Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Natural oils as coupling agents in recycled polypropylene wood flour composites: Mechanical, thermal and morphological properties

Recycled polypropylene was reinforced with treated and non-treated wood flour with different natural oils. Four natural oils were used as coupling agents, namely hexanoic (C6), octanoic (C8), decanoic (C10) and dodecanoic (C12) acids. The mechanical, thermal and morphological properties of the resulting composites were evaluated. The usage of natural oils as coupling agents clearly improved the interfacial adhesion between wood flour and the polypropylene matrix while enhancing the mechanical and thermal properties. Better results were obtained when C8 was used. The improvement in the mechanical and thermal properties of the composites imparted by C8 is similar to that promoted by maleic anhydride-grafted polypropylene. The mechanical and thermal properties of the composites were affected by the boiling temperature and chain length of the natural oil used.
Investigation and prediction of pollution in coastal and estuarine waters, using experimental and numerical methods

In recent years, society has become more aware and concerned with the environmental and human health impacts of population growth and development. In response, a number of legislative measures have been introduced within Europe (and globally), which have sparked much cross-disciplinary research aimed at predicting and quantifying these impacts, and suggesting mitigation measures. This thesis is focussed on improving current understanding of, and simulating pollutant transport, in the aquatic environment. In particular, bacterial pollution. A number of 2D and 3D hydro-environmental models were developed to predict faecal bacterial levels for a pilot study in Swansea Bay, UK, in order to further current understanding of bacterial processes and evaluate beach management practices. Of these, a 2D model with an improved method of representing beach sources, and a 3D model with a depth-varying decay rate, were found to improve bacterial concentration predictions in the nearshore zone. These are therefore proposed as the preferred approaches when studying a shallow gradient beach located in in a macro-tidal region (such as Swansea Bay). Furthermore, it has been shown that the designation of a single monitoring point for Swansea Bay bathing water may not be best practice, as the current sampling point is not representative of the whole bathing water. In addition, an experimental study was conducted to monitor turbulent diffusion in a uniform channel under low Reynolds number steady ow conditions by tracking the position of oating particles. It was shown that the aspect ratio of a ow and the bed roughness play an important role in governing the scale of turbulent diffusion and, in the experiential set-up, were more indicative than the measurable turbulent ow properties. Results from this experiment were crossvalidated with 2D numerical model simulations and the findings may assist in the prediction of pollutant transport in surface waters.
Service Quality of a Public University in Saudi Arabia

This study investigated the discrepancy between students’ service expectations and their perceptions of the service performance in a college of business in one of the public universities in Saudi Arabia. Using the SERVQUAL instrument, this study collected data from 166 students. To test the dimensionality of the instrument, all 22 items were analysed using oblique rotation and varimax rotation, which resulted in a two-dimensional solution explaining 61.2 per cent of the variance. Overall, with the exception of one statement, more than 61 per cent of the statements pertaining to the college were rated to be on the positive side. However, further analysis using the paired samples t-test indicated that the faculty members and the college itself were not currently meeting their service quality expectations. In addition to that one-way repeated measures ANOVA tests confirmed the significant differences in perceptions of service quality among the students. Student expectations are highest in the area of access and empathy. These results suggest that the college should undertake significant efforts in faculty education in the area of service quality and customer satisfaction. This includes increasing the number of female faculty members. From the managerial perspective, it is very important that the faculty members and the college measure service quality continuously. In fact, service quality and student satisfaction are important factors in retention. This study is delimited to one small sample of students of the college. Future study that can assess continuous performance using a larger sample should be conducted.
Microfossil assemblages as key to reconstruct sea-level fluctuations, cooling episodes and palaeogeography: The Albian to Maastrichtian of Boreal and Peri-Tethyan Russia

Abstract The main palaeogeographic features of the Late Cretaceous Eastern European Platform and its southern framework are reconstructed mainly based on micropalaeontological data. An integrated foraminiferal–radiolarian zonation for the Upper Albian–Maastrichtian serves as a basis for palaeogeographic reconstructions and as a framework for the interpretation of palaeoclimate and sea-level trends. The study focuses on time slices of late Albian–Cenomanian, Turonian–Coniacian and Santonian–Campanian intervals. The late Albian was characterized by the gradual disappearance of a meridional seaway and the opening of connections into the Tethys Ocean and parts of the Peri-Tethys seas during the Cenomanian. As a result, mainly carbonate sedimentation prevailed during middle Turonian–Santonian times, characterized by high global sea-level. A cold Boreal water influence can be discerned not only along the northern margin of the Eastern European Platform, but as far south as the Northern Caucasus during certain time intervals, particularly during the Campanian. The Western Siberia Boreal Basin also influenced the study area, giving evidence of cooler-water episodes through the Palaeo-Ural territory and the Turgai Seaway.
Monitoring women at risk for preterm labor

Background Preterm birth is a major cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality. Whether the rate of preterm birth can be reduced by frequent contact between nurses and pregnant women or home monitoring of uterine activity is not known. Methods We randomly assigned 2422 pregnant women with known risk factors for preterm labor (including 844 women who were pregnant with twins) to receive education and to have one of the following: weekly contact with a nurse, daily contact with a nurse, or daily contact with a nurse and home monitoring of uterine activity. The nurses elicited the women's own assessments of their symptoms and signs of preterm labor. The primary end point was the incidence of birth at less than 35 weeks' gestation. Secondary end points included cervical status at the time preterm labor was diagnosed and birth weight. Results There were no significant differences among the groups in the incidence of birth at less than 35 weeks (14 percent in the weekly-contact group, 13 percent in the daily-co.
Intercomparison of spatiotemporal variability in severe weather environmental proxies and tornado activity over the United States

Tornadoes cause numerous deaths and significant property damage each year, yet how tornado activity varies across climate states, particularly under global warming, remains poorly understood. Importantly, severe weather events arise during transient periods of extreme thermodynamic environments whose variability may differ from that of the environmental mean state. This study analyzes the climatological relationships between commonly-used severe weather environmental proxies (the product of convective available potential energy and bulk vertical wind shear, energy-helicity index, and the significant tornado parameter) and tornado density on three dominant timescales of climate forcing: diurnal, seasonal, and interannual. We utilize reanalysis data to calculate the spatial distributions of the mean, median, and a range of extreme percentiles of these proxies across each timescale as well as for the full climatology. We then test the extent to which each measure captures the spatiotemporal variability of tornado density over the continental United States. Results indicate that the mean is a suitable statistic when used with the full climatology of the energy-helicity index and the significant tornado parameter without using convective inhibition in calculations, the diurnal cycle for convective available potential energy and the product of convective available potential energy and bulk vertical wind shear, and the interannual variations for all proxies except convective available potential energy. The mean is outperformed by extreme percentiles otherwise. This understanding of climatological relationships between tornadoes and the large scale environments can improve prediction of tornado frequency and provides a foundation for understanding how changes in the statistics of large-scale environments may affect tornado activity in a future warmer climate state.
Numerical simulation of fatigue failure of composite materials under compression

The process of fatigue fracture of carbon fibres reinforced plastic under compressive loads is considered from the standpoint of the theory of reaction rates. Numerical simulation is based on rheological structural models of the material, which reproduce thermodynamic processes of local plastic deformation and failure occurring in time. The prediction of longevity of composite materials under compressive loads is similar to the solution of the problem for metal alloys under tensile loads when temperature and stresses are arbitrary functions of time.
Defining Childhood Obesity: Revised 2000 Growth Charts, Body Mass Index, and Public Perceptions

T Definitions and terminology describing children’s body weight vary among health professionals, scientists, parents, and children themselves. The 2000 growth charts published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provide guidelines for assessing body mass index (BMI) by age for children 2 to 20 years old. This article discusses the growth charts and presents two tools for use in assessing the BMI of children. Family and child perception of body size is important in identifying overweight children and planning strategies to prevent and treat this growing health problem. Nutrition professionals can take the lead in applying these methods when working with families, caretakers, community, and commercial health agencies.
Prolonged bradycardia, asystole and outcome of high spinal cord injury patients: Risk factors and management

Background: High spinal cord injury (HSCI) is one of the devastating traumatic injuries. 80% of these patients are young male, and 93% will have major neurological disabilities. There is a paucity of literature about prolonged bradycardia in HSCI patients. The aim of this study was to know the prevalence, risk factors, precipitating factors for prolonged bradycardia in the HSCI patients. Materials and Methods: All patients who were admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of a tertiary hospital, with spinal cord injury above level of dorsal (D4) were enrolled in this study prospectively. Patient's demographic data, mechanism, level and type of spinal injury, associated injuries, injury severity score (ISS), spinal shock, vasopressors used, time of occurrence of bradycardia, treatment for bradycardia, precipitating as well as risk factors and outcome were recorded. Results: During the study period, a total of 138 patients were admitted to the ICU with HSCI. Majority of patients were male. The most frequently associated injury in these patients was skeletal fractures (38.4%). Most common complication was pneumonia 56 (41%). Forty-five (33%) of the total patients had prolonged bradycardia; 87% of these patients had pneumonia when bradycardia occurred. 53.4% had cardiac asystole. 29 (21%) patients had bradycardia at the time of endotracheal suctioning, whereas 27 (20%) patients developed bradycardia at the time of positioning. Majority of the patients were managed conservatively. Those HSCI patients who developed prolonged bradycardia, their ISS score was statistically higher, ICU and hospital stay was significantly higher compared with those HSCI patient who did not have prolonged bradycardia. Multivariate analysis revealed that hypotension on admission; pneumonia, and tracheostomy were risk factors for the development of prolonged bradycardia in HSCI patients. Conclusion: Prolonged bradycardia was associated with significantly higher incidence of asystole. Endotracheal suctioning and positioning of HSCI patients were significant provocative factors for prolonged bradycardia; hypotension on admission, pneumonia and tracheostomy were the risk factors for the development of prolonged bradycardia in these patients.
Leaching Characteristics of Arsenic and Heavy Metals and Stabilization Effects of Limestone and Steel Refining Slag in a Reducing Environment of Flooded Paddy Soil

In order to investigate treatment effects of limestone and steel refining slag for paddy soils contaminated with arsenic and heavy metals, a lab-column test was carried out under reducing environments of flooded paddy soils. In conditions of the flooded paddy soils, at the point of time when iron and manganese were reduced and leached rapidly, heavy metals also leached rapidly, and some leachate samples from an untreated soil exceeded regulatory standards. On the contrary, all samples from soils treated with limestone 5% and steel refining slag 5% respectively were below the regulatory standards, showing much lower heavy metal concentrations than in the untreated soil. Arsenic increased continuously during the observation period according to its typical characteristics, and along with decreasing redox potential, arsenic was expected to leach as H3AsO3‐of form A with high mobility and strong toxicity. Limestone and steel refining slag showed high treatment effects against heavy metals present in soil and steel refining slag especially showed the high treatment effects against arsenic.
Phytosociological and ecological discrimination of Mediterranean cypress ('Cupressus sempervirens') communities in Crete (Greece) by means of pollen analysis

Sixty modern surface samples collected from mosses in different cypress forest communities (Cupressus sempervirens L.) on the island of Crete (Greece) were analysed for their pollen content. The samples were taken from six different cypress phytosociological associations between 23 and 1600 m asl, and fall within distinct rainfall and temperature regimes. The aims of this paper are to provide new data on the modern pollen rain from the Aegean islands, and to perform these data using multivariate statistics (hierarchical cluster analysis and canonical correspondence analysis) and pollen percentages. The discrimination of pollen assemblages corresponds to a large extent to the floristic differentiation of Cupressus sempervirens forest vegetation and indicates the existence of three new associations.
Quality of perceived parental relationships and its link with psychological and university adjustment in first-year students

Using a shortened form of the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) (Pedersen, 1994), the present study examined the link between the quality of perceived parental relationships and psychological and university adjustment in first-year students. The study examined the response profiles of 121 first-year university students aged 17 to 50 and compared the results to data from a large Australian normative study (Cubis et al, 1989). Links between parental style and levels of psychological and university adjustment were then examined, as were links between personality style and levels of psychological and university adjustment. Significant differences between the subjects in the present study and the subjects in the normative study were found. One-way analysis of variance highlighted the contribution of four particular parental styles to levels of psychological and university adjustment. Results are discussed in relation to previous research and implications for university students' counselling services.
STANDARDIZED PRECIPITATION EVAPOTRANSPIRATION INDEX (SPEI) AS A TOOL TO DETERMINE THE HYDROLOGICAL DYNAMIC OF PLAIN REGIONS (ARGENTINA)

The Standardized Precipitation Evaporation Index (SPEI) in a 12-months timescale was used to define wet, normal and dry cycles in four representative sites of climatic sub regions of the Central Plains of Argentina. The studied period was 1980-2016. Hydrological dynamic was defined by analysis of shallow lakes areal variations and hydrological deficits and exceeds calculation. Data ranges and frequency of data were statistically analyzed. Along the studied period, the frequency of normal and humid years was higher than the dry ones. Nineteen eighty-five, 2008 and 2009 were some dry years, defined by SPEI. Effectively, regarding hydrological dynamic, there was noted a decrease (from 0.9 % to 96 %) of the shallow lakes areas during the aforementioned periods, in relation with their area during the humid ones. Hydrological deficit were noted during the 1995 and 2008 dry years in the site of the north and the rest of the sites, respectively. Also, exceeds amounts showed a response to the climatological cycles, during extremely wet years (i.e.: 1998 (NW of the studied area), 2001 (center), 2002 (NE) and 2009, in the northern site).
Thermal Performance and Reliability Analysis of a Medium-Voltage Three-Phase Inverter Considering the Influence of High $dv/dt$ on Parasitic Filter Elements

In recent years, the use of silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductor devices in medium-voltage (MV) applications has been made possible due to the development of high blocking voltage (10–15 kV)-based devices. While the use of these devices brings in a lot of advantages, the semiconductor devices are exposed to high peak stress (of up to 15 kV) and a very high <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$dv/dt$ </tex-math></inline-formula> (of up to 100 kV/<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu \text{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula>). The high <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$dv/dt$ </tex-math></inline-formula> across the devices leads to a high <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$dv/dt$ </tex-math></inline-formula> across other components connected to the system. This makes the effect of the parasitic capacitance across the components to be of paramount importance since an additional current flows through the components and, consequently, through the switching device. This additional current flows during each switching transition and leads to increased switching losses in the device. This article analyzes the effect of these additional losses on the lifetime of the device. The thermal performance of a three-phase inverter power block is provided, and a mission profile (solar irradiance and temperature)-based analysis is carried out to account for the additional junction temperature rise. The rainflow counting method is implemented to identify the mean and amplitude of each thermal cycle. An empirical device lifetime model is used to calculate the number of cycles to failure. Finally, the Palgrem Miner rule is used to quantify the total damage in the device. Comparisons have been carried out on basis of lifetime for both the cases (with and without the influence of parasitic capacitances). This analysis can be helpful in validating the importance of the design of filter inductors in these MV applications.
Controls on Carbon, Nutrient, and Sediment Cycling in a Large, Semiarid Estuarine System; Princess Charlotte Bay, Australia

Semiarid estuaries are characterized by pronounced seasonal variability, and a functional understanding of these systems requires constraint of coupled biogeochemical processes and relevant temporal and spatial scales. Here, we integrate 2 years of spatial surveys and time‐series measurements to quantify physical, chemical, and biological drivers in the largest estuarine system in the Great Barrier Reef region. During wet season, freshwater inputs of nutrients and sediment to estuaries were dominated by flood pulses, whereas carbonate input was also influenced by groundwater discharge. This carbonate input counteracted the minimum buffering zone that would otherwise occur at low salinities, thereby decreasing system‐wide air‐water CO2 fluxes. Sediment resuspension was a major control on the transformation and transport of material over tidal and seasonal scales. During wet season, tidal resuspension of benthic algae in nearshore mixing zones acted as an autotrophic filter, removing most bioavailable nutrients from the brackish plume. During dry season, upstream transport combined with hypersaline conditions trapped material in upper estuaries where denitrification and net heterotrophy were high. However, the role of sediment transport varied depending on tidal asymmetry and density‐driven circulation. Estuarine regions with large intertidal areas were dominated by salt flat erosion, which showed a diagenetic signature associated with mid‐Holocene swamp sediments. Tidal resuspension of these organic‐rich sediments appeared to be the dominant control on biogeochemical cycling in coastal waters. This study demonstrates that a holistic understanding of coastal ecosystem connectivity and function requires resolution of both along‐axis and water‐column gradients as well as a range of timescales from tidal to geological cycles.
Joint Inversion of Receiver Functions and Surface‐Wave Dispersion in the Pantanal Wetlands: Implications for Basin Formation

The origin and evolution of the Pantanal basin have been investigated through velocity‐depth profiles developed from the joint inversion of receiver functions and surface‐wave dispersion velocities at 33 broadband stations. The Pantanal basin is a shallow and wide depression in South‐Central Brazil that developed within the Andean foreland in response to loads and flexural bending of the South American plate. Our results reveal the existence of up to four different crustal types that correlate with surface geology: (i) crust of 35 km with VS < 4.0 km/s, under the basin and along the SW projection of the Transbrasiliano lineament (TBL); (ii) crust of 45 km with VS > 4.0 km/s below 40 km depth, flanking the basin to the east and west; (iii) crust of 50–55 km with VS > 4.0 km/s below 40 km depth, flanking the basin to the north and south and along the TBL; and (iv) crust of 42.5–45.0 km with VS < 4.0 km/s in the neighboring Paraná basin. Existing geodynamic models propose that the Pantanal basin formed either in the back‐bulge of the flexural system or at the top of the forebulge, due to extensional bending stresses that reactivated preexisting faults in the shallow upper crust. We argue that the Pantanal basin was formed in a structurally weaker portion of the foreland crust that was affected by delamination and enhanced bending of the South American plate. Our findings do not allow for discrimination among the competing models but suggest that the TBL was critical in marking the location, origin, and evolution of this basin.