Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Valorization of Prosopis juliflora Woody Biomass in Northeast Brazilian through Dry Torrefaction

Torrefaction has been investigated to improve the desirable properties of biomass as solid biofuel, usually used in natura as firewood in several countries. This paper has the main objective to present a broad characterization of the biomass Prosopis juliflora (P. juliflora), investigating its potential as a solid biofuel after its torrefaction process. The methodology was based on different procedures. The experimental runs were carried out at 230, 270, and 310 °C for 30 min, using a bench-scale torrefaction apparatus, with an inert atmosphere. In order to investigate the effect of temperature in constant time, torrefaction parameters were calculated, such as mass yield, energy yield, calorific value, base-to-acid ratio (B/A), and the alkaline index (AI). The physicochemical properties of the torrefied samples were determined and thermogravimetric analysis was used to determine the kinetic parameters at four different heating rates of 5, 10, 20, and 30 °C/min. Pyrolysis kinetics was investigated using the Flynn-Wall-Ozawa (FWO) and Kissinger-Akahira-Sunose (KAS) isoconversional methods. Highly thermally stable biofuels were obtained due to the great degradation of hemicellulose and cellulose during torrefaction at higher temperatures. The highest heating value (HHV) of the samples varied between 18.3 and 23.1 MJ/kg, and the energy yield between 81.1 and 96.2%. The results indicate that P. juliflora torrefied becomes a more attractive and competitive solid biofuel alternative in the generation of heat and energy in northeast Brazil.
Computational Study of a Radial Flow Turbine Operates Under Various Pulsating Flow Shapes and Amplitudes

Radial flow turbines are extensively used in turbocharging technology due to their unique capability of handling a wide range of exhaust gas flow. The pulsating flow nature of the internal combustion engine exhaust gases causes unsteady operation of the turbine stage. This paper presents the impact of the pulsating flow of various characteristics on the performance of a radial flow turbine. A three-dimensional computational fluid dynamic model was coupled with a one-dimensional engine model to study the realistic pulsating flow. Applying square wave pulsating flow showed the highest degree of unsteadiness corresponding to 92.6% maximum mass flow accumulation due to the consecutive sudden changes of the mass flowrates over the entire pulse. Although sawtooth showed a maximum mass flow accumulation value of 88.9%, the mass flowrates entailed gradual change and resulted in the least overall mass flow accumulation over the entire pulse. These two extremes constrained the anticipated performance of the radial flow turbine that operates under realistic pulsating flow. Such constraints could develop an operating envelope to predict the performance and optimize radial flow turbines’ power extraction under pulsating flow conditions.
Well-being in Europe: decompositions by country and gender for the population aged 50+

The well-being of older Europeans is of increasing importance given the substantialageing of the population. This paper comprehensively analyses well-being forthe population aged 50+ in 26 European countries, using the newly proposedindicator “Years of Good Life” (YoGL), which measures the remaining yearsof life that an individual can expect to live in a “good” state. The indicatorenables the decomposition of well-being into various dimensions, thereby revealingimportant heterogeneities between regions and genders. Results show that numbersof YoGL at age 50 vary considerably between European countries. They are highestin Northern and Western European countries and lowest in Central and EasternEuropean countries, where many “good” years are lost due to low life satisfaction.Interestingly, the high life expectancy levels in Southern Europe do not translate intohigher numbers of YoGL, mainly due to the low levels of physical and cognitivehealth in this region. While women and men can expect to have similar numbersof YoGL, women are likely to spend a smaller proportion of their longer remaininglifetime in a good state. These results demonstrate the importance of using wellbeingindicators that consider population heterogeneity when measuring humanwell-being, especially for older populations.
Advances in the researches on structural substitution of apatite

In this paper, the researches on the substitutions of Ca_polyhedral, P_tetrahedral and channel positions in apatite structure are reviewed, the structural sites, substitution forms and mechanism of isomorphic ions are discussed, and the influence of the substitution of this mineral upon the environmental mineralogy is briefly described.
Thermo-modified native black poplar (Populus nigra L.) wood as an insulation material

Abstract: Extensive research projects have been carried out on thermal modification of wood material, yet thermal properties of thermally modified poplar wood have not been comprehensively investigated. Black poplar (Populus nigra L.) is a Eurasian species native to Italy which is rarely used for the production of high-performance products, though it is one of the least expensive hardwoods on the market. To explore alternative applications of poplar wood such as building facade or fire resistance materials, reliable data of thermal behaviour of thermally modified wood at high temperatures are needed. In this work, the thermal behaviour of native black poplar wood after thermal modification at different temperatures (180 °C, 200 °C and 220 °C) was analyzed. Thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and porosity were measured on poplar wood boards, as well as mass loss and wood color changes after heat treatment were quantified. Thermal conductivity of wood samples showed significant changes after treatment at 200 and 220 °C, but not at 180 °C. Wood porosity showed significant differences with the control when the samples were modified at a temperature of 220 °C. Increasing color differences were observed in wood samples by increasing the thermal modification temperature. Also, the mass loss of wood samples increased and equilibrium moisture content significantly dropped down after thermal modification. Our results showed that the use of thermally-modified black poplar wood could be considered as a viable alternative to chemically treated wood products for specific applications where high insulation is needed, such as saunas or windows, and for facades elements.
Mesophilic Composting of Arctic Char Manure

Manure in coldwater aquaculture production systems is typically settled in quiescent zones created within raceways to concentrate it prior to being pumped to storage in off-line settling basins. As the water passes through the off-line settling basins, the solids settle out and the excess water is discharged to surface water. Since the basins are not frequently emptied, the organic solids mineralize and nutrients flow out of the basins with the surface water discharge. A system was tested to remove solids from settling basins frequently and treat by mesophilic composting. Two carbon (C) sources (wheat straw or oak sawdust) were evaluated. Manure was applied to beds of carbon sources at a rate of about 1cm of arctic char manure (8% solids) every 10 days using a vacuum tank spreader modified for side discharge over the plots. The open and porous structure of wheat straw resulted in several advantages over the oak sawdust; there was not runoff during application even during freezing winter temperatures when the oak sawdust compost was frozen solid, aerobic conditions were maintained with lower amounts of C, and decomposition rates were higher resulting in less time needed to reach stability (about 90d vs. 140d). Inorganic nitrogen (N) increased as the organic matter decomposed with either C source. Mineralization and nitrification rates were higher with wheat straw. Water-extractable P decreased as the organic matter from both C sources decomposed. Land requirements are about 0.001 ha to compost the manure for each 1 Mg Arctic char produced annually, but could be significantly higher for the wheat straw since experimental loading rates were limited by the reduced capacity of the oak sawdust compost. A layered mesophilic compost system may be a viable manure management system to store and treat manure and replace long-term storage in off-line settling basins for fish farmers. In this system, solids would continue to be settled in the off-line settling basins but pumped onto straw nearby for storage and stabilization on land thereby minimizing discharge of nutrients to surface water.
Indonesian Government Bureaucracy Efforts to Prevent Covid-19 at the Beginning of the Pandemic Period

Since the World Health Organization declared the Corona Covid-19 virus as an epidemic, in the following, the Indonesian Government also stated that the Corona virus problem has become a non-natural national disaster. The President of the Republic of Indonesia and the Regional government together with their staff are helping one another in preventing the spread of Covid-19 in Indonesia. Many government bureaucratic efforts have been made by issuing policies as the initial steps to prevent the spread of Covid-19. As the implementer of the bureaucracy, the Government always strives to provide effective public services in efforts to prevent the spread of the Corona Covid-19 virus in society. From the central level to the heads of the provinces, Regencies and even the municipal governments. This study applies the content analysis method, in which the content analysis is limited to newspaper media which convey information related to some policies information presented by each head of government, both in several regions and countries. The purpose of this research is to provide education to the public in dealing with global disasters and efforts to prevent them. The results show that the bureaucratic efforts of the central government and local governments through various policies have carried out many communication strategies for their respective regional communities through coercion, informative, expulsion, targeting, persuasion and excess techniques in message packages in the form of instructions, to the public to prevent Covid-19 in their area. However, the techniques of coercion up to the approval stage are enforced to prevent the effect of violations on offenders. The central government in this case has not maximized its roles in implementing a comprehensive communication strategy for all local governments. This is due to the absence of the National Command from the central government which seems to be slow in preventing the transmission of Covid-19, which has become a global disaster, including in Indonesia.
Psychological and behavioral effects of personal names in real world: Evidence and theories

: Personal names not only can influence others’ impression and evaluation, but also may affect individuals’ own psychology and behavior in real world. Over the past century, psychologists have conducted numerous empirical studies in the domains of decision making, achievement, health, and personality to examine the actual impacts of surnames or given names on individuals. Various dimensions of names (e.g., name uniqueness, name gender, name valence, and name warmth–competence) could, more or less, predict human psychology and behavior (e.g., career/life/economic decisions, career/academic achievements, physical/mental health, criminal behavior, personality traits, psychological needs, and facial characteristics). However, existing evidence is mixed, and current theories are far from adequate. Future studies should examine multiple dimensions of names, deal with methodological problems (e.g., replicability, causality, mechanisms, and cross-cultural generalizability), and try best to develop more systematic and inclusive theories to explain the psychological and behavioral effects of names.
Analysis of the Thermal Behavior of a New Structure of Protected Agriculture Established in a Region of Tropical Climate Conditions

Determining airflow patterns and their effect on the distribution of microclimate variables such as temperature is one of the most important activities in naturally ventilated protected agricultural structures. In tropical countries, this information is used by farmers and decision makers when defining climate management strategies and for crop-specific cultural work. The objective of this research was to implement a validated Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model in 3D to determine the aerodynamic and thermal behavior of a new protected agricultural structure established in a warm climate region in the Dominican Republic. The numerical evaluation of the structure was carried out for the hours of the daytime period (6–17 h), the results found allowed to define that the CFD model generates satisfactory predictions of the variables evaluated. Additionally, it was found that airflow patterns are strongly affected by the presence of porous insect screens, which generate moderate velocity flows (<0.73 m s−1) inside the structure. It was also identified that the value of the average temperature inside the structure is directly related to the air flows, the level of radiation and the temperature of the outside environment.
Hormonal pleiotropy structures genetic covariance

Quantitative genetic theory proposes that phenotypic evolution is shaped by G, the matrix of genetic variances and covariances among traits. In species with separate sexes, the evolution of sexual dimorphism is also shaped by B, the matrix of between‐sex genetic variances and covariances. Despite considerable focus on estimating these matrices, their underlying biological mechanisms are largely speculative. We experimentally tested the hypothesis that G and B are structured by hormonal pleiotropy, which occurs when one hormone influences multiple phenotypes. Using juvenile brown anole lizards (Anolis sagrei) bred in a paternal half‐sibling design, we elevated the steroid hormone testosterone with slow‐release implants while administering empty implants to siblings as a control. We quantified the effects of this manipulation on the genetic architecture of a suite of sexually dimorphic traits, including body size (males are larger than females) and the area, hue, saturation, and brightness of the dewlap (a colorful ornament that is larger in males than in females). Testosterone masculinized females by increasing body size and dewlap area, hue, and saturation, while reducing dewlap brightness. Control females and males differed significantly in G, but treatment of females with testosterone rendered G statistically indistinguishable from males. Whereas B was characterized by low between‐sex genetic correlations when estimated between control females and males, these same correlations increased significantly when estimated between testosterone females and either control or testosterone males. The full G matrix (including B) for testosterone females and either control or testosterone males was significantly less permissive of sexually dimorphic evolution than was G estimated between control females and males, suggesting that natural sex differences in testosterone help decouple genetic variance between the sexes. Our results confirm that hormonal pleiotropy structures genetic covariance, implying that hormones play an important yet overlooked role in mediating evolutionary responses to selection.
Energy taxes and economic growth in OECD countries: a simultaneous equations approach

ABSTRACT This paper explores the channels through which energy taxes may affect economic growth, using a simultaneous equations model for a balanced panel data of 31 OECD countries over the 1994–2013 period. The empirical results reveal a negative impact of energy taxes on physical investment in the short and long term. This impact is negatively sensitive to the existence and level of public debt. Additionally, the results show that energy taxes have an indirect effect on human capital through their impact on polluting emissions. The taxes on energy products are able to reduce both the flux and the stock of polluting emissions that have a negative impact on human capital skills in the short and long term. Finally, we found that energy taxes could encourage eco-innovation in the short and long term.
ROS-1 NSCLC therapy resistance mechanism

: ROS1 -rearrangements occur in 1–2% of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and define a distinct molecular subgroup. In the last decade, the development of molecularly targeted therapy has changed the standard of care for NSCLC patients harboring ROS1 and other driver mutations. The multitargeted MET/ALK/ROS1 tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) crizotinib significantly improves overall survival for these patients; however, resistance to crizotinib invariably occurs, leading to disease progression. Several resistance mechanisms to crizotinib have been reported, including pharmacokinetic/dynamic failure, biological acquired resistance by secondary point mutations in the ROS1 kinase domain, bypass tracks, and phenotypic changes. Next-generation TKIs can be clinically active against ROS1 -rearranged NSCLC after progression to crizotinib, depending on the acquired resistance mechanism, or have substantial intracranial activity compared to crizotinib. Understanding the mechanisms of resistance to ROS1 TKI is critical to develop selective therapies. Thus, contemporary approaches are essential to improve outcomes with subsequent treatments in patients with ROS1 -rearranged lung cancer. Tissue or blood-based next generation sequencing (NGS) can help to identify the resistance mechanism to ROS1 TKI and may be considered after tumor progression in order to better select further lines of targeted therapy, although prospective validation of this therapeutic approach is needed. In this review, we perform a comprehensive analysis of ROS1 fusions in NSCLC, resistance mechanism to ROS1 targeted therapies, and future strategies. have been tested in the first-line. Resistance mechanism to different TKIs used in the front-line treatment other than crizotinib for ROS1 -positive cancer patients can modified subsequent therapies.
A weighty issue: The implications of an ultrasound prediction of a large baby in pregnancy

Ultrasound scans are an increasingly normalised part of pregnancy in Aotearoa New Zealand. In the third trimester, fetal measurements and weight estimations are undertaken at all scans, regardless of clinical indication. Even though these size predictions can be inaccurate, they heavily influence clinical decision-making. As a result, people with a scan prediction of a large baby may be more likely to have unnecessary interventions that do not improve outcomes, irrespective of the baby’s actual birthweight. My study aimed to explore the implications of an ultrasound prediction of a large baby on birthing people’s perceptions and experiences of their pregnancies and births, including their birth choices and relationships with caregivers. The study was underpinned by feminist poststructural theory, which is interested in the exposure of apparently fixed truths as socially and politically situated, and the creation of possibility for different ways of knowing and being through the deconstruction of those fixed truths. This focus was consonant with the objectives of my work: to expose the current apparent truths and practices about large babies and birth as the products of dominant medical discourse, and then set about disturbing them and creating space for a midwifery and women-centred narrative of fetal growth. In conducting the study, I carried out semi-structured interviews with people who had experienced a large baby prediction in pregnancy. I then analysed the data using reflexive thematic analysis. My analysis identified three overarching themes. The first described the two dominant medicalising discourses that prioritised surveillance and risk-centric care, and problematised large babies. The second identified the oppressive effects that engagement with these discourses had, including women experiencing fear, guilt, and a loss of control as they were directed on high intervention care pathways. The third explored the ways that women attempted to resist the oppressive effects of dominant discourse by privileging women’s ways of knowing, trusting their bodies to grow and birth normally, and seeking to gain control of decision-making about their experience. My findings demonstrated the negative impact that a large baby prediction had on women’s experiences and care pathways and identified opportunities for those women to challenge the problematisation of predicted large babies. The importance of a supportive midwifery relationship to these resistances was clear. The role of midwives in partnering with women to challenge medical meanings and practices related to large babies is affirmed as a key finding in this research.
Carbon Dioxide Sorption and Transport in Amorphous Poly(ethylene furanoate)

Transport properties of carbon dioxide in amorphous poly(ethylene furanoate) (PEF) were investigated using complementary pressure-decay sorption and permeation techniques. Detailed measurements for PEF at 35 °C indicate a significant, surprisingly large reduction in carbon dioxide permeability of 19× at 1 atm compared to poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), despite both an increase in free volume and carbon dioxide solubility of 1.6× for PEF vs PET. The solubility increase for PEF, which originates from greater interaction between carbon dioxide and the polar furan moiety, is offset by a substantial reduction in diffusivity of 31× compared to PET. Such diffusion reduction for PEF, which is 3× greater than the 9.7× reduction in oxygen diffusivity compared to PET, is thought to originate from a hindrance of polymer ring-flipping motions compared to PET. A possible mechanism for the surprising barrier improvement for carbon dioxide in PEF vs PET is explained herein along with a detailed comparison to oxygen a.
What do we know about zakat literature? A bibliometric review

Purpose This paper aims to develop a meaningful single-source reference for Islamic economics and finance scholars concerning zakat intellectual structure published in journals indexed by the Scopus database. Design/methodology/approach The bibliometric method is used to describe and analyze the evolution of publication structure and its various co-relations such as co-citation, co-authorship and bibliographical coupling. Findings The authors discuss the influential and conceptual aspects of the published literature on zakat. An interesting finding is that few papers have received more than 50 citations. The analysis revealed that the Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research is the most cited source. Nevertheless, the list of the eight most cited papers reflects that research in this field is still dearth. Further, the authors find that zakat is discussed within the context of religion, its institutional framework, its role to eradicate poverty and distribution management of zakat. The authors also identify and present 14 research directions that will further stimulate scholarly work in the zakat field. Research limitations/implications The study confines on English papers and reviews published in journals indexed by the Scopus database only; hence, the study is representative of the moderate and high-quality papers published in this area of knowledge. Practical implications Researchers envision that this bibliometric study will complement meta-analysis and qualitative structured literature reviews as a method of reviewing and evaluating the scientific literature of this study area; thus, this may help researchers for futuristic research directions. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to tackle the zakat area from a bibliometric aspect. The authors believe that this will help scholars and researchers to stand on firm bases regarding the scientific development of this area of study.