bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Type-2 Fuzzy Logic Controller Based PSS for Large Scale Power Systems Stability
Authors: Kahouli O. , Ashammari B. , Sebaa K. , Djebali M. , Abdallah H. H.
Published: November 2020

In this paper, the application of the fuzzy logic based power systems stabilizer (FLPSS) to damp power system oscillation is presented. Various types of fuzzy logic controller are used to replace the conventional power system stabilizer (CPSS). The classic fuzzy logic controller based PSS (FLCPSS), the polar FLC (PFLCPSS) and the interval type-2 fuzzy logic controller based PSS (IT2FLCPSS) are applied to the New England - New York interconnected power system and the obtained results are compared. For coordination purposes, genetic algorithm (GA) is used to tune the FLCPSS’s gains. The non-linear simulation in the presence of noise confirms the robustness and the superiority of the IT2FLCPSS.
Performance Analysis of Non-Isolated DC-DC Buck Converter Using Resonant Approach
Authors: Jayaswal K. , Palwalia D. K.
Published: November 2020

DC-DC converters preserve or control the output DC voltage. Due to parasitic constituents such as leakage capacitance of both diode and inductor, and transformer leakage inductance, DC-DC converters mostly operate on rigid switching conditions which result in high switching losses. These parasitic constituents affect the dc-dc converter’s operational reliability, instigate electromagnetic interference issues and limit the converter’s operation at higher frequency operations. In this paper, resonant or soft-switch approach has been employed to improve the operating performance and design-oriented principle investigations have been carried out for overcoming the issues of parasitic constituents in 24-12V DC-DC step-down (buck) converter. This paper divulges the analysis and Matlab Simulation results for 24-12V buck converter based on resonant or soft-switching approach.
Maximum Power Tracking System Based on Power Electronic Topology for Wind Energy Conversion System Applications
Authors: Hussain M. , Baloch M. H. , Memon A. H. , Pathan N. K.
Published: November 2020

Wind energy has emerged as a dominant alternative power generation source. Conventional energy resources are depleting and their increasing cost cannot be ignored. Wind energy has taken an important role in replacing fossil fuels and nuclear energy. However, optimal exploitation of wind energy systems has remained a thought-provoking problem due to the nonlinear behavior of the wind speed. Distribution generation system and isolated micro-grid (MG) are mainly used in a wind energy system in order to utilize maximum potential of wind through the maximum power tracking algorithm based on DC-DC boost power electronic converter. In this paper, authors propose a technique which is effectively workable, highly reliable, of low cost and induces less mechanical stress on the wind generator system (WGS). Experimental results of the proposed system verify that the effectiveness near optimal WGS output power increased approximately up to 50%. Thus, better exploitation of the available wind power is obtained under low wind speeds.
Improving Translation Quality By Using Ensemble Approach
Authors: Chopra D. , Joshi N. , Mathur I.
Published: November 2020

Machine translation (MT) has been a topic of great research during the last sixty years, but, improving its quality is still considered an open problem. In the current paper, we will discuss improvements in MT quality by the use of the ensemble approach. We performed MT from English to Hindi using 6 MT different engines described in this paper. We found that the quality of MT is improved by using a combination of various approaches as compared to the simple baseline approach for performing MT from source to target text.
Fat Quantitation in Liver Biopsies Using a Pretrained Classification Based System
Authors: Arjmand A. , Giannakeas N.
Published: November 2020

Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is a common syndrome that mainly leads to fat accumulation in liver and steatohepatitis. It is targeted as a severe medical condition ranging from 20% to 40% in adult populations of the Western World. Its effect is identified through insulin resistance, which places patients at high mortality rates. An increased fat aggregation rate, can dramatically increase the development of liver steatosis, which in later stages may advance into fibrosis and cirrhosis. During recent years, new studies have focused on building new methodologies capable of detecting fat cells, based on the histology method with digital image processing techniques. The current study, expands previous work on the detection of fatty liver, by identifying once more a number of diverse histological findings. It is a combined study of both image analysis and supervised learning of fat droplet features, with a specific goal to exclude other findings from fat ratio calculation. The method is evaluated in a total set of 40 liver biopsy images with different magnification capabilities, performing satisfyingly (1.95% absolute error).
Common Factors of Cost Escalation in Construction Industry of Pakistan
Authors: Ahmed S. , Memon A. H. , Memon N. A. , Laghari A. N. , Akhund M. A. , Imad H. U.
Published: November 2020

Cost escalation is a ubiquitous problem, especially in Government organizations. Though bigger projects encompass escalation cost, in smaller projects, it is generally ignored. Several internal and external factors are responsible for the undesirably increased cost of a project. Among them some are tangible, and some are intangible. The scope of this study is to highlight most common remittable and non-remittable factors responsible for cost escalations. Thirty most common factors responsible were listed. A survey was done in order to have the stakeholder’s opinion on identifying the most common factors. Out of 102 generally identified escalating factors, 30 factors were shortlisted based on literature and initial study. Participants responded on a 1 to 5 Likert’s scale. Out of 200 distributed questionnaires, 52 reliable set of questionnaires were selected for data analysis. Clients, consultants, and constructors were selected from different projects like roads, structure, public amenities etc. Minimum threshold to participate in the survey was that a respondent must had at least a Diploma or Bachelor’s degree in the field of civil engineering. Results highlighted that financial problems, slow payments, and inflation are the top-ranked identified factors responsible for cost escalation in the construction industry of Pakistan. The weighted average of all factors ranges between 0.355 and 0.688, having 0.668, 0.629 and 0.625 for the top three factors.
A Review on Machine Translation in Indian Languages
Authors: Chopra D. , Joshi N. , Mathur I.
Published: November 2020

Machine translation (MT) is considered an important task that can be used to attain information from documents written in different languages. In the current paper, we discuss different approaches of MT, the problems faced in MT in Indian languages, the limitations of some of the current existing MT systems, and present a review of the work that has been done until now in MT in Indian language perspective.
Analysis of D2D Communication System Over κ-μ Shadowed Fading Channel
Authors: Hussain Z. , Khan A. ur R. , Mehdi H. , Saleem S. M. A.
Published: November 2020

Outage performance of a device-to-device (D2D) communication system in the presence of co-channel interference (CCI) is analyzed in this paper. Channels for the D2D and CCI signals are assumed to be κ-μ shadowed faded. Maximal ratio combining (MRC) and selection combining (SC) techniques are considered to combat fading conditions. Characteristic function (CF) expression of the D2D system in the presence of CCI is presented. Outage probability and success probability expressions are presented for the MRC and SC schemes. These outage probability and success probability expressions are functions of various CCI, path-loss and channel fading parameters. With the help of numerical results, effects of CCI on the performance of D2D communication system under different channel fading and path-loss conditions are discussed.
Fuel Substitution for Energy Saving: A Case Study of Foundry Plant
Authors: Naim I. , Mahara T.
Published: November 2020

Foundry based organizations consume significant amounts of energy for producing their final products. Recently, techno-commercial and environmental factors have started triggering change from fossil fuels to cleaner ones. In this paper, factors acting as driving forces for migration from one fuel to another in order to improve energy efficiency, including various performance parameters in support of environment preservation, have been identified. Focus is also given to challenges which encounter during fuel switching. A new framework has been applied that can be used for fuel switching in manufacturing organizations. A real case of switching from three types of fuels to a single fuel has been studied and the outcomes are evaluated. Analysis related to energy consumption before and after fuel switching with respect to corresponding production data have been performed.
Study of Four Element Microstrip Antenna Array Using Patch Type Electromagnetic Band Gap Structure
Authors: Rao K. P. , Hunagund P. V. , Vani R. M.
Published: November 2020

This paper describes enhancements in the performance of four element microstrip antenna array. The conventional microstrip antenna array is producing gain equal to 6.81dB. With the introduction of U shape patch type electromagnetic band gap structure, the proposed microstrip antenna array is producing an improved gain of 20.33dB. It is producing reduced mutual coupling of -31.44, -36.41 and -31.62dB respectively. The radiation characteristics of the proposed microstrip antenna array are improved with appreciable decrease in back lobe radiation and increase in forward power. It is resonating at single band at 5.53GHz, producing an overall bandwidth of 109.45%, against 4.89% of conventional microstrip antenna array. Microstrip antenna arrays are designed using Mentor Graphics IE3D software and measured results are obtained using vector network analyzer.
Analysis of Bilateral Trade Flow and Machine Learning Algorithms for GDP Forecasting
Authors: Sun J. , Suo Y. , Park S. , Xu T. , Liu Y. , Wang W.
Published: November 2020

The terms imports and exports describe goods and services traded between countries. Countries import goods they cannot produce domestically or can obtain at a lower cost from another country. According to the World Trade Organization (WTO) reports, the U.S. is the world’s largest importer based on capital investment, followed by the E.U., China, Germany, and Japan. For exports, China leads the world with an official trade amount of $1.904 trillion in 2013. E.U. ranks second, followed by U.S., Germany, and Japan. Trade in goods and services is defined as a change in ownership of material resources and services between economies. Trade indicators include the sale of goods and services as well as barter transactions or goods exchanged and are measured in million USD, the percentage of GDP for net trade, and the annual export and import growth. This study analyzes imports and exports of all countries for the 1960-2017 period and evaluates the correlations in trade statistics to predict future imports and exports. Since the GDP for any country depends mainly on trade, this study examines trade data and compares various machine learning algorithms to forecast a country’s GDP.
Coplanar Stripline Loaded Reconfigurable Loop Antenna for WLAN and WiMAX Applications
Authors: Shastri S. P. R. , Singh R. R. , Ajetrao K. V.
Published: November 2020

In this paper, a loop antenna loaded with coplanar strip (CPS) line is proposed as a multiband antenna. The CPS line is added with two switches to vary the antenna perimeter to cover seven different bands. The CPS line introduced into the loop is not only useful in reconfiguring antenna dimensions but also provides stationary radiation patterns for the all the covered bands. The proposed antenna works in single and dual-band modes. When the proposed antenna works as a single band antenna, it produces a band from 4.2GHz to 5.7GHz. Under dual-band operation, it produces bands from 3.75GHz to 4.7GHz and from 6.4GHz to 7.8GHz. The other dual-band mode ranges from 3.5GHz to 3.8GHz and from 5.58GHz to 7.4 GHz. The simulated and measured results are in good agreement and the proposed antenna can be used satisfactorily for W-LAN and WiMax applications. The proposed technique can also be used for size reduction of loop antennas.
Influence of Austenite Phase Transformation on Existing Microstructure of Low C-Mn Steel
Authors: Abro S. H. , Chandio A. , Jamali A. R. , Shah S. A.
Published: November 2020

Cold heading quality CHQ steel is widely used for making small components due to its excellent cold heading response. Austenite nucleation and growth morphology of a commercial CHQ steel has been studied by continuous heating experiments using lead-bath up-quenching at different heating temperatures. Modern optical microscope Olympus GX51, scanning electron microscopy techniques have been deployed to reveal and interpret the microstructure. It was found that at 740°C the microstructure shows lack of homogeneity, hence the cold-head-ability of CHQ steel is anisotropic. At high temperatures, in austenite domain, at 60sec, the resultant austenite is highly homogenous. Then the cold-head-ability properties of CHQ steel turned to be isotropic.
Computerised Information Security Using Texture Based Fuzzy Cryptosystem
Authors: Alghamdi A. A.
Published: November 2020

The main objective of this study is to form a unique and economical steganographic technique for digital pictures employed for secret transmission using texture and fuzzy logic. This technique is employed to embed data in the carrier image and to extract the hidden message within the same carrier image. Initially, fuzzification is completed which transforms the carrier and the secret image into numerous bitplanes. Afterward, the pixel number calculation is completed within the original image. Then feature extraction is completed within the secret image so as to represent the data in it. Finally, pixel merging follows within the sender region by assignment of white and black pixels in the original image and in the secret pictures. Pixel numbers and texture features are extracted and can be used as a key for retrieving the embedded image from the receiver. This modified approach can be applied in various images. Experimental results reveal that this method will hide and retrieve the secret messages in a carrier accurately.
Prediction of the Frequency Response Function of a Tool Holder-Tool Assembly Based on Receptance Coupling Method
Authors: Xuan X. J. , Haung Z. H. , Wu K. D. , Hung J. P.
Published: November 2020

Regenerative chatter has a fatal influence on machine performance in high-speed milling process. Basically, machine condition without chattering can be selected from the stability lobes diagram, which is estimated from the tool point frequency response function (FRF). However, measurements of the tool point FRF would be a complicated and time-consuming task with less efficiency. Therefore prediction of the tool point FRF is of importance for further calculation of the machining stability. This study employed the receptance coupling analysis method to predict the FRF of a tool holder-tool module, which is normally composed of substructures, tool holder and cutter with different length. In this study, the angular components of FRFs of the substructures required for coupling operation were predicted by finite element analysis, apart from the translational components measured by vibration experiments. Using this method, the effects of the overhang length of the cutter on the dynamic characteristics have been proven and successfully verified by the experimental measurements. The proposed method can be an effective way to accurately predict the dynamic behavior of the spindle tool system with different tool holder-tool modules.
Investigation of the Strength Properties of Palm Kernel Shell Ash Concrete
Authors: Olutoge F. A. , Quadri H. A. , Olafusi O. S.
Published: November 2020

Many researchers have studied the use of agro-waste ashes as constituents in concrete. These agro-waste ashes are siliceous or aluminosiliceous materials that, in finely divided form and in the presence of moisture, chemically react with the calcium hydroxide released by the hydration of Portland cement to form calcium silicate hydrate and other cementitious compounds. Palm kernel shell ash (PKSA) is a by-product in palm oil mills. This ash has pozzolanic properties that enables it as a partial replacement for cement but also plays an important role in the strength and durability of concrete. The use of palm kernel shell ash (PKSA) as a partial replacement for cement in concrete is investigated. The objective of this paper is to alleviate the increasing challenges of scarcity and high cost of construction materials used by the construction industry in Nigeria and Africa in general, by reducing the volume of cement usage in concrete works. Collected PKSA was dried and sieved through a 45um sieve. The fineness of the PKSA was checked by sieving through 45um sieve. The chemical properties of the ash are examined whereas physical and mechanical properties of varying percentage of PKSA cement concrete and 100% cement concrete of mix 1:2:4 and 0.5 water-cement ratios are examined and compared. A total of 72 concrete cubes of size 150 × 150 × 150 mm³ with different volume percentages of PKSA to Portland cement in the order 0:100, 10:90 and 30:70 and mix ratio of 1:2:4 were cast and their physical and mechanical properties were tested at 7, 14, 21 and 28 days time. Although the compressive strength of PKSA concrete did not exceed that of OPC, compressive strength tests showed that 10% of the PKSA in replacement for cement was 22.8 N/mm2 at 28 days; which was quite satisfactory with no compromise in compressive strength requirements for concrete mix ratios 1:2:4. This research showed that the use of PKSA as a partial replacement for cement in concrete, at lower volume of replacement, will enhance the reduction of cement usage in concretes, thereby reducing the production cost. This research was carried out at the University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
A Methodology Based on Steganography and Cryptography to Protect Highly Secure Messages
Authors: Rasras R. J. , AlQadi Z. A. , Sara M. R. A.
Published: November 2020

Steganography and cryptography are very important techniques used in data security to hide and secure secret messages in transmitted data. This paper will introduce, implement and test a novel methodology which can be used as a secure and highly efficient method of data hiding and data extracting. Some efficiency parameters will be experimentally obtained and compared with other existing methods parameters to prove the efficiency of the proposed methodology.
Chaos Suppression Using Genetically Optimized PID Control of the 4-D Novel Hyperchaotic Vaidyanathan System
Authors: Laarem G. , Merbouha A.
Published: November 2020

In this paper, a dynamical analysis of the novel hyperchaotic system with four parameters is presented. Genetically optimized proportional integral and derivative (PID) controllers were designed and applied for the chaos suppression of the 4-D novel hyperchaotic system, by varying the genetic algorithms (GA) options to view the impact factor on the optimized PID controllers. The use of the final optimized PID controllers ensures less time of convergence and fast speed chaos suppression. In this paper, a dynamical analysis of the novel hyperchaotic system with four parameters is presented. Genetically optimized proportional integral and derivative (PID) controllers were designed and applied for the chaos suppression of the 4-D novel hyperchaotic system, by varying the genetic algorithms (GA) options to view the impact factor on the optimized PID controllers. The use of the final optimized PID controllers ensures less time of convergence and fast speed chaos suppression.
Development of a Matlab Code for Plane Wave Lens and its Validation by Autodyn-2D
Authors: Naeem K. , Hussain A.
Published: November 2020

Plane wave generator is normally composed of two explosives having dissimilar detonation velocity. It is used for directing the spherically outgoing shock wave front to a planar form. Plane wave generators are utilized to find material behavior under dynamic loading. This paper presents the shock arrival time for two plane wave generators by developed Matlab code and its comparison with Ansys Autodyn. The diameter of both plane wave generators is kept the same. One plane wave generator is composed of Octogen and Barium Nitrate and the other is composed of Octogen and Tri Nitro Toluene. Obtained results were surprisingly in agreement. Maximum and minimum obtained flatness for the plane wave were ±0.56 and ±0.08ms respectively within the whole diameter of the plane wave generator. The developed code can be utilized to find the profile of a plane wave generator, minimizing the time and cost many times.
Synthesis of Planar Filters Using Defected Ground Structure Miniaturized Hairpin Resonators
Authors: Nedelchev M. , Kolev A.
Published: November 2020

This paper presents an effective technique to suppress the spurious passbands in planar filters by using defected ground structure (DGS) resonators etched in the ground plane. The proposed miniaturized hairpin DGS slot resonator is researched in terms of its resonance frequency, corresponding coupling topologies, and filter design. The resonator and the topologies of coupled DGS resonators are simulated in a fullwave electromagnetic (EM) simulator. Using a curve-fitting technique, useful design formulas are proposed for filter synthesis. Using the synthesis procedure, a 3rd order filter design is simulated, manufactured and measured. The insertion loss of -3dB in the passband of 280MHz is observed, while the suppression of the spurious passbands up to 12GHz is more than 24dB.
Perspectives of Water Level Measurement in Plastic Pipes Using Wideband Horn Antenna
Authors: Farid Z. , Najam Z. , Khan M. Y. A. , Ahmed S. , Akhtar S.
Published: November 2020

This paper is concerned with the investigation of a possible working principle of a microwave sensor for the measurement of water levels in plastic pipes. According to the research, most current sensors for water level measurement require an unobstructed path from the sensor in the water and therefore, the integrity of the pipes, in which water flows, will be compromised. The proposed sensor will work at microwave frequencies to measure the flow in the pipes from the outside. This would be non-invasive and non-intrusive. A beam of microwave energy from an antenna is directed towards a water surface within a pipe and the reflection due to the surface of the water will be isolated and knowledge of the pipe dimensions and properties will allow the depth of water to be calculated. Knowledge of the pipe drop may also allow flow to be estimated. It is observed that at microwave frequencies the reflection from the surface of the water is many times greater than the reflection from the surface of a typical plastic pipe.
Investigating the Effect of Ramp Geometry on the Flow Characteristics Around Under Pressure Tunnel Aerator Using OpenFoam Open Source Software
Authors: Manafpour M. , Ebrahimnezhadian H.
Published: November 2020

The flow around the ramp embedded in a pressurized tunnel is divided into various zones downstream of the ramp, including the cavity and the main zone of flow above the shear layer. Ramp angle and height are parameters that affect the flow characteristics such as cavity length, velocity, and pressure coefficient immediately downstream of the ramp. In this study, OpenFOAM open source software and RNG K-ε turbulence model were used to simulate the flow around the under pressure tunnel ramp. In order to investigate the effect of the ramp geometry on the flow in various relative air discharges 0<β<10, the range of height and the angle of the ramp as 5<θ<20 and 0.1<tr/d<0.4 were developed and simulated. The correlation coefficient between the numerical and experimental results for the relative cavity length is in the range of 0.9377≤R2≤0.9722 that indicates proper agreement between results. The result of the research shows that in both cases of fixed height of ramp and increasing ramp angle, and fixed angle of the ramp and increasing ramp height, the values of the cavity length and maximum turbulence intensity increase, and the minimum pressure values at the cavity zone bed are decreased. But in both cases, the sensitivity of the three mentioned parameters is higher than the ramp height increment.
Assessment of Air Pollution by PM10 and PM2.5 in Nawabshah City, Sindh, Pakistan
Authors: Siyal A. A. , Samo S. R. , Siyal Z. A. , Mukwana K. C. , Jiskani S. A. , Mengal A.
Published: November 2020

Increased traffic density due to urbanization is a major cause of air quality deterioration. Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) constitutes one of the most challenging issues in environmental research. This study was designed to assess PM10 and PM2.5 pollution at ten main locations in Nawabshah. Analysis of PM10 and PM2.5 pollution was carried randomly at different selected locations of the city. The highest concentration of PM10 was found at Mohini bazar (MB) and the highest concentration for PM2.5 was found at New Naka (NN). The mean concentration of PM10 was 78.3% higher than world health organization (WHO) standards and 35% than Pakistan’s National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS). The mean concentration of PM2.5 was 47.3% and 26.3% higher respectively. Mean concentrations of PM2.5 on day-2 and day-10 were found lower than those set by NEQS, while mean concentrations of PM10 on all days exceeded the WHO and NEQS standards indicating that the city was heavily polluted more with PM10 than with PM2.5. Re-suspension of dust particles due to traffic flow, open burning of unmanaged solid waste on the sides of the road and in the street, and improper handling of construction and demolition waste were identified as the main sources for PM pollution in the city. Exposure to higher levels of PM10 and PM2.5 can cause health problems. High levels of PM10 and PM2.5 are a call for the implementation of strict measures to control PM pollution at Nawabshah in order to protect public health and the environment.
On The Current State of Scholarly Retrieval Systems
Authors: Khalid S. , Khusro S. , Ullah I. , Dawson-Amoah G.
Published: November 2020

The enormous growth in the size of scholarly literature makes its retrieval challenging. To address this challenge, researchers and practitioners developed several solutions. These include indexing solutions e.g. ResearchGate, Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ), Digital Bibliography & Library Project (DBLP) etc., research paper repositories e.g. arXiv.org, Zenodo, etc., digital libraries, scholarly retrieval systems, e.g., Google Scholar, Microsoft Academic Search, Semantic Scholar etc., digital libraries, and publisher websites. Among these, the scholarly retrieval systems, the main focus of this article, employ efficient information retrieval techniques and other search tactics. However, they are still limited in meeting the user information needs to the fullest. This brief review paper is an attempt to identify the main reasons behind this failure by reporting the current state of scholarly retrieval systems. The findings of this study suggest that the existing scholarly retrieval systems should differentiate scholarly users from ordinary users and identify their needs. Citation network analysis should be made an essential part of the retrieval system to improve the search precision and accuracy. The paper also identifies several research challenges and opportunities that may lead to better scholarly retrieval systems.
Low-Cost Synthesis and Characterization of Silver Nanoparticles for Diverse Sensing Application
Authors: Akhtar S. , Farid Z. , Ahmed H. , Khan S. A. , Khan Z. N.
Published: November 2020

Silver (Ag) nanoparticles (NPs) are synthesized and characterized by a low-cost chemical reduction method. Silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) have pre-occupied the consideration of the scientific community due to their wide range of functions, utility and industrial applications, particularly in the fields of sensing technologies and medicine (particularly their efficiency against microbes, the ability of healing the wound and anti-inflammatory properties). Ag NPs are synthesized by a low-cost fabrication method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray diffraction (EDX) and photometry techniques are used in this work to identify their nature and potentiality for diverse applications in sensing technologies.
Reactive Power Compensation on Egypt Electricity Network for Optimal Energy Saving
Authors: Mobarak Y. A. , Hemeida A. M. , El-Bahnasawy A. , Hamada M. M.
Published: November 2020

This paper introduces the load flow on the Egypt Electricity Network system. The effect of capacitor compensation has been studied from three points. First, the problem of the series capacitor compensation was considered. The second type of compensation considered is shunt compensation. Finally, a mixed of shunt and series capacitors compensation was implemented. The analysis results were discussed based on the maximum reduction in the generated MVAR. The load variation is accounted for by considering three different load levels classified as light, medium and peak load with pre-specified durations. When solving the capacitor placement problem, the number, size, location and control settings of the capacitors at different load levels were determined. The load flow program is solved by the Power World Simulator (PWS) software. The results of series capacitor, shunt capacitor, and mixed compensation were studied. The investigation has been done for single capacitor and multi-capacitor compensation. Both 500kV and 220kV overhead lines have been considered.
Transitioning to Green Maritime Transportation in Philippines
Authors: Palconit E. V. , Abundo M. L. S.
Published: November 2020

Philippine maritime industry is considered as a vital component in achieving inclusive growth and socio-economic progress. Philippines has been known as one of the susceptible to the impact of climate change countries, and generally the changing climate hampers its economic development. The government committed to reduce carbon emissions to 70% by 2030 during the 2015 Paris climate conference. This study aims to map the potential sites and vessels for electric ferry operation for transitioning to green maritime transportation in Philippines. At present there are 83 ports and 110 ferries in the country with 33670 registered vessels as of December 2017. It was identified that the 9201 vessels with 10≥GRT≥3 will be used for electrification as a kickoff in implementing electric ferry since these vessels are feasible for retrofitting the electric system. Implementing green energy sources in the country’s marine transportation will reduce CO2 emission by 22.09% in the transport sector.
Small Signal Modeling of Inverter-based Grid-Connected Microgrid to Determine the Zero-Pole Drift Control with Dynamic Power Sharing Controller
Authors: Pathan E. , Zulkifli S. A. , Tayab U. B. , Jackson R.
Published: November 2020

This paper presents a small signal state space modeling of three-phase inverter-based microgrid (MG) system with consideration of improved droop control. The complete system matrices for one distribution source-grid connects to the local load have been elaborated by applying high, medium and low-frequency clusters to the system without considering the switching action on the inverter during power-sharing. Moreover, the final matrices will be used to determine the location of the eigenvalues for the control parameters gains due to dynamic effect of the MG, by observing the root locus graph on cluster identification. Sensitivity analysis of all types of frequency cluster showed that power-sharing control parameters such as load current, source current, and inverter voltage are influencing system stability and must be considered when designing the proportional-integral (PI) control when different load scenarios have been applied from the zero-pole drifting. Those eigenvalues of the system model are indicating the frequency and damping oscillatory components when there is sudden changed at the inverter-grid connection. The matrices’ eigenvalues are being plotted using MATLAB/Simulink to identify system stability region and find the PI controller parameters.
Optimizing Number and Locations of Alternative-Fuel Stations Using a Multi-Criteria Approach
Authors: Badri-Koohi B. , Tavakkoli-Moghaddam R. , Asghari M.
Published: November 2020

The transition to alternative fuels is obligatory due to the finite amount of available fossil fuels and their rising prices. However, the transition cannot be done unless enough infrastructure exists. A very important infrastructure is the fueling station. As establishing alternative-fuel stations is expensive, the problem of finding the optimal number and locations of initial alternative-fuel stations emerges and it is investigated in this paper. A mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) formulation is proposed to minimize the costs using net present value (NPV) technique. The proposed formulation considers the criteria of the two most common models in the literature for such a problem, namely P-median model and flow refueling location model (FRLM). A decision support system is developed for the users to be able to control the parameter values and run different scenarios. For case study purposes, the method is used to find the optimal number and locations of the alternative-fuel stations in the city of Chicago. Some data wrangling techniques are used to overcome the inability of the method to solve very large-scale problems.
Impacts of In-Accessible and Poor Public Transportation System on Urban Enviroment: Evidence from Hyderabad, Pakistan
Authors: Jawed A. , Talpur M. A. H. , Chandio I. A. , Mahesar P. N.
Published: November 2020

City design plays a major role in the way of life of its inhabitants. The growth of urban centers requires careful schemes to ascertain that the quality of life is not adversely influenced. The rate of motorization is increasing in Hyderabad, Pakistan due to inaccessible public transportation. An efficient public transportation system performs a critical part in sustaining and improving urban welfare by providing access to daily necessities. The basic aim of this study is to discuss the impacts of inaccessible public transportation on urban population, the environmental effect of recent urban transport designs, and the expansion in traffic congestion. Landsat images were used to highlight the existing public transportation routes and dynamic and more realistic travel distances and times were measured. Data were collected from local households and further frequency analysis was done through SPSS. The outcome of this research may assist the evolution of a sustainable and accessible transportation system for the urban population.
Effect of Polyvinyl Pyrolidone on Morphology and Performance of Cellulose Acetate Based Dialysis Membrane
Authors: Waheed H. , Hussain A.
Published: November 2020

Polyvinyl pyrolidone (PVP) was added as filler in cellulose acetate (CA) to produce mixed matrix membrane (MMM) for hemodialysis operation. Phase separation induced by diffusion (DIPS) was used for fabrication of mixed matrix CA/PVP flat sheet membranes. The effect of adding PVP was investigated on the morphology and permeation efficiencies of CA membranes. The surface arrangement of polymer and additives in pure and blended membrane was studied by FTIR, contact angle and SEM. Results revealed homogenous and significant mixing of PVP content into pure CA matrix. Performance efficiency of blended membranes was investigated by means of pure water flux (PWF), urea clearance and % rejection of bovine serum albumin (BSA). The observable decrease of contact angle from 83° to 69° in CA/PVP MMM membranes of varying composition effectively revealed enhancement in hydrophilicity of MMM membrane surface. For protein rejection, all CA/PVP membranes rejected>90% of BSA relative to 25% for pure CA membrane. Furthermore, urea clearance behavior for CA/PVP membranes was 62.4% in comparison to 52% for pure CA membrane. The incorporation PVP i.e 1% by weight (Mpvp1) significantly improved the hydrophilicity, PWF, BSA rejection and urea clearance percentages of modified CA membrane for dialysis application.
Flexural Strength of Reinforced Concrete RAC Beams Exposed to 6-hour Fire – Part 2: Rich Mix
Authors: Buller A. H. , Oad M. , Memon B. A.
Published: November 2020

In this research work, experimental investigation on flexural strength of reinforced concrete beams exposed to fire for 6-hours at the temperature of 1000˚C is presented. The beams are made with 50% replacement of natural coarse aggregates with recyclable concrete aggregates. A total of 12 reinforced concrete beams using 1:1.5:3 mix (rich mix) and 0.54 water-cement ratio were cast. The beams were prepared in two groups. Group 1 beams were prepared with 50% recyclable aggregates, whereas group 2 beams were cast with all-natural aggregates (control specimens). All beams were exposed to fire at the above-mentioned temperature followed by testing in universal load testing machine under central point load. Comparison of the results reveals that proposed beams show comparable resistance even after exposed to 6-hours fire at 1000°C.
Content Based Image Clustering Technique Using Statistical Features and Genetic Algorithm
Authors: Alsaidi B. K. , Al-Khafaji B. J. , Wahab S. A. A.
Published: November 2020

Text based-image clustering (TBIC) is an insufficient approach for clustering related web images. It is a challenging task to abstract the visual features of images with the support of textual information in a database. In content-based image clustering (CBIC), image data are clustered on the foundation of specific features like texture, colors, boundaries, shapes. In this paper, an effective CBIC) technique is presented, which uses texture and statistical features of the images. The statistical features or moments of colors (mean, skewness, standard deviation, kurtosis, and variance) are extracted from the images. These features are collected in a one dimension array, and then genetic algorithm (GA) is applied for image clustering. The extraction of features gave a high distinguishability and helped GA reach the solution more accurately and faster.
Friction Coefficient and Compression Behavior of Particle Reinforced Aluminium Matrix Composites
Authors: Ugur Α. , Gokkaya H. , Sur G. , Eltugral N.
Published: November 2020

Metal matrix composites (MMCs) are materials used in a large range of engineering applications. In this paper, the relatively low-cost stir casting is evaluated with the use for Silisyum Carbite (SiC) as reinforcement and Al7075 alloy as matrix to produce MMCs with varied reinforcement from 10% to 18%. The produced composites were examined, and their wear behavior was investigated. The results showed that the mechanical properties of the MMCs decrease with the increase of the mass percentage of reinforcement and compression.
Effect of Coarse Aggregate Gradation and Water-Cement Ratio on Unit Weight and Compressive Strength of No-fines Concrete
Authors: Tunio Z. A. , Memon B. A. , Memon N. A. , Lakho N. A. , Oad M. , Buller A. H.
Published: November 2020

Self-weight of a structure comprises a major portion of the overall structural load which causes conservative structure design. Reduction of structures’ self-weight is an active area of research today. One of the options is to use lightweight concrete and no-fines concrete is one of its types. This type of concrete is made with coarse aggregates, cement, and water. From the density point of view, it is the lighter concrete compared to normal weight concrete but it exhibits less strength. Normally no-fines concrete is manufactured with uniform size aggregates. The performance of no-fines concrete depends on the cement-aggregate ratio and water-cement (w/c) ratio. This study focuses on investigating experimentally the effect of gradation of coarse aggregates and the w/c ratio on unit weight and compressive strength of no-fines concrete. NFC with two cement-aggregate ratios (1:6 and 1:8) having seven combinations of coarse aggregate gradations (10-5 mm, 16-13mm, 20-16mm, 20-13mm, 20-10mm, 16-10mm and 20-5mm) were studied. Two w/c ratios are considered 0.38 and 0.42. The effect of coarse aggregate gradation, cement-aggregate ratio and w/c ratio are studied in terms of unit weight and compressive strength of NFC. The results reveal the pronounced effect of aggregate gradation on the compressive strength and unit weight of the concrete. Also, a substantial effect on the unit weight and compressive strength is observed with the variation in cement-aggregate ration and the w/c ratio.
Toughness, Tenacity and Maximum Initial Strength of Rubber Modified Asphalt Binders
Authors: Jadidi K. , Khalili M. , Karakouzian M. , Amirkhanian S.
Published: November 2020

The toughness and tenacity test method, which was developed in the 1980s, is popular for evaluating a polymer-modified binder. Several states like Nevada require performing this test to evaluate non-modified binder samples, as well as other types of modified binders. In this regard, a toughness and tenacity test was performed on rubber-modified samples produced from virgin binder PG58-28, PG64-16 and AC-20. In order to take the rubber size, type and content into account, two rubber sizes, mesh #20 and #40, two rubber types, ambient and cryogenic, and three rubber contents, 10%, 15%, and 20% were produced and tested. The results then were compared with polymer-modified and terminally blended rubber-modified samples. The results show improvement in the amount of initial maximum strength, and a decline in the magnitude of elongation, toughness and tenacity for the rubber-modified binder, compared to other types of binders.
Residential Buildings Thermal Performance to Comply With the Energy Conservation Code of Saudi Arabia
Authors: AlFaraidy F. A. , Azzam S.
Published: November 2020

About half of the total generated electricity in Saudi Arabia (SA) is consumed for the air conditioning of residential buildings. To reduce this burden on the economy as outlined by the country's 2030 vision, the implementation of the Saudi energy conservation code (SBC602) needs to be enforced. This code divided KSA into three climate zones with maximum overall heat transfer coefficients. This study aims to facilitate the use of thermal insulation by analyzing optimum thermal insulation thickness for each zone and calculate the payback period of initial insulation costs. Three cities were selected to represent the three climate zones, Riyadh, Arar, and Turaif. The code-compliant thermal insulation thickness is calculated using these variables: thermal properties of three insulation materials, overall heat transfer coefficients, and three insulated wall structures. It is concluded that external insulation and finish system utilizing polyurethane is the most feasible option with the best thermal performance. Polyurethane thicknesses are ranging from 45mm to 65mm, wall widths are ranging from 250mm to 320mm, while the overall costs are ranging from 20.02 to 24.57 US$/m2. This system is used to conduct a comparison between energy-efficient-building and base-case-building in terms of cooling loads and electrical consumption using hourly-analysis-program (HAP) with international weather data. The simulated annual savings in energy consumption for the three zones are 67.4%, 66.56%, and 67.91%. The economic analysis shows promising payback years, which are 3.1, 3.9, and 4.3 for zone one, zone two and zone three respectively.
Investigating Optimum SiO2 Nanolubrication During Turning of AISI 420 SS
Authors: Reddy N. M. M. , Chaganti P. K.
Published: November 2020

AISI 420 martensitic stainless steel is used for making gas and steam turbine blades, steel balls and medical instruments, due to its anti-corrosive properties. Turning of AISI 420 SS would be a worthy procedure specifically in manufacturing high surface finish parts. In this work, effort has been made to investigate the cooling and lubricating performance of SiO2 (silicon dioxide) nanoparticles at different weight concentrations of 0.1g, 0.5g and 1g mixed in a novel developed base fluid (synthetic). The performance of optimum SiO2 based cutting fluid is evaluated based on the turning process with output responses like surface finish and cutting temperature. Taguchi technique was used with standard L9(3**4) orthogonal array. The responses, surface roughness, and cutting temperature were analyzed using S/N (signal-to-noise) and ANOVA (analysis of variance). This analysis identifies the significant input parameter combination to obtain minimum surface roughness and temperature.
Predicting Injury Severity of Angle Crashes Involving Two Vehicles at Unsignalized Intersections Using Artificial Neural Networks
Authors: Arhin S. A. , Gatiba A.
Published: November 2020

In 2015, about 20% of the 52,231 fatal crashes that occurred in the United States occurred at unsignalized intersections. The economic cost of these fatalities have been estimated to be in the millions of dollars. In order to mitigate the occurrence of theses crashes, it is necessary to investigate their predictability based on the pertinent factors and circumstances that might have contributed to their occurrence. This study focuses on the development of models to predict injury severity of angle crashes at unsignalized intersections using artificial neural networks (ANNs). The models were developed based on 3,307 crashes that occurred from 2008 to 2015. Twenty-five different ANN models were developed. The most accurate model predicted the severity of an injury sustained in a crash with an accuracy of 85.62%. This model has 3 hidden layers with 5, 10, and 5 neurons, respectively. The activation functions in the hidden and output layers are the rectilinear unit function and sigmoid function, respectively.
Effect of River Indus Sand and Recycled Concrete Aggregates as Fine and Coarse Replacement on Properties of Concrete
Authors: Sandhu A. R. , Lakhiar M. T. , Jhatial A. A. , Karira H. , Jamali Q. B.
Published: November 2020

As the demand for concrete rises, the concrete materials demand increases. Aggregates occupy 75% of concrete. A vast amount of aggregates is utilized in concrete while aggregate natural resources are reducing. To overcome this problem, River Indus sand (RIS) and recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) were utilized as fine and coarse aggregate respectively. The aim of this experimental investigation is to evaluate the workability, and compressive and tensile strength of concrete utilizing RIS and RCA. Concrete samples of 1:2:4 proportions were cast, water cured for 7, 14, 21 and 28 days, and tested for compressive and tensile strength. The outcomes demonstrate that concrete possessed less workability when RIS and RCA were utilized. It was predicted that compressive strength of concrete would reduce up to 1.5% when 50% RIS and 50% RCA were utilized in concrete and 11.5% when natural aggregate was fully replaced by RIS and RCA, whereas the tensile strength decreased up to 1.60% when 50% by 12% respectively.