due to the limited bandgap of the perovskite materials, resulting in most of the near infrared light being wasted. To broaden the photoresponse of perovskite solar cells, we demonstrate an efficient perovskite/organic integrated solar cell containing both CH 3 NH 3 PbI 3 perovskite and PBDTTT-E-T:IEICO organic photoactive layers. By integrating a low band gap PBDTTT-E-T:IEICO active layer on a perovskite layer, the maximum wavelength for light harvesting of the ISC increased to 930 nm, sharply increasing the utilization of near infrared radiation. In addition, the external quantum efficiency of the integrated device exceeded 50% in the near infrared range. The MAPbI 3 /PBDTTT-E-T:IEICO ISCs show an enhanced short-circuit current density of over 24 mA cm -2 , which is the highest existing value among perovskite/organic integrated solar cells and much higher than the traditional MAPbI 3 based perovskite solar cells. The results reveal that a perovskite/organic integrated structure is a promising strategy to extend and enhance sunlight utilization for perovskite solar cells.

  6. Improvement of carrier transport and luminous efficiency of organic light emitting diodes by introducing a co-deposited active layer

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ohtani, Naoki; Murata, Masaya; Kashiwabara, Keiichiro; Kurata, Kazunori, E-mail: ohtani@mail.doshisha.ac.j [Department of Electronics, Doshisha University, 3-1 Tatara-Miyakodani, Kyotanabe-shi, Kyoto 610-0321 (Japan)

    2009-11-15

    We evaluated carrier transport and luminous efficiency of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) whose active regions consist of a single co-deposited layer. One organic material is a hole transport material N,N'-Bis(3-methylphenyl)-N,N'-diphenylbenzidine (TPD), while the other is an electron transport/emissive material Tris(8-hydroxyquinolinato)-aluminum (Alq3). It was found that the luminous efficiency strongly depends on the thickness and the ratio of the TPD:Alq3 co-deposited layer. This indicates that the carrier balance in the active region can be improved by changing the co-deposited layers. In addition, we performed the dye-doping method to clarify the recombination region. As a result, we found that the radiative recombination is caused in the whole TPD:Alq3 co-deposited layer.

  7. Furosemide removal in constructed wetlands: Comparative efficiency of LECA and Cork granulates as support matrix.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Machado, A I; Dordio, A; Fragoso, R; Leitão, A E; Duarte, E

    2017-12-01

    The removal efficiency of LECA and cork granulates as support matrix for pharmaceuticals active compounds in a constructed wetland system was investigated using the diuretic drug Furosemide. Kinetics studies were performed testing three different concentrations of Furosemide in an ultrapure water matrix, along seven days. LECA achieved higher removal values compared to cork granulates. However, cork granulates presented a higher removal in the first 24 h of contact time compared to the other adsorbent. The kinetic studies showed that LECA and cork granulates have different adsorption behaviours for Furosemide which is controlled by different adsorption mechanisms. Both materials showed good removal efficiencies and a combination of the two should be further explored in order to applied both materials as support matrix to cope with different furosemide concentrations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  8. Efficiency simulation of long neutron counter

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu Qingyuan; Li Bojun; Zhang De; Guo Hongsheng; Wang Dong; Yang Gaozhao; Si Fenni; Liu Jian

    2008-01-01

    In order to achieve the high efficiency and uniform sensitivity for neutrons with widely different energies, the efficiency of long boron trifluoride proportional counter imbedded in polyethylene moderator was simulated by MCNP code. The result shows that detective efficiency would increase with increasing moderator radius and response curve at higher energy would be ameliorated through adjusting the thickness of front moderator. Also we calculated the relative efficiencies for different energy of a detector whose efficiencies were calibrated on an accelerator. The simulated efficiency for D-D neutrons (2.4 MeV) is 75% of the efficiency for D-T neutrons (14.1 MeV), which is approximately agreed with experimental data, 61%. The validity of the simulated model was proved by the consistent results between calculation and experiment data. (authors)

  9. Spatiotemporally Representative and Cost-Efficient Sampling Design for Validation Activities in Wanglang Experimental Site

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gaofei Yin

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Spatiotemporally representative Elementary Sampling Units (ESUs are required for capturing the temporal variations in surface spatial heterogeneity through field measurements. Since inaccessibility often coexists with heterogeneity, a cost-efficient sampling design is mandatory. We proposed a sampling strategy to generate spatiotemporally representative and cost-efficient ESUs based on the conditioned Latin hypercube sampling scheme. The proposed strategy was constrained by multi-temporal Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI imagery, and the ESUs were limited within a sampling feasible region established based on accessibility criteria. A novel criterion based on the Overlapping Area (OA between the NDVI frequency distribution histogram from the sampled ESUs and that from the entire study area was used to assess the sampling efficiency. A case study in Wanglang National Nature Reserve in China showed that the proposed strategy improves the spatiotemporally representativeness of sampling (mean annual OA = 74.7% compared to the single-temporally constrained (OA = 68.7% and the random sampling (OA = 63.1% strategies. The introduction of the feasible region constraint significantly reduces in-situ labour-intensive characterization necessities at expenses of about 9% loss in the spatiotemporal representativeness of the sampling. Our study will support the validation activities in Wanglang experimental site providing a benchmark for locating the nodes of automatic observation systems (e.g., LAINet which need a spatially distributed and temporally fixed sampling design.

  10. Environment-adjusted regional energy efficiency in Taiwan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hu, Jin-Li; Lio, Mon-Chi; Yeh, Fang-Yu; Lin, Cheng-Hsun

    2011-01-01

    This study applies the four-stage DEA procedure to calculate the energy efficiency of 23 regions in Taiwan from 1998 to 2007. After controlling for the effects of external environments, only Taipei City, Chiayi City, and Kaohsiung City are energy efficient. Note that Kaohsiung City reaches the efficiency frontier due to the adjustment via partial environmental factors such as higher education attainment and transport vehicles. We also find a worsening trend for Taiwan's energy efficiency. Not only is there a gap of energy efficiency between Taiwan's metropolitan areas and the other regions, but the gap has also widened in recent years. Those inefficient counties should be given priority and the savings potential. Except for road density, the evidence indicates that each environmental factor has partial incremental effects on input slacks. As more cars and motorcycles are unfavorable externalities affecting partial energy efficiency, the central government should help local governments retire inefficient old motor vehicles, encourage energy-saving vehicle models, and provide convenient mass transportation systems. Besides, people with higher education cause industrial energy inefficient in Taiwan. The conscious of effective energy saving is necessary to schools, communities, and employee accordingly.

  11. Photocatalytic Degradation of 4-Nitrophenol by C, N-TiO2: Degradation Efficiency vs. Embryonic Toxicity of the Resulting Compounds

    Science.gov (United States)

    Osin, Oluwatomiwa A.; Yu, Tianyu; Cai, Xiaoming; Jiang, Yue; Peng, Guotao; Cheng, Xiaomei; Li, Ruibin; Qin, Yao; Lin, Sijie

    2018-06-01

    The photocatalytic activity of TiO2 based photocatalysts can be improved by structural modification and elemental doping. In this study, through rational design, one type of carbon and nitrogen co-doped TiO2 (C, N-TiO2) photocatalyst with mesoporous structure was synthesized with improved photocatalytic activity in degrading 4-nitrophenol under simulated sunlight irradiation. The photocatalytic degradation efficiency of the C, N-TiO2 was much higher than the anatase TiO2 (A-TiO2) based on absorbance and HPLC analyses. Moreover, using zebrafish embryos, we showed that the intermediate degradation compounds generated by photocatalytic degradation of 4-nitrophenol had higher toxicity than the parent compound. A repeated degradation process was necessary to render complete degradation and non-toxicity to the zebrafish embryos. Our results demonstrated the importance of evaluating the photocatalytic degradation efficiency in conjunction with the toxicity assessment of the degradation compounds.

  12. The Organizational-Legal Peculiarities of Application of the Remote Labor Mode and Flexible Working Hours of Scientific Workers at Higher Education Institution

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lytovchenko Iryna V.

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available The article is aimed at defining the main organizational-legal peculiarities of application of the remote labor mode, establishing and accounting the flexible working hours of scientific workers at higher educational institutions and scientific institutes. In the course of research the organizational-legal peculiarities of application of the remote labor mode and flexible working hours of the scientific workers at higher education institutions were analyzed. The article suggests their integration into the activities of higher education institution with the purpose of efficient distribution of their working time, provided that the tasks set are fully executed in a timely manner. As the basic means of control of measurement of results of scientific activity it is suggested to use acts of executed works and other absolute indicators (quantity of the processed scientific sources, quantity of the written pages of scientific papers etc.. The prospective direction of further research is development of practical recommendations on the use of special reports and indicators with an assessment of their impact on the results of activities of scientific workers at higher education institutions.

  13. ON THE ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY OF ORGANIZATIONS: TOWARD A SOLUTION OF THE EFFICIENT GOVERNMENT ENTERPRISE PARADOX

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Robert E. Wright

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available The modern widely-held joint-stock corporation appears to epitomize the economically efficient large-scale organization. Some scholars observe, however, that other types of organizations, including government-owned enterprises, have also achieved high degrees of efficiency and that some joint stock corporations have been inefficient. It is here argued that the economic efficiency of organizations is largely a function of two major variables—markets tructure and incentives within the organization—and not organizational form or ownership structure per se. Case studies of two business firms: a mutual life insurer and a family-controlled publisher, and two industries: higher education and custom construction, demonstrate the importance of internal incentives and market structures to organizational economic efficiency.

  14. Approaches to achieve high grain yield and high resource use efficiency in rice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jianchang YANG

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available This article discusses approaches to simultaneously increase grain yield and resource use efficiency in rice. Breeding nitrogen efficient cultivars without sacrificing rice yield potential, improving grain fill in later-flowering inferior spikelets and enhancing harvest index are three important approaches to achieving the dual goal of high grain yield and high resource use efficiency. Deeper root distribution and higher leaf photosynthetic N use efficiency at lower N rates could be used as selection criteria to develop N-efficient cultivars. Enhancing sink activity through increasing sugar-spikelet ratio at the heading time and enhancing the conversion efficiency from sucrose to starch though increasing the ratio of abscisic acid to ethylene in grains during grain fill could effectively improve grain fill in inferior spikelets. Several practices, such as post-anthesis controlled soil drying, an alternate wetting and moderate soil drying regime during the whole growing season, and non-flooded straw mulching cultivation, could substantially increase grain yield and water use efficiency, mainly via enhanced remobilization of stored carbon from vegetative tissues to grains and improved harvest index. Further research is needed to understand synergistic interaction between water and N on crop and soil and the mechanism underlying high resource use efficiency in high-yielding rice.

  15. Vault Nanoparticles Packaged with Enzymes as an Efficient Pollutant Biodegradation Technology.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Meng; Abad, Danny; Kickhoefer, Valerie A; Rome, Leonard H; Mahendra, Shaily

    2015-11-24

    Vault nanoparticles packaged with enzymes were synthesized as agents for efficiently degrading environmental contaminants. Enzymatic biodegradation is an attractive technology for in situ cleanup of contaminated environments because enzyme-catalyzed reactions are not constrained by nutrient requirements for microbial growth and often have higher biodegradation rates. However, the limited stability of extracellular enzymes remains a major challenge for practical applications. Encapsulation is a recognized method to enhance enzymatic stability, but it can increase substrate diffusion resistance, lower catalytic rates, and increase the apparent half-saturation constants. Here, we report an effective approach for boosting enzymatic stability by single-step packaging into vault nanoparticles. With hollow core structures, assembled vault nanoparticles can simultaneously contain multiple enzymes. Manganese peroxidase (MnP), which is widely used in biodegradation of organic contaminants, was chosen as a model enzyme in the present study. MnP was incorporated into vaults via fusion to a packaging domain called INT, which strongly interacts with vaults' interior surface. MnP fused to INT and vaults packaged with the MnP-INT fusion protein maintained peroxidase activity. Furthermore, MnP-INT packaged in vaults displayed stability significantly higher than that of free MnP-INT, with slightly increased Km value. Additionally, vault-packaged MnP-INT exhibited 3 times higher phenol biodegradation in 24 h than did unpackaged MnP-INT. These results indicate that the packaging of MnP enzymes in vault nanoparticles extends their stability without compromising catalytic activity. This research will serve as the foundation for the development of efficient and sustainable vault-based bioremediation approaches for removing multiple contaminants from drinking water and groundwater.

  16. The angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene insertion/ deletion dimorphism tracks with higher serum ace activities in both younger and older subjects

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Frossard, Philippe M.; Hill, Susan H.; Obineche, Enyioma N.; Lestringant, Gilles G.

    1998-01-01

    The absence of a 287 base pair alu sequence in the ACE gene (D allele) is associated with higher ACE levels than its presence (I allele) in adults. We carried out a case control study of thr ACE*I/D dimorphism in relation to circulating ACE activities to evaluate associations between the two variables in adults, compared to younger (18 years or less) individuals. Genotypes of the ACE*I/D dimorphism were determined on DNA samples from a population of 164 random (unrelated) Emirtaes nationals, composed of groups: 112 subjects above 18 years of age (range=20-77), and 52 subjects of 18 years or less (range=1-18) and analyzed for putative associations with serum ACE activities. ACE*I/D genotypes of the 164 individualds were determined by assays based on polymerase chain reaction. ACE activities were determined on serum samples of these subjects bu colorimetric assays. The D allele was associared with increasd ACE values in both adult and younger individuals. Mean ACE activity levels associated with II, ID and DD genotypes, however, were 42%-61% higher in the 18 years and under group of subjects. The ACE*I/D marker accounted for 28% of the variance of the phenomenon determining ACE levels in adults, and for 30% among youngsters. The ACE*I/D dimorphism is correlated strongly with circulating ACE activities in both and young Emirati, subjects and the corresponding mean ACE activities were significantly higher among the youngsters. (author)

  17. A New Design Strategy for Efficient Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence Organic Emitters: From Twisted to Planar Structures

    KAUST Repository

    Chen, Xiankai

    2017-10-17

    In the traditional molecular design of thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) emitters composed of electron-donor and electron-acceptor moieties, achieving a small singlet-triplet energy gap (ΔEST ) in strongly twisted structures usually translates into a small fluorescence oscillator strength, which can significantly decrease the emission quantum yield and limit efficiency in organic light-emitting diode devices. Here, based on the results of quantum-chemical calculations on TADF emitters composed of carbazole donor and 2,4,6-triphenyl-1,3,5-triazine acceptor moieties, a new strategy is proposed for the molecular design of efficient TADF emitters that combine a small ΔEST with a large fluorescence oscillator strength. Since this strategy goes beyond the traditional framework of structurally twisted, charge-transfer type emitters, importantly, it opens the way for coplanar molecules to be efficient TADF emitters. Here, a new emitter, composed of azatriangulene and diphenyltriazine moieties, is theoretically designed, which is coplanar due to intramolecular H-bonding interactions. The synthesis of this hexamethylazatriangulene-triazine (HMAT-TRZ) emitter and its preliminary photophysical characterizations point to HMAT-TRZ as a potential efficient TADF emitter.

  18. Noise-free high-efficiency photon-number-resolving detectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rosenberg, Danna; Lita, Adriana E.; Miller, Aaron J.; Nam, Sae Woo

    2005-01-01

    High-efficiency optical detectors that can determine the number of photons in a pulse of monochromatic light have applications in a variety of physics studies, including post-selection-based entanglement protocols for linear optics quantum computing and experiments that simultaneously close the detection and communication loopholes of Bell's inequalities. Here we report on our demonstration of fiber-coupled, noise-free, photon-number-resolving transition-edge sensors with 88% efficiency at 1550 nm. The efficiency of these sensors could be made even higher at any wavelength in the visible and near-infrared spectrum without resulting in a higher dark-count rate or degraded photon-number resolution

  19. Controlled release of isoproturon, imidacloprid, and cyromazine from alginate-bentonite-activated carbon formulations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garrido-Herrera, F J; Gonzalez-Pradas, E; Fernandez-Pérez, M

    2006-12-27

    Different alginate-based systems of isoproturon, imidacloprid, and cyromazine have been investigated in order to obtain controlled release (CR) properties. The basic formulation [sodium alginate (1.50%), pesticide (0.30%), and water] was modified using different amounts of bentonite and activated carbon. The higher values of encapsulation efficiency corresponded to those formulations prepared with higher percentages of activated carbon, showing higher encapsulation efficiency values for isoproturon and imidacloprid than for cyromazine, which has a higher water solubility. The kinetic experiments of imidacloprid/isoproturon release in water have shown us that the release rate is higher in imidacloprid systems than in those prepared with isoproturon. Moreover, it can be deduced that the use of bentonite and/or activated carbon sorbents reduces the release rate of the isoproturon and imidacloprid in comparison with the technical product and with alginate formulation without modifying agents. The highest decrease in release rate corresponds to the formulations prepared with the highest percentage of activated carbon. The water uptake, permeability, and time taken for 50% of the active ingredient to be released into water, T50, were calculated to compare the formulations. On the basis of a parameter of an empirical equation used to fit the pesticide release data, the release of isoproturon and imidacloprid from the various formulations into water is controlled by a diffusion mechanism. The sorption capacity of the sorbents and the permeability of the formulations were the most important factors modulating pesticide release. Finally, a linear correlation of the T50 values and the content of activated carbon in formulations were obtained.

  20. Fuzzy multi-objective approach for optimal selection of suppliers and transportation decisions in an eco-efficient closed loop supply chain network

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Govindan, Kannan; Darbari, Jyoti Dhingra; Agarwal, Vernika

    2017-01-01

    into the decision making process by selecting environmentally responsible suppliers to procure components based on sustainable criteria, choosing appropriate recovery options for end-of-use (EOU) inkjet printers, and planning an efficient transportation network design for reducing the carbon emission...... activities. A weighted fuzzy mathematical programming approach is utilised for generating a fuzzy, properly efficient solution as the desired compromised solution for the CLSC network problem configuration. The relevance of the model is justified using a real data set derived from a case study of the firm...... with higher sustainable performance and vehicles with lesser emission rate could substantially enhance firm's sustainable image and result in higher profits in the future....

  1. Full solar spectrum light driven thermocatalysis with extremely high efficiency on nanostructured Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst for VOCs purification

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hou, Jingtao; Li, Yuanzhi; Mao, Mingyang; Yue, Yuanzheng; Greaves, G. Neville; Zhao, Xiujian

    2015-01-01

    The nanostructured Ce ion substituted cryptomelane-type octahedral molecular sieve (OMS-2) catalyst exhibits strong absorption in the entire solar spectrum region. The Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst can efficiently transform the absorbed solar energy to thermal energy, resulting in a considerable increase of temperature. By combining the efficient photothermal conversion and thermocatalytic activity of the Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst, we carried out full solar spectrum, visible-infrared, and infrared light driven catalysis with extremely high efficiency. Under the irradiation of full solar spectrum, visible-infrared, and infrared light, the Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst exhibits extremely high catalytic activity and excellent durability for the oxidation of volatile organic pollutants such as benzene, toluene, and acetone. Based on the experimental evidence, we propose a novel mechanism of solar light driven thermocatalysis for the Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst. The reason why the Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst exhibits much higher catalytic activity than pure OMS-2 and CeO2/OMS-2 nano composite under the full solar spectrum irradiation is discussed.The nanostructured Ce ion substituted cryptomelane-type octahedral molecular sieve (OMS-2) catalyst exhibits strong absorption in the entire solar spectrum region. The Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst can efficiently transform the absorbed solar energy to thermal energy, resulting in a considerable increase of temperature. By combining the efficient photothermal conversion and thermocatalytic activity of the Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst, we carried out full solar spectrum, visible-infrared, and infrared light driven catalysis with extremely high efficiency. Under the irradiation of full solar spectrum, visible-infrared, and infrared light, the Ce ion substituted OMS-2 catalyst exhibits extremely high catalytic activity and excellent durability for the oxidation of volatile organic pollutants

  2. Hungary Higher Education Quality Assurance System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Che Ru-shan

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available Higher education quality assurance system has drawn much attention since 1980s. Most countries are committed to build the higher education quality assurance system to meet international standards. Under such an international trend, Hungary also actively promotes higher education reform, and established Hungarian Accreditation Committee and in order to ensure the quality of higher education.

  3. Higher Language Ability is Related to Angular Gyrus Activation Increase During Semantic Processing, Independent of Sentence Incongruency

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Ettinger-Veenstra, Helene; McAllister, Anita; Lundberg, Peter; Karlsson, Thomas; Engström, Maria

    2016-01-01

    This study investigates the relation between individual language ability and neural semantic processing abilities. Our aim was to explore whether high-level language ability would correlate to decreased activation in language-specific regions or rather increased activation in supporting language regions during processing of sentences. Moreover, we were interested if observed neural activation patterns are modulated by semantic incongruency similarly to previously observed changes upon syntactic congruency modulation. We investigated 27 healthy adults with a sentence reading task—which tapped language comprehension and inference, and modulated sentence congruency—employing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We assessed the relation between neural activation, congruency modulation, and test performance on a high-level language ability assessment with multiple regression analysis. Our results showed increased activation in the left-hemispheric angular gyrus extending to the temporal lobe related to high language ability. This effect was independent of semantic congruency, and no significant relation between language ability and incongruency modulation was observed. Furthermore, there was a significant increase of activation in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) bilaterally when the sentences were incongruent, indicating that processing incongruent sentences was more demanding than processing congruent sentences and required increased activation in language regions. The correlation of high-level language ability with increased rather than decreased activation in the left angular gyrus, a region specific for language processing, is opposed to what the neural efficiency hypothesis would predict. We can conclude that no evidence is found for an interaction between semantic congruency related brain activation and high-level language performance, even though the semantic incongruent condition shows to be more demanding and evoking more neural activation. PMID

  4. Higher language ability is related to angular gyrus activation increase during semantic processing, independent of sentence incongruency

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Helene eVan Ettinger-Veenstra

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available This study investigates the relation between individual language ability and neural semantic processing abilities. Our aim was to explore whether high-level language ability would correlate to decreased activation in language-specific regions or rather increased activation in supporting language regions during processing of sentences. Moreover, we were interested if observed neural activation patterns are modulated by semantic incongruency similarly to previously observed changes upon syntactic congruency modulation. We investigated 27 healthy adults with a sentence reading task - which tapped language comprehension and inference, and modulated sentence congruency - employing functional magnetic resonance imaging. We assessed the relation between neural activation, congruency modulation, and test performance on a high-level language ability assessment with multiple regression analysis. Our results showed increased activation in the left-hemispheric angular gyrus extending to the temporal lobe related to high language ability. This effect was independent of semantic congruency, and no significant relation between language ability and incongruency modulation was observed. Furthermore, a significant increase of activation in the inferior frontal gyrus bilaterally when the sentences were incongruent, indicating that processing incongruent sentences was more demanding than processing congruent sentences and required increased activation in language regions. The correlation of high-level language ability with increased rather than decreased activation in the left angular gyrus, a region specific for language processing is opposed to what the neural efficiency hypothesis would predict. We can conclude that there is no evidence found for an interaction between semantic congruency related brain activation and high-level language performance, even though the semantic incongruent condition shows to be more demanding and evoking more neural activation.

  5. Higher concentrations of nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) in soil induced rice chlorosis due to inhibited active iron transportation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Jie; Fang, Zhanqiang; Cheng, Wen; Yan, Xiaomin; Tsang, Pokeung Eric; Zhao, Dongye

    2016-01-01

    In this study, the effects of concentrations 0, 100, 250, 500, 750 and 1000 mg kg"−"1 of nanoscale zero-valent iron (nZVI) on germination, seedlings growth, physiology and toxicity mechanisms were investigated. The results showed that nZVI had no effect on germination, but inhibited the rice seedlings growth in higher concentrations (>500 mg kg"−"1 nZVI). The highest suppression rate of the length of roots and shoots reached 46.9% and 57.5%, respectively. The 1000mg kg"−"1 nZVI caused the highest suppression rates for chlorophyll and carotenoids, at 91.6% and 85.2%, respectively. In addition, the activity of antioxidant enzymes was altered by the translocation of nanoparticles and changes in active iron content. Visible symptoms of iron deficiency were observed at higher concentrations, at which the active iron content decreased 61.02% in the shoots, but the active iron content not decreased in roots. Interestingly, the total and available amounts of iron in the soil were not less than those in the control. Therefore, the plants iron deficiency was not caused by (i) deficiency of available iron in the soil and (ii) restraint of the absorption that plant takes in the available iron, while induced by (ⅲ) the transport of active iron from the root to the shoot was blocked. The cortex tissues were seriously damaged by nZVI which was transported from soil to the root, these were proved by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). This current study shows that the mechanism of iron deficiency in rice seedling was due to transport of active iron from the root to the shoot blocked, which was caused by the uptake of nZVI. - Highlights: • Higher concentrations of nZVI induced iron deficiency in rice seedlings visibly. • nZVI was taken in rice seedlings and transported form root to shoot. • The pathway of active iron transport from root to shoot was inhibited. • The cortex tissues

  6. Increasing the efficiency of organic solar cells by photonic and electrostatic-field enhancements

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nalwa, Kanwar [Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)

    2011-01-01

    Organic photovoltaic (OPV) technology is an attractive solar-electric conversion paradigm due to the promise of low cost roll-to-roll production and amenability to flexible substrates. Power conversion efficiency (PCE) exceeding 7% has recently been achieved. OPV cells suffer from low charge carrier mobilities of polymers, leading to recombination losses, higher series resistances and lower fill-factors. Thus, it is imperative to develop fabrication methodologies that can enable efficient optical absorption in films thinner than optical absorption length. Active layers conformally deposited on light-trapping, microscale textured, grating-type surfaces is one possible approach to achieve this objective. In this study, 40% theoretical increase in photonic absorption over flat OPVs is shown for devices with textured geometry by the simulation results. For verifying this theoretical result and improving the efficiency of OPVs by light trapping, OPVs were fabricated on grating-type textured substrates possessing t pitch and -coat PV active-layer on these textured substrates led to over filling of the valleys and shunts at the crest, which severely affected the performance of the resultant PV devices. Thus, it is established that although the optical design is important for OPV performance but the potential of light trapping can only be effectively tapped if the textures are amenable for realizing a conformal active layer. It is discovered that if the height of the underlying topographical features is reduced to sub-micron regime (e.g. 300 nm) and the pitch is increased to more than a micron (e.g. 2 μm), the textured surface becomes amenable to coating a conformal PV active-layer. The resultant PV cells showed 100% increase in average light absorption near the band edge due to trapping of higher wavelength photons, and 20% improvement in power conversion efficiency as compared with the flat PV cell. Another factor that severely limits the performance of OPVs is

  7. An Analysis of Sources of Technological Change in Efficiency Improvement of Fluorescent Lamp Systems

    Science.gov (United States)

    Imanaka, Takeo

    In Japan, energy efficient fluorescent lamp systems which use “rare-earth phosphors” and “electronic ballasts” have shown rapid diffusion since 1990s. This report investigated sources of technological change in the efficiency improvement of fluorescent lamp systems: (i) Fluorescent lamp and luminaires have been under steady technological development for getting more energy efficient lighting and the concepts to achieve high efficiency had been found in such activities; however, it took long time until they realized and become widely used; (ii) Electronic ballasts and rare-earth phosphors add fluorescent lamp systems not only energy efficiency but also various values such as compactness, lightweight, higher output, and better color rendering properties, which have also been expected and have induced research and development (R&D) (iii) Affordable electronic ballasts are realized by the new technology “power MOSFET” which is based on IC technologies and has been developed for large markets of information and communication technologies and mobile devices; and (iv) Rare-earth phosphors became available after rare-earth industries developed for the purpose of supplying rare-earth phosphors for color television. In terms of sources of technological change, (i) corresponds to “R&D” aiming at the particular purpose i.e. energy efficiency in this case, on the other hand, (ii), (iii), and (iv) correspond to “spillovers” from activities aiming at other purposes. This case exhibits an actual example in which “spillovers” were the critical sources of technological change in energy technology.

  8. Hydrothermal synthesis and photoelectric properties of BiVO4 with different morphologies: An efficient visible-light photocatalyst

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fan Haimei; Wang Dejun; Wang Lingling; Li Haiyan; Wang Ping; Jiang Tengfei; Xie Tengfeng

    2011-01-01

    Different morphologies of monoclinic BiVO 4 with smaller size were hydrothermal synthesized by simply adjusting the amount of surfactant (polyvinyl pyrrolidone PVP K30) added. The detailed field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) analysis revealed that the amount of PVP added could significantly affect the morphology and size of BiVO 4 . Their photocatalytic activities were evaluated by the decolorization of methylene blue (MB) aqueous solution under visible-light irradiation (λ > 400 nm), and the as-prepared sample with well-assembled flower-like morphology showed a much higher photocatalytic activity due to larger specific surface area and higher separation efficiency of photo-induced carriers. The relationship between the behavior of photo-induced carriers and photocatalytic activity was studied using the surface photovoltage spectroscopy (SPS) and corresponding phase spectra.

  9. NDA generic research programme for higher activity waste management issues - 16390

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McKinney, James; Brownridge, Melanie

    2009-01-01

    NDA has a responsibility to ensure decommissioning activities are sufficiently technically underpinned and appropriate Research and Development (Rand D) is carried out. The NDA funds research and development (R and D) indirectly via the Site Licence Companies (SLCs) or directly. The main component of directly funded R and D is the NDA Direct Research Portfolio (DRP). The DRP is split into four framework areas: - University Interactions; - Waste Processing; - Material Characterisation; - Actinide and Strategic Nuclear Materials. These four framework areas were competed through an Official Journal of European Union (OJEU) process in 2008. Although all four areas involve waste management, Waste Processing and Material Characterisation specifically deal with Higher Activity Waste (HAW) waste management issues. The Waste Processing area was awarded to three groups: (i) National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL), (ii) Consortium led by Hyder Consulting Ltd, and (iii) Consortium led by UKAEA Ltd. The Material Characterisation area was awarded to three groups: (i) NNL, (ii) Serco, and (iii) Consortium led by UKAEA Ltd. The initial work in Waste Processing and Material Characterisation was centered on establishing a forward research programme to address the generic needs of the UK civil nuclear industry and the NDA strategic drivers for waste management and land quality. This has been achieved by the four main framework contractors from the Waste Processing and Materials Characterisation areas working together with the NDA to identify the key research themes and begin the development of the NDA's HAW Management Research Programme. The process also involves active engagement with both industry and regulators via the Nuclear Waste Research Forum (NWRF). The NDA's HAW Management Research Programme includes a number of themes: - Optimisation of Interim Store Operation and Design; - Alternative Waste Encapsulants; - Waste Package Integrity; - Alternative Waste treatment methods

  10. Energy efficiency in Finland

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    1997-12-31

    In Finland a significant portion of energy originates from renewable sources and cogeneration, that is, combined production of electricity and heat. Combined heat and electricity production is typical in the Finnish industry and in the district heating sector. One third of all electricity and 15 % of district heating is produced by cogeneration. District heating schemes provide about 45 % of heat in buildings. Overall efficiency in industry exceeds 80 % and is even higher in the district heating sector. In 1996 25 % of Finland`s primary energy was produced from renewable energy sources which is a far higher proportion than the European Union average of 6 %. Finland is one of the leading users of bioenergy. Biomass including peat, provides approximately 50 % of fuel consumed by industry and is utilised in significant amounts in combined heat and electricity plants. For example, in the pulp and paper industry, by burning black liquor and bark during the production of chemical pulp, significant amounts of energy are generated and used in paper mills. Conservation and efficient use of energy are central to the Finnish Government`s Energy Strategy. The energy conservation programme aims to increase energy efficiency by 10-20 % by the year 2010. Energy saving technology plays a key role in making the production and use of energy more efficient. In 1996 of FIM 335 million (ECU 57 million) spent on funding research, FIM 120 million (ECU 20 million) was spent on research into energy conservation

  11. Catalytic efficiency is a better predictor of arsenic toxicity to soil alkaline phosphatase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Ziquan; Tian, Haixia; Lu, Guannan; Zhao, Yiming; Yang, Rui; Megharaj, Mallavarapu; He, Wenxiang

    2018-02-01

    Arsenic (As) is an inhibitor of phosphatase, however, in the complex soil system, the substrate concentration effect and the mechanism of As inhibition of soil alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and its kinetics has not been adequately studied. In this work, we investigated soil ALP activity in response to As pollution at different substrate concentrations in various types of soils and explored the inhibition mechanism using the enzyme kinetics. The results showed that As inhibition of soil ALP activity was substrate concentration-dependent. Increasing substrate concentration decreased inhibition rate, suggesting reduced toxicity. This dependency was due to the competitive inhibition mechanism of As to soil ALP. The kinetic parameters, maximum reaction velocity (V max ) and Michaelis constant (K m ) in unpolluted soils were 0.012-0.267mMh -1 and 1.34-3.79mM respectively. The competitive inhibition constant (K ic ) was 0.17-0.70mM, which was lower than K m , suggesting higher enzyme affinity for As than for substrate. The ecological doses, ED 10 and ED 50 (concentration of As that results in 10% and 50% inhibition on enzyme parameter) for inhibition of catalytic efficiency (V max /K m ) were lower than those for inhibition of enzyme activity at different substrate concentrations. This suggests that the integrated kinetic parameter, catalytic efficiency is substrate concentration independent and more sensitive to As than ALP activity. Thus, catalytic efficiency was proposed as a more reliable indicator than ALP activity for risk assessment of As pollution. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. How to harvest efficient laser from solar light

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhao, Changming; Guan, Zhe; Zhang, Haiyang

    2018-02-01

    Solar Pumped Solid State Lasers (SPSSL) is a kind of solid state lasers that can transform solar light into laser directly, with the advantages of least energy transform procedure, higher energy transform efficiency, simpler structure, higher reliability, and longer lifetime, which is suitable for use in unmanned space system, for solar light is the only form of energy source in space. In order to increase the output power and improve the efficiency of SPSSL, we conducted intensive studies on the suitable laser material selection for solar pump, high efficiency/large aperture focusing optical system, the optimization of concave cavity as the second focusing system, laser material bonding and surface processing. Using bonded and grooved Nd:YAG rod as laser material, large aperture Fresnel lens as the first stage focusing element, concave cavity as the second stage focusing element, we finally got 32.1W/m2 collection efficiency, which is the highest collection efficiency in the world up to now.

  13. Efficient activation of peroxymonosulfate by magnetic Mn-MGO for degradation of bisphenol A

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Du, Jiangkun [School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074 (China); Bao, Jianguo, E-mail: bjianguo@cug.edu.cn [School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074 (China); Liu, Ying; Ling, Haibo; Zheng, Han [School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074 (China); Kim, Sang Hoon, E-mail: kim_sh@kist.re.kr [Center for Materials Architecturing, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul, 136-791 (Korea, Republic of); Dionysiou, Dionysios D., E-mail: dionysios.d.dionysiou@uc.edu [Environmental Engineering and Science Program, Department of Biomedical, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, 705 Engineering Research Center, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH 45221-0012 (United States)

    2016-12-15

    Highlights: Manganese catalyst was immobilized on Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}/graphene hybrids to facilitate magnetic separation. Magnetic manganese catalyst exhibited high efficacy and long-term stability for catalytic PMS activation. The minerlization efficiency and the biotoxicity of BPA byproducts were evaluated. The degradation pathways of BPA and the possible activation mechanism of PMS were proposed. - Abstract: A heterogeneous manganese/magnetite/graphene oxide (Mn-MGO) hybrid catalyst was fabricated through the reduction of KMnO{sub 4} by ethylene glycol in the presence of magnetite/GO (MGO) particles. The Mn-MGO catalyst exhibited high efficacy and long-term stability in activating peroxymonosulfate (PMS) to generate sulfate radicals for the removal of bisphenol A (BPA) from water. The results of the batch experiments indicated that an increase in the catalyst dose and solution pH could enhance BPA degradation in the coupled Mn-MGO/PMS system. Regardless of the initial pH, the solution pH significantly dropped after the reaction, which was caused by catalytic PMS activation. The production of sulfate radicals and hydroxyl radicals was validated through radical quenching and electron paramagnetic resonances (EPR) tests. BPA degradation pathways were proposed on the basis of LC-MS and GC-MS analyses. Finally, a possible mechanism of catalytic PMS activation was proposed that involved electron transfer from MnO or Mn{sub 2}O{sub 3} to PMS with the generation of sulfate radicals, protons and MnO{sub 2}, as well as the simultaneous reduction of MnO{sub 2} by PMS.

  14. Root phosphatase activity, plant growth and phosphorus accumulation of maize genotypes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Machado Cynthia Torres de Toledo

    2004-01-01

    Full Text Available The activity of the enzyme phosphatase (P-ase is a physiological characteristic related to plant efficiency in relation to P acquisition and utilization, and is genetically variable. As part of a study on maize genotype characterization in relation to phosphorus (P uptake and utilization efficiency, two experiments were set up to measure phosphatase (P-ase activity in intact roots of six local and improved maize varieties and two sub-populations. Plants were grown at one P level in nutrient solution (4 mg L-1 and the P-ase activity assay was run using 17-day-old plants for varieties and 24-day-old plants for subpopulations. Shoot and root dry matter yields and P concentrations and contents in plant parts were determined, as well as P-efficiency indexes. Root P-ase activity differed among varieties, and highest enzimatic activities were observed in two local varieties -'Catetão' and 'Caiano' -and three improved varieties -'Sol da Manhã', 'Nitrodente' and 'BR 106'. 'Carioca', a local variety, had the lowest activity. Between subpopulations, 'ND2', with low yielding and poorly P-efficient plants, presented higher root P-ase activity as compared to 'ND10', high yielding and highly P-efficient plants. In general, subpopulations presented lower P-ase activities as compared to varieties. Positive and/or negative correlations were obtained between P-ase activity and P-efficiency characteristics, specific for the genotypes, not allowing inference on a general and clear association between root-secreted phosphatase and dry matter production or P acquisition. Genotypic variability must be known and considered before using P-ase activity as an indicator of P nutritional status, or P tolerance, adaptation and efficiency under low P conditions.

  15. Evolution of deceased organ donation activity vs. efficiency over a 15 year period: an international comparison.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weiss, Julius; Elmer, Andreas; Mahíllo, Beatriz; Domínguez-Gil, Beatriz; Avsec, Danica; Costa, Alessandro Nanni; Haase-Kromwijk, Bernadette J J M; Laouabdia, Karim; Immer, Franz F

    2018-04-19

    The donation rate (DR) per million population is not ideal for an efficiency comparison of national deceased organ donation programs. The DR does not account for variabilities in the potential for deceased donation which mainly depends on fatalities from causes leading to brain death. In this study, the donation activity was put into relation to the mortality from selected causes. Based on that metric, this study assesses the efficiency of different donation programs. This is a retrospective analysis of 2001-2015 deceased organ donation and mortality registry data. Included are 27 Council of Europe countries, as well as the USA. A donor conversion index (DCI) was calculated for assessing donation program efficiency over time and in international comparisons. According to the DCI and of the countries included in the study, Spain, France, and the USA had the most efficient donation programs in 2015. Even though mortality from the selected causes decreased in most countries during the study period, differences in international comparisons persist. This indicates that the potential for deceased organ donation and its conversion into actual donation is far from being similar internationally. Compared with the DR, the DCI takes into account the potential for deceased organ donation, and therefore is a more accurate metric of performance. National donation programs could optimize performance by identifying the areas where most potential is lost, and by implementing measures to tackle these issues.

  16. Fabrication Processes to Generate Concentration Gradients in Polymer Solar Cell Active Layers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inaba, Shusei; Vohra, Varun

    2017-01-01

    Polymer solar cells (PSCs) are considered as one of the most promising low-cost alternatives for renewable energy production with devices now reaching power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) above the milestone value of 10%. These enhanced performances were achieved by developing new electron-donor (ED) and electron-acceptor (EA) materials as well as finding the adequate morphologies in either bulk heterojunction or sequentially deposited active layers. In particular, producing adequate vertical concentration gradients with higher concentrations of ED and EA close to the anode and cathode, respectively, results in an improved charge collection and consequently higher photovoltaic parameters such as the fill factor. In this review, we relate processes to generate active layers with ED–EA vertical concentration gradients. After summarizing the formation of such concentration gradients in single layer active layers through processes such as annealing or additives, we will verify that sequential deposition of multilayered active layers can be an efficient approach to remarkably increase the fill factor and PCE of PSCs. In fact, applying this challenging approach to fabricate inverted architecture PSCs has the potential to generate low-cost, high efficiency and stable devices, which may revolutionize worldwide energy demand and/or help develop next generation devices such as semi-transparent photovoltaic windows. PMID:28772878

  17. Managing the higher risks of low-cost high-efficiency advanced power generation technologies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pearson, M.

    1997-01-01

    Independent power producers operate large coal-fired installations and gas turbine combined-cycle (GTCC) facilities. Combined cycle units are complex and their reliability and availability is greatly influenced by mechanical, instrumentation and control weaknesses. It was suggested that these weaknesses could be avoided by tighter specifications and more rigorous functional testing before acceptance by the owner. For the present, the difficulties of developing reliable, lower installed cost/kw, more efficient GTCC designs, pressure for lower NO x emissions with 'dry' combustors continue to be the most difficult challenges for all GT manufacturers

  18. Higher efficiency with cylinder-bank comprehensive exhaust manifold; Effizienzsteigerung durch Zylinderbank-uebergreifenden Kruemmer

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Diez, Rainer; Kornherr, Heinz; Pirntke, Frank; Schmidt, Juergen [Friedrich Boysen GmbH und Co. KG, Altensteig (Germany)

    2010-05-15

    In close interdisciplinary cooperation with BMW Group, Boysen has developed an air-gap-insulated exhaust manifold that encompasses both banks of the 4.4 l V8 spark-ignition twin turbo engine of the BMW X5 M and BMW X6 M. The manifold merges the exhaust gas flow from the cylinders of the left-hand and right-hand cylinder banks in opposing pairs, thus optimising gas exchange. Due to improvements in response, torque and power characteristics of the engine, the cylinder-bank comprehensive exhaust manifold helps achieve high fuel efficiency. (orig.)

  19. Efficiency of biological activator formulated material (BAFM) for volatile organic compounds removal--preliminary batch culture tests with activated sludge.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corre, Charline; Couriol, Catherine; Amrane, Abdeltif; Dumont, Eric; Andrès, Yves; Le Cloirec, Pierre

    2012-01-01

    During biological degradation, such as biofiltration of air loaded with volatile organic compounds, the pollutant is passed through a bed packed with a solid medium acting as a biofilm support. To improve microorganism nutritional equilibrium and hence to enhance the purification capacities, a Biological Activator Formulated Material (BAFM) was developed, which is a mixture of solid nutrients dissolving slowly in a liquid phase. This solid was previously validated on mineral pollutants: ammonia and hydrogen sulphide. To evaluate the efficiency of such a material for biodegradation of some organic compounds, a simple experiment using an activated sludge batch reactor was carried out. The pollutants (sodium benzoate, phenol, p-nitrophenol and 2-4-dichlorophenol) were in the concentration range 100 to 1200 mg L(-1). The positive impact of the formulated material was shown. The improvement of the degradation rates was in the range 10-30%. This was the consequence of the low dissolution of the nutrients incorporated during material formulation, followed by their consumption by the biomass, as shown for urea used as a nitrogen source. Owing to its twofold interest (mechanical resistance and nutritional supplementation), the Biological Activator Formulated Material seems to be a promising material. Its addition to organic or inorganic supports should be investigated to confirm its relevance for implementation in biofilters.

  20. RADIATION USE EFFICIENCY IN SPRING BARLEY UNDER DROUGHT: A CROSSTALK BETWEEN SURVIVAL STRATEGY AND CANOPY STRUCTURE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter FERUS

    2010-10-01

    Full Text Available In order to evaluate effects of different survival strategy and canopy structure on cereal radiation use efficiency (RUE under drought during grain filling, a pot experiment in spring barley (Hordeum vulgare L. of cultivar Dobla (able for escape, no productive tiller and Kompakt (one productive tiller was conducted. There was no difference in current RUE for leaf dry mass (RUEL between main stems of tested cultivars, observed. However, in productive tillers of cultivar Kompakt it was approximately double. Taking together, RUEL for whole plants was significantly higher in cultivar Kompakt than in cultivar Dobla. Current RUE for spike dry mass (RUES in hydrated plants was markedly higher than RUEL, in main stems of cultivar Kompakt with round double values of cultivar Dobla. Productive tillers of cultivar Kompakt were the most efficient PAR (photosynthetic active radiation utilizator for spike growth. Drought decreased RUES in cultivar Kompakt (in main stems as well as productive tillers to a half but in cultivar Dobla 20 %, only. Evaluating final RUE for spikes, almost fivefold higher values in hydrated plants of cultivar Kompakt fell to double ones under drought. In this context, important role played the productive tiller. Thus, model of more intensively tillering cereal crop seems to be more efficient in radiation use.

  1. Elementary physical education: A focus on fitness activities and smaller class sizes are associated with higher levels of physical activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mandy Kirkham-King

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Optimizing physical activity during physical education is necessary for children to achieve daily physical activity recommendations. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship among various contextual factors with accelerometer measured physical activity during elementary physical education. Data were collected during 2015–2016 from 281 students (1st–5th grade, 137 males, 144 females from a private school located in a metropolitan area of Utah in the U.S. Students wore accelerometers for 12 consecutive weeks at an accelerometer wear frequency of 3days per week during physical education. A multi-level general linear mixed effects model was employed to examine the relationship among various physical education contextual factors and percent of wear time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (%MVPA, accounting for clustering of observations within students and the clustering of students within classrooms. Explored contextual factors included grade level, lesson context, sex, and class size. Main effects and interactions among the factors were explored in the multi-level models. A two-way interaction of lesson context and class size on %MVPA was shown to be statistically significant. The greatest differences were found to be between fitness lessons using small class sizes compared to motor skill lessons using larger class sizes (β=14.8%, 95% C.I. 5.7%–23.9% p<0.001. Lessons that included a focus on fitness activities with class sizes that were <25 students associated with significantly higher %MVPA during elementary physical education. Keywords: Exercise, Physical education and training, Adolescents

  2. Current-flow efficiency of networks

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Kai; Yan, Xiaoyong

    2018-02-01

    Many real-world networks, from infrastructure networks to social and communication networks, can be formulated as flow networks. How to realistically measure the transport efficiency of these networks is of fundamental importance. The shortest-path-based efficiency measurement has limitations, as it assumes that flow travels only along those shortest paths. Here, we propose a new metric named current-flow efficiency, in which we calculate the average reciprocal effective resistance between all pairs of nodes in the network. This metric takes the multipath effect into consideration and is more suitable for measuring the efficiency of many real-world flow equilibrium networks. Moreover, this metric can handle a disconnected graph and can thus be used to identify critical nodes and edges from the efficiency-loss perspective. We further analyze how the topological structure affects the current-flow efficiency of networks based on some model and real-world networks. Our results enable a better understanding of flow networks and shed light on the design and improvement of such networks with higher transport efficiency.

  3. TV Energy Consumption Trends and Energy-Efficiency Improvement Options

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Park, Won Young; Phadke, Amol; Shah, Nihar; Letschert, Virginie

    2011-07-01

    The SEAD initiative aims to transform the global market by increasing the penetration of highly efficient equipment and appliances. SEAD is a government initiative whose activities and projects engage the private sector to realize the large global energy savings potential from improved appliance and equipment efficiency. SEAD seeks to enable high-level global action by informing the Clean Energy Ministerial dialogue as one of the initiatives in the Global Energy Efficiency Challenge. In keeping with its goal of achieving global energy savings through efficiency, SEAD was approved as a task within the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC) in January 2010. SEAD partners work together in voluntary activities to: (1) ?raise the efficiency ceiling? by pulling super-efficient appliances and equipment into the market through cooperation on measures like incentives, procurement, awards, and research and development (R&D) investments; (2) ?raise the efficiency floor? by working together to bolster national or regional policies like minimum efficiency standards; and (3) ?strengthen the efficiency foundations? of programs by coordinating technical work to support these activities. Although not all SEAD partners may decide to participate in every SEAD activity, SEAD partners have agreed to engage actively in their particular areas of interest through commitment of financing, staff, consultant experts, and other resources. In addition, all SEAD partners are committed to share information, e.g., on implementation schedules for and the technical detail of minimum efficiency standards and other efficiency programs. Information collected and created through SEAD activities will be shared among all SEAD partners and, to the extent appropriate, with the global public.As of April 2011, the governments participating in SEAD are: Australia, Brazil, Canada, the European Commission, France, Germany, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Sweden

  4. Synthesis of Phase Pure Hexagonal YFeO3 Perovskite as Efficient Visible Light Active Photocatalyst

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mohammed Ismael

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Hexagonal perovskite YFeO3 was synthesized by a complex-assisted sol-gel technique allowing crystallization at calcination temperatures below 700 °C. As determined by diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS and Tauc plots, the hexagonal YFeO3 exhibits a lower optical band gap (1.81 eV than the orthorhombic structure (about 2.1 eV or even higher being typically obtained at elevated temperatures (>700 °C, and thus enables higher visible light photocatalysis activity. Structure and morphology of the synthesized YFeO3 perovskites were analyzed by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD and nitrogen adsorption, proving that significantly smaller crystallite sizes and higher surface areas are obtained for YFeO3 with a hexagonal phase. The photocatalytic activity of the different YFeO3 phases was deduced via the degradation of the model pollutants methyl orange and 4-chlorophenol. Experiments under illumination with light of different wavelengths, in the presence of different trapping elements, as well as photoelectrochemical tests allow conclusions regarding band positions of YFeO3 and the photocatalytic degradation mechanism. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicates that a very thin layer of Y2O3 might support the photocatalysis by improving the separation of photogenerated charge carriers.

  5. Ceria modified activated carbon: an efficient arsenic removal adsorbent for drinking water purification

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sawana, Radha; Somasundar, Yogesh; Iyer, Venkatesh Shankar; Baruwati, Babita

    2017-06-01

    Ceria (CeO2) coated powdered activated carbon was synthesized by a single step chemical process and demonstrated to be a highly efficient adsorbent for the removal of both As(III) and As(V) from water without any pre-oxidation process. The formation of CeO2 on the surface of powdered activated carbon was confirmed by X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The percentage of Ce in the adsorbent was confirmed to be 3.5 % by ICP-OES. The maximum removal capacity for As(III) and As(V) was found to be 10.3 and 12.2 mg/g, respectively. These values are comparable to most of the commercially available adsorbents. 80 % of the removal process was completed within 15 min of contact time in a batch process. More than 95 % removal of both As(III) and As(V) was achieved within an hour. The efficiency of removal was not affected by change in pH (5-9), salinity, hardness, organic (1-4 ppm of humic acid) and inorganic anions (sulphate, nitrate, chloride, bicarbonate and fluoride) excluding phosphate. Presence of 100 ppm phosphate reduced the removal significantly from 90 to 18 %. The equilibrium adsorption pattern of both As(III) and As(V) fitted well with the Freundlich model with R 2 values 0.99 and 0.97, respectively. The material shows reusability greater than three times in a batch process (arsenic concentration reduced below 10 ppb from 330 ppb) and a life of at least 100 L in a column study with 80 g material when tested under natural hard water (TDS 1000 ppm, pH 7.8, hardness 600 ppm as CaCO3) spiked with 330 ppb of arsenic.

  6. Efficient oxygen electrocatalysis on special active sites

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Halck, Niels Bendtsen

    throughout this thesis to understand these local structure effects and their influence on surface reactions. The concept of these special active sites is used to explain how oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysts can have activities beyond the limits of what was previously thought possible. The concept...... stored in these bonds in an eco-friendly fashion in fuel cells. This thesis explores catalysts for oxygen electrocatalysis and how carefully designed local structures on catalysts surfaces termed special active sites can influence the activity. Density functional theory has been used as a method...... is used to explain the increase in activity observed for the OER catalyst ruthenium dioxide when it is mixed with nickel or cobalt. Manganese and cobalt oxides when in the vicinity of gold also display an increase in OER activity which can be explained by locally created special active sites. Density...

  7. The role of customers in higher education: Are students active stakeholders?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zoran Mihanović

    2007-07-01

    Full Text Available As the primary subject of research, this paper puts forward the issue of students’ role in Croatian institutions of higher education, taking into consideration the multiplicity of constituents and the complexity of relationships established by an institution of higher education with target groups as potential donors. In order to determine the position of students in higher education in relation to a dependency on the sources of financing, the research includes students as the main target group as well as potential students and the competent Ministry. They are the ones the institution of higher education establishes relations with, while representing a source of financing at the same time. For the purpose of research a model was created and the research carried out in May and June 2006 on a sample that included all public colleges in Croatia (87 of them, with their executives participating as respondents. According to research results, institutions of higher education, whether being largely financed by students or the Ministry, have not focused sufficiently on students or potential students. There are significant differences in the orientation of institutions of higher education to the Ministry. The institutions that are mainly financed by students show a higher degree of orientation toward the Ministry than those financed by the Ministry itself. Both the orientation and development of the relationships with students and potential students depend on the financing sources of institutions of higher education in Croatia. Therefore, students are not recognized as primary/original partners of the Croatian higher education and, in accordance with the mission and objectives of education, they are not adequately taken care of.

  8. Reconfiguring the Higher Education Value Chain

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pathak, Virendra; Pathak, Kavita

    2010-01-01

    Forces of demand and supply are changing the dynamics of the higher education market. Transformation of institutions of higher learning into competitive enterprise is underway. Higher education institutions are seemingly under intense pressure to create value and focus their efforts and scarce funds on activities that drive up value for their…

  9. Sustained availability of trimethoprim in drinking water to achieve higher plasma sulphonamide-trimethoprim antibacterial activity in broilers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sumano, H; Hernandez, L; Gutierrez, L; Bernad-Bernad, M J

    2005-02-01

    (1) In order to make trimethoprim (TMP) available to broilers throughout the day, a sustained release formulation (SRF) of the drug in the form of granules was added to the water tank that supplies drinking water. (2) Broilers were initially dosed with sulphachloropiridazine-TMP (SCP-TMP 5:1) and then further medicated throughout the day, achieving in the end a dose of 30 mg/kg each of SCP and TMP (group A). Group B received a preparation with the same dose of SCP and TMP (1:1) as group A, but administered as a single dose without the SRF of TMP. Group C received the customary SCP-TMP 5:1 preparation (30 and 6 mg/kg, respectively). Water tanks were completely consumed in 3 to 4 h. (3) Broilers were bled at different times and concentration of antibacterial activity in serum determined by correlating the composite antibacterial activity of SCP and TMP with actual concentrations of these drugs by means of a microbiological agar diffusion assay. (4) Time vs serum concentrations of activity were higher in group B; the increments in the maximum serum concentration for group B over groups A and C being 39 and 67%, respectively. (5) However, the sustained concentration of activity over time, measured as the area under the cu)rve, was highest in group A. Group B had higher values for area under the curve than group C. (6) An additional dose of TMP to achieve 30 mg/kg of both SCP and TMP improves the serum concentration of this combination over the customary 5:1 proportion. The best values for sustaining antibacterial activity were obtained using a 1:1 ratio as in group A. The use of a SRF as in group A may translate into better clinical results.

  10. Kinetics and equilibrium models for the sorption of tributyltin to nZnO, activated carbon and nZnO/activated carbon composite in artificial seawater

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ayanda, Olushola S.; Fatoki, Olalekan S.; Adekola, Folahan A.; Ximba, Bhekumusa J.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • Removal of tributyltin from artificial seawater using nZnO/activated carbon and its precursors was studied. • Detailed equilibrium and kinetic studies were reported. • Adsorption conditions were optimized and applied to natural seawater. • Higher removal efficiency of TBT was obtained for the composite and activated carbon except nZnO. • TBT concentration was determine by GC-FPD following derivatization. -- Abstract: The removal of tributyltin (TBT) from artificial seawater using nZnO, activated carbon and nZnO/activated carbon composite was systematically studied. The equilibrium and kinetics of adsorption were investigated in a batch adsorption system. Equilibrium adsorption data were analyzed using Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin and Dubinin–Radushkevich (D–R) isotherm models. Pseudo first- and second-order, Elovich, fractional power and intraparticle diffusion models were applied to test the kinetic data. Thermodynamic parameters such as ΔG°, ΔS° and ΔH° were also calculated to understand the mechanisms of adsorption. Optimal conditions for the adsorption of TBT from artificial seawater were then applied to TBT removal from natural seawater. A higher removal efficiency of TBT (>99%) was obtained for the nZnO/activated carbon composite material and for activated carbon but not for nZnO

  11. Towards Deeper Comprehension in Higher Engineering Education: "Method of Cornerstones"

    Science.gov (United States)

    Korpela, Aki; Tarhasaari, Timo; Kettunen, Lauri; Mikkonen, Risto; Kinnari-Korpela, Hanna

    2016-01-01

    During the current millennium, universities have faced a new kind of problem: there is not enough higher learning in higher education. Driving forces have mainly been economical, since financial pressure and effort for increasing efficiency have given rise to growing amount of accessed and graduated students. In addition, a pressure for…

  12. Development of a higher-efficiency tubular cavity receiver for direct steam generation on a dish concentrator

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pye, John; Hughes, Graham; Abbasi, Ehsan; Asselineau, Charles-Alexis; Burgess, Greg; Coventry, Joe; Logie, Will; Venn, Felix; Zapata, José

    2016-05-01

    An integrated model for an axisymmetric helical-coil tubular cavity receiver is presented, incorporating optical ray-tracing for incident solar flux, radiosity analysis for thermal emissions, computational fluid dynamics for external convection, and a one-dimensional hydrodynamic model for internal flow-boiling of water. A receiver efficiency of 98.7% is calculated, for an inlet/outlet temperature range of 60-500 °C, which is the ratio of fluid heating to receiver incident irradiance. The high-efficiency design makes effective use of non-uniform flux in its non-isothermal layout, matching lower temperature regions to areas of lower flux. Full-scale testing of the design will occur in late 2015.

  13. Energy Efficiency Indicators Methodology Booklet

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sathaye, Jayant; Price, Lynn; McNeil, Michael; de la rue du Can, Stephane

    2010-05-01

    This Methodology Booklet provides a comprehensive review and methodology guiding principles for constructing energy efficiency indicators, with illustrative examples of application to individual countries. It reviews work done by international agencies and national government in constructing meaningful energy efficiency indicators that help policy makers to assess changes in energy efficiency over time. Building on past OECD experience and best practices, and the knowledge of these countries' institutions, relevant sources of information to construct an energy indicator database are identified. A framework based on levels of hierarchy of indicators -- spanning from aggregate, macro level to disaggregated end-use level metrics -- is presented to help shape the understanding of assessing energy efficiency. In each sector of activity: industry, commercial, residential, agriculture and transport, indicators are presented and recommendations to distinguish the different factors affecting energy use are highlighted. The methodology booklet addresses specifically issues that are relevant to developing indicators where activity is a major factor driving energy demand. A companion spreadsheet tool is available upon request.

  14. Service-learning in higher education relevant to the promotion of physical activity, healthful eating, and prevention of obesity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Richard R Rosenkranz

    2012-01-01

    Full Text Available Service-learning is a type of experiential teaching and learning strategy combining classroom instruction and meaningful community service and guided activities for reflection. This educational approach has been used frequently in higher education settings, including an array of disciplines such as medicine, theology, public health, physical education, nutrition, psychology, anthropology, and sociology. The purpose of the present review paper was to provide guidance on the use of service-learning within higher education, relevant to the preventive medicine and public health topics of healthful eating, physical activity, and obesity prevention. In service-learning, coursework is structured to address community needs, and to benefit students through the real-world application of knowledge. The benefits for students include positive impacts on social skills, empathy, awareness, understanding, and concern regarding community issues, plus greater confidence and skills to work with diverse populations, increased awareness of community resources, improved motivation, and enhanced knowledge. Educational institutions may also benefit through improved "town and gown" relations, as strong ties, partnerships, and mutually beneficial activities take place. The present literature review describes several service-learning applications such as nutrition education for kids, dietary improvement for seniors, foodservice recipe modification on a college campus, an intergenerational physical activity program for nursing home residents, motor skill development in kindergarteners, organized elementary school recess physical activities, health education, and obesity prevention in children. From this review, service-learning appears to have great potential as a flexible component of academic coursework in the areas of preventive medicine and public health.

  15. Service-learning in Higher Education Relevant to the Promotion of Physical Activity, Healthful Eating, and Prevention of Obesity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rosenkranz, Richard R

    2012-10-01

    Service-learning is a type of experiential teaching and learning strategy combining classroom instruction and meaningful community service and guided activities for reflection. This educational approach has been used frequently in higher education settings, including an array of disciplines such as medicine, theology, public health, physical education, nutrition, psychology, anthropology, and sociology. The purpose of the present review paper was to provide guidance on the use of service-learning within higher education, relevant to the preventive medicine and public health topics of healthful eating, physical activity, and obesity prevention. In service-learning, coursework is structured to address community needs, and to benefit students through the real-world application of knowledge. The benefits for students include positive impacts on social skills, empathy, awareness, understanding, and concern regarding community issues, plus greater confidence and skills to work with diverse populations, increased awareness of community resources, improved motivation, and enhanced knowledge. Educational institutions may also benefit through improved "town and gown" relations, as strong ties, partnerships, and mutually beneficial activities take place. The present literature review describes several service-learning applications such as nutrition education for kids, dietary improvement for seniors, foodservice recipe modification on a college campus, an intergenerational physical activity program for nursing home residents, motor skill development in kindergarteners, organized elementary school recess physical activities, health education, and obesity prevention in children. From this review, service-learning appears to have great potential as a flexible component of academic coursework in the areas of preventive medicine and public health.

  16. Transparent nickel selenide used as counter electrode in high efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Jia, Jinbiao; Wu, Jihuai, E-mail: jhwu@hqu.edu.cn; Tu, Yongguang; Huo, Jinghao; Zheng, Min; Lin, Jianming

    2015-08-15

    Highlights: • A transparent Ni{sub 0.85}Se is prepared by a facile solvothermal reaction. • Ni{sub 0.85}Se electrode has better electrocatalytic activity than Pt electrode. • DSSC with Ni{sub 0.85}Se electrode obtains efficiency of 8.88%, higher than DSSC with Pt. • DSSC with Ni{sub 0.85}Se/mirror electrode achieves an efficiency of 10.19%. - Abstract: A transparent nickel selenide (Ni{sub 0.85}Se) is prepared by a facile solvothermal reaction and used as an efficient Pt-free counter electrode (CE) for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Field emission scanning electron microscopy observes that the as-prepared Ni{sub 0.85}Se possesses porous structure. Cyclic voltammogram measurement indicates that Ni{sub 0.85}Se electrode has larger current density than Pt electrode. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy shows that the Ni{sub 0.85}Se electrode has lower charge-transfer resistance than Pt electrode. Under simulated solar light irradiation with intensity of 100 mW cm{sup −2} (AM 1.5), the DSSC based on the Ni{sub 0.85}Se CE achieves a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 8.88%, which is higher than the solar cell based on Pt CE (8.13%). Based on the transparency of Ni{sub 0.85}Se, the DSSC with Ni{sub 0.85}Se/mirror achieves a PCE of 10.19%.

  17. Competition and Performance in European Higher Education

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Teixeira, Pedro; Biscaia, Ricardo; Rocha, Vera

    2014-01-01

    Higher education institutions face today a demanding and complex context in which they are asked to fulfill multiple roles. Many of these challenges have to be faced in a complex financial context in which traditional modes of funding have been transformed and public sources are not as generous...... as they often were in the past.Like in many other public services, in recent years it became a rather common statement that higher education institutions should be more efficient in the use of taxpayers’ resources, which had a clear impact in visible changes in the funding of public higher education in Europe....... In this paper we will analyse the major trends in higher education funding in Europe and underline to what extent the current debates about higher education and its funding have been significantly influenced by economic considerations. We will identify some of the main issues that dominate the current debate...

  18. Nitrogen-doped graphene as transparent counter electrode for efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Guiqiang; Fang, Yanyan; Lin, Yuan; Xing, Wei; Zhuo, Shuping

    2012-01-01

    Graphical abstract: Display Omitted Highlights: ► NG sheets are prepared through a hydrothermal reduction of graphite oxide. ► The transparent NG counter electrodes of DSCs are fabricated at room temperature. ► Transparent NG electrode exhibits excellent catalytic activity for the reduction of I 3 − . ► The DSC with NG electrode achieves a comparable efficiency to that of the Pt-based cell. ► The efficiency of rear illumination is about 85% that of front illumination. -- Abstract: Nitrogen-doped graphene sheets are prepared through a hydrothermal reduction of graphite oxide in the presence of ammonia and applied to fabricate the transparent counter electrode of dye-sensitized solar cells. The atomic percentage of nitrogen in doped graphene sample is about 2.5%, and the nitrogen bonds display pyridine and pyrrole-like configurations. Cyclic voltammetry studies demonstrate a much higher electrocatalytic activity toward I − /I 3 − redox reaction for nitrogen-doped graphene, as compared with pristine graphene. The dye-sensitized solar cell with this transparent nitrogen-doped graphene counter electrode shows conversion efficiencies of 6.12% and 5.23% corresponding to front-side and rear-side illumination, respectively. Meanwhile, the cell with a Pt counter electrode shows a conversion efficiency of 6.97% under the same experimental condition. These promising results highlight the potential application of nitrogen-doped graphene in cost-effective, transparent dye-sensitized solar cells.

  19. Highly efficient exciplex organic light-emitting diodes using thermally activated delayed fluorescent emitters as donor and acceptor materials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jeon, Sang Kyu; Yook, Kyoung Soo; Lee, Jun Yeob

    2016-06-01

    Highly efficient exciplex type organic light-emitting diodes were developed using thermally activated delayed fluorescent emitters as donors and acceptors of an exciplex. Blue emitting bis[4-(9,9-dimethyl-9,10-dihydroacridine)phenyl]sulfone (DMAC-DPS) was a donor and 9,9‧-(5-(4,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl)-1,3-phenylene)bis(9H-carbazole) (DDCzTrz) and 9,9‧,9″-(5-(4,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-triazin-2-yl)benzene-1,2,3-triyl)tris(9H-carbazole) (TCzTrz) were acceptor materials. The exciplexes of DMAC-DPS:TCzTrz and DMAC-DPS:DDCzTrz resulted in high photoluminescence quantum yield and high quantum efficiency in the green exciplex organic light-emitting diodes. High quantum efficiencies of 13.4% and 15.3% were obtained in the DMAC-DPS:DDCzTrz and DMAC-DPS:TCzTrz exciplex devices.

  20. Energy Efficient Hydraulic Hybrid Drives

    OpenAIRE

    Rydberg, Karl-Erik

    2009-01-01

    Energy efficiency of propulsion systems for cars, trucks and construction machineries has become one of the most important topics in today’s mobile system design, mainly because of increased fuel costs and new regulations about engine emissions, which is needed to save the environment. To meet the increased requirements on higher efficiency and better functionality, components and systems have been developed over the years. For the last ten years the development of hybrid systems can be divid...

  1. Directed modification of L-LcLDH1, an L-lactate dehydrogenase from Lactobacillus casei, to improve its specific activity and catalytic efficiency towards phenylpyruvic acid.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Jian-Fang; Li, Xue-Qing; Liu, Yan; Yuan, Feng-Jiao; Zhang, Ting; Wu, Min-Chen; Zhang, Ji-Ru

    2018-05-22

    To improve the specific activity and catalytic efficiency of L-LcLDH1, an NADH-dependent allosteric L-lactate dehydrogenase from L. casei, towards phenylpyruvic acid (PPA), its directed modification was conducted based on the semi-rational design. The three variant genes, Lcldh1 Q88R , Lcldh1 I229A and Lcldh1 T235G , were constructed by whole-plasmid PCR as designed theoretically, and expressed in E. coli BL21(DE3), respectively. The purified mutant, L-LcLDH1 Q88R or L-LcLDH1 I229A , displayed the specific activity of 451.5 or 512.4 U/mg towards PPA, by which the asymmetric reduction of PPA afforded L-phenyllactic acid (PLA) with an enantiomeric excess (ee p ) more than 99%. Their catalytic efficiencies (k cat /K m ) without D-fructose-1,6-diphosphate (D-FDP) were 4.8- and 5.2-fold that of L-LcLDH1. Additionally, the k cat /K m values of L-LcLDH1 Q88R and L-LcLDH1 I229A with D-FDP were 168.4- and 8.5-fold higher than those of the same enzymes without D-FDP, respectively. The analysis of catalytic mechanisms by molecular docking (MD) simulation indicated that substituting I229 in L-LcLDH1 with Ala enlarges the space of substrate-binding pocket, and that the replacement of Q88 with Arg makes the inlet of pocket larger than that of L-LcLDH1. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Innovative Activity in the Formation of Cross-Cultural Communication and Self-Study Skills in the Pedagogical Higher Educational Establishment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Galustov Ambarcum Robertovich

    2017-09-01

    Full Text Available The field of education in Russia is a priority. It is necessary for modern education to meet the challenges of advancing development of society. A specialist who received Bachelor’s or Master’s degree or a post-graduate should possess professional skills in foreign languages and cross-cultural communication. The development of production and non-production spheres depends on it as well as the general education of our younger generation in particular. Development of cross-cultural communication to a great extent enables the formation of morality, professional development of students at the university. The article analyzes the possibilities of innovative activity in the conditions of the educational environment of pedagogical higher educational establishment for the formation of cross-cultural communication, taking into account the technological and creative approach. The components of the educational environment of pedagogical higher educational establishment are considered as stages: class work, self-cognitive activity in line with the self-education, student’s scientific and research work, practice, extracurricular vocational leisure activity, – in terms of the inclusion of students into cross-cultural communication.

  3. Marketing communications of higher education institutions in the Republic of Serbia

    OpenAIRE

    Popović Ana

    2015-01-01

    In order to face increasing competition on the market and address other new challenges, higher education institutions (HEIs) started to apply new business approaches which led to the development of higher education management and marketing. As efficient marketing communications are necessary for survival and development on higher education market, topics related to this field have had a distinct place in higher education marketing since the establishment of this discipline. Various strategies...

  4. Efficient degradation of carbamazepine by easily recyclable microscaled CuFeO_2 mediated heterogeneous activation of peroxymonosulfate

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ding, Yaobin; Tang, Hebin; Zhang, Shenghua; Wang, Songbo; Tang, Heqing

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • CuFeO_2 microparticles were prepared by a microwave-assisted hydrothermal method. • CuFeO_2 microparticles efficiently catalyzed the activation of peroxymonosulfate. • Quenching experiments confirmed sulfate radicals as the major reactive radicals. • Carbamazepine was rapidly degraded by micro-CuFeO_2/peroxymonosulfate. • Feasibility of CuFeO_2/peroxymonosulfate was tested for treatment of actual water. - Abstract: Microscaled CuFeO_2 particles (micro-CuFeO_2) were rapidly prepared via a microwave-assisted hydrothermal method and characterized by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. It was found that the micro-CuFeO_2 was of pure phase and a rhombohedral structure with size in the range of 2.8 ± 0.6 μm. The micro-CuFeO_2 efficiently catalyzed the activation of peroxymonosulfate (PMS) to generate sulfate radicals (SO_4·−), causing the fast degradation of carbamazepine (CBZ). The catalytic activity of micro-CuFeO_2 was observed to be 6.9 and 25.3 times that of micro-Cu_2O and micro-Fe_2O_3, respectively. The enhanced activity of micro-CuFeO_2 for the activation of PMS was confirmed to be attributed to synergistic effect of surface bonded Cu(I) and Fe(III). Sulfate radical was the primary radical species responsible for the CBZ degradation. As a microscaled catalyst, micro-CuFeO_2 can be easily recovered by gravity settlement and exhibited improved catalytic stability compared with micro-Cu_2O during five successive degradation cycles. Oxidative degradation of CBZ by the couple of PMS/CuFeO_2 was effective in the studied actual aqueous environmental systems.

  5. Towards a higher energy efficiency and lower carbon society the European approach and experience

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hein, Klaus R.G.

    2010-01-01

    The use of natural energy sources and their conversion to secondary forms of energy are a crucial base for the development of our society with its continuous change of requirements due to an increase in population and the broadening of the needs in our modern life. As a consequence the consumption of primary energy resources rose drastically worldwide during the last 5 decades in particular in the industrialized regions such as Europe. Parallel in time the increasing awareness of negative effects of fuel dependent pollution on the environment and the introduction of stringent emission control regulations about 3 decades ago initiated extensive development and retrofit activities resulting in the today applied high level state of the art. As an additional challenge the worldwide debate about the potential effects of the emission of the s.c green house gases on the global climate in particular carbon dioxide from the use of predominantly fossil fuels have initiated in the European Union extensive efforts in efficiency improvements of large scale fuel conversion and more recently in the development of processes for CO 2 capture and its subsequent storage. Furthermore the use of the s.c CO 2 neutral fuels such as biomass and organic wastes as well as the non carbonaceous options water wind and solar power are promoted towards a growing role in a future primary energy mix. In addition the majority of the member states of the European Union support the minimization of energetic losses by the provision of incentives for energy savings and for switching to lower energy consuming alternatives. In fact all the above mentioned instruments have to be applied in order to fulfil the long term requirements e. g. a reduction of the greenhouse gas emission by at least 20% by 2020 and further alleviations for the time beyond. The presentation will start with summarizing the development of the demand and supply of energy in Europe during the recent decades. After an outline of the

  6. Chemical Compositions and Macrophage Activation of Polysaccharides from Leon's Mane Culinary-Medicinal Mushroom Hericium erinaceus (Higher Basidiomycetes) in Different Maturation Stages.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Qiao-Zhen; Wu, Di; Chen, Xia; Zhou, Shuai; Liu, Yanfang; Yang, Yan; Cui, Fengjie

    2015-01-01

    We studied the effect of the maturation stage on the chemical compositions and macrophage activation activity of polysaccharides from the culinary-medicinal mushroom Hericium erinaceus. Results showed that total polysaccharides increased, whereas protein content decreased with the maturation stage development of fruiting body. Nine polysaccharide fractions, 3 from each of the maturity stages IV (small fungal spine stage), V (mid-fungal spine stage) and VI (mature), were prepared using the gradient ethanol precipitation method. The polysaccharide fraction HP4A isolated from the maturating-stage (stage IV) fruiting body had a significant difference from the fractions HP5A (stage V) and HP6A (stage VI) in the molecular weight distribution and monosaccharide compositions. Immunostimulating tests revealed that the polysaccharide fraction HP6 isolated from the mature stage (stage VI) fruiting body presented higher macrophage activation activity. Our findings provided important information for the harvest and use of H. erinaceus with higher qualities and functional benefits.

  7. The Internationalisation of Portuguese Higher Education: How Are Higher Education Institutions Facing this New Challenge?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Veiga, Amelia; Rosa, Maria Joao; Amara, Alberto

    2006-01-01

    Portuguese internationalisation policies essentially intend to promote an attitude favouring participation in internationalisation activities. However, as higher education institutions are autonomous, those policies aim at creating opportunities for development and management of these activities instead of imposing them. In this article we attempt…

  8. Readiness of educational activity subjects for results-oriented cooperation in the inclusive educational practice of higher school

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vladimir Ts. Tsyrenov

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available The relevance of the research is due to the necessity of integration of persons with health limitations and disabilities into the educational space of higher education institutions. With regard to this, the paper is aimed at finding out the extent of readiness of the educational activity subjects for results-oriented cooperation in inclusive educational practice of the higher school. The leading approach to studying this problem is the retrospective interdisciplinary analysis that allows an integrated consideration of the universities' readiness for full-fledged integration of people with health limitations and disabilities into the educational process. In the paper, the results of research into students' attitude toward the disabled and HL people and their readiness for results-oriented cooperation are presented, and the specific problems of psychological and social support rendering are described. The value references system of students with health limitations and disabilities has been found out, and grounds have been provided for having to include the subjects that form a tolerant attitude to special needs people into the student-training content. It has also been proven that qualified professional training has to be ensured for the academic teaching staff, infrastructure has to be provided, and an integrated program has to be developed that would allow personifying the academic process adjusted for the development particularities of students with health limitations. The materials of the paper are of practical importance for educational activity subjects involved into the higher-school inclusive educational practice.

  9. Potassium efficiency of wheat and sugar beet evaluated under field conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    El Dessougi, H. I.; Claassen, N.; Steingrobe, B.

    2011-01-01

    This study was conducted to investigate the potassium (K) efficiency of wheat and sugar beet under field conditions and to identify the varying mechanisms or factors behind their efficiency. Data were obtained from a long term fertilizer experiment, on a K (fixing) sandy clay loam in Bavaria, southern Germany, in which K fertilization rates varied from 0 to 1000 kg K ha - 1 year - 1 with the last K application in 1986. In 2003, sugar beet and spring wheat were sown on March 13 t h and April 4 t h respectively. At 4 and 5 harvests for wheat and sugar beet, respectively, random samples of shoots, roots and soil of each species from the unfertilized (-K) and the highest fertilizer level of 1000 kg K ha - 1 (+K) treatments were analyzed. Sugar beet and wheat had similar K efficiency producing 76% and 80% beet and grain yield on unfertilized compared with fertilized treatments, respectively. As compared to wheat, sugar beet had a higher internal K requirement, two times higher shoots growth rate (GRs), 34% to 48% of the wheat root length (RL), and consequently a larger GR/RL, that is higher demand for K uptake on the roots. However, sugar beet showed an exceptionally high uptake efficiency of the single roots or influx, which was 5 times higher in unfertilized treatments, as compared with wheat. Wheat K efficiency was attributed to a higher utilization efficiency or lower internal requirement, slow growing shoots and a large root system. Further investigations are necessary to study the mechanism by which sugar beet was able to achieve a higher influx than wheat.(Author)

  10. STUDIES ON THE EFFICIENCY OF GRUNDWATER TREATMENT PROCESS WITH ADSORPTION ON ACTIVATED ALUMINA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ewa Szatyłowicz

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available The one of inorganic sorbents used in water treatment technology is activated alumina. Recommended by the European Commission to remove inorganic impurities, such as arsenic, fluoride, selenium and silicates. The adsorbent is usually applied in granular form, under flow conditions. It can become absorbent material increasingly used due to the presence of arsenic beside iron and manganese in groundwater intakes. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of groundwater treatment in the technological system containing adsorption on activated alumina. The experiment was performed on test model CE 581 manufactured by G.U.N.T. Hamburg, in which can extract four treatment stages. The first stage is used in a gravel filter of grain size 1-2 mm, in the second sand filter of grain size 0.4-0.8 mm. The third and fourth phase includes two adsorbers. The first adsorber comprises activated alumina (Al2O3 and the other comprises a granular activated carbon. The study was conducted at different speeds of filtration: 5, 10 and 15 m/h. In the raw water samples and the purified water samples after each treatment step were determined the following parameters: pH, O2 concentration, electrolytic conductivity, SO42-, concentration, NO3- concentration, PO43- concentration, Cl-concentration, color, turbidity, iron and manganese concentration, CODMn, total hardness, calcium hardness, magnesium hardness, content of dissolved substances. Conducted research indicates that optimum filtration rate for most pollution is 15 m/h. Moreover, the presence of activated alumina has contributed to increasing the efficiency of nitrate (V and phosphate (V ions removal.

  11. Stimulating energy-efficient innovations in the Dutch building sector: Empirical evidence from patent counts and policy lessons

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Noailly, Joelle; Batrakova, Svetlana

    2010-01-01

    In the Netherlands where the building sector accounts for 33% of carbon emissions, the government aims to halve the total energy use from buildings by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. To this end, the Dutch government has set specific goals in order to foster technological innovation related to energy efficiency in buildings. The objective of this paper is to explore the links between technological innovation and public policies in this sector over the last 30 years. The paper aims (1) to measure the evolution of innovations related to energy efficiency in buildings in the Netherlands using patent counts and (2) to provide a historical overview of the policy framework. Descriptive data on patenting activities show that the Netherlands have a clear comparative advantage in the field of energy-saving lighting technologies, mainly due to intensive patenting activities by Philips. High-efficiency boilers also represent a substantial share of Dutch innovation activities in this domain over the last decades. In many other fields (such as insulation, heat-pumps and cogeneration, solar boilers, etc.), however, Germany, Austria and Scandinavian countries rank much higher than the Netherlands. The descriptive analysis of Dutch energy policy shows an intensification of energy policy in the mid-1990s, followed by a slight decline after 2001. Overall, the simultaneous introduction of policy instruments makes it difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of policies. Also, the policy framework is characterized by the introduction of a large number of short-lived policy instruments and frequent policy changes. The lack of stability and continuity of energy policy may be damaging for innovation. - Research Highlights: →The Netherlands are a top innovative country in the field of energy-efficient innovations for buildings, mainly due to high patenting activities by Philips in energy-saving lighting technologies. →In many other fields (insulation, heat-pumps, etc) Germany, Austria and

  12. The generation of efficient supported (Heterogeneous) olefin metathesis catalysts

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Grubbs, Robert H

    2013-04-05

    Over the past decade, a new family of homogeneous metathesis catalysts has been developed that will tolerate most organic functionalities as well as water and air. These homogeneous catalysts are finding numerous applications in the pharmaceutical industry as well as in the production of functional polymers. In addition the catalysts are being used to convert seed oils into products that can substitute for those that are now made from petroleum products. Seed oils are unsaturated, contain double bonds, and are a ready source of linear hydrocarbon fragments that are specifically functionalized. To increase the number of applications in the area of biomaterial conversion to petrol chemicals, the activity and efficiency of the catalysts need to be as high as possible. The higher the efficiency of the catalysts, the lower the cost of the conversion and a larger number of practical applications become available. Active supported catalysts were prepared and tested in the conversion of seed oils and other important starting materials. The outcome of the work was successful and the technology has been transferred to a commercial operation to develop viable applications of the discovered systems. A biorefinery that converts seed oils is under construction in Indonesia. The catalysts developed in this study will be considered for the next generation of operations.

  13. Design for energy efficiency: Energy efficient industrialized housing research program. Progress report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kellett, R.; Berg, R.; Paz, A.; Brown, G.Z.

    1991-03-01

    Since 1989, the U.S. Department of Energy has sponsored the Energy Efficient Industrialized Housing research program (EEIH) to improve the energy efficiency of industrialized housing. Two research centers share responsibility for this program: The Center for Housing Innovation at the University of Oregon and the Florida Solar Energy Center, a research institute of the University of Central Florida. Additional funding is provided through the participation of private industry, state governments and utilities. The program is guided by a steering committee comprised of industry and government representatives. This report summarizes Fiscal Year (FY) 1990 activities and progress, and proposed activities for FY 1991 in Task 2.1 Design for Energy Efficiency. This task establishes a vision of energy conservation opportunities in critical regions, market segments, climate zones and manufacturing strategies significant to industrialized housing in the 21st Century. In early FY 1990, four problem statements were developed to define future housing demand scenarios inclusive of issues of energy efficiency, housing design and manufacturing. Literature surveys were completed to assess seven areas of influence for industrialized housing and energy conservation in the future. Fifty-five future trends were identified in computing and design process; manufacturing process; construction materials, components and systems; energy and environment; demographic context; economic context; and planning policy and regulatory context.

  14. Characterization of Catalase from Psychrotolerant Psychrobacter piscatorii T-3 Exhibiting High Catalase Activity

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kimoto, Hideyuki; Yoshimune, Kazuaki; Matsuyma, Hidetoshi; Yumoto, Isao

    2012-01-01

    A psychrotolerant bacterium, strain T-3 (identified as Psychrobacter piscatorii), that exhibited an extraordinarily high catalase activity was isolated from the drain pool of a plant that uses H2O2 as a bleaching agent. Its cell extract exhibited a catalase activity (19,700 U·mg protein−1) that was higher than that of Micrococcus luteus used for industrial catalase production. Catalase was approximately 10% of the total proteins in the cell extract of the strain. The catalase (PktA) was purified homogeneously by only two purification steps, anion exchange and hydrophobic chromatographies. The purified catalase exhibited higher catalytic efficiency and higher sensitivity of activity at high temperatures than M. luteus catalase. The deduced amino acid sequence showed the highest homology with catalase of Psycrobacter cryohalolentis, a psychrotolelant bacterium obtained from Siberian permafrost. These findings suggest that the characteristics of the PktA molecule reflected the taxonomic relationship of the isolate as well as the environmental conditions (low temperatures and high concentrations of H2O2) under which the bacterium survives. Strain T-3 efficiently produces a catalase (PktA) at a higher rate than Exiguobacterium oxidotolerans, which produces a very strong activity of catalase (EktA) at a moderate rate, in order to adapt to high concentration of H2O2. PMID:22408420

  15. Ecological restoration success is higher for natural regeneration than for active restoration in tropical forests.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crouzeilles, Renato; Ferreira, Mariana S; Chazdon, Robin L; Lindenmayer, David B; Sansevero, Jerônimo B B; Monteiro, Lara; Iribarrem, Alvaro; Latawiec, Agnieszka E; Strassburg, Bernardo B N

    2017-11-01

    Is active restoration the best approach to achieve ecological restoration success (the return to a reference condition, that is, old-growth forest) when compared to natural regeneration in tropical forests? Our meta-analysis of 133 studies demonstrated that natural regeneration surpasses active restoration in achieving tropical forest restoration success for all three biodiversity groups (plants, birds, and invertebrates) and five measures of vegetation structure (cover, density, litter, biomass, and height) tested. Restoration success for biodiversity and vegetation structure was 34 to 56% and 19 to 56% higher in natural regeneration than in active restoration systems, respectively, after controlling for key biotic and abiotic factors (forest cover, precipitation, time elapsed since restoration started, and past disturbance). Biodiversity responses were based primarily on ecological metrics of abundance and species richness (74%), both of which take far less time to achieve restoration success than similarity and composition. This finding challenges the widely held notion that natural forest regeneration has limited conservation value and that active restoration should be the default ecological restoration strategy. The proposition that active restoration achieves greater restoration success than natural regeneration may have arisen because previous comparisons lacked controls for biotic and abiotic factors; we also did not find any difference between active restoration and natural regeneration outcomes for vegetation structure when we did not control for these factors. Future policy priorities should align the identified patterns of biophysical and ecological conditions where each or both restoration approaches are more successful, cost-effective, and compatible with socioeconomic incentives for tropical forest restoration.

  16. Market Efficiency within the German Stock Market: A Comparative Study of the Relative Efficiencies of the DAX, MDAX, SDAX and ASE Indices

    OpenAIRE

    Starcevic, Admin; Rodgers, Timothy

    2011-01-01

    It can be implied from the efficient market hypothesis that the more transparent a market is, then the more likely that the market will be efficient. This paper is a study of whether the different transparency standards applied to the different indices quoted on the German stock market have any impact on their relative efficiencies. It is found that the differences in transparency standards do have an impact on market efficiency. The case for a higher level of market efficiency in res...

  17. Energy Efficiency Project Development

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    IUEP

    2004-03-01

    The International Utility Efficiency Partnerships, Inc. (IUEP) has been a leader among the industry groups that have supported voluntary initiatives to promote international energy efficiency projects and address global climate change. The IUEP maintains its leadership by both supporting international greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction projects under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and by partnering with U.S. and international organizations to develop and implement strategies and specific energy efficiency projects. The goals of the IUEP program are to (1) provide a way for U.S. industry to maintain a leadership role in international energy efficiency infrastructure projects; (2) identify international energy project development opportunities to continue its leadership in supporting voluntary market-based mechanisms to reduce GHG emissions; and (3) demonstrate private sector commitment to voluntary approaches to global climate issues. The IUEP is dedicated to identifying, promoting, managing, and assisting in the registration of international energy efficiency projects that result in demonstrated voluntary reductions of GHG emissions. This Final Technical Report summarizes the IUEP's work in identifying, promoting, managing, and assisting in development of these projects and IUEP's effort in creating international cooperative partnerships to support project development activities that develop and deploy technologies that (1) increase efficiency in the production, delivery and use of energy; (2) increase the use of cleaner, low-carbon fuels in processing products; and (3) capture/sequester carbon gases from energy systems. Through international cooperative efforts, the IUEP intends to strengthen partnerships for energy technology innovation and demonstration projects capable of providing cleaner energy in a cost-effective manner. As detailed in this report, the IUEP met program objectives and goals during the reporting period January 1

  18. Achieving 99.9% proton spin-flip efficiency at higher energy with a small rf dipole

    CERN Document Server

    Leonova, M A; Gebel, R; Hinterberger, F; Krisch, A D; Lehrach, A; Lorentz, B; Maier, R; Morozov, V S; Prasuhn, D; Raymond, R S; Schnase, A; Stockhorst, H; Ulbrich, K; Wong, V K; 10.1103/PhysRevLett.93.224801

    2004-01-01

    We recently used a new ferrite rf dipole to study spin flipping of a 2.1 GeV/c vertically polarized proton beam stored in the COSY Cooler Synchrotron in Julich, Germany. We swept the rf dipole's frequency through an rf-induced spin resonance to flip the beam's polarization direction. After determining the resonance's frequency, we varied the frequency range, frequency ramp time, and number of flips. At the rf dipole's maximum strength and optimum frequency range and ramp time, we measured a spin-flip efficiency of 99.92+or-0.04%. This result, along with a similar 0.49 GeV/c IUCF result, indicates that, due to the Lorentz invariance of an rf dipole's transverse integral Bdl and the weak energy dependence of its spin-resonance strength, an only 35% stronger rf dipole should allow efficient spin flipping in the 100 GeV BNL RHIC Collider or even the 7 TeV CERN Large Hadron Collider.

  19. Financing and Political Economy of Higher Education: The Case of Lebanon

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nahas, Charbel

    2011-01-01

    This paper assesses the adequacy, efficiency, and equity of higher education in Lebanon in both the public and private sectors, while highlighting challenges that are specific to Lebanon. It concludes by discussing various approaches and strategies to remedy the challenges facing higher education in Lebanon.

  20. Energy use efficiency in the Indian manufacturing sector: An interstate analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mukherjee, Kankana

    2008-01-01

    This paper approaches the measurement of energy efficiency from a production theoretic framework and uses Data Envelopment Analysis to measure energy efficiency in the Indian manufacturing sector. Using data from the Annual Survey of Industries for the years 1998-99 through 2003-04, the study compares the energy efficiency in manufacturing across states, based on several models. The results show considerable variation in energy efficiency across states. Comparing the results across our models, we find that the relative pricing of energy does not provide the appropriate incentives for energy conservation. A second-stage regression analysis reveals that states with a larger share of manufacturing output in energy-intensive industries have lower energy efficiency. Also, higher quality labor force associates with higher energy efficiency. Finally, the power sector reforms have not yet had any significant impact on achieving energy efficiency

  1. An Alginate/Cyclodextrin Spray Drying Matrix to Improve Shelf Life and Antioxidant Efficiency of a Blood Orange By-Product Extract Rich in Polyphenols: MMPs Inhibition and Antiglycation Activity in Dysmetabolic Diseases

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Maria Rosaria Lauro

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Alginate and β-cyclodextrin were used to produce easily dosable and spray-dried microsystems of a dried blood orange extract with antidysmetabolic properties, obtained from a by-product fluid extract. The spray-dried applied conditions were able to obtain a concentrate dried extract without the loss of AOA and with TPC and TMA values of 35–40% higher than that of the starting material. They were also effective in producing microparticles with 80–100% of encapsulation efficiency. The 2% sodium alginate was capable of improving the extract shelf life, while the beta-cyclodextrin (1 : 1 molar ratio with dried extract prolonged the extract antioxidant efficiency by 6 hours. The good inhibition effect of the dried extract on the AGE formation and the MMP-2 and MMP-9 activity is presumably due to a synergic effect exerted by both anthocyanin and bioflavonoid extract compounds and was improved by the use of alginate and cyclodextrin.

  2. An Alginate/Cyclodextrin Spray Drying Matrix to Improve Shelf Life and Antioxidant Efficiency of a Blood Orange By-Product Extract Rich in Polyphenols: MMPs Inhibition and Antiglycation Activity in Dysmetabolic Diseases.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lauro, Maria Rosaria; Crascì, Lucia; Giannone, Virgilio; Ballistreri, Gabriele; Fabroni, Simona; Sansone, Francesca; Rapisarda, Paolo; Panico, Anna Maria; Puglisi, Giovanni

    2017-01-01

    Alginate and β -cyclodextrin were used to produce easily dosable and spray-dried microsystems of a dried blood orange extract with antidysmetabolic properties, obtained from a by-product fluid extract. The spray-dried applied conditions were able to obtain a concentrate dried extract without the loss of AOA and with TPC and TMA values of 35-40% higher than that of the starting material. They were also effective in producing microparticles with 80-100% of encapsulation efficiency. The 2% sodium alginate was capable of improving the extract shelf life , while the beta-cyclodextrin (1 : 1 molar ratio with dried extract) prolonged the extract antioxidant efficiency by 6 hours. The good inhibition effect of the dried extract on the AGE formation and the MMP-2 and MMP-9 activity is presumably due to a synergic effect exerted by both anthocyanin and bioflavonoid extract compounds and was improved by the use of alginate and cyclodextrin.

  3. Investigation of efficient termination structure for improved breakdown properties of semiconductor radiation detectors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Krizaj, D.; Resnik, D.; Vrtacnik, D.; Amon, S.

    1998-01-01

    Efficiency of a new junction termination structure for improvement of breakdown properties of semiconductor radiation detectors is investigated. The structure consists of a diffused resistor winding around the active junction in a spiral fashion. The current flow through the spiral enables controlled potential distribution along the spiral turns and thus controlled depletion spreading from the main junction, efficiently preventing premature avalanche breakdown. Both multiple guard-ring structures and spiral junction termination structures have shown good breakdown properties typically three to five times higher than breakdown voltages of diodes without junction termination. The breakdown voltages of spiral junction termination structures are only weakly influenced by changes in substrate doping concentration caused by neutron irradiation. They can thus be considered for termination of future semiconductor radiation detectors

  4. Inflammatory stress increases hepatic CD36 translational efficiency via activation of the mTOR signalling pathway.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Chuan Wang

    Full Text Available Inflammatory stress is an independent risk factor for the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD. Although CD36 is known to facilitate long-chain fatty acid uptake and contributes to NAFLD progression, the mechanisms that link inflammatory stress to hepatic CD36 expression and steatosis remain unclear. As the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR signalling pathway is involved in CD36 translational activation, this study was undertaken to investigate whether inflammatory stress enhances hepatic CD36 expression via mTOR signalling pathway and the underlying mechanisms. To induce inflammatory stress, we used tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α and interleukin-6 (IL-6 stimulation of the human hepatoblastoma HepG2 cells in vitro and casein injection in C57BL/6J mice in vivo. The data showed that inflammatory stress increased hepatic CD36 protein levels but had no effect on mRNA expression. A protein degradation assay revealed that CD36 protein stability was not different between HepG2 cells treated with or without TNF-α or IL-6. A polysomal analysis indicated that CD36 translational efficiency was significantly increased by inflammatory stress. Additionally, inflammatory stress enhanced the phosphorylation of mTOR and its downstream translational regulators including p70S6K, 4E-BP1 and eIF4E. Rapamycin, an mTOR-specific inhibitor, reduced the phosphorylation of mTOR signalling pathway and decreased the CD36 translational efficiency and protein level even under inflammatory stress resulting in the alleviation of inflammatory stress-induced hepatic lipid accumulation. This study demonstrates that the activation of the mTOR signalling pathway increases hepatic CD36 translational efficiency, resulting in increased CD36 protein expression under inflammatory stress.

  5. Efficient Long-Range Hole Transport Through G-Quadruplexes.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Jingyuan; Meng, Zhenyu; Lu, Yunpeng; Shao, Fangwei

    2017-10-09

    DNA offers a means of long-range charge transport for biology and electric nanodevices. Here, a series of tetra-stranded G-quadruplexes were assembled within a dendritic DNA architecture to explore oxidative charge transport (hole transport) through the G-quadruplex. Efficient charge transport was achieved over 28 Å upon UV irradiation. Over a longer G-quadruplex bridge, hole transport was escalated to a higher efficiency, which resulted in a higher yield than that of the optimal duplex DNA for charge transport, that is, the adenine tract. Efficient long-range hole transport suggests tetra-stranded G-quadruplexes, instead of an oxidation hotspot, hold better potential as an electron conduit than duplex DNA. © 2017 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  6. Axiological, goal and substantial aspects of lifelong learning of teacher of higher school in context of informatization of his professional activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Abdurazakov Magomed M.

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Issues, related to insufficient competence of higher school teachers in the sphere of usingmodern informational resources and technologies in their professional activities are discussed in this paper. The suggestion offered in the paper is optimization of higher school teachers’lifelong learning. This optimization is possible due to the axiological approach to formation of substantial and procedural aspect of leaning. The support on axiological approach allows to consider the multidimensional nature of vocational and life experience, character of his base of values. The analysis of necessary content of lifelonglearning of a teacher for development of his information competence as expert, subject of activity, member of professional community and carrier of professional consciousness is presented in the paper. These aspects of professionalizing of a teacher are analyzed in the context of his learning, training and research activity.

  7. Teaching global climate change as a controversial issue - Active learning in higher education

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Manolas, E.I.

    2007-07-01

    Global climate change is one of the most important controversial issues of our time. If the role of Universities is to create the leaders of tomorrow, then, the duty of teachers in institutions of higher education is to find ways to help students become aware of the problem and understand the complexity of the issue. Following presentation of the definition of controversial issues, the reasons for teaching controversial topics as well as the characteristics of controversial topics, this paper puts forward certain active learning approaches which are in conformity with such considerations without, at the same time, loosing sight of the interdisciplinary nature of the subject. The paper concludes with a discussion of the obstacles which should be overcome so that the methods put forward in this paper can be applied successfully. (orig.)

  8. Efficiency calibration and minimum detectable activity concentration of a real-time UAV airborne sensor system with two gamma spectrometers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang, Xiao-Bin; Meng, Jia; Wang, Peng; Cao, Ye; Huang, Xi; Wen, Liang-Sheng; Chen, Da

    2016-01-01

    A small-sized UAV (NH-UAV) airborne system with two gamma spectrometers (LaBr_3 detector and HPGe detector) was developed to monitor activity concentration in serious nuclear accidents, such as the Fukushima nuclear accident. The efficiency calibration and determination of minimum detectable activity concentration (MDAC) of the specific system were studied by MC simulations at different flight altitudes, different horizontal distances from the detection position to the source term center and different source term sizes. Both air and ground radiation were considered in the models. The results obtained may provide instructive suggestions for in-situ radioactivity measurements of NH-UAV. - Highlights: • A small-sized UAV airborne sensor system was developed. • Three radioactive models were chosen to simulate the Fukushima accident. • Both the air and ground radiation were considered in the models. • The efficiency calculations and MDAC values were given. • The sensor system is able to monitor in serious nuclear accidents.

  9. Efficient use of a translation start codon in BDNF exon I.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koppel, Indrek; Tuvikene, Jürgen; Lekk, Ingrid; Timmusk, Tõnis

    2015-09-01

    The brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene contains a number of 5' exons alternatively spliced with a common 3' exon. BDNF protein is synthesized from alternative transcripts as a prepro-precursor encoded by the common 3' exon IX, which has a translation start site 21 bp downstream of the splicing site. BDNF mRNAs containing exon I are an exception to this arrangement as the last three nucleotides of this exon constitute an in-frame AUG. Here, we show that this AUG is efficiently used for translation initiation in PC12 cells and cultured cortical neurons. Use of exon I-specific AUG produces higher levels of BDNF protein than use of the common translation start site, resulting from a higher translation rate. No differences in protein degradation, constitutive or regulated secretion were detected between BDNF isoforms with alternative 5' termini. As the BDNF promoter preceding exon I is known to be highly regulated by neuronal activity, our results suggest that the function of this translation start site may be efficient stimulus-dependent synthesis of BDNF protein. The brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene contains multiple untranslated 5' exons alternatively spliced to one common protein-coding 3' exon. However, exon I contains an in-frame ATG in a favorable translation context. Here, we show that use of this ATG is associated with more efficient protein synthesis than the commonly used ATG in exon IX. © 2015 International Society for Neurochemistry.

  10. Overall effect of carbon production and nutrient release in sludge holding tank on mainstream biological nutrient removal efficiency.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jabari, Pouria; Yuan, Qiuyan; Oleszkiewicz, Jan A

    2017-09-11

    The potential of hydrolysis/fermentation of activated sludge in sludge holding tank (SHT) to produce additional carbon for the biological nutrient removal (BNR) process was investigated. The study was conducted in anaerobic batch tests using the BNR sludge (from a full-scale Westside process) and the mixture of BNR sludge with conventional non-BNR activated sludge (to have higher biodegradable particulate chemical oxygen demand (bpCOD) in sludge). The BioWin 4.1 was used to simulate the anaerobic batch test of the BNR sludge. Also, the overall effect of FCOD production and nutrient release on BNR efficiency of the Westside process was estimated. The experimental results showed that the phosphorous uptake of sludge increased during hydrolysis/ fermentation condition up to the point when poly-P was completely utilized; afterwards, it decreased significantly. The BioWin simulation could not predict the loss of aerobic phosphorous uptake after poly-P was depleted. The results showed that in the case of activated sludge with relatively higher bpCOD (originating from plants with short sludge retention time or without primary sedimentation), beneficial effect of SHT on BNR performance is feasible. In order to increase the potential of SHT to enhance BNR efficiency, a relatively low retention time and high sludge load is recommended.

  11. Higher-Order Integral Equation Methods in Computational Electromagnetics

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jørgensen, Erik; Meincke, Peter

    Higher-order integral equation methods have been investigated. The study has focused on improving the accuracy and efficiency of the Method of Moments (MoM) applied to electromagnetic problems. A new set of hierarchical Legendre basis functions of arbitrary order is developed. The new basis...

  12. When Industries Change: The Future of Higher Education.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Collis, David

    2001-01-01

    Factors altering the higher education industry include radical change in the type of students, necessity of lifetime education, and new technologies. These factors are increasing the entry of private-sector players. Strategic university responses may be strengthening of accreditation, cost-cutting and efficiency measures, horizontal…

  13. Research and Teaching Efficiencies of Turkish Universities with Heterogeneity Considerations: Application of Multi-Activity DEA and DEA by Sequential Exclusion of Alternatives Methods

    OpenAIRE

    Çinar, Y.

    2016-01-01

    The research and teaching efficiencies of 45 Turkish state universities are evaluated by using Multi-Activity Data Envelopment Analysis (MA-DEA) model developed by Beasley (1995). Universities are multi-purpose institutions, therefore they face multiple production functions simultaneously associated with research and teaching activities. MA-DEA allows assigning priorities and allocating shared resources to these activities.

  14. Recent Progress in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells for Improving Efficiency: TiO2 Nanotube Arrays in Active Layer

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Won-Yeop Rho

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs have been widely studied due to several advantages, such as low cost-to-performance ratio, low cost of fabrication, functionality at wide angles and low intensities of incident light, mechanical robustness, and low weight. This paper summarizes the recent progress in DSSC technology for improving efficiency, focusing on the active layer in the photoanode, with a part of the DSSC consisting of dyes and a TiO2 film layer. In particular, this review highlights a huge pool of studies that report improvements in the efficiency of DSSCs using TiO2 nanotubes, which exhibit better electron transport. Finally, this paper suggests opportunities for future research.

  15. Recovery efficiency test project, Phase 2 activity report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Overbey, W.K. Jr.; Salamy, S.P.; Locke, C.D.

    1989-02-01

    The Recovery Efficiency Test well project addressed a number of technical issues. The primary objective was to determine the increased efficiency of gas recovery of a long horizontal wellbore over that of a vertical wellbore and, more specifically, what improvements can be expected from inducing multiple hydraulic fractures from such a wellbore. This volume contains appendices for: (1) supporting material and procedures for data frac'' stimulation of zone 6 using nitrogen and nitrogen foam; (2) supporting material and procedures for stimulation no. 1 nitrogen gas frac on zone no. 1; (3) supporting material and procedures for stimulation no. 2 in zone no. 1 using liquid CO{sub 2}; (4) supporting material and procedures for frac no. 3 on zone no.1 using nitrogen foam and proppant; (5) supporting material and procedures for stimulation no. 4 in zones 2--3 and 4 using nitrogen foam and proppant; (6) supporting materials and procedures for stimulation no. 5 in zones 5 and 8; and (7) fracture diagnostics reports and supporting materials.

  16. MOFzyme: Intrinsic protease-like activity of Cu-MOF

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Bin; Chen, Daomei; Wang, Jiaqiang; Yan, Zhiying; Jiang, Liang; Deliang Duan; He, Jiao; Luo, Zhongrui; Zhang, Jinping; Yuan, Fagui

    2014-10-01

    The construction of efficient enzyme mimetics for the hydrolysis of peptide bonds in proteins is challenging due to the high stability of peptide bonds and the importance of proteases in biology and industry. Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) consisting of infinite crystalline lattices with metal clusters and organic linkers may provide opportunities for protease mimic which has remained unknown. Herein, we report that Cu2(C9H3O6)4/3 MOF (which is well known as HKUST-1 and denoted as Cu-MOF here), possesses an intrinsic enzyme mimicking activity similar to that found in natural trypsin to bovine serum albumin (BSA) and casein. The Michaelis constant (Km) of Cu-MOF is about 26,000-fold smaller than that of free trypsin indicating a much higher affinity of BSA for Cu-MOF surface. Cu-MOF also exhibited significantly higher catalytic efficiency than homogeneous artificial metalloprotease Cu(II) complexes and could be reused for ten times without losing in its activity. Moreover, Cu-MOF was successfully used to simulate trypsinization in cell culture since it dissociated cells in culture even without EDTA.

  17. Transmutation of human glutathione transferase A2-2 with peroxidase activity into an efficient steroid isomerase.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pettersson, Par L; Johansson, Ann-Sofie; Mannervik, Bengt

    2002-08-16

    A major goal in protein engineering is the tailor-making of enzymes for specified chemical reactions. Successful attempts have frequently been based on directed molecular evolution involving libraries of random mutants in which variants with desired properties were identified. For the engineering of enzymes with novel functions, it would be of great value if the necessary changes of the active site could be predicted and implemented. Such attempts based on the comparison of similar structures with different substrate selectivities have previously met with limited success. However, the present work shows that the knowledge-based redesign restricted to substrate-binding residues in human glutathione transferase A2-2 can introduce high steroid double-bond isomerase activity into the enzyme originally characterized by glutathione peroxidase activity. Both the catalytic center activity (k(cat)) and catalytic efficiency (k(cat)/K(m)) match the values of the naturally evolved glutathione transferase A3-3, the most active steroid isomerase known in human tissues. The substrate selectivity of the mutated glutathione transferase was changed 7000-fold by five point mutations. This example demonstrates the functional plasticity of the glutathione transferase scaffold as well as the potential of rational active-site directed mutagenesis as a complement to DNA shuffling and other stochastic methods for the redesign of proteins with novel functions.

  18. Linking energy efficiency and innovation practices: Empirical evidence from the foundry sector

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cagno, Enrico; Ramirez-Portilla, Andres; Trianni, Andrea

    2015-01-01

    The Europe 2020 strategy currently promotes energy efficiency and innovation through disconnected targets focusing on either energy or R&D. Similar policies indicate that in practice, these two concepts are usually perceived as mutually exclusive. Furthermore, evidence in the literature regarding the relationship between R&D and energy efficiency is still highly limited. This exploratory study aims to address this gap by investigating the link between innovation practices and energy efficiency through a multiple case study of 30 foundries in Northern Italy. We analysed the firms' innovativeness, measured by internal R&D and Open Innovation practices (inbound and outbound), and energy efficiency, measured by specific energy consumption, level of adoption of energy-efficient technologies and barriers to energy efficiency. The results seem to show that those foundries complementing internal R&D with inbound practices have a higher level of energy efficiency, a higher level of adoption of available technologies, and a lower perception of barriers to efficiency improvements. This finding suggests that diversifying innovation practices could lead to better performance with respect to all three indicators of energy efficiency analysed. This study contributes to understanding how more innovative firms can be more energy efficient, providing interesting highlights for managers and policymakers. -- Highlights: •The relation between innovation practices and energy efficiency is articulated. •The link between innovation practices and energy efficiency is tested for foundries. •Energy efficiency is measured with three different indicators. •Analyses of the relations between these indicators support the link with innovation. •Concurrent adoption of internal R&D and inbound practices leads to higher efficiency

  19. Activating whole brain® innovation: A means of nourishing multiple intelligence in higher education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ann-Louise De Boer

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available The interconnectedness of the constructs ‘whole brain® thinking’ and ‘multiple intelligence’ forms the epicentre of this article. We depart from the premise that when whole brain® thinking is activated multiple intelligence can be nourished. When this becomes evident in a higher education practice it can be claimed that such a practice is innovative. Whole brain® thinking that informs intelligence and vice versa is inevitable when it comes to facilitating learning with a view to promoting quality learning in the context of higher education. If higher education is concerned about the expectations of industry and the world of work there is no other option as to prepare students in such a way that they develo as holistic – whole brained and intelligent – employers, employees and entrepreneurs who take responsibility for maximising their full potential. Becoming a self-regulated professional and being reflexive are some of the attributes of the 21st century which should be cultivated in all students. Research on whole brain® thinking and multiple intelligence shows that these human attributes form an integral part of one’s interaction with life – one’s environment and especially people as integral part of the environment. This focus on people highlights the need for developing soft skills within every curriculum. The epistemological underpinning of our reporting of experience in practice and research of the application of the principals of the constructs is meta- reflective in nature. Instead of a typical traditional stance to research we do not report on the numerous sets of data obtained over a period of more than 15 years. Our approach is that of a meta-reflective narrative as most of the studies we were involved in and still are, are reflective as it is most often than not action research-driven. And action research is a reflective process. We report on evidence-based practice that includes fields of specialisation such as

  20. ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY ANALYSIS OF ORGANIC CROP AND ANIMAL FARMS IN ROMANIA. COMPARATIVE EVOLUTIONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexandra MUSCĂNESCU

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available The organic sector in our country, although as shown in continuous development, faces a multitude of problems: the climatic conditions of our country, characterized by periods of drought in many parts of the country, high input prices, the majority of which are imported; difficulties in identifying markets for products, reduced subsidies, standardized conditions difficult to meet, etc. The problems the sector is facing reflect in the organization of the production activity and hence the economic performance of farm production. Accordingly, the aim of this paper was to analyze on the basis of annual financial and accounting information collected in the two vegetable farms and the two animal breeding farms, their efficiency / inefficiency, and the results were compared to identify the causes of the differences obtained in the efficiency at a farm level. The results obtained reveal a higher level of return on integrated vegetable farm in a joint recovery and a high efficiency for chain integrated animal farms.

  1. Determinants of Innovation Culture amongst Higher Education Students

    Science.gov (United States)

    Roffeei, Siti Hajar Mohd; Yusop, Farrah Dina; Kamarulzaman, Yusniza

    2018-01-01

    Globalisation has made many higher educational institutions reassess their educational contents and research activities in order to enhance innovation culture amongst students of higher education. Many universities now focus on research activities and research funding in raising their reputation and ranking which in turn will improve student…

  2. ORIENTATION ON STAKEHOLDERS’ OBJECTIVES AS A KEY COMPETENCE OF IMAGE FORMATION OF THE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION (GERMAN EXPERIENCE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    E. N. Kovaleva

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available Summary. Creating relevant targets activities of marketing model of image formation of the educational organization of higher education is not possible without a systematic approach to understanding the purpose of the key stakeholder organizations that are not only state controls system (one of the stakeholders, but also a number of other, no less important: applicants, students, alumni, members of the business community. In Russia, the opinion of stakeholders in the organization of the learning process is not widely used in the practice of evaluation of educational institutions of higher education, with the exception of the activities implemented in some universities of quality management systems. The article explains the need to reorient the objectives and criteria for measuring the efficiency of the educational institutions of higher education in the target key stakeholder groups. The author has made a comparative analysis of the basic regulations of Russia and Germany in the field of higher education to establish the objectives of the universities and their orientation to target stakeholders. It revealed a possible mechanism for measuring the satisfaction of the stakeholders of the educational activities of the organization on the basis of benchmarking analysis of multi-dimensional ranking higher education programs in Germany. The activities of the state and the public in Germany shows that the estimate legitimate stakeholder groups can be used to assess the activity of educational institutions, the formation of a rational demand for educational services, improve the activities of universities and the formation of objective information field of competitive relations of universities. Focusing on the needs of the stakeholders may not be manifested hypothetical task of universities and law enshrined in the form of goals and objectives of universities imperative to correlate with national interests, the interests of the professional community as

  3. Technology Use in Higher Education Instruction

    Science.gov (United States)

    Elzarka, Sammy

    2012-01-01

    The significance of integrating technology use in higher education instruction is undeniable. The benefits include those related to access to instruction by underserved populations, adequately preparing students for future careers, capitalizing on best instructional practices, developing higher order thinking activities, and engaging students…

  4. Enhanced basal contractility but reduced excitation-contraction coupling efficiency and beta-adrenergic reserve of hearts with increased Cav1.2 activity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tang, Mingxin; Zhang, Xiaoying; Li, Yingxin; Guan, Yinzheng; Ai, Xiaojie; Szeto, Christopher; Nakayama, Hiroyuki; Zhang, Hongyu; Ge, Shuping; Molkentin, Jeffery D; Houser, Steven R; Chen, Xiongwen

    2010-08-01

    Cardiac remodeling during heart failure development induces a significant increase in the activity of the L-type Ca(2+) channel (Cav1.2). However, the effects of enhanced Cav1.2 activity on myocyte excitation-contraction (E-C) coupling, cardiac contractility, and its regulation by the beta-adrenergic system are not clear. To recapitulate the increased Cav1.2 activity, a double transgenic (DTG) mouse model overexpressing the Cavbeta2a subunit in a cardiac-specific and inducible manner was established. We studied cardiac (in vivo) and myocyte (in vitro) contractility at baseline and upon beta-adrenergic stimulation. E-C coupling efficiency was evaluated in isolated myocytes as well. The following results were found: 1) in DTG myocytes, L-type Ca(2+) current (I(Ca,L)) density, myocyte fractional shortening (FS), peak Ca(2+) transients, and sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca(2+) content (caffeine-induced Ca(2+) transient peak) were significantly increased (by 100.8%, 48.8%, 49.8%, and 46.8%, respectively); and 2) cardiac contractility evaluated with echocardiography [ejection fraction (EF) and (FS)] and invasive intra-left ventricular pressure (maximum dP/dt and -dP/dt) measurements were significantly greater in DTG mice than in control mice. However, 1) the cardiac contractility (EF, FS, dP/dt, and -dP/dt)-enhancing effect of the beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol (2 microg/g body wt ip) was significantly reduced in DTG mice, which could be attributed to the loss of beta-adrenergic stimulation on contraction, Ca(2+) transients, I(Ca,L), and SR Ca(2+) content in DTG myocytes; and 2) E-C couplng efficiency was significantly lower in DTG myocytes. In conclusion, increasing Cav1.2 activity by promoting its high-activity mode enhances cardiac contractility but decreases E-C coupling efficiency and the adrenergic reserve of the heart.

  5. Structural and mechanistic analysis of engineered trichodiene synthase enzymes from Trichoderma harzianum: towards higher catalytic activities empowering sustainable agriculture.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kumari, Indu; Chaudhary, Nitika; Sandhu, Padmani; Ahmed, Mushtaq; Akhter, Yusuf

    2016-06-01

    Trichoderma spp. are well-known bioagents for the plant growth promotion and pathogen suppression. The beneficial activities of the fungus Trichoderma spp. are attributed to their ability to produce and secrete certain secondary metabolites such as trichodermin that belongs to trichothecene family of molecules. The initial steps of trichodermin biosynthetic pathway in Trichoderma are similar to the trichothecenes from Fusarium sporotrichioides. Trichodiene synthase (TS) encoded by tri5 gene in Trichoderma catalyses the conversion of farnesyl pyrophosphate to trichodiene as reported earlier. In this study, we have carried out a comprehensive comparative sequence and structural analysis of the TS, which revealed the conserved residues involved in catalytic activity of the protein. In silico, modelled tertiary structure of TS protein showed stable structural behaviour during simulations. Two single-substitution mutants, i.e. D109E, D248Y and one double-substitution mutant (D109E and D248Y) of TS with potentially higher activities are screened out. The mutant proteins showed more stability than the wild type, an increased number of electrostatic interactions and better binding energies with the ligand, which further elucidates the amino acid residues involved in the reaction mechanism. These results will lead to devise strategies for higher TS activity to ultimately enhance the trichodermin production by Trichoderma spp. for its better exploitation in the sustainable agricultural practices.

  6. The Need for a Higher Fuel Efficiency of the Electricity Sector - An Analysis of Opportunities and Barriers

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Klimstra, J.

    2007-07-01

    The electricity sector is the single largest user of primary energy in the world. The issues of fuel prices, security of supply and greenhouse gas emissions are therefore closely connected with electricity generation. The total energy efficiency of the electricity sector is only 32.5% so that quick improvements are required. However, the uncertainty over fuel prices and technology preferences is such that most investors are hesitant. The life of existing, often low-efficiency, power plants is therefore extended. At the same time, the demand for electricity is rapidly increasing and the gap between capacity and demand decreases. This paper intends to bring more clarity into the economic and environmental boundary conditions of power plants. The goal is to find an attractive way for rapid efficiency improvement with an even better system reliability without increasing the costs. The paper discusses fuel price developments and the costs of generating technologies in connection with the typical demand pattern of electricity. Ultimately, it appears that local generation, preferably coupled with cogeneration, can be an important part of the solution. (auth)

  7. Lightweight High Efficiency Electric Motors for Space Applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robertson, Glen A.; Tyler, Tony R.; Piper, P. J.

    2011-01-01

    Lightweight high efficiency electric motors are needed across a wide range of space applications from - thrust vector actuator control for launch and flight applications to - general vehicle, base camp habitat and experiment control for various mechanisms to - robotics for various stationary and mobile space exploration missions. QM Power?s Parallel Path Magnetic Technology Motors have slowly proven themselves to be a leading motor technology in this area; winning a NASA Phase II for "Lightweight High Efficiency Electric Motors and Actuators for Low Temperature Mobility and Robotics Applications" a US Army Phase II SBIR for "Improved Robot Actuator Motors for Medical Applications", an NSF Phase II SBIR for "Novel Low-Cost Electric Motors for Variable Speed Applications" and a DOE SBIR Phase I for "High Efficiency Commercial Refrigeration Motors" Parallel Path Magnetic Technology obtains the benefits of using permanent magnets while minimizing the historical trade-offs/limitations found in conventional permanent magnet designs. The resulting devices are smaller, lower weight, lower cost and have higher efficiency than competitive permanent magnet and non-permanent magnet designs. QM Power?s motors have been extensively tested and successfully validated by multiple commercial and aerospace customers and partners as Boeing Research and Technology. Prototypes have been made between 0.1 and 10 HP. They are also in the process of scaling motors to over 100kW with their development partners. In this paper, Parallel Path Magnetic Technology Motors will be discussed; specifically addressing their higher efficiency, higher power density, lighter weight, smaller physical size, higher low end torque, wider power zone, cooler temperatures, and greater reliability with lower cost and significant environment benefit for the same peak output power compared to typically motors. A further discussion on the inherent redundancy of these motors for space applications will be provided.

  8. Lipoprotein-biomimetic nanostructure enables efficient targeting delivery of siRNA to Ras-activated glioblastoma cells via macropinocytosis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Huang, Jia-Lin; Jiang, Gan; Song, Qing-Xiang; Gu, Xiao; Hu, Meng; Wang, Xiao-Lin; Song, Hua-Hua; Chen, Le-Pei; Lin, Ying-Ying; Jiang, Di; Chen, Jun; Feng, Jun-Feng; Qiu, Yong-Ming; Jiang, Ji-Yao; Jiang, Xin-Guo; Chen, Hong-Zhuan; Gao, Xiao-Ling

    2017-05-01

    Hyperactivated Ras regulates many oncogenic pathways in several malignant human cancers including glioblastoma and it is an attractive target for cancer therapies. Ras activation in cancer cells drives protein internalization via macropinocytosis as a key nutrient-gaining process. By utilizing this unique endocytosis pathway, here we create a biologically inspired nanostructure that can induce cancer cells to `drink drugs' for targeting activating transcription factor-5 (ATF5), an overexpressed anti-apoptotic transcription factor in glioblastoma. Apolipoprotein E3-reconstituted high-density lipoprotein is used to encapsulate the siRNA-loaded calcium phosphate core and facilitate it to penetrate the blood-brain barrier, thus targeting the glioblastoma cells in a macropinocytosis-dependent manner. The nanostructure carrying ATF5 siRNA exerts remarkable RNA-interfering efficiency, increases glioblastoma cell apoptosis and inhibits tumour cell growth both in vitro and in xenograft tumour models. This strategy of targeting the macropinocytosis caused by Ras activation provides a nanoparticle-based approach for precision therapy in glioblastoma and other Ras-activated cancers.

  9. The better growth phenotype of DvGS1-transgenic arabidopsis thaliana is attributed to the improved efficiency of nitrogen assimilation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Zhu Chenguang

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The overexpression of the algal glutamine synthetase (GS gene DvGS1 in Arabidopsis thaliana resulted in higher plant biomass and better growth phenotype. The purpose of this study was to recognize the biological mechanism for the growth improvement of DvGS1-transgenic Arabidopsis. A series of molecular and biochemical investigations related to nitrogen and carbon metabolism in the DvGS1-transgenic line was conducted. Analysis of nitrogen use efficiency (NUE-related gene transcription and enzymatic activity revealed that the transcriptional level and enzymatic activity of the genes encoding GS, glutamate synthase, glutamate dehydrogenase, alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase, were significantly upregulated, especially from leaf tissues of the DvGS1-transgenic line under two nitrate conditions. The DvGS1-transgenic line showed increased total nitrogen content and decreased carbon: nitrogen ratio compared to wild-type plants. Significant reduced concentrations of free nitrate, ammonium, sucrose, glucose and starch, together with higher concentrations of total amino acids, individual amino acids (glutamate, aspartate, asparagine, methionine, soluble proteins and fructose in leaf tissues confirmed that the DvGS1-transgenic line demonstrated a higher efficiency of nitrogen assimilation, which subsequently affected carbon metabolism. These improved metabolisms of nitrogen and carbon conferred the DvGS1-transgenic Arabidopsis higher NUE, more biomass and better growth phenotype compared with the wild-type plants.

  10. Synthesis and antimicrobial activities of new higher amino acid Schiff base derivatives of 6-aminopenicillanic acid and 7-aminocephalosporanic acid

    Science.gov (United States)

    Özdemir (nee Güngör), Özlem; Gürkan, Perihan; Özçelik, Berrin; Oyardı, Özlem

    2016-02-01

    Novel β-lactam derivatives (1c-3c) (1d-3d) were produced by using 6-aminopenicillanic acid (6-APA), 7-aminocephalosporanic acid (7-ACA) and the higher amino acid Schiff bases. The synthesized compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, IR, 1H/13C NMR and UV-vis spectra. Antibacterial activities of all the higher amino acid Schiff bases (1a-3a) (1b-3b) and β-lactam derivatives were screened against three gram negative bacteria (Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Acinetobacter baumannii RSKK 02026), three gram positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 07005, Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633) and their drug-resistant isolates by using broth microdilution method. Two fungi (Candida albicans and Candida krusei) were used for antifungal activity.

  11. High efficient photocatalytic activity of Zn-Al-Ti layered double hydroxides nanocomposite

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Amor F.

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available This work establishes a simple method for synthesising layered double hydroxides (LDHs powders with coprecipitation. The characteristics of the samples were investigated y X-ray diffraction (XRD, scanning electron microscopy (SEM and spectrophotometer UV–Vis (DRS. Non-uniform distribution was shown for LDHs samples by SEM. Photocatalytic efficiencies were tested using methylene blue (MB dye as a model contaminant under UV irradiation. In particular, Zn–Al-Ti LDH exhibited an excellent performance towards MB degradation compared with commercial TiO2 nanoparticles. Methylene blue removal percentage was reached at almost 100%, whereas commercial TiO2 reached a removal rate of only 66% under the same conditions within 20 min. The aim of the current work is to prepare Zn-Al-Ti layered double hydroxides nanocomposite and to evaluate their photocatalytic activity in the removal of methylene blue under UV irradiation.

  12. Energy efficiency: Lever for the Energy Transition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2012-12-01

    The Eco-electric industry group (FFIE, FGME, Gimelec, IGNES, SERCE) has conducted a study to evaluate the energy saving potential of active energy efficiency solutions in the residential and commercial building sectors. Based on field implementations and demonstrators, it has been demonstrated that active energy efficiency can sustainably achieve substantial savings for households, companies and public authorities. Energy Efficiency - Lever for the energy transition presents the results and conclusions of that study, alongside with recommendations for public authority in terms of building retrofit policy for putting France on the best possible 'trajectory' from a budgetary and environmental point of view. (author)

  13. High efficiency novel window air conditioner

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bansal, Pradeep

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • Use of novel refrigerant mixture of R32/R125 (85/15% molar conc.) to reduce global warming and improve energy efficiency. • Use of novel features such as electronically commuted motor (ECM) fan motor, slinger and sub-merged sub-cooler. • Energy savings of up to 0.1 Quads per year in USA and much more in Asia/Middle East where WACs are used in large numbers. • Payback period of only 1.4 years of the novel efficient WAC. - Abstract: This paper presents the results of an experimental and analytical evaluation of measures to raise the efficiency of window air conditioners (WAC). In order to achieve a higher energy efficiency ratio (EER), the original capacity of a baseline R410A unit was reduced by replacing the original compressor with a lower capacity but higher EER compressor, while all heat exchangers and the chassis from the original unit were retained. Subsequent major modifications included – replacing the alternating current fan motor with a brushless high efficiency electronically commutated motor (ECM) motor, replacing the capillary tube with a needle valve to better control the refrigerant flow and refrigerant set points, and replacing R410A with a ‘drop-in’ lower global warming potential (GWP) binary mixture of R32/R125 (85/15% molar concentration). All these modifications resulted in significant enhancement in the EER of the baseline WAC. Further, an economic analysis of the new WAC revealed an encouraging payback period

  14. Latent myostatin has significant activity and this activity is controlled more efficiently by WFIKKN1 than by WFIKKN2

    Science.gov (United States)

    Szláma, György; Trexler, Mária; Patthy, László

    2013-01-01

    Myostatin, a negative regulator of skeletal muscle growth, is produced from myostatin precursor by multiple steps of proteolytic processing. After cleavage by a furin-type protease, the propeptide and growth factor domains remain associated, forming a noncovalent complex, the latent myostatin complex. Mature myostatin is liberated from latent myostatin by bone morphogenetic protein 1/tolloid proteases. Here, we show that, in reporter assays, latent myostatin preparations have significant myostatin activity, as the noncovalent complex dissociates at an appreciable rate, and both mature and semilatent myostatin (a complex in which the dimeric growth factor domain interacts with only one molecule of myostatin propeptide) bind to myostatin receptor. The interaction of myostatin receptor with semilatent myostatin is efficiently blocked by WAP, Kazal, immunoglobulin, Kunitz and NTR domain-containing protein 1 or growth and differentiation factor-associated serum protein 2 (WFIKKN1), a large extracellular multidomain protein that binds both mature myostatin and myostatin propeptide [Kondás et al. (2008) J Biol Chem 283, 23677–23684]. Interestingly, the paralogous protein WAP, Kazal, immunoglobulin, Kunitz and NTR domain-containing protein 2 or growth and differentiation factor-associated serum protein 1 (WFIKKN2) was less efficient than WFIKKN1 as an antagonist of the interactions of myostatin receptor with semilatent myostatin. Our studies have shown that this difference is attributable to the fact that only WFIKKN1 has affinity for the propeptide domain, and this interaction increases its potency in suppressing the receptor-binding activity of semilatent myostatin. As the interaction of WFIKKN1 with various forms of myostatin permits tighter control of myostatin activity until myostatin is liberated from latent myostatin by bone morphogenetic protein 1/tolloid proteases, WFIKKN1 may have greater potential as an antimyostatic agent than WFIKKN2

  15. Water activity control: a way to improve the efficiency of continuous lipase esterification.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colombié, S; Tweddell, R J; Condoret, J S; Marty, A

    1998-11-05

    During continuous lipase-catalyzed oleic acid esterification by ethanol in n-hexane, the oleic acid conversion, initially at 95%, decreases to 20% after 2 h. This decrease is caused by the accumulation of the water produced in the course of the reaction in the packed-bed reactor (PBR). In order to improve the PBR efficiency, it is necessary to evacuate the water produced. In this study, different approaches have been tested to control the water content in the PBR during continuous esterification. The first approach consisted in improving the water solubility by increasing the reaction medium polarity. The addition of polar additives to n-hexane, the use of more polar solvents, and the use of solvent-free reaction medium were tested as a means to favor the water evacuation from the PBR. First of all, the use ofn-hexane supplemented with acetone (3 M) or 2-methyl-2-propanol (1 M) enabled the conversion to be maintained at higher values than those obtained in pure n-hexane. The replacement of n-hexane by a more polar solvent, like the 5-methyl-2-hexanone, resulted in the same effect. In all cases, conversions at steady-state were always less than 95%, as obtained in pure n-hexane. This is explained by a decrease in the enzyme activity due to the increase in the medium polarity. Nevertheless, an increase in enzyme quantity allowed 90% conversion to be maintained during 1 week using 3 M acetone amended n-hexane. Good results (a steady-state conversion of about 80%) were obtained when esterification was carried out in a solvent-free reaction medium containing 2 M 2-methyl-2-propanol as a polar additive. The second approach consisted in the evaporation of the accumulated water by use of an intermittent airflow. Although this process did not enable constant esterification rate to be maintained, it did enable the initial conversion (95%) to be restored intermittently. Copyright 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

  16. Energy efficient solid state lighting

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dam-Hansen, C.; Petersen, Poul Michael

    2012-11-15

    Even though vast improvements have been made on efficiency and light quality, SSL is still in its infancy. One of the barriers for a market introduction is the price, which still is around 5 times higher than traditional lighting technologies. In order to fulfil the potential of SSL, further research and development needs to increase the light extraction from semiconductor materials, provide better and cheaper production and packaging, and advanced optical systems for optimized light distribution and new thermal solutions for SSL lamps and luminaires. Nanotechnology and applied research at DTU Fotonik in close collaboration with industry are essential parts in the development of new enhanced LED optical systems and LEDs with higher light extraction efficiency. Photonic crystals can help to efficiently extract light from LEDs and to form a desired emission profile. Future directions are devoted to the next generation of LEDs, in which the spontaneous emission is photon enhanced. One realization of this idea is using LEDs with a layer of nanocrystals, which are coupled to the quantum well of the LED. Such R and D work is ongoing all over the world and DOE roadmaps foresee luminous efficiencies by 2020 that are close to 250 lm/W for both cold and warm white light from LEDs, and prices in the order of one dollar per kilolumen. Such figures will drastically reduce the energy consumption worldwide for lighting, and hence a marked reduction in carbon emissions. (Author)

  17. Efficiency, R&D and ownership - some empirical evidence

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Dilling-Hansen, Mogens; Madsen, Erik Strøjer; Smith, Valdemar

    2003-01-01

    on the technical efficiency methodology using a stochastic frontier approach in order to investigate the influence of R&D activities on the technical efficiency of the firms. Using a sample of 2370 Danish firms, the analysis suggests that R&D-active firms are significantly more efficient than other firms......Investments in R&D create an immaterial capital asset, which is expected to have a positive influence on firms' efficiency and consequently on their profit. Nonetheless, the short-term effects of current investments in R&D are difficult to prove. Therefore, this paper focuses on analyses based....... The legal form of ownership also affects the efficiency significantly, whereas firms owned by large shareholders - who are expected to exert a disciplinary influence on the managers of the firm - do not seem to be more efficient than other firms. Udgivelsesdato: JAN 25...

  18. A Comparative Assessment of Higher Education Financing in Six Arab Countries

    Science.gov (United States)

    El-Araby, Ashraf

    2011-01-01

    This study analyses the policies for financing higher education in six Arab countries: Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Syria, and Tunisia. It assesses the adequacy of spending on higher education, the efficiency with which resources are utilized, and the equity implications of resource allocations. Based on six detailed case studies, this…

  19. Increased visfatin levels are associated with higher disease activity in anti-Jo-1-positive myositis patients.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hulejová, Hana; Kryštůfková, Olga; Mann, Heřman; Klein, Martin; Pavlíčková, Klára; Zámečník, Josef; Vencovský, Jiří; Šenolt, Ladislav

    2016-01-01

    The aim of this study was to evaluate serum levels of visfatin in anti-Jo-1-positive myositis patients, its expression in muscle tissue and to investigate potential relationships between visfatin, B-cell activating factor of the TNF family (BAFF), disease activity and anti-Jo-1 autoantibody levels. Serum levels of visfatin and BAFF were measured in 38 anti-Jo-1 positive myositis patients and 35 healthy subjects. Disease activity was evaluated by myositis disease activity assessment tool (MYOACT) using visual analogue scales (VAS) and by serum muscle enzymes. Visfatin expression was evaluated by immunohistochemistry in muscle tissue of myositis patients (n=10) and compared with non-inflammatory control muscle tissue samples from patients with myasthenia gravis (n=5). Serum visfatin and BAFF levels were significantly higher in myositis patients compared to healthy subjects and were associated with clinical muscle activity assessed by VAS. Only serum BAFF levels, but not visfatin levels, positively correlated with muscle enzyme concentrations and anti-Jo1 antibody levels. There was a positive correlation between visfatin and BAFF serum levels in myositis patients but a negative correlation was observed in healthy subjects. Visfatin expression was up-regulated in endomysial and perimysial inflammatory infiltrates of muscle tissue from myositis patients. Up-regulation of visfatin in myositis muscle tissue and an association between increased visfatin levels and muscle disease activity evaluated by MYOACT in anti-Jo-1 positive myositis patients could support possible role of visfatin in the pathogenesis of myositis.

  20. Adolescent consumption of sports and energy drinks: linkages to higher physical activity, unhealthy beverage patterns, cigarette smoking, and screen media use.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Larson, Nicole; Dewolfe, Jessica; Story, Mary; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

    2014-01-01

    To examine patterns of adolescent sports and energy drink (SED) consumption and identify behavioral correlates. Data were drawn from Eating and Activity in Teens, a population-based study. Adolescents from 20 middle and high schools in Minneapolis/St Paul, MN completed classroom-administered surveys. A total of 2,793 adolescents (53.2% girls) in grades 6-12. Beverage patterns; breakfast frequency; moderate to vigorous physical activity (MVPA); media use; sleep; and cigarette smoking. Linear and logistic regression models were used to estimate associations between health behaviors and SED consumption, adjusting for demographics. Over a third of adolescents consumed sports drinks and 14.7% consumed energy drinks at least once a week. Among boys and girls, both sports and energy drink consumption were related to higher video game use; sugar-sweetened beverage and fruit juice intake; and smoking (P Sports drink consumption was also significantly related to higher MVPA and organized sport participation for both genders (P sports drink consumption was associated with higher MVPA, adolescents should be reminded of recommendations to consume these beverages only after vigorous, prolonged activity. There is also a need for future interventions designed to reduce SED consumption, to address the clustering of unhealthy behaviors. Copyright © 2014 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.