bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Modeling and Stability Analysis of Dual Rotor Axial Flux PMG for Wind Turbine Applications
Authors: Hemachandira V. S. , Rajalashmi K. , Bharani Kumar R.
Published: March 2021

This paper focuses on mathematical modeling and stability analysis of double rotor xil flux generator. The wind generator is modeled using dq reference frame theory. The cogging torque and gravitational force during starting time is considered for the modeling of the generator. There re several type of generators have been suggested for wind turbine applications out of which dual rotor PM generator having the lot of advantages than the other types of the permanent magnet generator based direct driven wind energy conversion system. Modeling of dual rotor PM generator is developed in the MATLAB. The simulated model is analyzed for various input and output variables. The stability of the proposed system is also analyzed by deriving small signal model of the wind turbine systems. The input wind velocity variations and grid fault conditions are considered for analysis of the system. The results of the proposed system is analyzed for various values of turbine speed.
An Agricultural Irrigatıon Management System Based on the Internet of Things With MQTT Protocol
Authors: Karthikkumar M. , Premchandran V. , Sathish E.
Published: March 2021

There are several factors upon which the yield of a crop depends. Water, external temperature, humidity, the fertility of the soil, etc. Among these, water is a vital and scarce resource, and thereby more human attention is needed. When and how to water the plants are the two important things to consider in agricultural irrigation! Modernizing agriculture with the help of smart technologies is a promising solution. This project presents an automated irrigation system for agriculture-based out of several low-cost sensors that monitor and maintain the soil moisture based on real-time data from the field with very low form factor compared to the existing systems. This automated system is a combination of low-cost hardware, IoT, and cloud server. The ESP8266 MCU installed in the field will collect all the sensor data from the crops and send it to the cloud server, thingspeak, for storage via Wi-Fi. The farmers can monitor the stored or real-time data on their mobile or in a web portal. They can also check the status of the pump at any time from anywhere. The amount of moisture required for a specific type of crop is predetermined and saved in the system thereby human presence can be decreased and can effectively make the system automated.
Design and Monitoring of Smart Roads Based on Weather Data by using IoT
Authors: Bachu Srinivas , Sudheer Kumar Reddy K , Nagabhushanam K
Published: March 2021

The key goal of this research is to avoid road accidents. Most of the studies clearly show that the majority of incidents take place near certain places such as school areas, dining areas, etc. The purpose of the proposed system is, by signaling or warning through WI-FI, to avoid the accident in nearby areas. If the Bridge zone is narrower than 100 meters from vehicles, a mobile warning will be issued via the WI-FI network. The person reduces the vehicle speed following this indication. Just like if a school area closer to vehicles is within 100 meters, the cell phone will be alerted via WI-FI. The person reduces the speed of the vehicle after this indication. Like Fog, it gives message warning to mobile devices via the WI-FI area within 100 meters. The individual decreases the speed of the vehicle following this indication. This sign helps us to reduce road injuries. We use WI-FI, AT89S52, switches for this implementation. The Wi-Fi module is connected to the controller here in this project and can be controlled from any location at the Internet speed. The managed power supply for this project is 5V 500mA. For voltage power, 7805 three voltage terminal regulators are used. Full-wave bridge rectifier is used to rectify the 230/12V transformer secondary ac output.
Iot Automatic Water Conservation System
Authors: Saranya P , Bhavya Reddy Y , Bhavya Vani U , Sai Durgesh CH
Published: March 2021

Water the word plays a vital role in our life. It is the most important factor for the survival of every living organisms.The mankind facing the water scarcity problem in wordwide for the past decade.The water demand is the most challenging factor in India too. So there should be some technology to Conservand manage the water resource available in nature. In this proposed work, with the concept of IoT we have designed a water monitoring and control system with real time data bases. It is really useful in many areas like apartments, colleges, hostels, shopping malls etc.The concept is to intimate the user about the excess flow of waterthrough mail and control the overflow of water using solenoid valve.Therefore the water conservation and management can be done simultaneously.With the help of Proteus Software, simulationof the monitoring and controlling system can be done.
Coordinated Multipoint Transmission and Reception in Downlink and Uplink LTE Systems
Authors: Poongodi C , Deepa D , Muthumanickam D
Published: March 2021

Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) activity is considered as an amazing innovation focused for LTE-A standard to diminish obstruction, improve range effectiveness, increment information throughput and upgrade viable inclusion region, specifically for cell-edge clients. Interference is a major drawback in Long Term Evolution (LTE/LTE-Advanced) framework.The paper focuses the standardization and inspiration of explicit plan decisions for composed multipoint (CoMP) support in reasonable system executions, including Fundamental activity standards. There are a few strategies accessible for CoMP innovation where most methodologies require some planning data in regards to the UEs information at the distinctive BSs that must be mutual among them. This sharing outcomes expanded unpredictability and flagging overhead on arrange.
Design of Op-Amp Based ECG Signal Acquisition Using MULTISIM
Authors: Ikram N. , Aboorva E.R. , Heebasathya A. , Janani M.
Published: March 2021

The electrocardiogram has the extensive diagnostic significance, and utilizations of ECG observing are assorted and in wide use. ECG signal after procurement contains noises, for example, power line impedance, instrumentation noise, external electromagnetic field obstruction, commotion because of arbitrary body developments and breath developments. These noises can be classified according to their frequency content. It is fundamental to decrease these unsettling influences in ECG sign to improve exactness and dependability. The bandwidth of the noise overlaps that of wanted signals, so basic filtering can’t adequately improve the signal to noise ratio. Current biomedical enhancers have an exceptionally high common mode rejection ratio. All things considered, accounts are often contaminated by residual power-line interference. Conventional simple and advanced channels are known to suppress ECG segments close to the electrical cable recurrence. This paper deals with design filter for ECG signal utilizing operational amplifier using Multisim.
Flatwise and edgewise compression strengths of sandwich panel with silica aerogel mat
Authors: Tay L T , Lee Y Y , Kueh A B H , Lee Y H
Published: March 2021

Facade of building are mainly made up from red clay brick and concrete block. However, both materials are having high thermal mass and promote high indoor thermal discomfort level. Therefore, it is necessary to invent new building material that have low thermal mass and able achieve strength required. Silica aerogel possesses properties of lightweight and low thermal conductivity as compared to other construction materials. In this study, sandwich panel with silica aerogel mat was studied where the properties of sandwich panel silica aerogel mat are rarely found in previous investigations. Before checking its reliability as thermal insulation panel, the mechanical properties of this panel was investigate. The panel was made-up by concrete wythes with type N mortar and the silica aerogel mats with different thickness. Both concrete wythes were casted and then attached together with silica aerogel mat as the cover. 3 types of panel with different insulation thickness were then tested for flatwise and edgewise compression test. From the results, it was found that core thickness of silica aerogel mat has less influence in flatwise and edgewise compression strengths of the sandwich panel. All specimens achieved minimum strength of type N mortar. Therefore, it is recommended to be used in construction that has equivalent application of type N mortar.
Stress analysis of freestanding risers subjected to waves and current loadings - Numerical modelling
Authors: Al-Yacouby A M , Arifin Hakim , Liew M S , Razak Zahari
Published: March 2021

Free Standing Risers are vertical steel pipes tensioned by a near surface buoyancy can. These risers are subjected to different types of loads that lead to fatigue damages. Therefore, this study aims to predict the stresses of freestanding risers subjected to hydrodynamic loads. The methods applied consists of numerical analysis and computer simulation. In this paper, the wave and current loads acting on the risers have been determined using Morison equation, then the stress analysis was conducted using ANSYS software. The important parameters investigated are the pipe diameter D, the wall thickness, t, the wave height, Hmax, the wave period, Tass, the tensile strength, fy and the water current, v. The outcome of the study shows that wave height, wave period, pipe diameter and the wall thickness are affecting the maximum stress on the risers.
Shear failure of the Meraka hardwood in bolted connections loaded parallel to the timber grain
Authors: Karim Abdul Razak Abdul , Quenneville Pierre , Sa’don Norazzlina M.
Published: March 2021

This current study was conducted to establish a bolted connection experimental database on Malaysia woods. The effort of improving the retrofit guideline in designing the wall-diaphragm connections of masonry buildings can be continuously done. Brittle failure verifications on the Meraka hardwood to verify the occurrence of row shear failure are presented in this paper. The hardwood species was selected due to its common use as structural rafters and joists in the construction of roof and floor diaphragms of masonry buildings, respectively. Ten groups of a single row of steel-wood-steel (SWS) connections loaded parallel to the timber grain were tested. Each group was prepared with a total of ten replicates of specimens. Comparisons of bolted connection strength between the experimental results and the predictions of the existing design equations are discussed. It was found that the timber standard of Malaysia (MS544) too conservative in estimating the strength, whilst the Row Shear Model (RSM) is more comparative.
Sri Aman peat: Settlement observation and geotechnical properties investigation
Authors: Sa’don Norazzlina M. , Karim Abdul Razak Abdul , Taib Siti Noor Linda , Muol Edward Anak , Yaw Benson Ling Jin , Ee Angela
Published: March 2021

This paper presents the findings from the field observation and site exploration for construction on peat in Sri Aman, Sarawak, Malaysia. A visit to Balai Bomba and Pejabat Metrologi in Sri Aman has been done in August 2019. From the observation and measurement conducted on the two locations of the constructed area on peat shows the settlement, δ recorded ranges from 100 mm to 150 mm. A field sampling for the determination of geotechnical properties of peat has been done in Balai Bomba Sri Aman. The depth of the peat in the area is about 2.88 m and the results show that the peat has high natural moisture content ranges from 900 % to 1400 %. The organic content (OC) for the site is in the range of 70 %-90 % for a depth of 0.5 m to 2.88 m, and categorized as H3, fibrous peat except for the first 0.5 m is 63 % which fall under H5, hemic peat group according to Von Post classification.
Numerical modelling of seepage analysis using SEEP/W: A case study for the Kerian River Flood Mitigation Project (Phase 3) in Bandar Baharu, Kedah
Authors: Nordin N F Mohd , Mohamad H , Alarifi H
Published: March 2021

The levee stretch near Dataran Bandar Baharu was a part of the Kerian River Flood Mitigation Project (Phase 3) in Kedah to address frequent flooding problems at the area. It has been facing recurring levee failure despite several repair attempts in the past. As the research area was subjected to water level fluctuations, a numerical model using SEEP/W was analysed to study the effect of drawdown and seepage on the failed levee. Variables considered in this study include soil permeability, groundwater table and time dependent river water levels on the upstream side of the levee. The transient analysis carried out indicated that the levee was susceptible to failure due to the relatively high phreatic line within the levee during drawdown and a seepage face occurrence on the upstream side of the levee.
Trend analysis of potential evapotranspiration in peninsular Malaysia
Authors: Yong S L S , Ng J L , Huang Y F , Ang C K
Published: March 2021

Potential evapotranspiration (PET) plays a prominent part in hydrologic water cycle which is responsible for the water from the Earth’s surface travel back to the atmosphere. Climate change brought contradictory changes in PET which led to the inconsistency of PET trend globally. Hence, the present study carried out the trend of potential evapotranspiration using meteorological data from 7 different meteorological stations located in Peninsular Malaysia. Mann-Kendall and Sen’s slope estimator tests were employed in this article for PET trend analysis. Bayan Lepas experienced significant increasing trend for both FAO 56-Penman Monteith and Mahringer models during Southwest monsoon. For Mahringer model, significant increasing trends were observed at Ipoh and Pulau Langkawi stations during Northeast and inter monsoon 2, respectively. There were only a few meteorological stations experienced decreasing trend throughout the period. Although the combinations of increasing and decreasing PET trends were observed, it can be highlighted that majority of the PET time series exhibited increasing trend in Peninsular Malaysia.
The potential of cenospheres production from Malaysian coal power plants
Authors: Beddu Salmia , Zainoodin Mahyun , Basri Amalina , Itam Zarina , Ahmadi Raudhah , Abd Manan Teh Sabariah
Published: March 2021

Coal Combustion Waste (CCW) fly ash, main component of coal ash waste generated at the Coal-Fired Power Plant throughout the year that causes the presents of toxic metals in the ash. Hence, pose significant health threats towards humans and environment. Cenosphere is a coal combustion by-product obtained from fly ash in boilers of coal fired power plants. The properties of cenosphere including spherical, lightweight, good thermal stability, chemical proof, heat resistance making it to have improved insulation. The aim of this research was to investigate the potential of cenospheres production from three different coal fired power plants in Malaysia namely Jimah, Kapar and Manjung. The wet method was used for cenospheres separation from the fly ash. The percentages of cenospheres ranged from 1 to 1.2% of every 1000 gram of fly ash. The mean sizes were 95.86μm 88.64μm, 49.04μm for Jimah, Kapar and Manjung respectively. Cenosphere evacuated by utilizing water as a medium, it will expend a lot of water and lead to water contamination cause of leaching of toxic material while extracting the cenosphere from fly ash. Nevertheless, any health and environmental impacts from the value-added physical application of cenospheres in civil engineering materials must be screened via strict monitoring and legislated guidelines.
Trend analysis of seasonal rainfall patterns in Peninsular Malaysia
Authors: Tan X Y
Published: March 2021

Long records of rainfall data with good quality is a significant component that triggers the entire chain of responses in a hydrological cycle by providing useful information to hydrologist and related parties. In this study, the temporal trend analysis of seasonal rainfall data was carried out in Peninsular Malaysia using the non-parametric Mann-Kendall test. Then, the magnitude of the seasonal rainfall trend line was determined using Sen’s Slope Estimator. Historical rainfall data with a minimum duration of 25 years were checked using four homogeneity tests and the missing values in the data were infilled using multiple imputation method. According to the output of the homogeneity tests, 64.3%, 7.1% and 28.6% of the rainfall time series can be categorised as useful, doubtful and suspect, respectively. From the trend test results, almost all the rainfall data were detected to have an increasing trend except Bayan Lepas for Inter-Monsoon 1, Southwest Monsoon and Inter-Monsoon 2. In addition to that, Bayan Lepas, Hospital Seremban, Ipoh and KLIA Sepang were detected to have a significant increasing trend for Northeast Monsoon as well as Batu Pahat and KLIA Sepang for Inter-Monsoon 2. In conclusion, Peninsular Malaysia exhibited increasing rainfall trend from year 1984 to 2019.
A study on topography versus sediment yield under simulated rainfall
Authors: Yong L K , Law P L , Taib S N L , Ngu J O K , Mah D Y S , Law S L G
Published: March 2021

This study investigates the effects of topography on the amount of sediment yield under simulated rainfall. The slope gradient and length would affect the runoff depth (V) and peak flow volume (Qp) and thus the amount of surface runoffs. In this study, the simulated 150mm/hour rainfall intensity was applied on triangular prism-shaped, cone-shaped and pyramid-shaped models for determination of the amount of respective sediment yields (tons/storm event). It was observed that the sediment yields of the triangular prism-, cone- and pyramid-shaped amounted to 0.144, 0.143 and 0.125 tons/storm event, respectively. The triangular prism-shaped topography has the highest sediment yield amount as it experiences highest runoff depth and highest surface runoff velocity at downslope. Based on the experimental outcomes, it was shown that MUSLE could over-estimate sediment yield as much as 3.6 times for areas characterized by hilly landscape.
Response spectra for moderate seismic area - application to Miri district of Sarawak, Malaysia
Authors: Ahmadi R , Najar I A , Abdullahi A F , Galin T
Published: March 2021

The aim of this paper is to estimate the response spectra for moderate seismic area in Sarawak, Malaysia. In the present study, the response spectra for Miri district, in Sarawak, has been obtained by using 1-D equivalent linear site response analysis at 114 borehole locations. All the borehole sites are classified based on average shear wave velocity (Vs30) as per Malaysia National Annex to Eurocode 8 (MNA-EC8) site classifications using the geotechnical relationship. In this study, the input motion was selected from Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research (PEER-NGA) online database compatible with target response spectra of Sarawak at engineering bedrock by considering the seismic hazard map for 2475 years as return period and by following the 475 years return period as shown in (MNA-EC8). From the results of this study, it was found that the maximum response spectral acceleration (response spectra with 5% damping) is 2.25 g, 3.25 g and 1.7 g at the ground surface for MNA-EC8 site classes C, D and E respectively. It was also found that the results are under the provisions of seismic design code of Malaysia. The suggested results in this study can be used as a reference in Malaysia to support the MNA-EC8.
Effect of aggregate-binder proportion and curing technique on the strength and water absorption of fly ash-based one-part geopolymer mortars
Authors: Haruna S , Mohammed B S , Wahab M M A , Al-Fakih A
Published: March 2021

This paper This paper investigated the effects of binder-aggregates proportion on the performance of one-part geopolymer mortars. High calcium fly ash together with sodium metasilicate have been utilized as the binder, the powdered sodium metasilicate activator was kept at 12% by weight of the fly ash. Three types of mortars were produced with a different binder to fine aggregates proportions (B: A) of 1: 0.5, 1:1, 1:2. The strength properties of the one-part geopolymer mortars (OPGM) which comprises compressive, flexural, splitting tensile strength and water absorption have been investigated. At 28 days of outdoor curing, the OPGM exhibited compressive strength of 50 MPa and 43 MPa at ambient curing. The flexural strength of the OPGM represents 16 – 17 % of its compressive strength. Regardless of the curing techniques, the strength properties of the OPGM is almost the same. The optimum OPGM was found to be at 1: 0.5 binder-aggregates proportions at outdoor curing.
Generating Landslide Susceptibility Map using Airborne Lidar Derived Parameters and Geological Mapping Factors for Canada Hill, Miri, Sarawak
Authors: Muol E , Noweg G T
Published: March 2021

Landslide Susceptibility Mapping using GIS software and remote sensing data have been conducted in several location involving geological and geomorphological sensitive at Canada Hill, Miri. The previous researcher has conducted quantitative analyses using different statistical methods with different parameters in the same study area. The mapping of landslides using high-resolution Airborne LiDAR data is a valuable effort. All of this play important role, in the analysis and development of landslide susceptibility map. High-resolution Airborne LiDAR data has the ability to penetrate thick forest cover and produce Digital Terrain Model. Using Digital Terrain Model, the landslide parameter can be generated and extracted. The main objective of this study was to produce landslide susceptibility map using the Probability Frequency Ratio Model method. This study involved the delineating of causative factors from Digital Terrain Model generated by Airborne LiDAR data as well as the data collected from the field. Apart from parameters derived from LiDAR, parameters from filed and site investigation were included into the mapping process. This study was different from the previous studies in the same area in terms of various analytical approaches and samples used. The results of the landslide susceptibility map were verified via randomly selected landslides samples using two different methods. The landslide susceptibility map produced is more refined and is able to predict more effectively compared to the existing map. The landslide susceptibility map produced in this study could be used for land use planning and management by decision makers and land use planners.
The Wood Carvings of Two Traditional Timber Mosques in Kelantan and Terengganu
Authors: Wahid J , Abdullah A , Saleh B M Kamel , Awad J
Published: March 2021

Wood carving has a long history in Malaysia. It is greatly influenced by the rich landscape of tropical forest in the living environment of the locals. The motifs of the carving are primarily derived from the images of flora and fauna. It mimics the intricate nature of leaves and flowers of the plants. The craftsmen initially use the bas-relief design consisting also of animal imageries on the boat’s sides or sometimes on the house components and even the dagger handle. However, with Islam’s arrival in the early 15th century, due to its teachings, contributed to the ban of animal images on art form. While most of the carvings are done on wood, there is no ample evidence of records available due to time and tides of the decaying process of the artwork. Likewise, there is no extensive research and documentation produced by academics to record the traditional wood carving of the Malays. Although few collections had documented the contemporary Malay houses produced by local scholars, sadly, there was no recount on the importance of housing elements and the technique of construction neither on wood carving. Hence, this paper attempts to examine the influence and pattern of wood carving on traditional mosques in Kelantan and Terengganu. The research conducted case studies, to seek the signs of the features and elements of wood carving on the traditional mosque in Kelantan and Terengganu, disclosing the influence of patterns and motifs on the selected images of its architecture. A measured drawing technique commonly used in conservation works guided the research operation which comprised of hand-drawn sketches to capture the details, measurement of building components, as well as transferring the images using tracing paper, while the other methods in gathering the information extended to direct interviews and photography. Then, the data collected were analyzed to determine the differences of each carving patterns and motifs in the two mosques in Kelantan and Terengganu. The result of the research established the future records on the variety of motifs and patterns of the Malay wood carving. Subsequently, it further elaborates the extensive techniques of wood carvings system and records the patterns found at Kelantan and Terengganu’s mosques for future inventory and recorded history.
Eclecticism in Architecture of Masjid Bandaraya Kuching, Malaysia
Authors: Karsono B , Koesmeri D R , Wahid J , Saleh B M
Published: March 2021

The eclecticism approach is unconsciously applied in the design process by selecting elements considered as the best elements from different architectural styles or eras to produce a new distinctive building model commonly applied by architects in design. Nowadays, the combination of various architectural elements from different styles into one building is often created, especially in Malaysia. In this research, the author focuses on the design of mosques in Kuching. Throughout history, the Masjid Bandaraya Kuching (known as Masjid Bahagian Kuching by the locals) has undergone four (4) stages of transformation process since it was first built in 1840 A.D until the latest changes that took place in 1968 A.D. This study aims to reveal the eclecticism approach applied in every stage. Qualitative method is applied in this research by examining the photographs from the archives and analysing the longitudinal timeline and cases through the history of Kuching, literature and observations concerning the Masjid Bandaraya Kuching to understand the initial forms and changes that have occurred from the past to the present. The analysis takes into account both comparative and contextual analytical techniques to represent a close interpretation. Findings indicate that the building of Masjid Bandaraya Kuching has been transformed through the traditional eclecticism as well as radical eclecticism approach.
Modelling and Control of Single Arm Exoskeleton for Upper Limb Rehabilitation Application using Hybrid Hierarchical Sliding Mode and PID Controllers
Authors: Seng Danny Yip Wei , Bing Yew Ze , Jo Riady Siswoyo , Jo Hudyjaya Siswoyo
Published: March 2021

Assistive and rehabilitative robotics technologies have seen increasing adoptions in the industry and medical applications alike. This paper presents the dynamic modelling and control scheme of a single arm robotic exoskeleton that is aimed for rehabilitation and physiotherapy of upper limbs. The dynamic model was developed using Euler-Lagrange formulation and the obtained equations allow close analysis on different sources of dynamic torques, which exhibit highly non-linear behaviour. A hybrid hierarchical control scheme employing sliding mode (SMC) and PID controllers are proposed. Simulation were setup using Simulink to evaluate the ability of the proposed control scheme. The simulation results are presented and they show that the proposed control scheme was able to control and track the desired trajectory for multiple degrees-of-freedom.
Effect of welding parameters on the properties of the Ti-6Al-4V plate resistance spot weld joint
Authors: Fatmahardi I , Mustapha M , Ahmad A , Ginta T L , Taufiqurrahman I , Danish M
Published: March 2021

Titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V properties advantage gives it a well-known reputation for decades as a reliably material used in a wide range and specific application of resistance spot welded joint such as automotive & aviation products. High strength joint is created depends on the welding parameters used in resistance spot welding. Particular problems occurred about the effect of welding parameters on pure titanium and titanium alloy mechanical and physical properties from previous researches. Some pores and acicular α’ phase appeared in the microstructure, which caused partial interfacial failure mode in the tensile testing. This study is conducted to study the influence of welding parameters for Ti-6Al-4V weld nugget mechanical and physical properties and discover its optimum level of parameters. Tensile-shear testing is used to observed the optimum level. In the optimum level microstructure result reveals that in the weld nugget zone as a fusion zone the lamellar α+β is dominantly observed, this contrasts sharply with the base metal and the heat-affected zone where the primary α and β phase appear to be more dominant. The highest hardness value is discovered in the weld nugget area near the center proving the contribution of the lamellar α+β on this area.
Influence of Drop Height on the Impact Characteristics of Futsal Ball Size Four
Authors: Shazali S T Syed , Alban Dattu F H P , Aizuddin A M , Andrew-Munot M , Mohamed N H Noor
Published: March 2021

Futsal research on the ball characteristic has received little scientific attention. Recently modern football has been developed that afford excellent ball control and delivering. Difference constructions and sizes of ball deliver different characteristics of the ball. The purpose of this study is to examine Futsal ball size four deformations and coefficient of restitution (COR) during the impact. In this study, the Futsal ball was dropped vertically under three conditions. A subject performed five repetitive drops off the ball to impact a steel plate. The ball velocity was measured by SparkVue motion sensor attached on the top of the apparatus while the deformation was recorded using a high-speed video camera, that can up to 1,000 frames per second. From the experiment, the ball deformation and COR were measured. The results obtained showed the deformation and COR value vary with different heights for the same type of Futsal ball size four. It shows that the different heights of ball drops give different ball impact characteristics. It was found that the COR depended on the amount of the deformation of the ball.
Dynamic Modeling of Hydrogen Production from Photo-Fermentation in Microbial Electrolysis Cell using Sago Waste
Authors: Then M Y , Ramesh S , Asrul M A Mohd , Atan M F , Yun H Abdul Halim , Lai J C H , Rahman M R , Abdullah M O , Wahab N Abdul
Published: March 2021

Hydrogen has a great potential as an alternative energy and produces zero emissions, but most of hydrogen is produced from non-renewable fossil fuels via reforming. Thus, biomass is a promising replacement to fossil fuels where hydrogen can be sourced from. In this project, sago waste is chosen as raw material in a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) to produce hydrogen fuel. A mathematical model with the integration of MEC with photo-fermentation has been developed and modified by using sago effluent as a substrate in a batch process. The main parameter such as concentration of microbial community has been observed in this project as it gives a huge influence on the gas product of MEC. In conclusion, the develop model was to observe the behavior of the microbial electrolysis cell where a maximum of 3.8 L/day (t = 4 days) of hydrogen production and 0.38A of MEC current were obtained.
Characterization of Bio-adhesive derived from Sarawak Native Sago Starch
Authors: Baini R , Demong M , Hui J L Chang , Kamal M M , Samat N A S Abdul , Rahman M R , Taib S N L
Published: March 2021

Sago starch has multiple applications in industries such as textile, cosmetics and pharmaceutical, paper and wood. This study focuses on the utilization of sago starch to promote formaldehyde-free adhesives. Formaldehyde-based adhesive commonly used in wood industry emits formaldehyde, which is classified as carcinogen, into the air that has raised concerns over the potential hazards to human health. Sago starch-based adhesive was produced by blending the sago starch with sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and glycerine. Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) was used to characterize the chemical changes in the sago starch-based adhesive. The quality of sago starch adhesive was tested according to their viscosity. The mechanical property is analyze based on lap shear (bond) strength of the sago starch adhesives according to ASTM D907 and D143 by using Model D350 Testomeric. Parameters affecting the viscosity of the sago starch-adhesive such as time, temperature, concentration of sodium hydroxide, and the amount of glycerine were studied. The viscosity of the sago starch-based adhesive decreased as the mixing time, temperature, concentration of NaOH and the amount of glycerine increased.
Arbitrary complex retarders using a sequence of spatial light modulators as the basis for adaptive polarisation compensation
Authors: Hu Qi , He Chao , Booth Martin J
Published: March 2021

We show theoretically how a sequence of spatial light modulators (SLMs) can be used to compensate polarisation and phase errors introduced by a spatially variant homogeneous waveplate with any polarisation eigenmode and arbitrary retardance distribution. The resultant compensation is applicable to all pure input polarisation states. The properties of such a system are easily described using Jones calculus in terms of the retardance distribution on each SLM. However, it is not straightforward to determine from the Jones matrices the arrangements nor the settings of each SLM required to implement an arbitrary spatially variant retarder. In order to address this problem, analytic solutions for the required SLM settings are obtained through the construction of a geometrical model on the Poincaré sphere. These solutions are validated against numerical models. These models can be used, for example, to control a multi-pass SLM system acting as the correction device in an efficient vectorial adaptive optics system.
NAB2-STAT6 Gene Fusions to Evaluate Primary/Metastasis of Hemangiopericytoma/Solitary Fibrous Tumors
Authors: Singh Nirupama , Collingwood Robin , Eich Marie-Lisa , Robinson Alyncia , Varambally Sooryanarayana , Al Diffalha Sameer , Harada Shuko
Published: March 2021

Objectives

Hemangiopericytomas (HPCs) and solitary fibrous tumors (SFTs) were considered two distinct entities, but a common gene fusion, NAB2-STAT6, has been identified in both. Although rare, HPCs and SFTs do metastasize, some many years later after resection. Given the extended disease-free interval, it can be difficult to determine with certainty if an HPC or SFT at a new anatomic location represents a second primary or metastatic disease.

Methods

RNA was extracted from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue of two patients with multiple SFT/HPC samples. The fusion gene was amplified by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and a custom-designed Archer FusionPlex panel (94 target genes) and the Illumina NextSeq 550.

Results

We identified two patients with multiple resections for HPC/SFT during 26 years at our institution. The first patient had a history of HPC and almost 10 years later she was diagnosed with malignant SFT. The HPC and the SFT shared the same fusion breakpoint. The second patient had multiple lesions in the brain and bone/soft tissue over a 27-year span following a diagnosis of meningeal SFT. Three lesions from this patient shared the same fusion breakpoint.

Conclusions

Our study demonstrated the same fusion breakpoints in primary and metastatic SFTs/HPCs at different time points using both RT-PCR and the Archer fusion panel.
Bilingualism and Its Implications for Neuropsychological Evaluation
Authors: Paplikar Avanthi , Alladi Suvarna , Varghese Feba , Mekala Shailaja , Arshad Faheem , Sharma Meenakshi , Saroja Aralikatte Onkarappa , Divyaraj Gollahalli , Dutt Aparna , Ellajosyula Ratnavalli , Ghosh Amitabha , Iyer Gowri K , Sunitha J , Kandukuri Rajmohan , Kaul Subhash , Khan Arfa Banu , Mathew Robert , Menon Ramshekhar , Nandi Ranita , Narayanan Jwala , Nehra Ashima , Padma M V , Pauranik Apoorva , Ramakrishnan Subasree , Sarath Lekha , Shah Urvashi , Tripathi Manjari , Sylaja P N , Varma Ravi Prasad , Verma Mansi , Vishwanath Yeshaswini ,   ICMR-NCTB Consortium
Published: March 2021

Objective

In the background of a large population of bilinguals globally, the study aimed to develop standards of neuropsychological testing in the context of bilingualism. Because bilingualism is known to affect cognitive processes, bilinguals and monolinguals were compared on their performance on cognitive tests, to investigate the possibility of the need for separate normative data for the two groups.

Method

A comprehensive neuropsychological test battery, standardized across five Indian languages: the Indian Council of Medical Research-Neuro Cognitive Tool Box (ICMR-NCTB) was administered to 530 participants (267 monolingual and 263 bilinguals matched for age and education). A systematic method of testing cognition in bilinguals was developed; to identify the appropriate language for testing, ensure language proficiency of examiner, and to interpret the bilingual responses. Additionally, the performance of bilinguals on the ICMR-NCTB was compared with monolinguals.

Results

Cognitive testing in the bilingual context was performed in the most proficient language of the participants, by examiners well versed with the language. Results from the language-based tests suggested that the frequent occurrence of borrowed- and language-mixed words required consideration while scoring. The reported bilingual effect on cognitive processes did not reflect as differences in the performance between bilinguals and monolinguals.

Conclusions

Observations from the study provide robust recommendations for neuropsychological testing in the context of bilingualism. Results indicate that separate normative data may not be required for bilinguals and monolinguals. The study will be relevant and provide a reference framework to address similar issues in the large population of bilinguals in other societies.
Computational resources for identification of cancer biomarkers from omics data
Authors: Kaur Harpreet , Kumar Rajesh , Lathwal Anjali , Raghava Gajendra P S
Published: March 2021

Cancer is one of the most prevailing, deadly and challenging diseases worldwide. The advancement in technology led to the generation of different types of omics data at each genome level that may potentially improve the current status of cancer patients. These data have tremendous applications in managing cancer effectively with improved outcome in patients. This review summarizes the various computational resources and tools housing several types of omics data related to cancer. Major categorization of resources includes—cancer-associated multiomics data repositories, visualization/analysis tools for omics data, machine learning-based diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive biomarker tools, and data analysis algorithms employing the multiomics data. The review primarily focuses on providing comprehensive information on the open-source multiomics tools and data repositories, owing to their broader applicability, economic-benefit and usability. Sections including the comparative analysis, tools applicability and possible future directions have also been discussed in detail. We hope that this information will significantly benefit the researchers and clinicians, especially those with no sound background in bioinformatics and who lack sufficient data analysis skills to interpret something from the plethora of cancer-specific data generated nowadays.
Machine learning optimization of peptides for presentation by class II MHCs
Authors: Dai Zheng , Huisman Brooke D , Zeng Haoyang , Carter Brandon , Jain Siddhartha , Birnbaum Michael E , Gifford David K
Published: March 2021

T cells play a critical role in cellular immune responses to pathogens and cancer and can be activated and expanded by Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC)-presented antigens contained in peptide vaccines. We present a machine learning method to optimize the presentation of peptides by class II MHCs by modifying their anchor residues. Our method first learns a model of peptide affinity for a class II MHC using an ensemble of deep residual networks, and then uses the model to propose anchor residue changes to improve peptide affinity. We use a high throughput yeast display assay to show that anchor residue optimization improves peptide binding.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Painful and non-painful diabetic neuropathy, diagnostic challenges and implications for future management
Authors: Jensen Troels S , Karlsson Pall , Gylfadottir Sandra S , Andersen Signe T , Bennett David L , Tankisi Hatice , Finnerup Nanna B , Terkelsen Astrid J , Khan Karolina , Themistocleous Andreas C , Kristensen Alexander G , Itani Mustapha , Sindrup Søren H , Andersen Henning , Charles Morten , Feldman Eva L , Callaghan Brian C
Published: March 2021

Peripheral neuropathy is one of the most common complications of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Up to half of patients with diabetes develop neuropathy during the course of their disease, which is accompanied by neuropathic pain in 30–40% of cases. Peripheral nerve injury in diabetes can manifest as progressive distal symmetric polyneuropathy, autonomic neuropathy, radiculo-plexopathies, and mononeuropathies. The most common diabetic neuropathy is distal symmetric polyneuropathy, which we will refer to as DN, with its characteristic glove and stocking like presentation of distal sensory or motor function loss. DN or its painful counterpart, painful DN, are associated with increased mortality and morbidity; thus, early recognition and preventive measures are essential. Nevertheless, it is not easy to diagnose DN or painful DN, particularly in patients with early and mild neuropathy, and there is currently no single established diagnostic gold standard. The most common diagnostic approach in research is a hierarchical system, which combines symptoms, signs, and a series of confirmatory tests. The general lack of long-term prospective studies has limited the evaluation of the sensitivity and specificity of new morphometric and neurophysiological techniques. Thus, the best paradigm for screening DN and painful DN both in research and in clinical practice remains uncertain. Herein, we review the diagnostic challenges from both clinical and research perspectives and their implications for managing patients with DN. There is no established DN treatment, apart from improved glycaemic control, which is more effective in type 1 than in type 2 diabetes, and only symptomatic management is available for painful DN. Currently, less than one-third of patients with painful DN derive sufficient pain relief with existing pharmacotherapies. A more precise and distinct sensory profile from patients with DN and painful DN may help identify responsive patients to one treatment versus another. Detailed sensory profiles will lead to tailored treatment for patient subgroups with painful DN by matching to novel or established DN pathomechanisms and also for improved clinical trials stratification. Large randomized clinical trials are needed to identify the interventions, i.e. pharmacological, physical, cognitive, educational, etc., which lead to the best therapeutic outcomes.
The need for a cardionephrology subspecialty
Authors: Díez Javier , Ortiz Alberto
Published: March 2021

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) has structural and functional repercussions for the cardiovascular system that facilitate the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). In fact, cardiovascular complications are frequent in the CKD population and thus cause a great clinical, public health and economic burden. Despite this challenge, the prevention and management of cardiovascular complications is one among several aspects of CKD that meets the criteria of an unmet medical need. This probably has to do with the misperception by the nephrologist of the global relevance of CVD in the CKD patient which, in turn, may be due to insufficient cardiovascular training during nephrology specialization. Therefore a change in approach is necessary to understand CKD as a disease in which the manifestations and complications related to CVD become so frequent and important that they require dedicated multidisciplinary clinical management. From this perspective, it makes sense to consider training in the subspecialty of cardionephrology to provide adequate cardiovascular care for CKD patients by the nephrologist. In addition, the cardionephrology subspecialist would be better able to interact with other specialists in multidisciplinary care settings created to achieve a deeper understanding and more effective clinical handling of the interactions between CKD and CVD.
Whole-Transcriptome Analysis by RNA Sequencing for Genetic Diagnosis of Mendelian Skin Disorders in the Context of Consanguinity
Authors: Youssefian Leila , Saeidian Amir Hossein , Palizban Fahimeh , Bagherieh Atefeh , Abdollahimajd Fahimeh , Sotoudeh Soheila , Mozafari Nikoo , Farahani Rahele A , Mahmoudi Hamidreza , Babashah Sadegh , Zabihi Masoud , Zeinali Sirous , Fortina Paolo , Salas-Alanis Julio C , South Andrew P , Vahidnezhad Hassan , Uitto Jouni
Published: March 2021

Background

Among the approximately 8000 Mendelian disorders, >1000 have cutaneous manifestations. In many of these conditions, the underlying mutated genes have been identified by DNA-based techniques which, however, can overlook certain types of mutations, such as exonic-synonymous and deep-intronic sequence variants. Whole-transcriptome sequencing by RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) can identify such mutations and provide information about their consequences.

Methods

We analyzed the whole transcriptome of 40 families with different types of Mendelian skin disorders with extensive genetic heterogeneity. The RNA-seq data were examined for variant detection and prioritization, pathogenicity confirmation, RNA expression profiling, and genome-wide homozygosity mapping in the case of consanguineous families. Among the families examined, RNA-seq was able to provide information complementary to DNA-based analyses for exonic and intronic sequence variants with aberrant splicing. In addition, we tested the possibility of using RNA-seq as the first-tier strategy for unbiased genome-wide mutation screening without information from DNA analysis.

Results

We found pathogenic mutations in 35 families (88%) with RNA-seq in combination with other next-generation sequencing methods, and we successfully prioritized variants and found the culprit genes. In addition, as a novel concept, we propose a pipeline that increases the yield of variant calling from RNA-seq by concurrent use of genome and transcriptome references in parallel.

Conclusions

Our results suggest that “clinical RNA-seq” could serve as a primary approach for mutation detection in inherited diseases, particularly in consanguineous families, provided that tissues and cells expressing the relevant genes are available for analysis.