bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Teaching of physics applied to engineering higher education by using English language: a literature review
Authors: Vargas Villamizar Ó H
Published: November 2021

The use of English as a second language is an increasing trend in higher education focused on non-native speakers, particularly for engineering programs interested in becoming actors inserted into the international academic context. However, the dual condition of both teaching engineering curriculum contents, and simultaneously using English language in non-native speaking contexts, entails risks and challenges that should be deeply understood. Considering this, results from a literature review are presented, built on articles from academic databases regarding use of two approaches, English as a medium of instruction and Content and language integrated learning, in engineering at higher education institutions, with specific interest in physics teaching, because of its relevance in engineering body of knowledge. As a finding, this topic has not been sufficiently studied in academic literature, and two focuses to carry out further research are suggested to contribute to the understanding of how to teach physics by using English language in non-native speaking contexts.
Tunable stiffness in fish robotics: mechanisms and advantages
Authors: Quinn Daniel , Lauder George
Published: November 2021

One of the emerging themes of fish-inspired robotics is flexibility. Adding flexibility to the body, joints, or fins of fish-inspired robots can significantly improve thrust and/or efficiency during locomotion. However, the optimal stiffness depends on variables such as swimming speed, so there is no one ‘best’ stiffness that maximizes efficiency in all conditions. Fish are thought to solve this problem by using muscular activity to tune their body and fin stiffness in real-time. Inspired by fish, some recent robots sport polymer actuators, adjustable leaf springs, or artificial tendons that tune stiffness mechanically. Models and water channel tests are providing a theoretical framework for stiffness-tuning strategies that devices can implement. The strategies can be thought of as analogous to car transmissions, which allow users to improve efficiency by tuning gear ratio with driving speed. We provide an overview of the latest discoveries about (1) the propulsive benefits of flexibility, particularly tunable flexibility, and (2) the mechanisms and strategies that fish and fish-inspired robots use to tune stiffness while swimming.
Fairness, effectiveness, and needs satisfaction: new options for designing climate policies
Authors: Büchs Milena , Ivanova Diana , Schnepf Sylke V
Published: November 2021

Financial compensations are often proposed to address regressive distributional impacts of carbon taxes. While financial compensations have shown to benefit vulnerable groups distributionally, little is known about their impacts on emission reduction or needs satisfaction. A potential problem with cash compensations is that if households spend this money back into the economy while no additional decarbonisation policies are implemented, emission reductions that arose from the tax may at least partly be reversed. In this letter, we compare the emission savings and impacts on fuel and transport poverty of two compensation options for carbon taxes in 27 European countries. The first option consists of equal per capita rebates for home energy and motor fuel taxes. The second option is the provision of universal green vouchers for renewable electricity and public transport, supported by additional investments in green infrastructures to meet increased demand for such green consumption. Results show that the first option of tax rebates only supports small emission reductions. In contrast, universal green vouchers with expanded green infrastructures would reduce home energy emissions by 92.3 MtCO2e or 13.4%, and motor fuel emissions by 177.5 MtCO2e or 23.8%. If green vouchers and infrastructure were provided without a prior tax, emission savings would be slightly lower compared to the ‘tax and voucher’ scheme, but fuel and transport poverty would drop by 4.1 and 2.2 percentage points, respectively. In contrast, taxes with rebates would increase fuel and transport poverty by 4.1 and 1.8 percentage points. These findings demonstrate that it is important to take environmental and energy poverty impacts of compensations for unfair distributional impacts of climate policies into account at the design stage. Such compensation measures can achieve higher emission reductions and reduce energy poverty if they involve an expansion of the provision of green goods and services, and if everyone is given fair access to these goods and services.
The implications of uncertain renewable resource potentials for global wind and solar electricity projections
Authors: Santos Da Silva Silvia R , Iyer Gokul , Wild Thomas B , Hejazi Mohamad I , Vernon Chris R , Binsted Matthew , Miralles-Wilhelm Fernando
Published: November 2021

Studies exploring long-term energy system transitions rely on resource cost-supply curves derived from estimates of renewable energy (RE) potentials to generate wind and solar power projections. However, estimates of RE potentials are characterized by large uncertainties stemming from methodological assumptions that vary across studies, including factors such as the suitability of land and the performance and configuration of technology. Based on a synthesis of modeling approaches and parameter values used in prior studies, we explore the implications of these uncertain assumptions for onshore wind and solar photovoltaic electricity generation projections globally using the Global Change Analysis Model. We show that variability in parametric assumptions related to land use (e.g. land suitability) are responsible for the most substantial uncertainty in both wind and solar generation projections. Additionally, assumptions about the average turbine installation density and turbine technology are responsible for substantial uncertainty in wind generation projections. Under scenarios that account for climate impacts on wind and solar energy, we find that these parametric uncertainties are far more significant than those emerging from differences in climate models and scenarios in a global assessment, but uncertainty surrounding climate impacts (across models and scenarios) have significant effects regionally, especially for wind. Our analysis suggests the need for studies focusing on long-term energy system transitions to account for this uncertainty.
Strong quantum nonlocality for unextendible product bases in heterogeneous systems
Authors: Shi Fei , Li Mao-Sheng , Chen Lin , Zhang Xiande
Published: November 2021

A set of multipartite orthogonal product states is strongly nonlocal if it is locally irreducible in every bipartition, which shows the phenomenon of strong quantum nonlocality without entanglement. It is known that unextendible product bases (UPBs) can show the phenomenon of quantum nonlocality without entanglement. Thus it is interesting to investigate the strong quantum nonlocality for UPBs. Most of the UPBs with the minimum size cannot demonstrate strong quantum nonlocality. In this paper, we construct a series of UPBs with different large sizes in d

A
⊗ d

B
⊗ d

C
and d

A
⊗ d

B
⊗ d

C
⊗ d

D
for d

A
, d

B
, d

C
, d

D
⩾ 3, and we also show that these UPBs have strong quantum nonlocality, which answers an open question given by Halder et al (2019 Phys. Rev. Lett.
122 040403) and Yuan et al (2020 Phys. Rev. A 102 042228) for any possible three and four-partite systems. Furthermore, we propose an entanglement-assisted protocol to locally discriminate the UPB in 3 ⊗ 3 ⊗ 4, and it consumes less entanglement resource than the teleportation-based protocol. Our results build the connection between strong quantum nonlocality and UPBs.
Combo separability criteria and lower bound on concurrence
Authors: Zangi S M , Wu Jian-Sheng , Qiao Cong-Feng
Published: November 2021

Detection and quantification of entanglement are extremely important in quantum information theory. We can extract information by using the spectrum or singular values of the density operator. The correlation matrix norm deals with the concept of quantum entanglement in a mathematically natural way. In this work, we use Ky Fan norm of the Bloch matrix to investigate the disentanglement of quantum states. Our separability criterion not only unifies some well-known criteria but also leads to a better lower bound on concurrence. We explain with an example how the entanglement of the given state is missed by existing criteria but can be detected by our criterion. The proposed lower bound on concurrence also has advantages over some investigated bounds.
Submersible power-generating unit as an alternative energy sources
Authors: Kolganov A V , Zemlyanovskiy V A , Guseinov Ch S , Portnyagin N N
Published: November 2021

There was proposed a compact underwater energy generating device in which energy is produced by underwater currents and tidal phenomena on the Arctic coast for small settlements. These communities will be created to track ships sailing along the Northern Sea Route and to provide operational assistance if necessary. The idea of the technical proposal is structurally distinctive, the device is carried out of a set of conventional pipes of a certain diameter with a fairly wide bell (funnel), horizontally mounted towards the underwater current. This idea is quietly new for Russia, and it’s learned not very well. Calculation was provided in a new way on the basis of Propellers theory. In result there are shown table with calculated efficiency of our turbines with defined quantity of turbines in machine unit. Also we suppose that our approach is more accurate then results obtained with Betz’s formula as so as Betz’s formula doesn’t consider geometrical option of impeller.
Validation and assessment of different RANS turbulence models for simulating turbulent flow through an orifice plate
Authors: Jurga A P , Janocha M J , Yin G , Giljarhus K E T , Ong M C
Published: November 2021

In the present study, numerical simulations using different Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (RANS) turbulence models are carried out to investigate the turbulent flow through the orifice plate at Reynolds number (Re) of 23000. The orifice thickness to pipe diameter ratio (t) and the orifice diameter to pipe diameter ratio (β) are fixed and equal to 0.1 and 0.5, respectively. The objective is to evaluate the behaviour of various RANS models with respect to the relevant flow parameters such as the pressure drop, velocity distributions and turbulence intensity profiles in the pipe by comparing the results with available published experimental data. The following turbulence models are studied: the k – ε, the k – ε Low Re, the k – ε RNG, the k – ε Realizable, the k – ω SST, the γ – SST, the EARSM and the k – ε Cubic models. It is found that based on the validation study of the flow through the orifice plate, the following models are in good agreement with experimental measurements: the k – ω SST, the γ – SST and the EARSM. They show a better performance than the k – ε model family in predicting the flow features which are important for the orifice flowmeter design.
Integrated computer digital decision for Offshore production automated management
Authors: Mukhina A G , Volkov D A
Published: November 2021

Rising requirements for the hydrocarbons production management system state are based on the industrial situation control necessity according to the environmental conditions. Development of the system construction and complexity indicates the integrative approach implementation reasonability for the producing capacity main indexes estimation and regularity of pace parameters evaluation as well as the layer productiveness level identification. Data processing and management tasks are the waymarks for the industrial multilevel structures models creation. Computer integrated model includes the estimated analytical tool for the extended operational functional support for the production parameters evaluation and technological process state diagnostics in changeable conditions and productive region origin and features traceability. Based on the well observations it is possible to apply the systematic approach for the trends occurrence and dynamics evaluation of the reservoir development time series data. And integrated decision includes the information value degree identification tool for the hydrocarbons production digital model updating.
Burst strength analysis of composite overwrapped pressure vessel using finite element method
Authors: Regassa Y , Lemu H G , Sirhabizu B
Published: November 2021

The purpose of this numerical study was to investigate the burst performance of a type III composite overwrapped pressure vessel (COPV) using finite element methods. An Aluminum overwrapped composites pressure vessel was modeled from four layers of carbon fiber/epoxy ply with 0.762 mm and arranged in two different sequences and orientations. The overwrap composite pressure vessel burst performance was examined by applying an internal pressure of 55 MPa on a ply arrangement of [-15°/0°/+15°/90°] and other research findings on [+55°/-55°] as an optimum filament winding angle were used for comparison purpose. Moreover a ply level orientation effect analysis, which is a superior feature of ABAQUS, was used for the composite modelling. The designed ply sequence and orientation exhibit a higher burst pressure at [0°] ply and minimum at [90°] ply orientation. The vertical COPV design displays a maximum stress along the axial direction that leads to the consideration of maximum vessel thickness to be along axial direction for burst resistant design of COPV.
Numerical stress analysis of tubular joints
Authors: Santacruz A , Mikkelsen O
Published: November 2021

The finite element analysis (FEA) presented in this paper pertains to the stress analysis of both the welded tubular T and X joints and is aimed to assess both the importance of the presence of the weld geometry and the suitability of shell and solid elements with regards to the FEA of welded tubular joints and, additionally, to confirm or dispute a correlation between the standards AWS D1.1 and DNVGL-RP-C203 with regards to the minimum size of the weld geometry. Using symmetry, three unit-load cases are investigated: axial loading, in-plane and out-of-plane bending. The results indicate that the FE models acknowledging the presence of the weld geometry and using solid elements are more suitable for the FEA of welded tubular joints and, moreover, the stress concentration factor (SCF) obtained at the chord “crown” location from the FE models subjected to the axial load case either approach, as in the case of the welded tubular T joint, or surpass, as in the case of the welded tubular X joint, the value estimated from the parametric equations as given in DNVGL-RP-C203.
Recent work and prospective analysis on offshore structures and marine energy harvesting at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto
Authors: Taveira-Pinto F , Rosa-Santos P , Fazeres-Ferradosa T.
Published: November 2021

Marine energy harvesting and offshore structures for marine renewable energy exploitation rise as a trending topic of both research and industrial activities. However, many challenges are yet to be tackled and solved when it comes to place such equipment and structures at sea. Over the past years the Marine Energy Group at FEUP has been tackling some of those challenges aiming at a better competitiveness of marine renewable energy in comparison to traditional oil & gas sector, which is more mature and developed at this point in time. Additionally, recent findings of this research team have also been applicable to several offshore oil & gas infrastructures. In this work, the latest contributions, projects and research outcomes developed by the team are reviewed and presented towards the enhancement of future research lines and industrial opportunities.
FRP pipeline performance in tensional and torsional S-lay installation loads
Authors: Pavlou Dimitrios
Published: November 2021

The loading conditions of a composite pipeline is the main factor for its dimensioning. During S-lay offshore installation of multilayered FRP pipelines, severe tensional and torsional loads take place in the above sea part of the pipeline. Since the wall pipe is multilayered and the material properties of the laminae and the laminate is anisotropic, the maximum stresses depend on the stacking sequence. In the present work, an analytical model is proposed for calculating the capacity of multilayered FRP pipelines to carry axial and torsional loads. Numerical results for typical multilayered filament wound E-Glass/Epoxy pipelines under axial tension and torsion are provided and discussed.
Research of the possibilities of the existing transport system in Russia for the transportation of goods and methane-hydrogen mixtures for export
Authors: Abukova L , Safarova E , Filippova D , Stolyarov V
Published: November 2021

The theory of using hydrogen and hydrogen-methane mixtures (HMC) assumes the operation of an industrial cluster created in the presence of significant reserves of methane, excess electricity, trunk pipeline facilities for transportation and storage, as well as contracts for the supply of mixtures to the domestic market and export. For a balanced decision on the use of existing facilities of the gas transmission network and underground storage facilities for methane-hydrogen mixtures, determination of transit volumes, additional research is required in order to take into account the peculiarities of the behaviour of hydrogen and its mixtures. The authors carried out work to systematize the features of production and storage, assess the consequences of accompanying negative effects to maintain the operational reliability of the production complex. Taking into account the preliminary results, additional research and the adoption of national and industry standards are required before starting significant investments in the creation of a hydrogen energy industry.
Transformation of oil and gas fields based on information technologies
Authors: Dmitrievskiy A. , Safarova E. , Stolyarov V. , Eremin N.
Published: November 2021

Currently, there is an opportunity to ensure digital transformation in the leading oil and gas companies in Russia. The main task of the transformation is to reduce capital and operating costs and increase production efficiency. The objects of transformation are processes, information, and people. Considering the existing technological and geological constraints for the Arctic fields, it is advisable to ensure the initial implementation of the principles of a digital intelligent field when creating control systems for wells and control production complexes. An important component is the development of an effective decision support system as a tool for calculating forecast tasks that provides strategic and tactical planning when modeling geological and technological processes online. The materials provide the structure of remote management of geographically distributed facilities of PJSC Gazprom, as well as solutions already implemented and confirmed the effectiveness of management for the Bovanenkovo oil and gas condensate field located in the Arctic on the Yamal Peninsula.
Digital core modeling technology for determining the reservoir-capacitive properties of terrigenous reservoirs
Authors: Gubaidullin M G , Belozerov I P
Published: November 2021

For today digital core modelling technology is demanded and developing instrument in conducting the main reservoir-capacitive properties of terrigenous rocks. This technology is becoming more widespread in connection with the development of computer and nanotechnologies. The main attempts to apply the digital core model in practice have been undertaken in the last decade, although the first examples of its use for the analysis of reservoir rocks date back to the 80s of the last century. Improvement of digital core modeling technology will allow to cope with the problem of lack or absence of core material, as well as to solve the problems of studying loose, weakly cemented and other rocks, "problematic" of conducting physical experiments. In addition, it seems relevant to create a digital core block that fits into the general digitalization platform of technologies related to reservoir-capacitive properties in the development of hydrocarbon fields. With the use of a digital core model, it also becomes possible to effectively refine and supplement the calculated parameters in laboratory core studies, reducing the likelihood of errors in the obtained results.
Decarbonized LNG: Creating a path to sustainable Arctic development
Authors: Fedorova V A , Mitryaykina A O
Published: November 2021

One of the most urgent issues of the global energy complex is its decarbonization. But it is impossible to make such a transition overnight; therefore, a transitional fuel is needed, such as gas. Natural gas has the lowest carbon emissions rate of all hydrocarbons fuels, it is vastly deposited and due to development of LNG technologies can be transported almost everywhere. The Russian Arctic zone is excellent for LNG production, as there are huge gas reserves concentrated there, the climate allows an optimal LNG production and there is a convenient logistics route. LNG production in this region must be as harmless as possible and with the lowest CO2 emissions to preserve a sensitive environment. Decarbonized LNG is a liquefied gas with lowered amount of CO2 emissions from production to consumption, or they were compensated by offset loans. This concept is quite new, but it allows gas to build a bridge to low-carbon future. This article explores all the ways of building carbon-neutral LNG value chain in Arctic and suggests the optimal way of providing sustainable development in region’s energy complex.
Analysis of a new underwater LNG storage tank
Authors: Zemlyanovskiy V A , Guseynov Ch S , Kolganov A V
Published: November 2021

The article presents the current disadvantages of onshore LNG tanks used in the Arctic. A critical analysis of the closest analogue – a floating LNG storage of gravity type - was carried out. On the basis of the results of the critical analysis a completely new design of an underwater LNG storage was offered. Also the principles of submergence and exploitation of the storage were described. The conclusion about the opportunity of application of underwater tank farms was made.
Performance of waterborne polyurethane based on N-tert-butyldiethanolamine in corrosion inhibition
Authors: Zaripova Y , Varfolomeev M , Pavelyev R , Farhadian A , Yarkovoi V , Vinogradova S , Vakhitov I
Published: November 2021

The design of bifunctional inhibitors effectively preventing hydrate formation and corrosion is a relevant issue for the oil and gas industry. In this work, we expanded the study of the corrosion inhibition effectiveness for waterborne polyurethanes (WPUs) obtained earlier and shown to be promising inhibitors. The corrosion inhibition ability of WPUs was assessed using weight-loss and electrochemical methods. Commercial corrosion inhibitor Armohib CI-28 was taken as a reference sample. The data obtained showed that the tert-Bu-WPU sample is able to effectively inhibit acid and carbon dioxide corrosion at room temperature; however, with an increase in temperature, its efficiency decreases more intensively than for a commercial inhibitor. In general, waterborne polyurethanes are promising alternatives to commercial reagents due to their multifunctionality.
The oil and gas potential of the north of the Siberian platform and adjacent shelf
Authors: Dmitrievskiy A N , Eremin N A , Shabalin N A , Basnieva I K , Kondratyuk A T
Published: November 2021

The objective of this article is an estimation of the oil and gas potential of the north of the Siberian platform and adjacent shelf. The Siberian platform is characterized by a large concentration of oil and gas resources in the southern and central parts of the platform. The main oil and gas province of the Siberian Platform is the Leno-Tungus oil and gas province. The oil- bearing strata in the Lena-Tungus oil and gas province are confined to the Riphean, Vendian, Lower-Middle Cambrian deposits, in which large oil and gas fields are discovered. In modern contours the Siberian platform in the north and north-west is fringed by the Yenisei-Khatanga regional trough. In the east, the Yenisei-Khatanga regional trough is connected with the Anabar- Lena trough, framing the north-eastern part of the Siberian platform. Analysis of the available geological and geophysical materials shows a fairly high potential of the Anabar-Lena and Yenisei-Khatanga troughs for the discovery of large hydrocarbon fields. The basic understanding of the geologic-tectonic structure and petroleum potential of the northern part of the Siberian Platform and the adjacent shelf of the Arctic zone are currently based on seismic data by the method of the common depth point (CDP), tied to the existing deep search and parametric wells. Representations of the deep structure and oil and gas potential of specific areas, the allocation of targeted promising oil and gas horizons can change dramatically as the depth of seismic acquisition of the method of the common depth point increases and the software for processing and interpreting seismic data is improved. The localized oil and gas resources of the north of the Siberian platform and adjacent shelf are 41017,3, subsequently, 27582,3 - onshore and offshore - 13435 MMT (million tons) of oil equivalent.
Implementing the autonomous adaptive algorithm to manage ESP operation in harsh reservoir conditions
Authors: Antonic M , Solesa M , Thonhauser G , Zolotukhin A B , Aleksic M
Published: November 2021

The well geometries with a shallow kick-off point in conjunction with surface infrastructure limitations have led to Electrical Submersible Pump (ESP) technologies' application as one of the most suitable artificial lift methods for the harsh reservoir conditions. However, the harsh reservoir conditions in terms of the low reservoir pressure, high reservoir temperature, scaling problems in various forms, and high gas content at the pump intake have reduced the ESP system run life. Therefore, this research represents the Autonomous Adaptive Algorithm (A3) as a holistic approach to integrate analytical and machine learning models to assist production engineers in the early detection of operating problems. The A3 relies on different data sources and uses unique, well diagnostics logic to generate valuable features and prepare data for training. Finally, the paper evaluates different classifiers and explores the possibilities of application A3 as a flexible edge solution. The research benefits will be demonstrated for several problematic ESP wells.
Azure machine learning studio and SCADA data for failure detection and prediction purposes: A case of wind turbine generator
Authors: El-Menshawy A , Gul Z , El-Thalji I
Published: November 2021

Most industrial systems have supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems that collect and store process parameters. SCADA data is seen as a valuable source to get and extract insights about the asset health condition and associated maintenance operations. It is still unclear how appliable and valid insights SCADA data might provide. The purpose of this paper is to explore the potential benefits of SCADA data for maintenance purposes and discuss the limitations from a machine learning perspective. In this paper, a two-year SCADA data related to a wind turbine generator is extracted and analysed using several machine learning algorithms, i.e., two-class boosted decision tree, two-class decision forest, k-means clustering on Azure ML learning studio. It is concluded that the SCADA data can be useful for failure detection and prediction once rich training data is given. In a failure prediction context, data richness means ensuring that fault features are presented in the training data. Moreover, the logs file can be used as labelled data to supervise some algorithms once they are reported in a more rigorous manner (timing, description).
Workflow and concept study to design mixed reality assisted safety training in the wind energy sector
Authors: Joghee S C , El-Thalji I
Published: November 2021

Mixed reality Technology creates new environments and visualizations to teach, train, and facilitate work, either offline or remote online. The aim is to provide effective learning and training sources and reduce human errors and cognitive workload. However, the concept study to design mixed reality (MR)-assisted training lacks the workflow process. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to develop a workflow to design MR-assisted training together with a worksheet that can be used to prioritize training tasks that should be virtualized and augmented. The workflow is demonstrated with the help of safety training for wind turbine towers. The results show that the proposed workflow has identified 4 out of 8 tasks to be critical for virtualization and augmentation. The proposed workflow is helpful to screen and identify critical training and work scenarios and tasks, besides the ability to determine the technical specifications of the required virtualization and augmentation.
Combined principal component analysis and proportional hazard model for optimizing condition-based maintenance
Authors: Bankole-Oye T , El-Thalji I , Zec J
Published: November 2021

Large companies are investing heavily in digitalization to be more competitive and economically viable. Hence, physical assets and maintenance operations have been digitally transformed to transmit a high volume of data, e.g., condition monitoring data. Such high-volume data can be useful to optimize maintenance operations and minimize maintenance and replacement costs. A tool to optimize maintenance using condition monitoring data is the Proportional hazard model (PHM). However, it is challenging to implement PHM for industrial complex systems that generate big data. Therefore, machine learning algorithms shall support PHM method to handle such a high volume of data. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to explore how to support PHM with Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to maintenance optimization of complex industrial systems. A case study of hydraulic power unit was purposefully selected to apply and validate the proposed analytical approach. The results show that PCA supported PHM optimizes and extends the preventive maintenance interval by 79.27% which might lead to maintenance cost reductions. This model enables PHM to handle complex systems where big data is collected.
Use of clay from a local source for calcination and subsequent preparation of the mixed cement
Authors: Smirova B , Sedlacik M , Novotny R
Published: November 2021

This paper deals with the use of calcinated clay and micronized limestone as supplementary cementitious materials (SMCs) for preparation of blended Portland cement CEM II/B-M (Q-LL). Clay used in this study was calcinated at 700°C and pozzolanic activity after calcination was assessed using accelerated R3 pozzolanic test and modified Chapelle test. The influence of calcinated clay and limestone addition on mechanical properties and hydration process was investigated and an optimal ratio for 35% clinker replacement was found. Initial decrease of mechanical strength at early ages, caused by SCM addition, was almost compensated during maturation of the binder.
Reuse of waste tire textile fibers from tires in plaster mixtures
Authors: Khongova I , Chromkova I , Prachar V
Published: November 2021

The waste tire textile fibers from tires are generated as a by-product and are classified as special waste. To avoid landfilling and incineration of this waste, it is necessary to focus on its further use. This article describes an experimental study of the use of waste tire textile fibers for plaster mixtures. Waste fibers were added in different amounts of 2.9%, 3.6%, and 4.3% related to the weight of cement, the effect of fibers on selected properties was monitored. The results of the experimental work show that the lower addition of waste fibers (2.9% and 3.6%) had a predominantly positive effect on mechanical properties. By exceeding of the optimal dose of fibers, the tested properties of the plasters got worse.
Decomposition of asbestos materials using fluoride wastes
Authors: Necasova K , Buchta P , Chromkova I , Stanek T , Simbera T
Published: November 2021

Asbestos is one of the materials causing ecological stress. Due to its health harmfulness, an effective, ecological, and economic decomposition is highly desirable. One of the decomposition possibilities is a chemical decomposition, which could compete with commonly used thermal decomposition. The chemical decomposition can be accomplished both with the use of pure chemicals and waste chemicals from production technologies. This work deals with the use of technological wastes containing hydrofluoric acid or fluorides. Fluorides release hydrofluoric acid in the acid medium, which acts as the main decomposition medium. The source of fluorides was waste from the glass and metallic material industry. The efficiency of degradation processes was studied by mass analysis. Materials and decomposition products were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction.
Fast material disintegration of cement concrete in the exterior
Authors: Nevosad Z , Grosek J , Dohnalkova B , Zavrel T , Machel O
Published: November 2021

Over the recent years the amount of fast destruction defects of cement paste matrix has increased markedly for exposed concrete structures of highway and airport pavements. The accelerated destruction of silicate structure is unusual due to its irregular occurrence. It only occurs at 30 to 50% of newly built pavements (in continuous segments). The issue is applicable to loaded as well as unloaded pavements. Detailed diagnostics found that the probable cause is based on concurrently occurring expansive reactions in capillaries, cracks and pores in the cement paste matrix. In defect spots the presence of several expansive substances was proven, wherein the biggest question poses the unexpectedly high potassium concentration. Potassium is only contained at best in trace amounts in road concrete input components in the Czech Republic. Neither existing regulations nor standards sufficiently deal with this type of defects of cement concretes. If they mention the existence of this issue at all, they are just limited to recommendations. Since the modification of the existing commercially produced cements to pavements is still improbable, the solutions to this issue seem problematic.
THz pulse train generation through ultrafast development of surface plasmon-polariton modulation instability
Authors: Korobko Dmitry A , Zolotovskii Igor O , Moiseev Sergey G , Kadochkin Alexey S , Svetukhin Vyacheslav V
Published: November 2021

Propagation of high-intensity electromagnetic waves in a waveguide structure could initiate nonlinear effects resulting in drastic changes of their spatial and temporal characteristics. We study the modulation instability effect induced by propagation of surface plasmon polaritons in a silver thin-film waveguide. The nonlinear Schrodinger equation for propagating surface plasmon wave is obtained. It is shown numerically that the modulation instability effect can give rise to ultrafast spatial redistribution and longitudinal localization of surface plasmon-polariton wave energy in subwavelength scale. The dependence of plasmon wave dispersion and nonlinear characteristics on metal film thickness is considered. We demonstrate that the use of films with the thickness varying along the waveguide length allows reduction of the generated pulse width and increase of frequency comb bandwidth. The proposed technique is promising for design of ultra-compact (tens of nm) optical generators delivering pulse trains with the repetition rate higher than 1 THz.
Effect of gas pressure on ion energy at substrate side of Ag target radio-frequency and very-high-frequency magnetron sputtering discharge
Authors: NI Weichen , YE Chao , YU Yiqing , WANG Xiangying
Published: November 2021

The effect of gas pressure on ion energy distribution at the substrate side of Ag target radio-frequency (RF) and very-high-frequency (VHF) magnetron sputtering discharge was investigated. At lower pressure, the evolution of maximum ion energy (E) with discharge voltage (V) varied with the excitation frequency, due to the joint contribution of the ion generation in the bulk plasma and the ion movement across the sheath related to the ion transit sheath time τ
i and RF period τ
RF. At higher pressure, the evolution of E–V relationships did not vary with the excitation frequency, due to the balance between the energy lost through collisions and the energy gained by acceleration in the electric field. Therefore, for RF and VHF magnetron discharge, lower gas pressure can have a clear influence on the E–V relationship.
Detection of viable Lacticaseibacillus paracasei in fermented milk using propidium monoazide combined with quantitative loop-mediated isothermal amplification
Authors: Hu Lianxia , Xue Yuling , Cui liru , Zhang Dong , Feng Lili , Zhang Wei , Wang Shijie
Published: November 2021

To quantify viable probiotic Lacticaseibacillus paracasei (L. paracasei) in fermented milk accurately and quickly, propidium monoazide combined with quantitative loop-mediated isothermal amplification (PMA-qLAMP) was applied. The optimal PMA treatment conditions for treating a L. paracasei suspension were determined using an orthogonal test to eliminate the DNA amplification of 108 CFU/mL of dead L. paracasei. Primers were designed based on the species-specific gyrB gene of L. paracasei. A phylogenetic tree based on the gyrB gene showed that L. paracasei clustered on the same branch with 91% support. Compared with the 16 strains commonly found in fermented milk, three strains of L. paracasei showed positive PMA-qLAMP results, and the melting temperature was approximately 82.4°C. There was a linear relationship (R2 = 0.9983) between the Ct values and the logarithm of the concentration of viable bacteria. The PMA-qLAMP detection limit for the L. paracasei artificially added to fermented milk was 7.3 × 102 CFU/mL. There was no significant difference between the logarithm values of the concentration of viable L. paracasei of 50 fermented milk samples within shelf life using the PMA-qLAMP and plate count methods (P > 0.01). PMA-qLAMP is specific and accurate for obtaining reliable results faster than when using plate counts.
Balancing embryo donation and double gamete donation
Authors: Pennings Guido
Published: November 2021

Huele and colleagues started a debate on the comparison between embryo donation and double donation. Although I largely agree with their final conclusion, I believe that the perspective of the recipients needs to be added to get a more complete picture. The present contribution focuses on that perspective and advances other arguments to balance the two methods. The main argument in favour of double donation is the difference in perceived meaning for the recipients compared to surplus embryos. The main arguments in favour of embryo donation are the fair distribution of scarce resources (i.e. donor gametes) and the principle of non-maleficence through the avoidance of unnecessary oocyte donation cycles. The balance would be to put both treatments on an equal footing.
On the convergence of Broyden’s method and some accelerated schemes for singular problems
Authors: Mannel Florian
Published: November 2021

We consider Broyden’s method and some accelerated schemes for nonlinear equations having a strongly regular singularity of first order with a one-dimensional nullspace. Our two main results are as follows. First, we show that the use of a preceding Newton-like step ensures convergence for starting points in a starlike domain with density 1. This extends the domain of convergence of these methods significantly. Second, we establish that the matrix updates of Broyden’s method converge q-linearly with the same asymptotic factor as the iterates. This contributes to the long-standing question of whether the Broyden matrices converge by showing that this is indeed the case for the setting at hand. Furthermore, we prove that the Broyden directions violate uniform linear independence, which implies that existing results for convergence of the Broyden matrices cannot be applied. Numerical experiments of high precision confirm the enlarged domain of convergence, the q-linear convergence of the matrix updates and the lack of uniform linear independence. In addition, they suggest that these results can be extended to singularities of higher order and that Broyden’s method can converge r-linearly without converging q-linearly. The underlying code is freely available.
Primary care physicians’ electronic health record proficiency and efficiency behaviors and time interacting with electronic health records: a quantile regression analysis
Authors: Nguyen Oliver T , Turner Kea , Apathy Nate C , Magoc Tanja , Hanna Karim , Merlo Lisa J , Harle Christopher A , Thompson Lindsay A , Berner Eta S , Feldman Sue S
Published: November 2021

Objective

This study aimed to understand the association between primary care physician (PCP) proficiency with the electronic health record (EHR) system and time spent interacting with the EHR.

Materials and Methods

We examined the use of EHR proficiency tools among PCPs at one large academic health system using EHR-derived measures of clinician EHR proficiency and efficiency. Our main predictors were the use of EHR proficiency tools and our outcomes focused on 4 measures assessing time spent in the EHR: (1) total time spent interacting with the EHR, (2) time spent outside scheduled clinical hours, (3) time spent documenting, and (4) time spent on inbox management. We conducted multivariable quantile regression models with fixed effects for physician-level factors and time in order to identify factors that were independently associated with time spent in the EHR.

Results

Across 441 primary care physicians, we found mixed associations between certain EHR proficiency behaviors and time spent in the EHR. Across EHR activities studied, QuickActions, SmartPhrases, and documentation length were positively associated with increased time spent in the EHR. Models also showed a greater amount of help from team members in note writing was associated with less time spent in the EHR and documenting.

Discussion

Examining the prevalence of EHR proficiency behaviors may suggest targeted areas for initial and ongoing EHR training. Although documentation behaviors are key areas for training, team-based models for documentation and inbox management require further study.

Conclusions

A nuanced association exists between physician EHR proficiency and time spent in the EHR.
Let Me Show You What I Did versus What I Have: Sharing Experiential versus Material Purchases Alters Authenticity and Liking of Social Media Users
Authors: Valsesia Francesca , Diehl Kristin
Published: November 2021

Social media may encourage novel ways of signaling that involve different purchase types (experiential vs. material), signaling frequencies (multiple vs. single signals), and other features unique to social media (e.g., hashtags). This work examines how purchase signals are received on social media and how these signaling variations affect signal receivers’ perceptions of the authenticity of social media posts as well as the overall impressions receivers form of the signal sender. Data collected across six experiments show multiple material purchase signals lead to more negative impressions compared to multiple experiential purchase signals. Signal receivers perceive multiple material purchase posts as less authentic, which dampens their impressions of the signal sender. In line with this mechanism, the impression premium of experiential purchase signals disappears when receivers use other cues (monetary mentions, other users’ comments, and marketer associations via hashtags) to infer a signal’s lack of authenticity. Additional data also document downstream consequences on engagement. This work contributes theoretically to research in both signaling and social media and improves the understanding of substantive situations in which consumers’ objectives of curating a positive image and creating engagement with their posts, collide with marketers’ objectives of encouraging user-generated content and word of mouth.
What makes elk tick: winter tick (Dermacentor albipictus) grooming behavior in wild elk (Cervus canadensis)
Authors: Normandeau Jacalyn , Cassady St. Clair Colleen , Kutz Susan J , Hebblewhite Mark , Merrill Evelyn H
Published: November 2021

Ungulates groom to remove ectoparasites but grooming may interfere with foraging, vigilance, and rumination, and it is possible that these effects differ among migratory tactics due to differences in parasite infestations. We compared the effects of grooming for winter ticks (Dermacentor albipictus) on winter foraging behavior by migrating and resident elk (Cervus canadensis) in the partially migratory population at the Ya Ha Tinda, adjacent to Banff National Park, Canada. We used hair loss on the dorsal shoulder area (“withers”) measured from photographic images as an index of tick infestation of individual elk. We conducted 594 focal observations on 48 radio-collared and 18 uncollared individuals that were uniquely identifiable from ear-tags (N = 66) in 2019 to assess whether grooming for ticks in winter reduced time spent foraging, ruminating, or being vigilant. Because rubbing or hair loss from radio-collars may influence tick infestations and behavior, we controlled for whether elk were collared or uncollared in our analyses. Neck hair loss was 3−5% greater in collared elk than uncollared elk, but neither withers hair loss nor time spent grooming differed. Grooming occurred during 42% of the observations but grooming comprised only ~1% of observation time. Nevertheless, 40% of all grooming was observed during resting, and grooming interrupted vigilance behavior ~8 times more than foraging. We found no differences among elk following different migratory tactics in time spent grooming or in other behaviors, but one of the two groups of migrant elk had higher withers hair loss. Our results suggest winter ticks may have slight effects on elk relative to other ungulates, particularly moose (Alces alces), in North America.
The flip-flop configuration of the PABP-dimer leads to switching of the translation function
Authors: Gu Sohyun , Jeon Hyung-Min , Nam Seung Woo , Hong Ka Young , Rahman Md Shafiqur , Lee Jong-Bong , Kim Youngjin , Jang Sung Key
Published: November 2021

Poly(A)-binding protein (PABP) is a translation initiation factor that interacts with the poly(A) tail of mRNAs. PABP bound to poly(A) stimulates translation by interacting with the eukaryotic initiation factor 4G (eIF4G), which brings the 3′ end of an mRNA close to its 5′ m7G cap structure through consecutive interactions of the 3′-poly(A)–PABP-eIF4G-eIF4E-5′ m7G cap. PABP is a highly abundant translation factor present in considerably larger quantities than mRNA and eIF4G in cells. However, it has not been elucidated how eIF4G, present in limited cellular concentrations, is not sequestered by mRNA-free PABP, present at high cellular concentrations, but associates with PABP complexed with the poly(A) tail of an mRNA. Here, we report that RNA-free PABPs dimerize with a head-to-head type configuration of PABP, which interferes in the interaction between PABP and eIF4G. We identified the domains of PABP responsible for PABP–PABP interaction. Poly(A) RNA was shown to convert the PABP–PABP complex into a poly(A)–PABP complex, with a head-to-tail-type configuration of PABP that facilitates the interaction between PABP and eIF4G. Lastly, we showed that the transition from the PABP dimer to the poly(A)–PABP complex is necessary for the translational activation function.