bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Navigated Laser Therapy for Diabetic Macular Oedema
Authors: Kernt Marcus , Ulbig Michael , Kampik Anselm , Neubauer Aljoscha S ,   Consultant and Retina Specialist, Department of Ophthalmology,   Consultant and Retina Specialist, Department of Ophthalmology,   Head of Department of Ophthalmology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Germany,   Consultant and Retina Specialist, Department of Ophthalmology
Published: June 2015

Navigated laser therapy introduces computerised assistance systems to retinal laser photocoagulation treatment. Some of the main benefits the Navilas system offers over conventional laser include high precision and safety and provides additional advantages in terms of standardisation of planning, execution, documentation, quality assurance and better overall treatment comfort for the patient. Navigated laser therapy is being used with good success in the treatment of diabetic macular oedema (DMO), retinal vein occlusions (RVO) and fastpattern navigated panretinal photocoagulation in proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). In centre-involving DMO, a combination of antivascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and macular laser may provide advantages over anti-VEGF monotherapy. In terms of navigated laser therapy, recent study data from our clinic and other institutions indicate that combined initial anti-VEGF and navigated macular laser therapy allows treatment success to be achieved and maintained with a significantly reduced number of interventions.
Octreotide – A Review of its Use in Treating Neuroendocrine Tumours
Authors: Costa Frederico , Gumz Brenda ,   Medical Oncologist, Oncology Centre, Hospital Sírio-Libanês, São Paulo, Brazil,   Medical Oncologist, Oncology Centre, Hospital Sírio-Libanês, São Paulo, Brazil
Published: June 2015

Neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) are a heterogeneous group of neoplasms whose incidence has dramatically increased in recent years. Octreotide is a somatostatin analogue used in the treatment of NETs, and its use in clinical trials has been associated with substantially increased survival. Although traditionally used for the relief of symptoms that result from release of peptides and neuroamines, there has been a growing body of evidence that suggest octreotide has antiproliferative effects. A phase III clinical study has demonstrated that the long-acting formulation (LAR), octreotide LAR, lengthens time to tumour progression in patients with well-differentiated metastatic midgut NETs, and that octreotide LAR is a treatment option for patients with metastatic midgut NETs, regardless of functional status. Furthermore, octreotide LAR has demonstrated clinical efficacy in different types of NETs. These data, along with emerging data on somatostatin analogs, may change the way doctors approach this patient population and reinforce the use of these drugs as a treatment option for patients with non-functioning tumours.
Evaluation of Convective Heat Transfer Coefficient for Pool Boiling of Milk Under Closed Condition
Authors: Kumar Mahesh , Kasana K. S. , Kumar Sudhir , Prakash Om
Published: June 2015

This research paper reports the study on heat and mass transfer during pool boiling of milk in an aluminum pan under closed conditions. Various indoor experiments were conducted for different heat inputs varying from 240 to 360 W. During heating of milk the evaporated water was condensed at the inner surface of the condensing cover and collected as fresh water. Experimental data were analyzed by using Rohsenow pool boiling correlation with the help of simple linear regression analysis. The convective heat transfer coefficients were estimated in the range of 186.32 to 567.56 W/m2 oC for the heat inputs varying from 240 to 360 W. The nucleate boiling heat flux was observed to increase exponentially with the increase in excess temperature. The experimental errors in terms of percent uncertainty were also evaluated.
Importance of Management Information System in Electronic-Information Era
Authors: L.P.Gupta C. , Sharma Shalini , Tripathi Sudhakar
Published: June 2015

Management Information system is a system which is very useful and helpful to get information about any organization or different departments of an organization and different kinds of fields. In this article we can analyzes that what is a MIS, Components and types of MIS Why MIS and what is the use of MIS in an information field. The design of a computer based MIS to aid in the search for information is a specialized task, requiring extensive knowledge of how information can be organized and how people search for information. The advantages and disadvantages of MIS discussed in this article also. But there are some most important things for MIS like computerized infrastructure, technical trained staff, accurate data collection and a database manager or information officer.
Application of Human Resource Accounting in Heavy Industries
Authors: Sharma Shalini , Shukla R. K.
Published: June 2015

Since the beginning of globalization of business and services, Human elements are becoming more important input for the success of any corporate enterprise. It helps the management to frame policies for human resources. Human Resource Accounting is a process of identifying and measuring data about human resources. Measurement of the investment in human resources will help to evaluate the charges in human resource investment over a period of time. This paper aims at analyzing the application of Human Resource Accounting in heavy industries covering the period from 2001-2010 with the case study of The Hindustan Copper Limited, a public sector undertaking. The case study helps to analyze that the value of production per employee is increasing or decreasing.
Study and Fabrication of Compressed Air Engine
Authors: Yadav JP , Singh Bharat Raj
Published: June 2015

As the world is hard pressed with the energy and fuel crises, compounded by pollution of all kinds, any technologies that bring out the solutions to this problem is considered as a bounty. In one of such new technologies, is the development of a new engine called as compressed air engine which does not require any of the known fuels like diesel, petrol, CNG, LPG, hydrogen etc. this works using only compressed air. This replaces all types of to-date known fuels and also permanently solves the problems of pollution as its exhaust is clean and cool measured practically as low as 5ºC. A proto type, a horizontal, single cylinder low speed engine was modified to run on compressed air. Since this engine runs only on high pressure compressed air, the exhaust of which is undoubtedly only air, making it a zero pollution engine. No heat is generated because there is no combustion of fuel, hence this engine needs no cooling system and it result in reduced cost, weight, volume and vibration. Early cost analysis shows that it's very cost effective and the operational cost is ten times less than that of petrol or diesel. Experimental analysis were carried out on this modified engine to find out its performance characteristics like brake power, mechanical efficiency, overall efficiency, air to Air ratio, volumetric efficiency, cost analysis etc. Though the efficiencies were low as the frictional forces were high for the proto designed engine, however the concept can be applied on a professionally designed engine to improve its performance.
Employee Readiness to Implement HR Practices- A Comparative Study Between Public Sector and Private Sector
Authors: Kumar Yogesh
Published: June 2015

The objective of this study is to make an attempt to find out gaps, if any, between the "Employee Readiness to implement HR practices" between the employees of Public Sector and Private Sector. Data was collected from the employees of Public sector and Private Sectors. Questionnaire method was used to collect responses from the respondents. Employee Readiness Index was calculated. Statistical technique t-test and ANOVA were used to analyze the data. Results showed that there was a significant difference between Public sector and Private Sector. Further all the three organizations i.e. large, medium and small scale organizations differ significantly on employee readiness index.
Space Time Block Coding and MIMO Channels:Performance Results
Authors: Tripathi Kanhaiya , Singh Sanjay
Published: June 2015

We analyse the Space-time Block coding for wireless communication and present an overview of applying MIMO concept and shows how it improves the SNR without decreasing data rates. It provides a new paradigm for transmission over Raleigh fading channel using multiple transmit antennas. Data is encoded using a space time block code and the encoded data is split into n streams which are simultaneously transmitted using n transmit antennas. Maximum likelihood decoding is achieved in a simple way through decoupling of the signals transmitted from different antennas rather than joint detection. This uses the orthogonal structure of the space time block code and gives a maximum likelihood decoding algorithm which is based only on linear processing at the receiver. We review the encoding and decoding algorithms for various codes and provide simulation results demonstrating their performance. It is shown that using multiple transmit antennas and space-time block coding provides remarkable performance at the expense of almost no extra processing.
Effect of Unconventional Machining on Surface Roughness of Metal: Aluminum and Brass- A Case Study of Abrasive Flow
Authors: Yadav Sunil Kumar , Singh Manoj Kumar , Singh Bharat Raj
Published: June 2015

Abrasive finishing techniques are developed to overcome the problems such as high direct labor cost and to produce finished precision parts with specific features for finishing inaccessible areas. Abrasive finishing is carried out with a large number of cutting edges, which have indefinite orientation and geometry. Abrasive fine finishing processes are commonly employed because of their inherent capabilities of finishing various geometries of form, (i.e., flat surface, round surface, etc), and various geometries of surface relation (i.e. parallelism, squareness, straightness, angularity, etc.), with the desired dimensional accuracy and surface finish. In AFM, the medium gently and uniformly scrape the surfaces and/or edges, whereas it is not so in the case of grinding. In grinding, abrasives are held rigidly by hard (solid) bond material, whereas in AFM abrasives are held by semisolid bond (or medium). In all these abrasive finishing processes, the grain-workpiece interaction involves one or more of the basic modes of material deformation, i.e., cutting, ploughing and rubbing. Basically cutting is a material removal process, ploughing is a material displacement process and rubbing / sliding is a surface modification process. The key components of AFM process are the machine, tooling and abrasive medium. Process input parameters such as extrusion pressure, number of cycles, grit composition and type, tooling and fixture designs have impact on AFM output responses (such as surface finish and material removal). AFM is capable to produce surface finish (Ra) as good as 0.05 ?m, deburr holes as small as 0.2 mm and radius edges from 0.025 mm to 1.5mm. AFM has wide range of applications in industries such as aerospace, medical, electronics, automotive, precision dies and moulds as a part of their manufacturing activities.
Study of Effects of Waste PVC on the Properties of Bituminous Mixes
Authors: Rasel H. M. , Rahman M. N. , Ahmed T. U.
Published: June 2015

Waste PVC that has been used previously as mineral water bottles, pipes, electrical fittings etc. are biologically non-degradable and posed an ominous environmental problem which led to severe environmental impact. But molten PVC has a binding property which can be reused with bitumen to reduce the cost of bituminous mix. At the same time the recycling of waste PVC save disposal sites and to reduce the amount of inert drawn from quarries, which often lead to environmental problems. This paper describes the investigation of the properties of bitumen mixed with PVC (2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, 10%, 12.5%, 15%, 17.5% and 20% by the weight of bitumen) at optimum bitumen content and to check the design criteria of bituminous mixes using this bitumen-PVC binder. The investigation concentrated on the test of strength properties of coarse aggregates and Marshall Design properties of bituminous mixes according to the test procedure specified by AASHTO. Some of the measured properties of bituminous mix with bitumen-PVC binder used in this study were within the acceptable recommended limits. On the basis of experimental results of this investigation, it is concluded that the dense graded bituminous mixes with bitumen containing PVC up to 10% can be used for bituminous pavement construction in warmer region from the stand point of stability, stiffness and voids characteristics.
Study on Performance Evaluation of Automotive Radiator
Authors: Yadav JP , Singh Bharat Raj
Published: June 2015

A complete set of numerical parametric studies on automotive radiator has been presented in detail in this study. The modeling of radiator has been described by two methods, one is finite difference method and the other is thermal resistance concept. In the performance evaluation, a radiator is installed into a test-setup and the various parameters including mass flow rate of coolant, inlet coolant temperature; etc. are varied. A comparative analysis between different coolants is also shown. One coolant as water and other as mixture of water in propylene glycol in a ratio of 40:60 is used. It is observed that that the water is still the best coolant but its limitation is that it is corrosive and contains dissolved salts that degrade the coolant flow passage.
Study on Future Prospects of Power Generation by Bagasse, Rice Husk and Municipal Waste in Uttar Pradesh
Authors: Yadav JP , Singh Bharat Raj
Published: June 2015

The use of bagasse, rice husk and municipal solid waste as a fuel for power generation can be an option to supplement the growing power demand as the conventional power source i.e. fossil fuel is diminishing day by day. So bagasse, rice husk and MSW have the substantial potential of such energy to be tapped in a synergistic manner. The potential of power generation by bagasse in Uttar Pradesh is 1400 MW which can replace approximately 560 tonne of coal otherwise. The green house emissions are also lower in the burning of bagasse reducing the environmental pollution. Also the potential of power generation by rice husk in Uttar Pradesh is 257.05 MW which is equivalent to energy of approximately 102 tonne of coal. At district Etawah the power generation by rice husk is approximately 9.45 MW. Likewise the potential of power generation by MSW in Uttar Pradesh is 258 MW which can save approximately 103 tonne of coal. If the power is generated by all these non conventional fuels in Uttar Pradesh then the overall power generation potential would be 1916.5MW equivalent to 766.42 tonne of coal. Even the blending of rice husk with the bagasse and MSW both is possible to have appreciable calorific value in case of scarcity of any one of three at a place. An effort is made here to study and analyze keeping the availability and environmental pollution in view of all these resources at district Etawah of Uttar Pradesh in the country.
An Efficient Margin and Sensitivity Analysis Based Method For Calculating Voltage Collapse
Authors: Khan Imran , Mallick M. A. , Rafi Malik , Ullah Faheem
Published: June 2015

This paper concerns compute and exploiting the sensitivity of the loading margin to voltage collapse with respect to various parameters. The main idea of this paper is that after the loading margin has been computed for nominal parameters, the effect on the loading margin of altering the parameters can be predicted by Taylor series estimates.
Loading margin is a fundamental measure of proximity to voltage collapse. Linear and quadratic estimates to the variation of the loading margin with respect to any system parameter or control are derived. The accuracy of the estimates over a useful range and the ease of obtaining the linear estimate suggest that this method will be of practical value in avoiding voltage collapse.
Thermal Performance of Copper and Brass Immersion Rods for the Evaporation of Sugarcane Juice
Authors: Kumar Mahesh , Kumar Amit , Akhtar Nahid
Published: June 2015

In this article, thermal performance of copper and brass immersion rods fitted inside aluminum pots has been compared on the basis of the values of convective heat transfer coefficients evaluated during evaporation of sugarcane juice for jaggery production. Experiments were conducted under varying heat input conditions for the sugarcane juice heating of constant mass by copper and brass immersion rods. The experimental data were analyzed by the Nusselt number expression using linear regression method. The convective heat transfer coefficients were observed higher in the case of sugarcane juice heating by copper immersion rod.
National Mission for Climate Change Using Clean Development Mechanics
Authors: Singh Manoj Kumar , Singh Bharat Raj
Published: June 2015

The success of our national efforts would be significantly enhanced provided the developed countries affirm their responsibility for accumulated green house gas emissions and fulfill their commitments under the United Nations framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to transfer new and additional financial resources climate friendly technology to support both adaptation and mitigation in developing countries.
Clean Development Mechanics (CDM) is a tool of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. CDM change in average weather conditions, or in the distribution of weather around the average conditions. It is caused by factors that include oceanic processes variations in solar radiation received by Earth, plate tectonics and volcanic eruption, and human-induced alterations of the natural world; these latter effects are currently using CDM “climate change” is often used to describe human-specific impacts. Scientists work to understand past and future climate by using observations and theoretical models. Temperature profiles, ice cores, floral and faunal records, glacial and per glacial processes, stable isotope and other sediment analyses, and sea level records serve to provide a climate record that spans the geologic past. More recent data are provided by the instrumental record.
On other hand climate change risks are becoming biggest challenges of 21st century such as rising sea levels, that could force us to alter many of the ways economic and social activity are arranged. Climate-related changes may threaten human health, disrupt economic activity, damage natural ecosystems irreversibly, and even lead to mass migration, food shortage, and other global humanitarian crises. We have to outline the global climate strategy to curb it such as: conversion to lower carbon economies in both developed and developing countries, with market-based incentive schemes dominant in the former group, and low-carbon technology transfer schemes dominant in the latter.
Engineering new and innovative form in the market in India using National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC) is the rate at which energy is received from the sun and the rate at which it is lost to space determine the equilibrium temperature and climate of Earth. This energy is distributed around the globe by winds, ocean currents, and other mechanisms to affect the climates of different regions. Factors that can shape climate are called climate forcing or “forcing mechanisms”. The Innovative project processes such as variations in solar radiation, variations in the Earth’s orbit, mountain- building and continental drift and changes in greenhouse gas concentrations. India faced with the challenge of sustaining its rapid economic growth while dealing with the global threat of climate change using CDM.
Automobile In Environment
Authors: Singh Digamber , Nasim Mohmmad , Babu Saifi Alok
Published: June 2015

In our daily busy life; automobile has changed our experience of journey. It has made very fast, comfortable and easy. On the other hand we have mixed the toxic in our environment. Some has come from industries and some of from the pumping and showing world. Some is necessary and some is not. But the common part of both is automobile As it is luxurious as necessary requirement also according to the time In our environment the automobile has provided hazardous gases and improve the temperature of our environment which all the root of disease. The temperature is also caused of global warming which is impact on ozone layer depletion. Ozone layer prevents most harmful UVB wavelengths (280–315 nm) of ultraviolet light (UV light) from passing through the Earth’s atmosphere. It is suspected that a variety of biological consequences such as increases in skin cancer, cataracts, damage to plants, and reduction of plankton populations in the ocean’s photic zone may result from the increased UV exposure due to ozone depletion. As a matter of fact, this layer very important for saving of human being. But due to increasing pollution. The average size of the 2012 ozone hole was 6.9 million square miles (17.9 million square kilometres). There is not end of all this, with this all. There we can realize there many changes in our ambient system. We have to face a lot of problems due to natural disaster. There more than 50% day in year when we have to face many disasters like earthquake, glacier melting, tsunamis etc. Due to the unbalance environment there is very big difficulty that we can’t delay our progressive life. But we have to solve this problem; we take many steps to save our environment. With the results, we can increase the time of party and natural facilities gifted by God. For this we can use many technology which in favour of environment.
Novel Cruise Speed Highway Charging of Electric Vehicles in India
Authors: Singh Bharat Raj , Singh Manoj Kumar
Published: June 2015

The utility of all-electric automobiles is limited by various factors. The most important one is the 'range anxiety'; this is a severe limitation on the adoption rates of battery electric vehicles (BEV). There is a periodic need to stop and re-charge or replace the batteries after traveling a relatively short distance. The long time needed to recharge the depleted battery usually necessitates exchanging the battery for a different one at each charging stop, similar to changing horses on a 19th century Stage Coach.
Today three levels of recharging are available. Level 1 is using a home electrical system, taking roughly 8 hours to recharge the batteries after depletion at maximum range. Level 2 is charging from a commercial station, taking about 2 hours. Level 3 is high-current charging, which can complete the charging process in 30 minutes. Even Level 3 compares quite unfavorably to the 5 to 10 minutes needed to refill an automobile gasoline tank. Moreover, charging stations are not widely available outside major urban areas.
for a few hours at highway speeds, are quite prohibitive. Obviously, these are major obstacles in increasing the market viability of electric automobiles. The issue addressed in this paper is an approach using emerging technologies to overcome the limitations of a BEV. With the current battery technology, the mass and volume needed to carry enough charge to travel.
We address these issues by looking at the feasibility of charging automobiles while they are traveling at highway speeds. If this system is implemented, a BEV's effective range could be increased to match the range of an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle. This would imply that BEVs would be suitable for intercity highway travel, with the assurance of power being available on the go. We developed a model to optimize the number of wireless charging stations required depending on various factors. This model is discussed in detail later in the paper. As seen below, the requirement boils down to delivering roughly 1 kWh per charging station, while the automobile is moving at highway cruise speeds.
Solar Power as a Source of Ecologically Sustainable Growth in Rajasthan
Authors: Pathak Pallavi , Singh Abhijeet
Published: June 2015

This paper highlights how factors which were once considered curse for Rajasthan have turned into boon. Two critical resources that are essential to solar power production namely high level of solar radiation per square inch and large amounts of contiguous, relatively flat, undeveloped land is abundant there. In order to tap the huge potential of Rajasthan for solar energy, the state government has constituted a separate entity, Rajasthan Solar Park Development Company Limited, for better development and management of solar parks. Solar industry is expected to be an economic engine in Rajasthan creating jobs across the State and spur billions in economic growth and tax revenue along with powering remotely connected households. Barmer, Bikaner, Jaisalmer and Jodhpur are the key regions with best solar radiation in the State.
Seeing the market attractiveness the State has stimulated interest among several developers to commit a pipeline of generation projects. Rajasthan has highest allocation of projects including both Solar Photovoltaic and Concentrated Solar Power under Phase I of National Solar Mission. Rajasthan has competitive advantage based on the availability of relatively low cost land for industrial use. Adequate availability of electricity enables the development of solar manufacturing industry, which is energy intensive. The State has a comparative advantage on labor cost compared to its peer states. Proximity to NCR helps in access to industrial labor and managerial talent. Rajasthan has excellent proximity to end user market as well as supplier base for raw material, providing logistics cost advantage as well. The State has excellent medical facilities, it has a peaceful environment, good social infrastructure and strong tourism brand thus providing better quality of life.
The new investor friendly Solar Policy aims to establish Rajasthan as a national leader in solar energy in phased manner by creating the policy frame work for promoting use of solar energy in various applications. Various incentives provided under the policy by the State Government include exemption from electricity duty, grant of incentives available to industries and availability of water for power generation. The Government has also announced special scheme for setting up of new enterprise, expansion, modernization and diversification, and projects set-up for common social good. Various Subsidies and Exemption from Taxes under various categories of investment are also being provided
Observation and Temperature Changes : Warming of The Climate System and Future of Global Warming in 21st Century
Authors: Singh Manoj Kumar , Singh Bharat Raj
Published: June 2015

Global warming is the rise in the average temperature of Earth’s atmosphere and oceans since the late 19th century and its projected continuation. Since the early 20th century, Earth’s mean surface temperature has increased by about 0.8 °C (1.4 °F), Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, and scientists are more than 90% certain that it is primarily caused by increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases produced by human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and deformation. Climate model projections were summarized in 21st Century Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). They indicated that during the 21st century the global surface temperature is likely to rise a further 1.1 to 2.9°C (2 to 5.2 °F) for their lowest emission scenario and 2.4 to 6.4 °C (4.3 to 11.5 °F) for their highest. The ranges of these estimates arise from the use of models with differing sensitivity to greenhouse gas concentrations. The Earth’s average surface temperature rose by .74 ± 0.18 °C over the period 1906–2005.Temperature changes vary over the globe. Since 1979, land temperatures have increased about twice as fast as ocean temperatures (0.25 °C per decade against 0.13 °C per decade).
Proposed policy responses to global warming include mitigation by emissions reduction, adaptation to its effects, and possible future geo engineering. Most countries are parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), whose ultimate objective is to prevent dangerous anthropogenic climate change. Reports published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the International Energy Agency suggest that efforts as of the early 21st century to reduce emissions may be inadequate to meet the UNFCCC’s 2 °C target. Future of climate change and associated impacts will vary from region to region around the globe. The effects of an increase in global temperature include a rise in sea levels and a change in the amount and pattern of precipitation, as well a probable expansion of subtropical deserts. Warming is expected to be strongest in the Arctic and would be associated with the continuing retreat of glaciers, permafrost and sea ice. Effects significant to humans include the threat to food security from decreasing crop yields and the loss of habitat from inundation.
Characterization Of Pathological Skin Sample By Polarimetric Technique
Authors: Gupta Anil , Gupta C. L. p. , Bharti P.
Published: June 2015

Measurement of optical properties of skin is an expanding and growing field of research. Recent studies have shown that the biological tissue, especially skin changes the polarization state of the incident light. Using this property will enable the study of abnormalities and diseases that alter not only the light intensity but also its polarization state. We have tried an experimental study for measuring changes of polarization state of the light scattered from skin sample. Using the strokes vector and Mueller matrix notation we have shown that some elements of matrix were sensitive to the changes of the polarization when physical properties of the scatters are changed with sample.
SPILLTRACK - A Web-Based Tool to Help Managing Contingency in Offshore Oil and Gas Operation
Authors: Marques da Cruz L. M. , Pellegrini J. A. , dos Santos F. A. , Fragoso M. R. , Rinaldi F. L.
Published: June 2015

Oil and Gas offshore operations are challenging procedures not only due to its own nature but also due to the environmental conditions. Metocean conditions can really harm the operations and make what is already a tricky procedure to become a nightmare.

An intrinsic feature of this type of operation is the management of the regular and explicit interaction with the environment such as the vessel transit from the coastal base to the rig location; drilling effluent discharges at the sea; controlling the best window regarding metocean conditions to advance or postpone one or more procedures; amongst others.

Besides the regular interaction, operators must also deal and be planned to deal with possible incident conditions. Those situations vary from simple failures in any equipment up to events of man at sea and also the drastic situation of a pollutant spill at the sea.

In this scenario, SPILLTRACK was designed. The system is modular, integrating all metocean data, vessel traffic information (vessel tracking system), Search and Rescue procedures (SAR model built inside the system), regular discharges forecast and pollutant spill forecast.

All this information is put together in the same platform which also deals with the environment. It allows for instance, managing and helping all contingency procedures during a real incident and also in drill exercises.

GIS features are also available in the system mostly to manage the impact and help the contingency actions.

The access to the system is made by login and password and can be done at different regions at the same time, with no need for any type of hardware interference in the operators’ facilities. In other words, all the information is available together at the office, at the rig location and anywhere else the decision makers thinks is important.

SPILLTRACK has been used successfully in offshore operation since 2009. Particularly in high sensitive areas, the system is able to manage and control the contingency actions in order to avoid impacts in coastal and offshore sensitive areas.
Water Management for Tight and Shale Reservoir: A Review of What Has Been Learned and What Should Be Considered for Development in Argentina
Authors: Carlos Bonapace Juan
Published: June 2015

This work builds on Bonapace et al. (2015), specifically discussing shale reservoir information related to several tight reservoirs in Argentina.

Hydraulic fracturing has been ongoing in Argentina since the 1960s. The first treatments were performed using oil-based fluids. Throughout the years, new water-based fluids were introduced, as well as alcohol-water mixture fluids to foams, based on the reservoir requirements, economics, and safety and environmental issues. Currently, more than 95% of hydraulic fractures performed in the country are performed using aqueous-based fluids.

In the last 10 years, exploration and development has begun for tight gas reservoirs and more recently several shale plays. To achieve commercial production, this type of reservoir requires extensive hydraulic fracturing applications which use large volumes of water. From 2004 to present, various exploration techniques have been performed in different reservoirs, such as tight formations at Lajas, Punta Rosada, Mulichinco (Neuquén Basin); Potrerillos (Cuyo Basin); D-129 (Golfo San Jorge Basin) and shale plays at Los Molles, Vaca Muerta, Agrio (Neuquén Basin), Cacheuta (Cuyo Basin), and D-129 (Golfo San Jorge Basin).

This paper discusses aspects of water logistics necessary during the well completion phase, fracture treatment designs applied within these various unconventional reservoirs, and laboratory studies performed on flowback and produced waters to help evaluate their potential for use and/or reuse. The primary focus here will be related to various parts of the water cycle for these projects. Stimulation and water sources are presented as detailed information concerning the type of stimulation performed in these reservoirs, volume of water, treatment types, fracturing fluids, additives used, and physical-chemical characteristics of various freshwater sources used.Logistics are discussed for water storage and transport for single and multiple well pads.Reuse of flowback and formation water addresses laboratory testing of various flowback and formation water and/or blends (freshwater and flowback water), treated and untreated including:–Physico-chemical characteristics of water (flowback and produced) from various wells.–Formation sensibility testing with flowback water from various tight and shale formations and usage possibilities.–Impact on proppant packs of floculants generated in nontraditional waters at various pH values.–A new low-residue CMHPG-metal crosslinked fracturing fluid formulated using no traditional water, i.e., untreated with high total dissolved solids (TDS).
Study of Sensitivity of the Environment to Accidental Oil Pollution in the South Coast of Bahia State - Brazil
Authors: Vasconcelos A. O. , Toste R.. , Rangel R. H. , Assad L. P. , Landau L.. , Pessoa M. C. , Kiperman R..
Published: June 2015

After the concession of marine blocks for exploration and production of oil and natural gas in the last decade, oil industries activities became to exert greater pressure on the marine and coastal environments of Brazil. The BM-J-2 block is located about 20 km away from the coast of Una, Canavieiras and Belmonte municipalities in the Southern region of Bahia State. This region is constituted by important coastal marine ecosystems, some of them protected by law. This context makes this area mentioned sensitive to impacts from potential oil spill accidents. This work aims to map the environmental sensitivity to oil spills, using remote sensing and in situ data. Therefore, the production of maps representing littoral sensitivity index (LSI) in different hydrodynamics modeling scenarios is important for the implementation of contingency and emergency plans. Moreover, regional studies of geomorphology, land cover and land use were also used to construct the LSI charts. Those revealed different levels of environmental sensitivity to oil spill LSI ranging from 1 (lowest sensitive) to LSI 10, depending on the hydrodynamic conditions. This study shows the importance of considering the spatial and seasonal variability of hydrological, oceanographic and atmospheric processes in order to understand of environmental sensitivity of the coastal ecosystems.
Sembrando Joropo, Linking Tradition and Future
Authors: Rodriguez M. García
Published: June 2015

The objective of Sembrando Joropo is to create a Traditional Music School that will develop the artistic potentials of children and adolescents in the areas of influence of Equión Energía through training in music and dance in order to form a seedbed of instrumentalists, musicians, singers and dancers for the cultural future of Casanare, which will provide spaces for healthy coexistence and the construction of social fabric.

The program is carried out in schools, together with formal education, with the guidance and support of instructors, instruments, uniforms and a syllabus structured in six semesters. Children freely choose to learn how to sing, dance or play instruments of the Llanero tradition: the harp; the accompanying cuatro; the joyful maracas; and the Llanero mandolin.

Values such as devotion, discipline and perseverance are shared, and group work is carried out through the creation of groups, ensembles, choirs or dance groups, which plays a role in building tolerance, appreciation for the work of others and respect for their contributions. This is aimed at seeking excellence as a commitment of everyone involved.
Modeling the Optimal Trajectory of a Skimmer Ship to Clean Oil Spills in the Open Sea
Authors: Gomez S.. , Ivorra B.. , Glowinski R.. , Ramos A. M.
Published: June 2015

Oil spill contamination in the open sea has been at the origin of some of the worst environmental disasters. One of the major cleaning techniques is the use of skimmer ships that contain various pumps distributed along its waterline to suck the oil from the surface of the water directly into storage units. We want to improve this process. We developed a model to simulate the effect of the skimmer ship on the evolution of the oil spill. This model, based on a finite volume approximation of an advection-diffusion-reaction equation, considers: the motion of oil spots resulting from the movement of the source of contamination; the diffusion and transport by wind and sea currents; and the phenomena associated with the action of the skimmer ship, assuming that it follows a pre-assigned trajectory. We introduce a nonlinear diffusion term to obtain finite speed diffusion. Also, we use an absorbing boundary condition, to account for the oil exiting the computational domain. To reduce numerical artificial diffusion, we use second order numerical schemes to discretize the advection terms. We also apply splitting schemes to decrease the computational complexity. To improve the whole process, we optimize the trajectory of a skimmer ship to maximize the amount of recovered oil during a fixed period of time, using an optimization method. The novel approach we advocate here is validated by comparing our numerical results with real life measurements from the Prestige spill, which took place in Spain in 2002. We were able to reproduce the satellite image of the spot after 4 days of pollution. We also prove that the optimal trajectory we get cleans the area near the coast up to 55 percent before the Prestige ship broke up. This percentage was improved to 88 percent by using a second ship on the entire area.
Methods for the Development of Biodiversity Information Systems for Exploration Projects in the Oil and Gas Industry
Authors: Watson A. A. , Lopez-Plana J. O. , García A.. , Ahumada C.. , Videla C..
Published: June 2015

Biodiversity management in exploratory projects, especially in remote areas, includes risk analysis and decision-making with little information available. In order to optimize the effort and manage business risks, biodiversity information from previous studies and secondary sources and recent data resulting from field work of the companies should be considered valuable (e.g. biodiversity and environmental impact studies). The objective of this project was to create a biodiversity information system enabling the effective resources management as well as activities planning, through an understanding of the different attributes in the landscape and the ecosystem services analysis, integrating the multidisciplinary knowledge within the framework of a spatial analysis.

Biodiversity information can be organized for developing biodiversity conservation strategies and for managing oil and gas projects' life-cycle, as long as it is available and logically structured. Biodiversity data is usually in reports where its consolidation and management is not easy. Geographic Information Systems rise an opportunity; geospatial data (georeferenced information) can be converted in a digital format and the management improved. For this case study, we selected the variables needed to be included in the biodiversity database, reviewing the quality of the data, its usefulness for a potential future use, the availability, versatility of biodiversity consultations and the data generation costs and in the right time.

The conceptualization and structure of the biodiversity geodatabase developed in this project allows the integration and spatial analysis of biological, social, environmental and engineering information of exploratory projects, becoming an important tool to answer questions and solve problems. With the aim of speeding up the analysis and the subsequent use or interpretation, important considerations for the data standardization and systematization were addressed from participatory workshops with different disciplines (as engineering, community relations, and safety and environment). This database helps data management improvement and gap analysis as well as biodiversity data adquisition in Oil & Gas projects. This tool contributes to energy companies in the selection of biodiversity and ecosystem services performance indicators; as well as their subsequent monitoring and the implementation of biodiversity actions plans.
Management tools for hydro energy interventions in water supply systems
Authors: Frijns Jos , Marchet Enrique Cabrera , Carriço Nelson , Covas Dídia , Monteiro Antonio J. , Ramos Helena M. , Bolognesi Andrea , Bragalli Cristiana , Baki Sotiria , Makropoulos Christos
Published: June 2015

There is significant potential for energy recovery through the use of micro-hydropower installations in water supply systems (WSS). To exploit the full potential of hydro energy in balance with the optimal hydraulic performance and water supply service, multi-objective management tools are needed. This paper presents the application of four management tools: (1) an energy audit to evaluate the potential hydro energy in the water pressurised systems of Alcoy; (2) multi-criteria decision-making methods for the selection of the preferred energy-efficient operation of a system with a pump-storage reservoir and hydro-turbines in the Algarve; (3) a numerical dynamic tool for optimal turbine operation in the water distribution of Langhirano; and (4) an urban water optioneering tool to estimate the hydropower potential of the external aqueduct network in Athens. These methods showed that through an integrated approach the WSS can be optimised for both hydraulic performance and hydro energy production.
Simulation of organic carbon loading using MIKE 11 model: a case of River Nzoia, Kenya
Authors: Kanda Edwin K. , Kosgei Job R. , Kipkorir Emmanuel C.
Published: June 2015

River Nzoia is the largest river draining into the Kenyan portion of Lake Victoria. This river receives both point sources of pollution from industrial and municipal wastes, and non-point sources from agricultural runoff in the catchment. The objective of this study was to simulate dissolved oxygen (DO) and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) of the middle section of River Nzoia using MIKE 11 model. The model was calibrated using discharge and water quality data for 2009 and validated with March–April 2013 data. The model performance was good with coefficient of determination (R2) values of between 0.845 and 0.995, Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency values of between 0.748 and 0.993 and percent bias of less than 10 for both calibration and validation of electrical conductivity (EC), DO and BOD. EC and BOD values were lower for April compared to March which could be attributed to dilution during high flows. DO values were above the recommended minimum level of 4 mg/l in all the sections of the river in the wet period but some sections had lower than 4 mg/l during low flow period. The government agencies such as Water Resources Management Authority and National Environment Management Authority should enforce the effluent standards to ensure that industries and wastewater treatment plants adhere to the maximum allowable limit for BOD and also improve their treatment efficiencies of wastewater plants so as to improve the quality of River Nzoia which is important in the overall management of the Lake Victoria basin.
Managing risks in advanced wastewater treatment plants
Authors: Hauser A. , Sathrugnan K. , Roedler F.
Published: June 2015

Water scarcity, water pollution control measures and protection of the aquatic environment are major driving forces to develop effective and efficient wastewater management strategies. Today, our objectives in wastewater management are far away from just treatment, but rather to integrate water reclamation, energy and material recovery. Only the integration of water, energy and material allows truly sustainable solutions. Though the concepts and technologies are principally available, these integrated solutions are still not deployed on a large scale. One major inhibitor of realizing such holistic solutions with their increased complexity is the uncertainty of the related risks, which can be technical, economic, financial and/or socio-cultural. This paper presents a risk management framework to identify, quantify and ultimately manage the implied risks in complex wastewater treatment plants. The key components of this framework are stakeholder involvement, scientific knowledge, data analysis, technology management and definition of performance goals.
Phosphorus recovery from highly concentrated phosphate-ion groundwater by calcium-carrying chaff charcoal
Authors: Noormazni M. , Kim J. H. , Harada S. , Narita S. , Takahashi K.
Published: June 2015

The chaff produced during the crop season that was attached with calcium was used in an upward type column for the purpose of recovering highly accumulated phosphorus in groundwater. The amount of phosphorus recovery obtained in various hydraulic retention time was 1.5–2.0 mg per 1 g of chaff. Owing to the reaction of calcium on the surface of chaff charcoal with phosphate ion in groundwater, calcium phosphate compound was produced and might be existed as hardly soluble calcium phosphate as it did not elute in citric acid. Thus, phosphorus recovered could not be directly used as fertilizer. It needed support from mycorrhizal fungi in soils, rainwater, etc. to be usable for the farmland. It was also confirmed that pH value was an effective indicator in phosphorus recovery performance because the results show that concentration of phosphate ion in treated water was depend on pH value. Phosphorous recovery using calcium-carrying chaff charcoal is expected to mitigate the severe eutrophication problems at Hachiro Lake.