bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Production of fuel grade anhydrous ethanol: a review
Authors: Lee Y H , Chen C H , Umi Fazara M A , Irfan Hatim M D Mohd
Published: May 2021

Alcoholic fermentation of fermentable carbon sources like molasses and table sugar using yeast are typical route in producing alcohol particularly known as bioethanol (C2H5OH). The key challenge encountered in bioethanol production process is to eliminate the impurity presence within the bioethanol which mainly water. Distillation is an energy extensive process which commonly used to recover ethanol up to 95% purity due to the presence of azeotropic composition. The distillation will no longer appropriate for further purification once the azeotrope composition has reached. Nonetheless, to be able to use as a viable fuel for gasoline engine or for any other utilizations where the purity is a major concern, further dehydration steps are needed producing an absolute ethanol. Few studies have been investigated on various dehydration methods for producing anhydrous ethanol, including azeotropic distillation, extractive distillation, adsorption, membrane pervaporation, and solvent extraction process. This review offers an insight into currently used technology on the ethanol dehydration methods and the future prospect on the continuous improvement particularly on the process energy requirement and efficiency will be discussed.
Gender Identification of Sitophilus oryzae using Discriminant Analysis and Support Vector Machine: A comparison study
Authors: Azis T M F , Kasim K F
Published: May 2021

Sitophilus oryzae (rice weevil) known as severe pest to many stored products, including rice. Gender density of S. oryzae is a critical information in predicting the rate of stored grain lost. However, the techniques used in gender identification of S. oryzae is a destructive technique which involved dissection to identify its reproductive organ. It was a tidious work and very time consuming. Thus, this study focused on the use of non destructive technique which only based on numerical information of S. oryzae morphological features to identify its gender. The numerical information was analysed and tested against two model i.e. Discriminant Analysis Model and Support Vector Machine Model. The result show that rostrum length and width were adequate to be used in the Discriminant Analysis Model for gender identification of S. oryzae with 91% correct classification, while Support Vector Machine Model perform poorly in classification with 62% correct classification. Gender identification of S. oryzae using numerical information features were more accurate and liable compared to normal identification which based on the internal reproductive organ.
Production of bioprotein from oil palm fronds by Aspergillus terreus strain UniMAP AA-1
Authors: Rahman K H A , Ariffin N A , Abdul Rahim A
Published: May 2021

Bioprotein is an alternative source that can be used to substitute the conventional protein source. In order to produce bioprotein, agricultural wastes can be utilized by microorganisms as substrates. Therefore, in this study, the utilization of oil palm fronds (OPF) as a substrate for the production of bioprotein by Aspergillus terreus strain UniMAP AA-1 through solid-state fermentation was investigated. The objectives of this study are to evaluate the production of bioprotein developed from OPF as a substrate and to optimize the physical parameters affecting bioprotein production. Solid state fermentation was carried out in conical flasks with 20 g of working volume at 30°C for 7 days. The fermentation time which produced the highest bioprotein was recorded at day 5. After that, the effects of temperature, substrate concentration and inoculum size were screened through 2-Level factorial design. Substrate concentration and temperature for the fermentation process were further optimized using Response Surface Methodology through Central Composite Design. As a result, maximum bioprotein produced was 0.7348 mg/mL at the temperature of 34.69°C, 58.06% w/v of substrate concentration and 5% v/v inoculum size. The data obtained in this study is potentially applicable in the scale-up production of bioprotein from OPF by A. terreus strain UniMAP AA-1 in the future.
Identification of the Chemical Constituents of Curcuma caesia (Black Turmeric) Hydrosol Extracted by Hydro-distillation Method
Authors: Fatt L C , Rahman N W A , Aziz M A A , Isa K M
Published: May 2021

Curcuma caesia (black turmeric), a perennial herb that has a distinguishable bluish-black rhizome with a bitter and pungent smell and is widely used and extracted for its medicinal values. C. caesia extracted by hydro-distillation method produce essential oil and hydrosol. The essential oil of C. caesia is known for its high medicinal value, but the chemical constituent of the hydrosol is yet to be studied. Hence, this study will investigate the chemical constituent of the hydrosol of C. caesia’s rhizome extracted by hydro-distillation to comprehend the benefits and usages of the hydrosol produced for further research in pharmaceutical and natural products industries. Besides, hydro-distillation is carried out in different temperatures to study the effect of temperature on the active compounds in the hydrosol. Hydro-distillation of powdered rhizome is used to obtain the hydrosol of C. caesia at the temperature of 60 °C, 80 °C and 100 °C before being separated by using a rotary evaporator. The sample is then analyzed by using Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR). From FTIR analysis, the functional groups found in the hydrosol were OH, C=C and -NH groups. As the temperature increased, more components were decomposed. Hence, lesser functional groups were found in the hydrosol at 100 °C as compared to 60 °C. Chemical constituents of the hydrosol of C. caesia were identified by GC-MS analysis, with camphor (0.57%) as the only major component at 100 °C. Comparing the chemical constituents of the hydrosol at 60°C and 80°C, the elevated temperature of hydro-distillation caused decomposition of the chemical constituents of the hydrosol due to changes of properties. The chemical constituents of the hydrosol of C. caesia were significantly different from the essential oil qualitatively and quantitatively, with the medicinal value of the hydrosol was uncertain due to the trace amount of camphor and other chemical constituents possessed in the hydrosol.
Pressure retarded osmosis – a multi-functional osmotic energy membrane-based harvest technology
Authors: Sark J F , Jullok N
Published: May 2021

Pressure retarded osmosis (PRO) is a re-emerging membrane-based technology to harvest salinity gradient energy (SGE). Membrane is the key factor to further PRO development. Polymer blend is an effective method to enhance membrane properties. In this work, conventional polysulfone (PSf) and polyethersulfone (PES) were blended in 1:1 ratio to fabricate the support membrane. The intrinsic water and salt permeabilities of PSf:PES membrane were enhanced to 1.90 ± 0.42 LMH/bar and 0.46 ± 0.10 gMH, respectively compared to the pristine PSf and PES with only slight drop (1.2 %) in salt rejection of 97.7 %. PSf:PES membrane gave the highest water fluxes of 26.19 and 22.62 LMH at applied hydraulic pressure of 2 and 4 bar, respectively. The resultant power density obtained was 1.46 and 2.51 W/m 2 with the respective hydraulic pressure. The PSf:PES membrane substrate was found to bring a positive impact on the IP reaction with resultant fully cross-linked, leaf-like PA structure which ultimately gives a greater surface/volume ratio on its respective TFC PRO membrane performance.
Perlis Sunshine Mango Seed Flour Body Scrub: Product Development for Physical and Sensory Properties
Authors: Bahari R , Kasim K F , Ya’acob W S N Wan
Published: May 2021

Mango had a large scale of usage in industry as active ingredient in juice, flavor, fragrance and color agents. After the industrial consumption, 18% of mango seed were produced as the by-product. Mango seed could be converted to value added products such as additional ingredient in cosmetic product which would reduce the environmental pollution and minimize the waste production. Thus, the purpose of this project were to analyze the texture of Perlis Sunshine mango seed flour that made of three different ratios which Sample 1 consist of 97% wheat flour to 3% Perlis Sunshine mango seed flour, Sample 2 (95 : 5) and Sample 3 (90 : 10), to formulate body scrub from Perlis Sunshine mango seed flour and to analyze the physical and functional properties of the body scrub. Then, two types of body scrub from Perlis Sunshine mango seed flour were formulated using sea salt and brown sugar as the main exfoliant and each type were divided into four samples (control sample, sample 1, sample 2, sample 3). Next, physical analyses had been done which the moisture content for salt scrub and sugar scrub obtained were below 14% which considered in acceptable range. For water activity (aw), the value obtained from all sugar scrub samples were acceptable as the value were below than 0.94aw. Next for sample hardness of texture analyses of sample 1 of salt scrub had the best value which was 41.33g. For oil holding capacity, sample 3 of sugar scrub had the highest value which was 37.94%. In conclusion, sample 3 of salt scrub was the best formulation compare to other samples.
Removal of methylthioninium chloride dye from aqueous solution using cogon grass as adsorbent
Authors: Isa N M M , Yatim N S M , Zabanor N A
Published: May 2021

The aim of this study was to investigate the removal Methylthioninium Chloride dye using cogon grass to treat the effluent. The effects of various parameters such as adsorbent dosage, dye concentration and contact time were studied. Funtional group properties of cogon grass had been characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The adsorption process attained equilibrium around 50 minutes. The maximum adsorption capacity was calculated to be 46.30 mg/g with optimized condition of adsorbent dosage 0.1 g at temperature 30 °C for 50 minutes. The adsorption kinetics of Methylthioninium Chloride with cogon grass suit into non-linear pseudo-second order reaction model that refers to the amount of adsorbate and amount of solute adsorbed on adsorbent surface at equilibrium. It was also found that the Langmuir isotherm fit better (R 2 = 0.9959) compare to the Freundlich isotherm (R 2 = 0.4093). The high levels of color removals were achieved with low contact times; and the cogon grass can be effectively used as adsorbent of methylthioninium chloride in aqueous solutions. These results prove that cogon grass is highly potential to be used as low-cost adsorbent for the dye removal from industrial wastewater.
Hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of oleochemical waste oil into paraffins using iron molybdate (Fe-Mo-O) catalyst
Authors: Mohamad N A , Foo S P , Nagai M , Izhar S
Published: May 2021

The hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of 1-dodecanol (C12 fatty alcohol) in oleochemical waste oil was investigated in a continuous fixed-bed reactor using Fe-Mo-O catalyst between 200-300°C, 10-20 bars, and at fixed GHSV of 5121 hr -1. The characterization of the product components was analyzed by GC-MS and further quantified by GC-FID to evaluate the effect of temperature and pressure on the HDO of 1-dodecanol to paraffin such as dodecane and lower carbon number of hydrocarbons. The reaction temperature is the most critical operating parameter that affects the performance of the HDO reaction. Conversion of 1-dodecanol increased up to 98.5% with increasing reaction temperature, while at 250°C, the dodecane selectivity was the highest. Two distinct HDO pathways were distinguished: dehydration-hydrogenation (Path 1) and dehydrogenation-decarbonylation/decarboxylation (Path 2). The high temperature and low pressure of the HDO promoted Path 2 route to produce paraffin with a lower carbon number from the reactant. The selectivity of dodecane was low, probably due to the cracking process that occurred at 300°C. The conversion of 1-dodecanol decreased with the increasing pressure, while dodecane’s production rate follows the reverse trend of the conversion. High pressure of HDO promoted Path 1 route due to the higher selectivity of dodecane. In conclusion, the optimal temperature and pressure for HDO of oleochemical waste oil over Fe-Mo-O catalyst are 250°C and 20 bars, which gave the highest conversion towards dodecane and C12 paraffin.
Spin-polarized Density Functional Theory on Iron-decorated Planar Aluminene Systems for Hydrogen Storage
Authors: Villagracia A R C , Ong H L
Published: May 2021

The storage of hydrogen gas produced from different processes such as biomass gasification is one of the challenges towards hydrogen economy to achieve a sustainable clean energy. Different 2D materials are being explored for a suitable storage such as aluminene due to its large surface area. In this work, we investigated using spin polarized density functional theory the adsorption of iron on the different sites of planar aluminene: top, bridge and hollow. Results showed that iron can be adsorbed on aluminene on all sites favoring the hollow site with a binding energy of -7.83 eV. The charge density differences show charge transfers from the aluminum atom towards the iron atoms indicating chemical bond. Results showed net magnetization based on the density of states which can be utilize for reversible hydrogen gas induced magnetization switching for hydrogen storage. Hydrogen is physisorped on the Fe atoms located at the top and bridge site of aluminene without energy barrier, while hydrogen is chemisorped on Fe atom located at the hollow site with an energy barrier of 0.063 eV. These results are indicative that Fe-decorated aluminene systems can be a good hydrogen storage material.
Assessment of Power Generation from Dewatered Sludge using Membrane-Less Microbial Fuel Cell
Authors: Sabri M N I M , Shamsuddin N A , Alias M F A , Tajaruddin H A , Makhtar MM Z
Published: May 2021

Water and energy security are gaining high interest of many researchers and intensive exploration took place around the global. Membrane-less microbial fuel cell (ML-MFC) has been emerging as one of the popular wastewater treatment-based technology to provide clean water and green energy. MFC are bio-electrical devices that harness the natural metabolism of electrogenic bacteria (EB) to produce electrical energy. In this study, Bacillus subtilis (BS) was used to catalyst the transformation of carbon source in dewatered sludge into renewable energy. From the study, the MFCs were tested to see the robustness of the MFC by exposing them to the ambient temperature (25± 1°C) with the parameter of pH (6), electrode distance (6 cm), initial moisture content (30 % vol/wt) were set as constant. The result focused on the performance of the ML-MFC during noon (8-10 am and 4-6 pm) as these were the periods which BS recorded actively growth (increment of ±5.167 × 10 -3mg/L of biomass per day). The ML-MFCs were carried out for 7 days incubation period and the BS growth reflected significantly on the voltage and power generated. The highest voltage and power density were recorded which were 90 mV and 8.793Watt/m 2 (at morning on 6th day), respectively. Moreover, observation gram staining of BS under a light microscope indicated a purple appearance due to thick peptidoglycan layer of the cell wall. Obviously, this study could be the bench mark of the practicality of the MFC technology which projected to be implemented in remote area where the natural environment condition is the surrounding parameter of the MFC same like in current study.
Experimental and Numerical Studies of Combustion Characteristics in Swirling Fluidized Bed Gasifier Using Palm Cake as Feedstock
Authors: Suksuwan Wasu , Batcha Mohd Faizal Mohideen , Palamanit Arkom , Wae-hayee Makatar
Published: May 2021

In this work, combustion characteristics in swirling fluidized bed gasifier using palm cake as feedstock was studied experimentally and numerically. A 3-D numerical model of reactor was created using ANSYS (Fluent) and was compared with experiment in the same scale. The diameter (D) was 0.20 m, and the reactor length was 1.50 m. The double air inlet pipe with an inner diameter of 46.8 mm was assembled tangentially to the bottom of the reactor. An equivalent ratio (ER) was fixed at ER=0.3. The results showed that the result of experiment and numerical studies is almost similar. For highest temperature of the reactor occurred in combustion zone which is high from reference point (bottom end of the reactor) of 0.25 m for experiment and 0.35 m. for simulation. For swirling flow pattern was occurred at the bottom rather than the top of the reactor. So, the result of numerical studies can predict the phenomena inside the reactor which is similar to experiment test.
Effect of Equivalent Ratio on Thermal Energy and Exhaust Gas Properties from Gasification of Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch using Household Gasifier
Authors: Suksuwan Wasu , Hayee-asae Ni-alameen , Hemma Issamaae , Batcha Mohd Faizal Mohideen , Palamanit Arkom , Wae-hayee Makatar
Published: May 2021

This study investigated the effect of equivalent ratio on thermal energy and exhaust gas properties obtained from gasification of oil palm empty fruit bunch by using a household gasifier. The fixed bed household gasifier was designed, fabricated and tested. The chopped oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) was used as feedstock and its feeding rate was fixed at 11 kg/hr. The studied equivalent ratios (ERs) of air were 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 1, respectively. Then, the flame temperature of syngas firing and flue gases properties were determined. The results obtained from study showed that the gasification process was obtained if the ERs were 0.3 and 0.5. When the gasifier was operated at ERs of 0.7 and 1, the process was changed to be combustion. At ER of 0.5, it was the suitable condition for fixed bed gasifier due to this condition provided low ash content, low carbon monoxide, and moderate thermal energy.
Non-destructive leaf area estimation of Fig (Ficus carica L.) cv. Iraqi grown in different root zone spatial limitation and controlled porosity level under greenhouse condition
Authors: Isa M M , Kasim K F , Muttalib M F A , Jaafar M N
Published: May 2021

Leaf area (LA) is associated with many agronomic and physiological processes including growth, photosynthesis, transpiration, photon interception, energy balance and yield potential of the plant. Accurate, rapid and non-destructive leaf area estimation is a useful subject of study for the fields of applied plant science especially with potted plants. However, till date there is lack of information available on Fig (Ficus carica L.) cv. Iraqi grown in containers under different root zone spatial limitation and controlled porosity level. Thus, this study aims to determine the effect of both factors on leaf area of the crop. Determining the individual LA of F. carica cv. Iraqi involves measurements of leaf parameters such as length (L) and width (W), or some combinations of these parameters. The widest part of the foliage was taken as leaf width (W) and leaf length (L) was defined as the distance between the two furthest points (from lamina tip to the point of petiole intersection along the midrib) of the foliage. The length (L) and width (W) of each leaf will be measured by using a leaf area meter having a sensor and read-out unit which calibrated to 0.01 cm 2. There is significant interaction was observed for each treatment. It can be concluded that application of the right root zone and porosity level gave positive effect on leaf area of F. carica cv. Iraqi grown under greenhouse condition.
Compost Bed Size Influences the Co-Composting of Cow Dung and Spent Mushroom at Mesophilic Stage
Authors: Zailani Siti Nazrah , Shaheen Azizi Anas Firdaus , Noor Ainee Zainol
Published: May 2021

Composting is an approach to convert typically organic waste into soil amendment for nutrient enhancement and plant growth. The composting of cow dung and spent mushroom for 13 days to study the potential of degradation of organic matter at different size of laboratory scale. The compost bed size is crucial to study because larger amount of raw materials will reduce the O 2 concentration inside the compost bed. In this study, the aerobic compost bed size of 2, 4 and 6 kg were prepared at 60 % of initial moisture content, 20 mm particle size and 28:1 of initial C/N ratio. Temperature, moisture content, porosity, pH, C/N ratio and total organic carbon were analysed to evaluate the degradation process. All compost beds recorded the mesophilic phase (>30°C) upon composting of initial total organic carbon of 35 to 37 %. Moisture content reduced to lower than 43.9 %, total organic carbon reduced to less than 25 % and compost beds were nearly neutral (pH 7) at the end of composting. The findings show that, all the compost beds follow the first-order kinetic reaction as R 2 larger than 0.880. The degradation rate constant of 2 kg compost bed showed the largest value, 0.0503 day -1 indicates the best composting process and results the smaller compost bed is preferable for mesophilic phase composting.
Comparison the Using of Polypropylene and Low-Density Polyethyelene Plastic Waste as a Matrix in Making Biodegradable Plastics and Starch from Empty Fruit Bunch of Palm Oil as a Filler
Authors: Tengku Hidayani Rachmi , Harmileni  , Mirnandaulia Meutia , Yuniarti Trisna , Silvany Rika
Published: May 2021

The using of plastic waste from various types of plastics such as polypropylene and LDPE is carried out to see the properties of each biodegradable plastic produced, so that it can be used according to their respective needs. The addition of starch from empty fruit bunch of palm oil is expected to produce biodegradable plastic that breaks down naturally so that it can overcome the problem of plastic build up. The composition used in the manufacture of biodegradable plastics is the ratio of plastic waste and starch of empty fruit bunch of palm oil is 60:40. The method of molding biodegradable plastics is the hot press method. Biodegradable plastic from LDPE type plastic waste has a tensile strength price of 6.9410 N/m 2 and a elongation value of 3.1875%, a melting point temperature of 103°C and a decomposition temperature of 384°C, the gravimetric thermal test obtained a residue of 12.6%, and analysis of morphological properties shows spread the starch from empty fruit bunch palm oil evenly. Biodegradable plastic from polypropylene type plastic waste has a tensile strength value of 9.81 N/m 2 and elongation of 0.5625%, a melting point at a temperature of 163.68°C and decomposes at a temperature of 445.62°C the gravimetric thermal test obtained a residue of 11.5%. From the resulting characteristics, it can be concluded that biodegradable plastic made from LDPE material has lower strength but higher elasticity, and biodegradable plastic made from Polypropylene has better strength but low elasticity.
Design and Analysis of Exhaust Manifold for a Single-cylinder Internal Combustion Engine (ICE)
Authors: Aziz NA , Rahman MTA , Amin NAM , Majid MSA , Rojan A , Nasir NFM , Rahman YMN
Published: May 2021

An efficient exhaust system is vital to maximising the performance of an internal combustion engine (ICE), hence improving overall vehicle performance. To have an efficient exhaust system, the amount of exhaust backpressure is to be minimised. To decrease the backpressure effects in the exhaust system, the exhaust has to be redesigned according to the certain bending radius, length of straight pipe and bending angle and pipe diameter. This paper presents design and analysis of the exhaust system used in Shell Eco-Marathon 2019 competition. In this project, the exhaust manifold was redesigned according to the specification of the chassis, the exhaust outlet in the engine and the rules and regulations of the competition. Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) analysis was employed to identify the optimum exhaust system design with minimum pressure loss. Among the tested models, the exhaust manifold with 100 mm length, 30° bending angle, 34 mm diameter, and 40 mm bending radius was the optimised design that resulted in the lowest pressure loss of 12.24 kPa. This study shows that a small bending angle with a short straight pipe has led to a smoother exhaust flow and even exhaust velocity across the model.
Extraction of nanocrystalline cellulose from Kapok fiber as potential water-resistant composite
Authors: Vasu Sarindran , Bakar Ayu Haslija Abu , Teh Khai Chyi , Chew Irene Mei Leng
Published: May 2021

This study focused on synthesizing of nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) from kapok fiber with the combination of chemical and mechanical methods. The as-synthesized NCC is used to produce nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) paper. It was determined that the optimum condition to synthesis nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) from kapok fiber using acid hydrolysis process treatment was at 45°C, 2 hours and 50% concentration of H 2SO 4. The particle size of the synthesized nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) was 262.9 - 455.6 nm. The disappearance of peaks 1731.89, 1594.68, 1505.51 & 1240 cm -1 in the (FTIR) spectroscopy was related to the removal of non-cellulose component such as lignin and hemicellulose. Based on the contact angle, the value gained for that contact angle of the filter paper was increased from 29.650° to 40.261° and 32.002° due to presence of nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) in the filter paper. It was determined that the modified filter paper with the nanocrystalline cellulose (NCC) had the highest water-resistances property and was considered the most hydrophobic of all the other papers.
Effect of Thermal Pre-Treatments Method on Sludge Degradation Process Prior Usage in Membrane-Less Microbial Fuel Cell for Electricity Generation
Authors: Shamsuddin Nurul Atiqah , Mohd Sabri Muhammad Najib Ikmal , Tajarudin Husnul Azan , Shoparwe Noor Fazliani , Makhtar Muaz Mohd Zaini
Published: May 2021

Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) is gaining high interest by researcher around the globe as this is a promising renewable technology that has capability in producing electrical energy. In this study, the effect of the thermal pretreatment method (60, 80, 100, 120 and 140°C) on dewatered sludge (DS) as substrate for electrogenic bacteria (EB) in ML-MFC was optimized using one-factor-at-a-time (OFAT) method. The treated sludge then was used in ML-MFC by exposing them to the constant incubation temperature (35°C) with constant parameter of pH (6), initial moisture content (30 % vol/wt) and electrodes distance (3 cm) for 7 days incubation period. The performance of ML-MFC was relied on generation of soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD), power generation and EB biomass. Results shows the thermal pretreatment at 80°C was the optimum condition as the DS degradation rate (increment 78 %) when DS was treated for 4 h time treatment prior used in the ML-MFC. The degradation of DS was further degraded in ML-MFC via bio-catalysis process (51 % of SCOD produced compared initial DS inserted in MFCs ∼ 66 % SCOD removal). It was important to have a high DS degradation as the EB in ML-MFC would obtain more ‘food’ to growth thus increased the voltage (239 mV) and power density (98.34 mW/m2) generation. In comparison, the control ML-MFC recorded low performance of DS degradation rate (21 %), voltage (24 mV) and power density 0.88 mW/m2. Thus, by combining the pretreatment method of dewatered sludge prior used in ML-MFC it could improve the performance and expanding the application of ML-MFC as future renewable technology for sustainability of power sources. The EB strains wasBacillus subtilis sp.
Cyclic voltammetry studies of bioanode microbial fuel fells from batch culture of Geobacter sulfurreducens
Authors: Shoparwe N F , Makhtar M M Z , Sata S A , Kew W S , Mohamad M , Shukor H
Published: May 2021

The present study aims to investigate the performance of batch culture of Geobacter sulfurreducens (G. sulfurreducens) for electrical current generation via cyclic voltammetry (CV) method. The CV study was performed with an applied voltage in the range of -0.1 to 0.1 V against the standard calomel electrode (SCE) during the cell growth and attachment of G. sulfurreducens on graphite felt and initial acetate concentration of 20 mM. The kinetics of electrode reaction was investigated by conducting CV experiments at different scanning rates of 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 mVs -1. The diffusion coefficients (D) and heterogeneous electron transfer rate constant (k o) of both anodic and cathodic process were 1.04×10 -5 cm 2·s -1, 1.73×10 -6 cm 2.s -1, 0.0004 cm.s -1 and 0.0011 cm.s -1, respectively. The obtained results showed that the anode exhibits high bioeletrocatalytic activity due to the attachment of G. sulfurreducens on the anode surface.
Corn starch processing wastewater treated by a full-scale expanded granular sludge bed reactor and comprehensive analysis of microbial community at low and high organic loading rate
Authors: Yan H H , Han L , Yin Q , Guo X Y , Nian Y G
Published: May 2021

In this study, a full-scale expanded granular sludge bed (EGSB) reactor treating corn starch processing wastewater (CSPW) was monitored. The efficacy and microbial diversity of sludge granules were thoroughly investigated. The results demonstrated that 90.7% of the average chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency was observed to be in the range of an organic load rate (OLR) of 1.3 to 18.7 g COD/L·d. The Illumina MiSeq sequencing revealed that Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Acidobacteria and Euryarchaeota were the dominant phyla. Acetoclastic and hydrogenotrophic methanogens were shown to play functions in methane production and the maintenance of the granular sludge under high and low OLR operation conditions, respectively. Syntrophorhabdus, Syntrophus and Candidatus Cloacimonas had the correlation with the transformation of the proteinaceous subtances into VFAs. The results will guide development of microbial management methods to improve the process stability of EGSB treating CSPW.
Water conservation in beverage production: examining corporate water stewardship programs
Authors: Yu H
Published: May 2021

This paper evaluates the effectiveness of the current water conservation methods of beverage companies and provides suggestions for beverage companies on bet water stewardship strategies. In this paper, I answer two research questions: what are beverage companies’ water conservation strategies? What are the results, and how are the results measured? Four case studies on leading beverage companies are presented. The strategies are categorized by their contributions to different phases of production: the pre-production process, the production process, and the post-production process. Methods in the pre-production process concentrate on sustainable agriculture because agriculture consumes the most amounts of water resources. Strategies in the production process are operation management and plant redesign because they can effectively reduce water consumption in manufacture. The most popular approach in the post-production process is partnering with an environmental organization because it can influence the most amount of people. The four companies’ empirical experiences provide other beverage companies with lessons on sustainable water consumption and reveal practical directions for future academic researches.
Acoustic performance of an additive manufactured lattice structure
Authors: Auriemma Fabio , Liu Le
Published: May 2021

In this paper, a new type of fibreless, bulk, sound absorber is studied. The acoustic material is an additive manufactured lattice structure constituted by a mesh of pins generated by uniform spatial translation of a regular hexagonal prismatic open cell. The material presents remarkable advantages of metal foams: it is “green”, since no deteriorating, air polluting fibres are used; it is thermally and mechanically resistant, thus fire retardant, self-supporting and impact resistant. Compared to fibrous acoustic materials, it has low moisture absorption although the weight is higher. In addition to these properties, this additive manufactured material is provided with regular open cells whose geometry can be precisely controlled according to the desired performance. Moreover, the acoustical behaviour can be well modelled by simulating the air-solid thermo-viscous interaction within one single cell. The high, broad band sound absorption is a major result of the large viscous losses occurring in the flow which oscillates within the small hexagonal apertures. This lattice, referred to as honeycomb skeleton absorber (HAS), is a multifunctional material which can be used in a variety of structural applications where the sound levels must be controlled and/or a certain thermal resistance/insulation is required (for instance car floors).
Isothermal Oxidation of SLM fabricated Mo(Si1-xAlx)2-based composite
Authors: Minasyan Tatevik , Liu Le , Toyserkani Ehsan , Hussainova Irina
Published: May 2021

Near full dense C40 hexagonal structured Mo(Si1-xAlx)2-based composite coupons with 7 mm diameter by 7 mm height were prepared by selective laser melting (SLM) of MoSi2-30 wt.% AlSi10Mg powder mixture and subjected to isothermal oxidation. As a reference, MoSi2 bulk sample was prepared by spark plasma sintering (SPS) technique. The quantitative oxidation tests were conducted in dry air atmosphere at 500 °C for 72 and 120 hours with three specimens for each dwell time. The estimated weight change after 120 h oxidation accompanied with the SEM analysis revealed the slow oxidation of the SPS prepared MoSi2 bulk sample without evidence of pesting, however, the formed oxide layer was not protective and contained large cracks and multiple microcracks. The SLM produced sample showed remarkably slower oxidation rate as well as the formation of only a nanoscale oxide layer, highlighting the significant influence on Al additive to enhance MoSi2 oxidation resistance, thus making the developed material promising to be used as heating element.
Reduction of annotation efforts for multiclass object detection by using a domain awareness data combination strategy
Authors: Briese C. , Hummel B. , Hoang V. , Schlüter M. , Krüger J.
Published: May 2021

To train convolutional neural networks (CNN) it is common practise to collect a huge amount of data. This is cost intensive and often not applicable. Up to date several studies have investigated the concept of few shoot learning, e.g. 1-3 samples per class. Suboptimal is still the over fitting resulting from the gap between training data and representative test data in the application. Since this is still a field of intensive research, an alternative and common approach is transfer learning with data- and image augmented pictures. However, collecting and labelling data for fine-tuning can still take an enormous amount of time, when it comes to multiclass pictures in industrial applications like assembly kit verification. The kits often contain stock lists with a small interclass and a high intraclass-distance. A specific characteristic of stock lists is that parts are easily adaptable and exchangeable. To bring object detection closer to the industry, we successfully show a dataset driven approach that combines a single class collection of pictures, which we call single class (SC) dataset and adapt with a few samples the specific multiclass use case. In result, we use a model trained on a huge SC dataset that can easily and fast be adapted to specific industrial use cases.
Generic Architecture for the Automatic Parametrization of Production Machine Assembly Programs
Authors: Stephan Philipp , Fisch Jessica , Can Alperen , Heimann Oliver , Thiele Gregor , Krüger Jörg
Published: May 2021

In a high-mix low volume production environment, time to market is a key factor. However, one bottleneck lies in the often times manual parametrization of machines for new or modified designs. A truly flexible manufacturing environment therefore requires a continuous data flow from the design stages to the shop floor. This paper presents a concept for the automated parameterization of machines at a large automotive plant. Therefore, this paper initially discusses the results of a stakeholder analysis. The stakeholders comprise of different departments related to the product design and manufacturing processes. The requirements resulting from the interviews conducted with the stakeholders are grouped and ordered by priority. Secondly a general architecture for the control interface is presented. It includes multiple submodules, which model the continuous data flow between the departments and the production systems. The first main step of the data flow is the transformation of the information which is presented in various styles depending on the source departments to structured and standardized data. Thereafter machine parameters are generated automatically by a submodule using the structured input data and inference rules. Finally, the architecture supports the automatic transfer of the machine readable output data to the assembly line. To test the architecture a prototype comprising of more than 100 robots in a live production environment is implemented. It allows for a continuous data flow from the design and productions planning department to the robots. This enables a flexible process control, which up to today has supported the fast roll out of more than 100 new product variants. In contrast to the conventional manual setup of the machines for operation, the prototype was able to show that the monetary and time expenditure could be reduced by 95 percent.
Performance of Al2O3-CBN materials and perspective of using hyperspectral imaging during cutting tests
Authors: Antonov M , Zahavi A , Kumar R , Tamre M , Klimczyk P
Published: May 2021

The performance of cutting tool materials (CTMs) influences the quality and lifetime of parts produced with their help. Unexpected fracturing or other failures of the tools lead to defects of parts that exaggerate materials fatigue and fracture processes. For the purpose of Industry 4 and future generations of factories it is important to enable in-situ monitoring of cutting processes while hyperspectral imaging can serve as a powerful tool. Cubic boron nitride (cBN) has extreme hardness and can provide improved wear resistance if mixed with other CTMs. Besides, such materials can be used without cooling liquids that helps to mitigate workplace health risks. The aim of the current work was to understand how well current hyperspectral imaging technologies can track the changes in performance of CTMs with addition of cBN. The paper presents the results of multiple in-situ (obtained during cutting with real lathe) and static (before or after cutting) tests performed with hyperspectral camera. The wear rate of CTMs and roughness of workpieces were measured with the help of scanning electron microscope and 3D optical profiler respectively. The effect of cBN content and effect of TiN or ZrO2 additives on performance of alumina-based CTMs produced by spark plasma sintering technique is presented.
Basic material and technology investigations for material bonded hybrids by continuous hybrid profile fabrication
Authors: Schubert K , Gedan-Smolka M , Marschner A , Rietzschel T , Uhlig K , Löpitz D , Wagner D , Knobloch M
Published: May 2021

The development of multi-material hybrids by injection molding has been studied very intensively at the IPF in the past. For that, a material bonding between the different substrates was achieved by using a newly developed two-step curing powder coating material as latent reactive adhesive. The aim of the project “Hybrid Pultrusion” was to perform a novel approach for the fabrication of material bonded metal-plastic joints (profiles) in a modified pultrusion process. Therefore, powder pre-coated steel coil is combined with a glass-fiber reinforced epoxy resin matrix. For initial basic studies, the impregnated fiber material has been applied on the pre-coated steel sheets using the Resin Transfer Molding process (RTM-process). It was proved via lap shear tests, that this procedure resulted in very high adhesive strengths up to 35 MPa resulting from the formation of a covalent matrix-steel bonding as well. In addition, the failure mechanism was subsequently studied. Furthermore, by adapting the successful material combination to the pultrusion process it was demonstrated that material bonded hybrids can be achieved even under these continuous processing conditions.
On the Selection and Application of a Convenient Energy Management Software for Industrial Purposes
Authors: Wurster Larissa , Thiele Gregor , Briese Clemens , Krüger Jörg
Published: May 2021

The profitability of companies, especially in Germany, is affected by rising energy prices and increasingly stringent energy legislation. Certification according to ISO 50.001, an international standard for energy management systems, can help to meet legal requirements and increase energy efficiency. This article offers assistance in the form of a methodology that provides a structure for the selection process of an energy management system (EnMS). Considering properties of the individual company, it helps to identify an appropriate software solution. It is applied to a globally operating metalworking company in an example study. Furthermore, the measurement infrastructure in particular is a basic requirement that should not be overlooked in addition to the process of choosing an appropriate software solution. In this context, suitable metering points or criteria must be defined as well as sufficient attention paid to the anticipated costs for acquiring and integrating new measuring transducer and energy meters. The type and number of relevant measuring points must be considered in particular. Discussing these aspects, this article facilitates the process of planning and implementing an energy monitoring.
Production environment of tomorrow (ProMo): Partially automated repair process of small tool moulds, forming tools, injection moulding tools and sand casting tools
Authors: Kuschan Jan , Müller Vinzenz , Monchinger Stephan , Heimann Oliver , Niebuhr Carsten , Kabha Oday
Published: May 2021

Small defects in the grain or major damage to a moulded part or tool can bring production to a standstill. SMEs in particular have neither the personnel nor the equipment to repair such damage on their own, so they send it to specialised contractors. The repair process is carried out manually, depending on the accuracy requirements, and is usually completed by a finishing process. This work requires qualified personnel and, at the same time, requires a lot of time in case of larger damages. In this paper we present a way to map the Maintenance, Repair and Operations (MRO) process chain in a partially automated manner.

The symbiosis of individual technologies results in a significantly increased efficiency of the MRO process chain, which continues to focus on people and their process knowledge.

While Directed Energy Deposition (DED) for the MRO of moulded parts is used widely, usually a high manual effort in measuring the component geometries and teaching of the machine tool paths is necessary. However, there are clear advantages compared to the manufacture of new parts or manual laser welding repair. At the same time, the resource and energy requirements can often be significantly reduced compared to new part production. Promo focuses on automating the time-consuming machine programming by reducing the number of necessary work steps in CAD/CAM-based program creation.

Based on a subsequent robot-guided scan, a digital actual 3D model is generated. Due to intelligent path planning algorithms, no manual programming of the robot is necessary and at the same time it is possible to detect components of different sizes, shapes and covers in this system with a minimum of effort. In addition, the operator passes on elementary information, such as the approach path of the milling head, to the subsequent processes by means of finger gestures and can thus significantly reduce tedious CAM programming steps. Now, the scanned component is transferred to a 3D-CAD model and a target/actual comparison is created for the damaged areas. Those are milled out in a defined manner and then restored using DED.
Properties of technical aluminum under the effect of dynamic alloying
Authors: Usherenko Y , Mironovs V , Usherenko S , Reut O , Lapkovskis V
Published: May 2021

Dynamic alloying in the mode of super-deep penetration (SDP) allows us to evaluate the effects that occur in the materials of the spacecraft when interacting with high-speed streams of cosmic dust. The results of the experiments are presented, confirming that dynamic alloying in the SDP mode creates anisotropy in a solid body and leads to a change in physical properties (electrical resistance, electron work function). The dynamic alloying increased the anisotropy of electrical resistance in technical aluminum 99.7% Al in 2.05 times (105%), led to a decrease of the electrical resistance in the longitudinal direction by 16% and increase in the transverse direction by 41%.
Development of Virtual Learning Factory Toolkit for Production Engineering Education
Authors: Mahmood Kashif , Otto Tauno , Kuts Vladimir , Terkaj Walter , Urgo Marcello , Haidegger Geza
Published: May 2021

The advent of industry 4.0 and the continuous digitalization of production ask for the enhancement of human skills and competences in the field of information and communication technology (ICT). Therefore, higher education has to keep pace with the global market needs for the necessary ICT skills and the overall understanding of the complexity of industries in 21st century. This paper focuses on the development and integration of Virtual Learning Factory (VLF) tools that can be used in production management and engineering education. The digital tools integrated in VLF toolkit can help students to exploit enabling technologies like simulation and virtual reality in their manufacturing studies and practical projects with industrial companies.
Supervised learning vs. unsupervised learning: A comparison for optical inspection applications in quality control
Authors: Lehr J , Philipps J , Hoang V Nguyen , Wrangel D von , Krüger J
Published: May 2021

For the establishment of a successful quality management system in companies, the quality control of e.g. newly produced goods or the return of old and used parts is an essential component. One solution for this is the optical inspection of the surface of objects with the help of image processing algorithms. Using the case study of printer cartridges, this paper evaluates the extent to which different methods of machine learning can contribute to a successful quality control. Established methods of supervised learning have the advantage that they are already proven in many applications and have a very high detection accuracy. However, they require a lot of labelled training data and this high effort also means high integration costs. A new approach is a data-reduced variant from unsupervised learning. Here, the algorithm is trained only with defect free objects, for example as they come to a large extent from the production. If the objects are defective, the method from the field of anomaly detection or even novelty detection detects something that is different from the learned norm. This has the advantage that not all defects have to be known beforehand. And this in turn avoids acquiring a large amount of training data for each of these defects. This paper compares the effort required to acquire training data and compares it with the detection accuracy of the different methods in order to give an assessment of the extent to which the use of unsupervised learning methods is beneficial. Newly produced and used printer cartridges are used for this purpose. Image data is acquired from 18 different printer cartridge models. Afterwards they are fully annotated (labelled). A smart separation into training, validation and test data allows the training of supervised and unsupervised methods as well as a complete evaluation regarding the effort for data acquisition, annotation and detection accuracy of the defects. Finally, an outlook for chances and risks of the respective procedures is given.