bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Secure Data Integrity Protocol for Fog Computing Environment
Authors: Munir Kashif , Mohammed Lawan Ahmed
Published: October 2018

Fog computing is a distributed infrastructure in which certain application processes or services are managed at the edge of the network by a smart device. Fog systems are capable of processing large amounts of data locally, operate on-premise, are fully portable, and can be installed on heterogeneous hardware. These features make the fog platform highly suitable for time and location-sensitive applications. For example, internet of things (IoT) devices are required to quickly process a large amount of data. The significance of enterprise data and increased access rates from low-resource terminal devices demand reliable and low-cost authentication protocols. Lots of researchers have proposed authentication protocols with varied efficiencies. As a part of this chapter, the authors propose a secure authentication protocol that is strongly secure and best suited for the fog computing environment.
Whose Side Are We On?
Authors: Boucher Jr. Michael L.
Published: October 2018

This chapter seeks to build a new theory in education research, critical solidarity with participants in education research. The theory uses critical pedagogy as a beginning point as expressed in the work of Paulo Freire and subsequent theorists. In Freirean fashion, the researcher asks the question, but the participant is the questioner of their own experience. In this way, the research, in which the authors attempt to empower participants, is a pedagogical tool.
Towards Supporting Academic Authors, Researchers, and PhD Students in Higher Education
Authors: O'Donnell Eileen , O'Donnell Liam
Published: October 2018

Academic authors, researchers, PhD, Doctoral, and Master's students, write articles for journals, books, book chapters for inclusion in edited books, papers for conferences and conference proceedings, and so forth as a method of communicating and sharing scholarly research findings. This chapter reviews the supports necessary to learn how to effectively undertake research and successfully publish the findings. These supports could satisfactorily be provided through an e-learning portal or an e-learning platform. An e-learning module could be used to facilitate collaboration amongst staff, researchers, PhD, and post graduate students, who share similar research interests. Staff and students should be encouraged to develop a community of practice with fellow researchers as this relationship could provide beneficial peer support for as long as their research interests evolve and endure.
Survey Research
Authors: Brewer Ernest W. , Torrisi-Steele Geraldine , Wang Victor C. X.
Published: October 2018

Survey research, in various forms, is the mainstay for social researchers and anyone interested in finding out about people's opinions, attitudes, beliefs, and experiences. Survey research evolved from simple data collection to a more sophisticated scientific method and has proved useful in describing various aspects of the human condition as a basis for further action. However, now survey research is being challenged by the digital world as defined by big data, social media, and mobile devices. In the chapter, the authors provide a historical perspective on survey research, along with a brief presentation of foundational elements of survey research. Then, with the intent of evoking reflective discussion, the authors identify some of the core issues and viewpoints surrounding survey research in the present digital world.
Exploring Relationships Between the Consumption of Digital Books and Digital Divide
Authors: Ozuem Wilson , Lancaster Geoff
Published: October 2018

Determining how notions of digital divide influence decision making for organizations is problematic, not least because the concept of digital divide itself is amorphous, evolving, and rooted in consumer and organizational awareness and their level of technological adoption. Although a considerable amount of research in information and communication technology (ICT) has been done to conceptualize how the emerging technologies reduce or complicate digital divide, no parallel research has been conducted on the impact of digital books on digital divide. Drawing on a social constructivist paradigmatic perspective, this chapter examines the dynamics of value propositions in digital books. The chapter concludes by calling for a greater and deeper understanding of digital divide, as well as further research on quantitative approaches.
Budgeting Administration and Economic Growth Dynamics in Conditions of National Markets' Integration
Authors: Khairiree Krongthong , Ushakov Denis
Published: October 2018

In this chapter we analyze the macroeconomic indicators of the contemporary economies so that to determine the level of impact from their involvement in the world trade on the stability of their economic development. A new, author's method is offered here to determine the index of economic growth stability for the economies of the 21st century. A correlation is revealed being between economic growth stability and external trade activeness of the today's economies. In the chapter based on the authors' approach to the definition of strategies for fair and effective social compensation, as well as a proposed methodology for calculating the indicators of social compensation strategies feasibility, the conclusions regarding macroeconomic conditions of selecting a state participation program in the process of economic achievements converting into social conditions were done, recommendations on modernization the social compensation policy in the dynamics of integrating markets were also offered.
Financing of International Business Through Private Equity
Authors: Čulková Katarína , Csikósová Adriana , Janošková Mária
Published: October 2018

The global financial crisis has greatly limited access to both public and private sources of finance in the recent decades. Markets and national governments emitted low interested and multi-structured financial means with low liquidity. In the post-crisis period national governments tend to regulate their financial sectors more strictly, paying more attention to risky and low interest financial sources, necessary for investments, on which private equity is dependent. Private equity funds grew significantly in the last two decades, both in the USA and in Europe. Such new ways of debt financing and cheap money support massive growth in the industrial sectors of individual countries. This research is studying the positive impact of private equity on management of the whole industries and economies in Europe. Our analysis stems from the general assumption that private equity has positive influence on industrial performance and our empirical data evidences that private equity reacts to economic decrease more intensively than under the business model without financial leverage. The goal of this chapter is to show how private equity contributes to the growth of industrial sectors, performance of industrial companies, with a special emphasis on the mining sector.
Financial Security of Economic Activity
Authors: Kazakova Natalia , Sivkova Anna
Published: October 2018

Under the conditions of megarisks, the general level of the world economy's instability rises, the number of unprofitable organizations with overdue debts increases, thus, creating additional threats to the financial security of states. In this regard, presented here, research results have scientific and applied importance for risk management and financial security of economic entities on the basis of the control and analytical concepts which cover: monitoring, diagnostics, prevention of crisis situations, including bankruptcy, corporate fraud and various other financial irregularities in the economy. Accounting for the specifics of economic entities in the course of analysis, diagnostics, and control over their activities is aimed at the creation of effective corporate fraud prevention and bankruptcy management systems. The conceptual principles of information and analytical support, improved methods for analyzing, and evaluating and monitoring financial security contributes to the development of a common methodology for economic analysis and control activities, ensuring their effectiveness and transparency. The comprehensive toolkit for diagnosing financial security allows identifying the areas of increased bankruptcy risks, fraudulent actions or ineffective business management; and unifies the control process, thereby reducing labor intensity and improving the quality of control measures.
Financial Systems Reforms in Western Balkans Countries
Authors: Adžić Sofija
Published: October 2018

Tax system and tax policy today are becoming the most important instruments of national economic policy. Globalization process is objective in nature and is also inherent in market economy, whereas the neoliberal model of globalization is constantly getting more popular in both developed and developing countries. While developing countries in this regard are concentrating mostly on a multitude of potential reforms and resolving their numerous economic and social problems which are getting only more complicated, the interest of developed countries concerns mostly newest innovative technological trends and their application in a specific economic context. That is, in order to provide better conditions for full convergence of socioeconomic systems with higher rates of economic growth reforms, tax systems and tax policies are needed to reduce the barriers to free and global movement of goods, services, capital, and manpower.
The Impact of Budget and Fiscal Policy on Entrepreneurial Activity and Country's Competitiveness
Authors: Holynskyy Yuriy , Onyusheva Irina
Published: October 2018

Ukraine's economy, as compared to other European countries, is lagging behind. An unstable political situation, significant tax pressure, various administrative barriers, complexity of tax administration and with obtaining permits, technical regulation, certification and standardization, frequent sudden inspections by state control bodies, limited opportunities for the use of financial and credit resources, weakness of material, technical, financial, managerial, and personnel components of business entities – all these factors do not promote the entrepreneurial initiative in this country. The key precondition for raising the prosperity level and effective social and economic development is strengthening the competitiveness of the national economy through the coordinated work of the state and its budget and fiscal institutions. This study reveals the theory and the methodology of the formation and implementation of fiscal policy in Ukraine. Peculiarities in the development of the entrepreneurial environment in Ukraine are analyzed, and fiscal mechanisms are defined with the purpose of activating further entrepreneurship development.
Development of Students' Programming Abilities With the Means of Non-Programming Disciplines and Activities
Authors: Sakibayev Razakh , Sakibayev Spartak , Sakibayeva Bela
Published: October 2018

Higher Education Institutes across the world have started using social media to reach out to the prospective students as well as to interact with current students and alumni. Social media improves the communication on one hand and helps in promotional and development activities on the other. Present work explores the integration of social media in different processes in Higher Educational Institutes. A student enters the institute with admission process and exits after completion of degree. While on the campus, a student is involved in curricular, co-curricular and extra-curricular activities. At the same time, a student participates in the communication with the fellow students and other corporate and social forums. In all of these activities, social media can play a prominent and vital role. However, the success of social media roles depends upon; how the different stakeholders are engaged. A comprehensive study has been carried out to identify the role of social media in different activities of the higher education institutes. These activities range from looking for the new students, engaging them on the campus and maintaining communication after they leave the campus. Implications from teaching-learning, administrative, marketing and communication perspective have been identified. A framework has been proposed to integrate the specific social media channels in different processes in the higher education institutes. The framework will be very much useful in developing successful social media campaigns for higher educational institutes as well as to effectively engage the stakeholders.
SWFQA Semantic Web Based Framework for Question Answering
Authors: Ali Irphan , Yadav Divakar , Sharma Ashok Kumar
Published: October 2018

A question answering system aims to provide the correct and quick answer to users' query from a knowledge base. Due to the growth of digital information on the web, information retrieval system is the need of the day. Most recent question answering systems consult knowledge bases to answer a question, after parsing and transforming natural language queries to knowledge base-executable forms. In this article, the authors propose a semantic web-based approach for question answering system that uses natural language processing for analysis and understanding the user query. It employs a “Total Answer Relevance Score” to find the relevance of each answer returned by the system. The results obtained thereof are quite promising. The real-time performance of the system has been evaluated on the answers, extracted from the knowledge base.
A Framework for Preserving the Privacy of Online Users Against XSS Worms on Online Social Network
Authors: Chaudhary Pooja , Gupta B. B. , Gupta Shashank
Published: October 2018

This article presents a hybrid framework i.e. OXSSD (Online Social Network-Based XSS-Defender) that explores cross-site scripting (XSS) attack vectors at the vulnerable points in web applications of social networks. Initially, during training phase, it generates the views for each request and formulates the access control list (ACL) which encompasses all the privileges a view can have. It also ascertains all possible injection points for extracting malicious attack vectors. Secondly, during recognition phase, after action authentication XSS attack vectors are retrieved from the extracted injection points followed by the clustering of these attack vectors. Finally, it sanitizes the compressed clustered template in a context-aware manner. This context-aware sanitization ensures efficient and accurate alleviation of XSS attacks from the OSN-based web applications. The authors will evaluate the detection capability of OXSSD on a tested suite of real world OSN-based web applications (Humhub, Elgg, WordPress, Drupal and Joomla). The performance analysis revealed that OXSSD detects injection of illicit attack vectors with very low false positives, false negatives and acceptable performance overhead.
Grading Sewing Operator Skill Using Principal Component Analysis and Ordinal Logistic Regression
Authors: Le Thanh Quynh , Van Huynh Nam
Published: October 2018

In the apparel manufacturing process, productivity and quality are somewhat determined by operator skill level. Predicting worker skill level is very important for effective production operation management. However, the current methods for ranking skill level in the manufacturing industry have been based on the subjective evaluation of managers and have failed both in predicting the operator skill level needed for planning and in encouraging operators to develop new skills for quality and productivity. This article develops a new method for grading sewing worker skill levels that employs updated knowledge from experts involved in training, coaching and managing operations in factories. This approach uses the Delphi method combined with principal component analysis to define and classify six qualitative variables that effect on three aspects of operator skill, including coordination skill, sustaining skill, and tool operating skill. Based on these three variables, ordinal logistic regression is applied to grade skill levels, with a statistically significance result.
Authorship Attribution of Noisy Text Data With a Comparative Study of Clustering Methods
Authors: Hamadache Zohra , Sayoud Halim
Published: October 2018

Through the fast development and intensification of the large volume of data via the internet, visual analytics (VA) comes out with the intention of visualizing multidimensional data in different ways, which reveals interesting information about the data, making them clearer and more intelligible. In this investigation, the authors focused on the VA based Authorship Attribution (AA) task, applied on noisy text data. Furthermore, this article proposes 3D Visual Analytics technique based on sphere implementation. The used dataset contains several text documents written by 5 American Philosophers, with an average length of 850 words per text, which were scanned and then corrupted with different noise levels. The obtained results show that the hierarchical clustering technique using a fully-automated threshold, presents high performance in terms of authorship attribution accuracy, especially with character trigrams and ending bigrams, where the clustering recognition rate (CRR) reaches an accuracy of 100% at noise levels: from 0% to 7%. In addition, the proposed 3D sphere technique appears quite interesting by showing high clustering performances, mainly with Words.
Investigation to Appraise the Abrasive Water Jet Response of Curaua/Basalt Hybrid Polyester Composites
Authors: Premkumar T. , Irulappasamy Siva , Rajesh S. , Jappes J.T. Winowlin , Amico Sandro Campos
Published: October 2018

The application of natural fiber composite material in structural and interior parts of the automotive system is emerging. In this article an investigation is made to understand the effect of abrasive water jet machining parameters on surface roughness and kerf angle of the Curaua and Basalt fibers hybrid reinforced polyester composites. To identify the most effective machining parameter the MOORA and Principle Component method are used. It is found that jet pressure and feed rate are the most significant factors in influencing the surface roughness and kerf angle. Further, the effect of basalt content in the Curaua composites mechanical properties of Curaua composites, perhaps, a minor influence, is found with parameter optimization of basalt content.
Measurement and Monitoring System With Real Time Data Logging Based on Microcontroller
Authors: Mohrem Abdelkrim , Chetate Boukhemis , Guia Houssem Eddine
Published: October 2018

This article presents a microcontroller-based system for measurement and monitoring voltage of a three-phase electrical system with real-time data logging abilities. The proposed system uses voltage signals and time data as input. The output is an LCD and data files. The system accurately records abnormal voltage variations which have occurred on the system. A PC software is developed to receive and save data in two spreadsheet files through a serial port. Ihe log file contains the measured voltage, which is recorded periodically with a predefined time interval, and the second file contains the type of the fault. The proposed system is first simulated by ISIS-Proteus and then realized and implemented on an electronic board. It is beneficial to make detailed, scientific judgments and analysis for the voltage system to be supplied to a load. Because of the very simple circuit, it finds applications in industrial facilities. It is also useful in applying final circuits for both investigation and monitoring purposes.
Prospects of Open Source Software for Maximizing the User Expectations in Heterogeneous Network
Authors: Singh Pushpa , Agrawal Rajeev
Published: October 2018

This article focuses on the prospects of open source software and tools for maximizing the user expectations in heterogeneous networks. The open source software Python is used as a software tool in this research work for implementing machine learning technique for the categorization of the types of user in a heterogeneous network (HN). The KNN classifier available in Python defines the type of user category in real time to predict the available users in a particular category for maximizing profit for a business organization.
Facility Side-Tracking for Iceberg Risk Management
Authors: King Tony
Published: October 2018

Currently, iceberg risk mitigation at production facilities in shallower waters (80 to 120 m) on the Grand Banks off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador is accomplished using iceberg surveillance, towing, water cannons and, in the case of floating facilities, disconnection. Future developments in deeper waters such as the Flemish Pass or the Orphan Basin may be able to utilize compliant mooring and riser systems to allow a floating facility to simply move out of the path of an approaching iceberg without disconnecting. The analysis described here shows that, using simple extrapolation of the observed iceberg trajectory, the risk mitigation provided by facility side-tracking is comparable to existing physical management techniques (iceberg towing and water cannons). Improved short-term iceberg drift forecasting would allow further risk mitigation.
An Icevaning Control for Dynamic Positioning in Managed Ice Condition
Authors: Kim Young-Shik , Kim Jinwhan , Kang Kuk-Jin
Published: October 2018

The presence of sea ice is the primary challenge for marine operations in the Arctic region. It is widely accepted that offshore structures running in the Arctic condition need station-keeping methods as well as ice management actions by icebreakers. Dynamic positioning (DP) is one of the station-keeping methods that can provide mobility and flexibility in marine operations. The presence of sea ice adds complex external forces and moments on the vessel which must be managed by the DP system. This paper presents an icevaning control algorithm of the Arctic DP system. To make the icevaning action of the Arctic offshore vessels without any measurements and estimation of the ice condition including ice drifting, a task space and a null space are defined in the vessel model, and the control law is formulated in the task space. A backstepping technique is utilized to handle the nonlinearity of the Arctic offshore vessel's dynamic model, and the Lyapunov stability theory is applied to guarantee the stability of the proposed icevaning control algorithm. A set of experimental tests are conducted in the ice tank of the Korea Research Institute of Ships and Ocean Engineering to examine the practical feasibility of the proposed icevaning control algorithm.
Propulsion System Ice Load Measurements Onboard IB Polaris
Authors: Maattanen Pirjo , Hanninen Samuli , Heideman Torsten
Published: October 2018

This paper presents operational experience and ice measurement results from Finnish Icebreaker Polaris propulsion system. Icebreaker Polaris applies a novel three propulsion unit concept. During the shipbuilding period an extensive ice load measurement system was installed on two of the Azipod units. The paper will present key findings from the measurements from the winter periods 2017-2018.

The target of the ice load measurement campaign is to increase the designer knowledge of propulsor ice loads in different ship operations. The purpose is to understand in more detail the load distribution for component life estimations and clarify differences between bow and stern propulsor ice loads and frequencies. Due to non-linear load distribution in propulsor at extreme loads, strain gauges were installed at two levels in propulsor hull.

This paper will highlight some measurement results of propulsion system behavior during the ice trials and long term measurements from the winters 2017 and 2018. The full-scale ice operation data collected in the Baltic Sea ice conditions can be further utilized in a development vessel and its propulsion system of heavy polar icebreaker type.

The measurement campaign onboard the Polaris is planned to continue during coming winters. The aim is to collect statistical ice load data to improve the understanding of the fatigue and ultimate design loads. One of the goals is also to clarify how much load the bow mounted propulsion unit will experience compared to the stern units. Based on the measurement results so far, we can conclude that icebreaker with bow mounted Azipod propulsor can be operated without limitations in all ice conditions, just like all the other icebreakers in the Baltic.
Finite Element Analysis of Flexible Pipe Tension Loads Due to Iceberg Interaction
Authors: Pike Kenton , Blundon Andrew
Published: October 2018

Offshore Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, development costs associated with iceberg protection pose significant challenges in terms of project execution and economics for marginal field subsea tie-backs. The current standard practice is to assume that if an iceberg makes contact with a subsea flowline, the flowline is dragged indefinitely imparting significant load to the connections at each end. To isolate flowlines from downstream and upstream assets, weak links are installed in the flowline that are designed to separate once a specified level of tension is reached. This prevents damage to wellheads and other subsea equipment and eliminates the possibility of uncontrolled hydrocarbon release. However, the weak links are very costly and possess inherent risk of failure, which can lead to an uncontrolled release of hydrocarbons. This paper addresses the requirement of weak links by analyzing the flowline tensions transmitted due to iceberg-flowline-soil interaction events.

The assumption that an iceberg drags a flowline indefinetly imparting significant tension on the end connections can be challenged. This paper seeks to estimate the tension loads developed in an untrenched flexible flowline due to interaction with free-floating and gouging icebergs. Large deformation finite element analysis is utilized to simulate the iceberg-flowline-soil interaction scenario. The iceberg keel is idealized with shape and dimensions based on analysis of recent iceberg profiles. A sensitivity study is conducted to assess the influence of keel size, gouge width and depth on flowline tension developed throughout the flowline resting on very dense sand. The sand constitutive behavior is modelled using a user subroutine accounting for the effects of mean effective stress and relative density on the soil strength and volumetric response.

The ice-flowline-soil interaction mechanisms are detailed for free-floating and gouging interaction events. During interaction with free-floating icebergs, the flowline is typically depressed into the seabed, and the keel rides over the flowline. The gouging interaction scenario simulates the complex interaction between the frontal soil mound developed during the gouging process and the untrenched flowline.

This paper provides new insight into the iceberg-flowline-soil interaction scenario that has not been examined previously. Based on the analysis results presented, an alternative strategy to mitigate tension transfer to downstream and upstream assets is discussed.
Potential Impacts of Seabed 2030 on Arctic Resource Development
Authors: Millar David , Jakobsson Martin
Published: October 2018

The world's oceans are critical to sustaining life, controlling climate, and providing economic wealth. Despite this fact, our understanding of the ocean and its seafloor processes is limited, in part because we lack accurate ocean mapping data. The situation is dramatic in the Arctic, where the physical environment is changing rapidly and where the vast majority of the 15,588,000-square-kilometer Arctic Ocean remains unmapped using modern survey methods. Given current and anticipated increases in vessel traffic, resource exploration and development, and impacts of climate change on coastal areas, the need for bathymetric data in the region is becoming increasingly urgent.

The Nippon Foundation-GEBCO Seabed 2030 Project promises a solution for the Arctic's growing data demand. Launched in 2017, the project aims to produce a definitive and publicly available high-resolution map of the world's ocean floor by 2030. To achieve these goals, the program is advancing three strategies. First, existing data must be identified and the remaining gaps mapped. For the Arctic, apart from the ice covered central basin, an appreciable volume of bathymetric data already exists, but the national governments and private sector companies who hold these data will need to make them available to Seabed 2030, even if at decimated levels. Second, the project looks to crowd sourced bathymetry as an important means of acquiring new datasets. Vessels operating in or passing through Arctic waters can log and contribute bathymetric data from their movements. Finally, even if existing data and crowd sourced bathymetry data contributions are made, there will undoubtedly be a need for a coordinated Arctic Ocean basin mapping campaign by a combination of government, scientific, and private industry survey vessels to fill the remaining gaps in coverage.

This paper will review the need for bathymetric data in the Arctic, the potential for the Seabed 2030 project to deliver these data, and the methods that will be used to ensure its success. It will also discuss the anticipated impacts of Seabed 2030 on Arctic resource development.
The Challenges of Arctic for Oil and Gas Pipeline Design
Authors: Al-Showaiter Aiman , Fan Chengye , Abdalla Basel , McKinnon Colin
Published: October 2018

It has been discussed that about a quarter of the world untapped oil and gas reserves are located in the Arctic. Development of such prospects has faced challenges, both operational and design-related. Operational challenges include geographic location and associated working conditions, such as remoteness, prolonged darkness, communications and equipment reliability; climate conditions, such as low temperatures and ice coverage; unique characteristics of arctic development, such as high reliability requirements and extremely long tie-backs; and environmental conditions and regulations due to the extremely sensitive Arctic ecosystem. The design related challenges include design conditions, loadings and material issues that are unique to the area and environment and that arise from unique arctic operational and environmental conditions.

Due to those challenges, the design of pipelines in the Arctic area requires the consideration of design conditions that do not apply elsewhere, such as ice gouging, frost heave and permafrost. Advanced numerical analysis is apt to play an important role in addressing these challenges and to bridge the technology gaps that still exist in order to enable optimized developments to proceed.

This paper opens with a review of the main arctic challenges for pipeline design followed by the benefits of using advanced numerical techniques to address problems relevant to the design of pipeline in the arctic environment.
Importance of Detailed Terrain and Geohazard Information for Pipeline and Infrastructure Developments in Arctic Environments
Authors: O'Leary Dennis , Garrigus Andrew , Krzewinski Thomas
Published: October 2018

Pipelines and roads represent the arteries of the oil and gas, and mining and transportation industries, respectively. They move product from remote locations to more centralized locations, either for processing or for shipping to refineries and mills for subsequent processing. Proper infrastructure development is critical to the successful development of the sensitive Arctic environment especially true in light of ongoing climate change where the melting of permafrost poses significant issues for development in the Arctic. The harsh Arctic environment presents unique challenges that are not found in more southern latitudes for the oil and gas and transportation sectors, including permafrost and permafrost degradation. It is well acknowledged that the extent of permafrost in northern environments is poorly known and mapped.

New tools are being used to help determine the extent of permafrost and to identify areas that are more susceptible to permafrost degradation in light of on-going and future development. One such tool is the use of softcopy mapping to help map terrain and geological modifying processes such as permafrost. Softcopy uses traditional stereo aerial photographs in a digital environment to allow scientists the ability to view the landscape at scales of 1:1,000 from traditional aerial photography that were captured at scales of 1:24,000 to 1:40,000. The advantage of softcopy is that by being able to zoom down to such large scales allows terrain scientists the ability to better determine the soil types (sand, silt or clay), drainage conditions (rapid to very poor) and on-going geological processes such as permafrost as evidenced by frost boils and permafrost degradation as evidenced by presence of thermokarst and thaw slides. Another method often utilized where stereo aerial photography is not available is use of remote sensing datasets such high resolution digital elevation models and satellite imagery which are becoming general available in Arctic regions. These elevation models are used to create hillshade images of varying aspects and photorealistic 3D models to help map terrains.

This paper will present a number of examples of where such mapping has been used to assist in pipeline and infrastructure planning in Alaska and Canada's north.
Solid Propellant Accumulators – Next Generation Hydraulic Power Source for Cold Weather BOP's
Authors: Bedrossian Nazareth
Published: October 2018

This paper describes a new type of piston accumulator which uses a solid propellant gas generator to pressurize hydraulic fluid. It is a self-contained device in that both the power source and hydraulic fluid are packaged together in single accumulator. The device rapidly supplies high pressure and high flowrate hydraulic fluid on-demand much like an airbag system for automobiles. It is particularly suited for emergency applications such as closing of subsea BOP shear rams, closing pipeline valves, etc. A conventional piston accumulator can be easily retrofitted with a gas generator cartridge with only minor cap and piston modifications. Retrofitting a conventional compressed gas accumulator with a gas generator cartridge increases the performance of the accumulator by nearly 10X in terms of usable fluid, reliability, weight, and volumetric footprint. Additionally, the gas generator equipped accumulator requires essentially no maintenance and has a service life of more than 10 years. In DMAS applications it can be used in a "Direct-To-Hydraulics" mode by connecting the accumulators directly to the shear rams without the need for any valves other than a check valve. It also eliminates the hydraulic delay system in the DMAS with an electronic delay between CSR and BSR activation, and does not need a complex control system.
Field Experiments on Shear Strength of Solid and Freeze-Bonded Sea Ice
Authors: Boroojerdi Marjan Taghi , Taylor Rocky , Mohammadafzali Soroosh , Bailey-Dudley Eleanor , Turnbull Ian , Hossain Ridwan
Published: October 2018

Sea ice rubble/ridge strength and interaction mechanics are highly important in the design of structures and subsea infrastructure for ice prone offshore environments. To better characterize sea ice conditions in northern Newfoundland, a series of field tests were conducted on landfast ice in Pistolet Bay, NL in February 2018. This paper presents a summary of recent shear strength tests on solid and freeze-bonded ice specimens, to help improve understanding of ice rubble properties and behaviour under field conditions. Both horizontal and vertical sea ice samples were tested under dry and submerged conditions, as well as freeze-bonded ice samples under submerged conditions. Sea ice samples were sheared using the Asymmetric Four Point Bending (AFPB) method, which has been shown to produce a near pure shear region at the center of the specimen. For the dry tests, cores were sheared directly after collection so as to test them in conditions as close to in-situ as possible. For submerged tests, cores were submerged for a specific period of time before shearing. Freeze-bonded samples were prepared using a confinement frame which applied a pressure of 25 kPa to the specimens during submergence. These data for AFPB field tests are an important consideration in modelling the strength of ice rubble/ridges and are the first of their kind. From this work it may be concluded that the AFPB method is a promising approach for studying shear strength of both solid and freeze-bonded specimens in the field and additional testing is recommended. New field testing approaches, such as the one presented here, will help improve understanding of in-situ sea ice properties and behavior, which ultimately supports the development of new ice-structure interaction models, which directly benefits oil and gas, shipping, renewable energy, and public works projects in ice prone Arctic and Sub-Arctic regions.
Full Scale Trials for the Validation of Ship Performance and Model Tests in Ice
Authors: Reimer N. , Hisette Q. , Schroeder C.
Published: October 2018

The paper addresses methods used to analyse full scale trials for performance determination of ships in ice. Furthermore uncertainties resulting from assumptions taken in the early stage when ice model tests are typically performed are discussed. In a first step the difference between model test based prediction and final determined performance from ice trial are shown for an example ship for which both results are available. The main assumptions are critically reviewed and possible reasons for deviations between the prediction and final outcome of ice trials are systematically assessed. The performance of ships in ice determined by model testing based on single combinations of speed and ice thickness is compared to full scale trial results. Furthermore the effect of generalizing impact friction and snow cover which is usually generalized for the model based prediction is determined by different methods. Finally a comparison between the propeller-ice interaction based on model tests and full scale trials is made to assess possible sources and magnitude of deviations between the performance prediction in early design stage and the final trial results.

The paper shows that even though the prediction of icebreaking resistance by theoretic means and by model testing is well established comparisons between performance results obtained from ice trials sometimes deviate in their values and trends from those predictions. Besides testing uncertainties also missing parameters and testing methods can be identified as reasons for differences in the results. Recorded time series of propeller ice interaction in full scale and model scale are compared and analyzed. Different scaling approaches are applied to the model scale torque trends and compared to the full scale data. The results of the comparison between full scale and model test results show the limits of the current methods and encourage to take a closer look at additional parameters with stronger influence on ice performance. Additionally the comparisons of ship performance and propeller ice interaction of model and full scale data will improve the understanding of the transferability from model to full scale data.
Discrete Element Simulation of Ships Navigating Through Brash Ice Channels
Authors: Prasanna M. , Hisette Q.
Published: October 2018

The paper describes a simulation tool for simulating the transit of ships through brash ice channels, based on the Discrete Element Method (DEM). Fundamentals of the method are given, including contact detection and forces calculation. Artificial brash ice channels are created in the simulation domain by the so-called floating-up technique. Hull geometry is introduced into the model, handling non-convex bodies as composites of convex bodies. Hydrostatic properties are calculated according to the actual draft, pitch, and roll angles. In order to calibrate the parameters of the code, a standard cylinder experiment is simulated and the results are compared with the experimental model test results. Graphical output of the simulation is also compared with underwater camera footage. General behavior of the ice particles is identical in the vicinity of the structure. However, ice loads on the structure exhibit some discrepancies. Simulation of an Ice Class Tanker was also carried out, and the results were compared with experimental model test values and under water videos. In this case, ice loads tend to be higher than expected. However, particle behavior near hull is very satisfactory. The cause for high ice loads is identified to be deficiencies in modelling the behavior of far field ice particles in the current tool. The simulation tends to overestimate the particle motions in far field due to the deficiencies in the implemented friction model (Cundall-Strack Friction). The current tool is suitable for obtaining qualitative results on ships navigating in brash ice channel in the early design stage; especially to visualize the ice particle flow around ship hull and identify possible concentration of ice particles especially around appendages.
The Design Width of Floating Ice Roads and Effect of Longitudinal Cracks
Authors: Spencer Paul , Wang Ruixue
Published: October 2018

The thickened width of floating ice roads has tended to be a practical consideration rather than a design aspect. Standard methods of calculating the required thickness of ice roads consider the road to be of infinite length and width. In this paper we outline calculations of the bending stress for a finite width ice road. The recommended minimum width that should be thickened to the design value is given below where Lc is the ice characteristic length:

Longitudinal wet cracks reduce the load bearing capacity of an ice road. Stress analysis indicated that as long as the ice is less than 1.83m thick and the footprint of the vehicle is longer than 10 m (33 ft) then a safe and simple to use estimate of the road capacity for a vehicle travelling parallel and adjacent to the crack is given by:
Defining a Path Towards Successful Low Cost Marginal Field Subsea Developments – An Overview
Authors: Muise Jason , Ralph Freeman
Published: October 2018

Subsea oil and gas developments in the Grand Banks region, offshore Eastern Canada, require mitigation techniques to protect against iceberg keel interactions. For example, untrenched infield flowlines incorporate weak link systems designed to fail in the event of flowline snag to protect upstream and downstram assets. Even with these systems, the assumption that any iceberg contact equates to flowline failure means that flowline lengths in excess of approximately 10 km require trenching to meet safety target levels. Furthermore, all subsea wells to date have been installed in excavated drill centers to avoid contact with gouging icebergs. Based on current design practices, these mitigation measures are cost prohibitive and limit the potential for the development of marginal fields. This paper addresses conventional practice to protect against iceberg interaction and proposes alternative solutions that maintain safety, while reducing costs significantly.
First Year Ridge Interaction on Upward Sloping Structures: A New Approach
Authors: Croasdale Ken , Brown Tom , Li George , Spring Walt
Published: October 2018

Numerous field studies show that mature first-year (FY) ridges consist of a solid ice consolidated layer (CL) below which is a keel of ice rubble. The CL is generally thicker than the ambient level ice. With the decrease in multi-year ice in the Arctic, FY ridges may become the controlling ice feature at many Arctic locations. In sub-Arctic regions ridges are smaller but they also usually control design ice loads. For vertical structures, ISO 19906 (Standard on Arctic Offshore Structures) suggests calculating the load due to crushing of the CL and adding this to the load to fail the keel. In ISO a formula is provided for the load to fail the keel on a vertical-face which assumes that the keel material has Mohr-Coulomb properties. No specific algorithms are given in ISO for FY ridge loads on sloping structures. The work described in this paper addresses this gap.

The study investigated three bounding methods and compared them with the measured loads due to FY ridges on Confederation Bridge (which has piers with upward breaking cones). The three bounding methods are: Model A; which assumes the CL breaks in bending and rides up as level ice and the keel load is calculated assuming a "dead wedge" is created on the slope which converts the slope into a vertical face against which the keel fails. This model can make use of the methods in ISO 19906 for calculating these two components and can be considered to be the implied "current ISO approach". Model B assumes that the CL layer fails in bending as "level ice" on an elastic foundation and rides up the slope with the accompaniment of additional ice rubble scooped-up from the sail and keel of the ridge. Model C assumes that the FY ridge can be idealized into an equivalent "solid ice" beam using composite beam theory. Then the beam on elastic foundation method, as used for solid ridges, is used to estimate breaking and clearing loads.

These various approaches are reviewed and the derived loads are compared to failure modes and measured loads from Confederation Bridge for selected events involving FY ridges. Based on these comparisons a hybrid of Models B and C is recommended and the paper gives the details of how to apply this method.

When used for example structures, the new model gives loads which are 40 – 50% lower than the current approach implied in ISO 19906. The method can be adapted to downward sloping structures.
The Commensal Neisseria musculi Modulates Host Innate Immunity To Promote Oral Colonization
Authors: Powell Daniel A , Ma Mancheong , So Magdalene , Frelinger Jeffrey A
Published: October 2018

Neisseria musculi, isolated from the oral cavity of wild-caught mice, does not colonize most inbred mouse strains. N. musculi does weakly (50%) colonize C57BL/6J (B6) mice but readily colonizes CAST/EiJ (CAST) mice. In this study, we examined whether differences in the CAST and B6 host response could elucidate mechanisms governing N. musculi colonization. In vivo stimulation of B6 or CAST splenocytes with wild type (WT) Neisseria or Escherichia coli LPS showed that CAST mice had a blunted inflammatory response, producing significantly lower levels of IL-6 than B6 mice. The use of specific genetic knockouts highlighted a need for an intact innate immune system to prevent colonization. B6–RAG-1−/− mice were colonized at a similar rate as WT B6 mice, whereas B6-MyD88−/− and TLR4−/− mice were readily colonized like CAST (100%) mice. Sequence analysis revealed a unique point mutation in TLR4 in CAST mice. However, crosses to TLR4−/− mice and analysis of recombinant inbred Collaborative Cross mice showed that TLR4 from CAST mice was not sufficient to allow Neisseria colonization. In vitro stimulation of B6 bone marrow–derived macrophages or splenocytes with WT Neisseria yielded low levels of IL-6 compared with LPS stimulation. Surprisingly, UV-inactivated Neisseria induced high levels of IL-6, suggesting suppression of IL-6 production is an active bacterial process. Consistent with a critical role for IL-6 in preventing colonization, mice deficient for the IL-6 receptor were efficiently colonized, indicating host IL-6 production plays a critical role in determining host colonization susceptibility.