bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ambidextrous helical nanotubes from self-assembly of designed helical hairpin motifs
Authors: Hughes Spencer A. , Wang Fengbin , Wang Shengyuan , Kreutzberger Mark A. B. , Osinski Tomasz , Orlova Albina , Wall Joseph S. , Zuo Xiaobing , Egelman Edward H. , Conticello Vincent P.
Published: July 2019

Tandem repeat proteins exhibit native designability and represent potentially useful scaffolds for the construction of synthetic biomimetic assemblies. We have designed 2 synthetic peptides, HEAT_R1 and LRV_M3Δ1, based on the consensus sequences of single repeats of thermophilic HEAT (PBS_HEAT) and Leucine-Rich Variant (LRV) structural motifs, respectively. Self-assembly of the peptides afforded high-aspect ratio helical nanotubes. Cryo-electron microscopy with direct electron detection was employed to analyze the structures of the solvated filaments. The 3D reconstructions from the cryo-EM maps led to atomic models for the HEAT_R1 and LRV_M3Δ1 filaments at resolutions of 6.0 and 4.4 Å, respectively. Surprisingly, despite sequence similarity at the lateral packing interface, HEAT_R1 and LRV_M3Δ1 filaments adopt the opposite helical hand and differ significantly in helical geometry, while retaining a local conformation similar to previously characterized repeat proteins of the same class. The differences in the 2 filaments could be rationalized on the basis of differences in cohesive interactions at the lateral and axial interfaces. These structural data reinforce previous observations regarding the structural plasticity of helical protein assemblies and the need for high-resolution structural analysis. Despite these observations, the native designability of tandem repeat proteins offers the opportunity to engineer novel helical nanotubes. Moreover, the resultant nanotubes have independently addressable and chemically distinguishable interior and exterior surfaces that would facilitate applications in selective recognition, transport, and release.
AAV2/9-mediated overexpression of MIF inhibits SOD1 misfolding, delays disease onset, and extends survival in mouse models of ALS
Authors: Leyton-Jaimes Marcel F. , Kahn Joy , Israelson Adrian
Published: July 2019

Significance

ALS can be caused by mutations in SOD1, which lead to the accumulation of misfolded SOD1 proteins and to the death of motor neurons. Here, we show that elevating MIF levels in the spinal cord can suppress misfolded SOD1 accumulation and aggregation and extend survival of mutant SOD1 mice. This study thus sheds light on the important implications of modulating MIF levels and provides insights regarding the potential therapeutic role of MIF in suppressing the selective accumulation of misfolded SOD1 in ALS.
基于语料库的“弄”字句的结构、语义和语用考察
Authors: Tao Hongyin , Hu Junfei
Published: July 2019

抽象

前人对“弄”字句已有大量著述，但我们基于若干口语和书面语语料库的考察发现，除了低度及物属性外，“弄”字句还有带补语结构和固化结构的显著特征。另外，“弄”字句整体呈现出论元结构简单、述语结构复杂的趋势。这两个趋势可以通过“弄”字句的非庄重性、负面情感意义、高度主观化等语用特征统一给出解释。在方法论上，本文试图为动词论元结构研究提供一个基于语料库的语用视角。
Clause type anticipation based on prosody in Mandarin
Authors: Yang Yang , Gryllia Stella , Pablos Leticia , Cheng Lisa Lai-Shen
Published: July 2019

Mandarin wh-words such as shénme are wh-indeterminates, which
can have interrogative interpretations (‘what’) or non-interrogative interpretations (i.e., ‘something’), depending on the context
and licensors. For example, when diǎnr (‘a little’) appears right in front of a wh-word, the
string can have either a wh-question or a declarative interpretation (henceforth,
wh-declarative). Yang (2018) carried out a production study and the
results showed that wh-questions and wh-declaratives have different prosodic properties. To
investigate whether and when listeners make use of prosody to anticipate the clause type (i.e., question vs. declarative), we
conducted a sentence perception study and an audio-gating experiment. Results of the perception study and the gating experiment
show that (1) Participants can make use of prosody to differentiate the two clause types; (2) Starting from the onset of the first
word of the target sentence (wh-question/wh-declarative), participants already demonstrate a
preference for the clause type that was intended by the speaker. The current study also sheds light on the clausal typing
mechanism in Mandarin (e.g., how to mark a clause as a wh-question) by providing evidence of the role of prosody
in marking clause types in Mandarin.
Dimensions of variation across American television registers
Authors: Berber Sardinha Tony , Veirano Pinto Marcia
Published: July 2019

The goal of this study is to identify the dimensions of variation across American television programs, following the multidimensional analysis (MD) framework introduced byBiber (1988). Although television is a major form of mass communication, there has been no previous large-scale MD study of television dialogue. A large corpus containing the key types of contemporary American television programs was collected, annotated with theBiber tagger, and subjected to multi-dimensional analysis, which indicated four factors of statistically correlated linguistic features. Each of these factors was interpreted communicatively to reveal the underlying dimensions of variation on American television, namely “Exposition and discussion vs. Simplified interaction” (Dimension 1), “Simulated conversation” (Dimension 2), “Recount” (Dimension 3) and “Engaging presentation” (Dimension 4). This article presents, illustrates, and discusses each of these dimensions, showing the macro linguistic patterns in use across hundreds of American television programs.
The indicative vs. subjunctive alternation with expressions of possibility in Spanish
Authors: Deshors Sandra C. , Waltermire Mark
Published: July 2019

This study explores the indicative vs. subjunctive alternation in Spanish subordinate clauses following epistemic
adverbials and expressions of possibility. Anchored in semantic-pragmatic and variationist theoretical frameworks, traditional
research on mood alternation in Spanish remains largely experimental in nature. In contrast, we adopt a corpus-based
multifactorial methodology to investigate 4,199 occurrences of fourteen expressions of possibility extracted from the
Corpus del Español (e.g. caso de que, poder ser que, por si
acaso, posiblemente, etc.) annotated contextually for structural, semantic and stylistic variables.
Methodologically, we conduct an exploratory multiple correspondence analysis followed by a confirmatory binary logistic regression
to examine whether/how the linguistic contexts affect mood variation. Overall, the results indicate that previously unexplored
semantic factors (such as the inherent lexical aspect of verbs in subordinate clauses) significantly influence mood variation in
Spanish. Ultimately, our results suggest that subjunctive uses are less uniform and more prone to internal variation than
indicative uses.
Psychotherapist Interventions Coding System (PICS)
Authors: Herrero Olga , Aulet Adriana , Alves Daniela , Rosa Catarina , Botella Lluís
Published: July 2019

The aim of the present study is to reformulate a descriptive typology previously developed with grounded theory as a result of the qualitative analysis of a good outcome case study. We developed a transtheoretical and easily usable coding system. We describe the developing process of this new coding system, which is focused on the use of language by the psychotherapist. Four researchers were discussing every stage and basing decisions on consensus. As a result, we have developed the Psychotherapist Interventions Coding System (PICS). The resultant coding system is described within 4 group of macro categories: (1) Discursive contract; (2) Facilitators of the therapeutic relationship (3) Facilitators of the client’s speech; and (4) Liberation of constraining speeches. The PICS aims to contribute to developing knowledge on research and how therapist interventions contribute within psychotherapeutic processes, acknowledge the kind of interventions therapists are using in the sessions and assist teaching on novel therapists in training programs.
Letter to a grandchild as a narrative tool of older adults’ biographical experience exploration
Authors: Tokarska Urszula , Dryll Elżbieta , Cierpka Anna
Published: July 2019

The paper purports to present a method that allows to obtain and analyze letters written by older adults to their real or imaginary grandchildren. This enables an insight into their individual life experience. The study used a narrative paradigm. Letter texts were obtained from 128 older adults from Poland, both male and female. Data was analyzed with mixed methods combining qualitative content analysis (using inductive analytical categories described in originally created Coder Completion Sheet) with frequency count. The analysis allowed a systematic description of content (themes in wisdom legacy) and the differentiation of two major formal patterns in the letters: (1) the narrative mode (storytelling); (2) the argumentative mode (legacy without narrative examples: advice, warnings, and wishes). The outcomes demonstrate the letter technique may be recommended for future research in psychology, narrative gerontology and for used in applied psychology also.
Greek women’s stories about intimate relationships
Authors: Saloustrou Vasiliki
Published: July 2019

While sociolinguistic studies of politeness and identities present many disciplinary parallels, their paths have seldom intersected (Garcés-Conejos Blitvich & Sifianou, 2017, p. 227). It is within this context that this paper uses “small stories” research (Bamberg, 2006;Georgakopoulou, 2006,2007) and identities analysis to study politeness-in-interaction (Georgakopoulou, 2013b). It particularly looks at a group of young Greek women, and focuses on their “small stories” about the tellers’ and others’ management of politeness norms in intimate relationships. A multi-method approach to data collection is used that involves both naturally-occurring narratives-in-interactions in self-recordings, and reflexive tellings in playback interviews. Drawing onGeorgakopoulou’s (2007)triptych of “ways of telling-sites-tellers”, and onBamberg’s (1997)model of positioning, the analysis illustrates the significance of politeness-related identity claims for signaling lay norms of politeness ratified by the local group of friends. It also shows how politeness construction is intertwined with the interactional fabrication of identities.
Chinese investment in the Sierra Leone telecommunications sector: international financial institutions, neoliberalism and organisational fields
Authors: van Klyton Aaron C. , Rutabayiro-Ngoga Said , Liyanage Lakmal
Published: July 2019

The article investigates the relationship between the Sierra Leonean government and international financial institutions in financial lending for the development of the country’s telecommunications infrastructure. The authors address two interrelated topics: 1) efforts by African countries to free themselves from Western-dominated programmes of neoliberal reform exercised through lending agreements; 2) an evolving economic relationship between African countries and China, particularly with respect to an emerging form of unequal exchange, and a false sense of empowerment in negotiation by African countries. Using the organisational field as a conceptual framework in the context of neoliberalism, the authors examine the power dynamics between foreign capital and Sierra Leone to understand how these relationships are affected and transformed by the availability of China as an alternative source of investment. They find evidence to support the coexistence and interdependency of multiple organisational fields that are affected by field-level changes yielding social, political and economic consequences for all the actors.
Reconstructing the contemporary Greek diaspora in Italy: Second World War and student mobility
Authors: Pelliccia Andrea , Raftopoulos Rigas
Published: July 2019

In light of the poor and fragmented literature on contemporary Greek diaspora in Italy, not yet adequately covered by the historical and social disciplines, this article attempts to fill that void, thus providing an essential contribution to the studies on the Greek diaspora. Using the results of a field research, we analyze the two main push and pull factors of Greek migration to Italy in the second half of the twentieth century, namely the student migration and the migration related to the Second World War. Through the narrative reconstruction by the second generation members, we retrace the most important phases that have characterized the migratory experience of Greek migrants in Italy within a wider historical framework of analysis, also by using unpublished documents collected in Greek, Italian and American historical archives. We use an analysis method that combines the narratives of second generation members with the statistical analysis of the variables, by reconstructing the family history through the use of data derived from both questionnaires and life stories.
Representation-free description of atom interferometers in time-dependent linear potentials
Authors: Zimmermann M , Efremov M A , Zeller W , Schleich W P , Davis J P , Narducci F A
Published: July 2019

In this article we present a new representation-free formalism, which can significantly simplify the analysis of interferometers comprised of atoms moving in time-dependent linear potentials. We present a methodology for the construction of two pairs of time-dependent functions that, once determined, lead to two conditions for the closing of the interferometer, and determine the phase and the contrast of the resultant interference. Using this new formalism, we explore the dependency of the interferometer phase on the interferometer time T for different atom interferometers. By now, it is well established that light pulse atom interferometers of the type first demonstrated by Kasevich and Chu (1991 Phys. Rev. Lett.
67, 181–4; 1992 Appl. Phys. B 54, 321–32), henceforth referred to as Mach–Zehnder (MZ) atom interferometers, have a phase scaling as T
2. A few years ago, McDonald et al (2014 Europhys. Lett.
105, 63001) have experimentally demonstrated a novel type of atom interferometer, referred to as the continuous-acceleration bloch (CAB) interferometer, where the phase reveals a mixed scaling which is governed by a combination of T
2 and T
3. Moreover, we have recently proposed a different type of atom interferometer (Zimmermann et al 2017 Appl. Phys. B 123, 102), referred to as the T
3-interferometer, which has a pure T
3 scaling, as demonstrated theoretically. Finally, we conclude that the CAB interferometer can be shown to be a hybrid of the standard MZ interferometer and the T
3-interferometer.
Implementation of Maxwell's equations in the reconstruction of the magnetic field in the g−2 storage ring
Authors: Bodwin G.T. , Chung H.S. , Repond J.
Published: July 2019

We present a method for implementing the constraints that are implied by Maxwell's equations in fits to measurements of the magnetic field in the muon storage ring of the g−2 experiment. The method that we use makes use of toroidal-harmonic solutions of Laplace's equation. We point out that the fitting problem can be approximated well as a linear-algebra problem. We have devised an efficient algorithm for the linear-algebra problem that makes it possible to find a solution for 105 data points and 104 harmonics in less than an hour on a present-day desktop computer. We illustrate our method by applying it to some preliminary measurements of the magnetic field in the g−2 storage ring.
Immobilization of cyclodextrin glucanotransferase on hollow fiber membrane: optimization of the immobilization parameters by response surface methodology
Authors: Jamil N , Man R C , Suhaimi S , Shaarani S M , Arshad Z I M. , Mudalip S K A , Sulaiman S Z
Published: July 2019

Cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase) is a multifunctional industrial enzyme which undergoes cyclization reaction to converts starch into cyclodextrin. Due to their potential properties, cyclodextrin has been discovered to have numerous application in food industries, pharmaceuticals, agriculture and environmental engineering. However, the instability of the enzyme during the reaction process result in the low production of cyclodextrin. Thus, enzyme immobilization process has been used to improve the enzyme stability in order to achieve high production of cyclodextrin. In this study, CGTase from Bacillus licheniformis was immobilized on polyvinylidene difluoride hollow fiber membrane via physical adsorption. The optimization of the immobilization parameters and the performance of the immobilized CGTase were investigated. The adsorption of CGTase on hollow fiber membrane was evaluated by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Response surface methodology was employed to optimize enzyme immobilization by manipulating the immobilization parameters of contact time (15-33 h), immobilization pH (pH 6-8) and immobilization temperature (20-30 °C) on the immobilization yield. The optimized immobilization conditions were 24 °C of immobilization temperature, pH 6.7 and 24 h of contact time, with 88.25% of immobilization yield. Immobilization of CGTase on the hollow fiber membrane was successfully optimized and about 4.6-fold increment of immobilization yield was achieved after the optimization process. The kinetic parameters of the immobilized CGTase were 9.42 mgml−1 h−1 and 9.99 mg ml−1 for V
max and K
m value, respectively. The kinetic studies revealed that the catalytic efficiency of the immobilized CGTase was similar to the free CGTase, demonstrated that upon the immobilization process, adsorption of CGTase on hollow fiber membrane does not cause structural changes to the enzyme. Hence, immobilization of CGTase on the hollow fiber membrane substantially improved the production of cyclodextrin and suggesting that the hollow fiber membrane appeared as a suitable support for the enzyme immobilization system.
A framework of sustainability refurbishment assessment for heritage buildings in Malaysia
Authors: Wong P F
Published: July 2019

In view of the increasing initiatives of carbon emission reduction required by various countries, existing buildings often serve an important target in reducing energy consumption through building refurbishment to achieve sustainability. Nevertheless, less attention has been given to heritage buildings although previous studies claimed that energy consumption in heritage buildings can be reduced through refurbishing. How green assessment can be incorporated into heritage buildings remains unclear. Most of the existing assessment schemes focused on existing domestic and non-domestic buildings. There is lacking of a refurbishment assessment scheme targeted on heritage buildings. Hence, the aim of this study is to propose a framework that can be used to assess the refurbishment of heritage buildings which integrate the important assessment dimensions such as environmental, social, economic, heritage and conservation. This study compares eleven prominent assessment schemes such as BREEAM, LEED, BEAM Plus, CASBEE, GBLS, HQE, GBI, Green Mark, MyCrest, Green Star, and GBC Historic building. Fifteen assessment themes were identified that are related to refurbishment: management, transport, energy, indoor environmental quality, material, water, sustainable site, waste, innovation, pollution, culture, social, economic, quality of services and heritage value. Most of the assessment schemes focus on the assessment on environmental aspects, less attention given to economic, social and heritage aspects. None of these existing assessment schemes integrate all the relevant assessment themes for heritage buildings refurbishment. A framework for the development of a refurbishment scheme for heritage buildings is proposed in the next stage. The findings of this study could refer by the policy makers for formulating relevant guidelines and policies for ensuring best refurbishment practices for heritage buildings. This research could potentially transform the Malaysian heritage industry in conserving and refurbishing existing heritage buildings by improving environmental sustainability, cut carbon emissions and enhancing building conditions. This in turn could help in achieving the sustainability goal of the country as stipulated in the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG).
Optical and Electrical Performance Evaluation of the Crossed Compound Parabolic Concentrator Module for the Application of Ultra-High Concentrator Photovoltaic System
Authors: Lee Pei-Shan , Wong Chee-Woon , Yew Tiong-Keat , Tan Ming-Hui , Chong Kok-Keong , Tan Woei-Chong , Lim Boon-Han
Published: July 2019

This paper presents the performance evaluation in terms of optical and electrical characteristics of the crossed compound parabolic concentrator (CCPC) module for the application of the ultra-high concentrator photovoltaic (UHCPV) system. The CCPC module is the integration of a dielectric-filled 3D CCPC lens and a multi-junction solar cell (MJSC) module. The optical efficiency of the refractive lens has been evaluated through the ray-tracing simulation technique by including all the possible optical losses at each component level, and the output current of the MJSC module has also been calculated in accordance with its spectral response to the wavelengths range from 300 nm to 1800 nm. The optical efficiency of CCPC lens itself is determined to be 69.33%. With reference to the output current of the MJSC module without a CCPC lens, an optical concentration ratio of 4.65 is observed in the simulated result. An indoor experiment has been performed to validate the simulated result, in which an effective optical concentration ratio of 4.57 has been obtained via laboratory measurement. The experimental result is matched well with the simulated result and it shows that the CCPC module has an effective optical efficiency of 76.17% as the geometrical concentration ratio of the CCPC lens is 6.00. The detailed study of CCPC module is good for optimizing the performance of the UHCPV system.
In-situ synthesis and characterization of metal free heteroatom doped graphene based oxygen reduction reaction catalyst from pyrolysed Assam silk cocoons
Authors: Boro Bibha , Kumar Kakati Biraj , Mushrifa Zahan Syeda , Verma Vikas
Published: July 2019

The fuel cell and electrolyzer together may be an important alternative source for clean energy production. The oxygen-hydrogen produced in the water splitting reaction in an electrolyzer may also be used in any conventional combustion engines with a little or no modification of the existing engines. The sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in these devices necessitates higher loading of catalysts in the cathode. However, the best catalyst used in fuel cell and electrolyzer is platinum and/or its derivatives. The use of metal free graphene based heteroatom doped ORR catalyst may be a promising alternative for conventional platinum electrocatalyst. In particular, nitrogen-doped Graphene synthesized from natural carbon based biomass material has the potential to be a sustainable, green and economical ORR. In this study, Assam silk cocoons was used to synthesize nitrogen doped graphene based catalyst via one step in-situ pyrolysis. The morphological and chemical characterization of the synthesized catalyst was carried out with the help of XRD, Raman, FTIR, TEM, EDS and XPS. The X-Ray diffractograms of the catalyst revealed presence of defect induced broad peaks at graphitic 002 and 004 peaks at 24.5° and 43°, respectively. The Raman spectra showed the presence of D-band, G-band and D′ band with an ID/IG ratio of 0.86. The EDS analysis confirmed the presence of 21.55 At% in-situ nitrogen in the synthesized catalyst. The morphological analysis through TEM showed the presence of multilayer graphene. The formation of in-situ nitrogen doped graphene catalyst was confirmed through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, which showed the presence of pyridinic and graphitic nitrogen. The synthesized electrocatalyst was later analyzed with the help of a rotating disk electrode for its catalytic activity in ORR.
Application of biochar coupled with FGD waste for waste management in agriculture improvement
Authors: Sengsingkham Thidphavanh , Trung Phan Nghia , Tiyayon Pimsiri , Maneeintr Kreangkrai
Published: July 2019

Flue gas desulfurization waste (FGD) is one of coal combustion products (CCP) in coal-fired power plants. Mostly, FGD gypsum is applied in cement and wallboard industry. Also, it can be used in agricultural activities for soil amendment but the amount of FGD waste used in this function is still low. Furthermore, biochar has long been used to improve soil fertility. The positive impacts of biochar amendment on soils are that it can increase soil capacity to adsorb plant nutrients, decrease soil bulk density, increase plant available water retention and so on. In Thailand, some areas like Nan province has a problem of soil degradation from deforestation and excess use of chemical fertilizer. With the benefits of these FGD waste and biochar, the study of soil amendment will be performed by using degraded soil. Therefore, this research is aimed to apply FGD waste coupled with biochar to improve soil quality from degraded soil in Nan Province. Also, the objective of this work is to evaluate the effects of FGD waste and biochar on soil properties such as pH, electrical conductivity (EC), bulk density and soil texture. The concentrations of FGD waste and biochar are ranged from 5-25% and 5-30% by weight, respectively. The results present that the soil quality has been improved in that pH can increases from 5.664 up to 7.309. The soil texture has changed in the better quality from clay to silty loam or loam. Furthermore, the bulk density of soil is reduced in order to have more space for air and water for all mixture which is conducive to plant growth. Consequently, this research can contribute to the improvement of degraded soil properties to fit well for agriculture and the results can be applied for practice in the real field.
Assessment of the Environmental, Technical and Economic Issues Associated with Energy Recovery from Municipal Solid Waste in Malaysia
Authors: Bashir M J K , Ng C A , Sethupathi S , Lim J W
Published: July 2019

Malaysia is a fast emerging economy country and its outlook on sustainable energy production are at the center of debate. Although waste to energy (WtE) technologies are well established but the disconformity of the municipal solid waste (MSW) composition, the complexity of the treatment facilities, and the pollutant emissions still express considerable issues for these technologies. Hence, this study focuses on WtE technologies in Malaysia by considering the energy potentials of the landfill sites and incineration plants as the most common effective MSW in Malaysia. The major environmental, technical and economic issues associated with WtE technologies were evaluated. An annual growth rate of 3.3% has been projected for MSW production in Malaysia. The most common used WtE technologies were incineration and controlled landfill to capture Landfill Gas (LFG). Malaysia MSW contains 60% biodegradable fraction, making landfills a potential source of LFG. Although, the potential of energy recovery from waste in Malaysia is high but the current production is less than 20 MW of electricity per day.
The Integration of Lean and Green Manufacturing for Malaysian Manufacturers: A Literature Review to Explore the Synergies between Lean and Green Model
Authors: Wen Chiet Cheong , Tan Ching Ng , Lip Huat Saw , Fathi Masood , Jaw Tzuu Tan
Published: July 2019

In general, profitability and efficiency have been the main interest for organization. However, the increasing concerns for the environment from government, regulators, customers, and other stakeholders has forced companies to seek for alternatives to achieve green objectives. The difficulties faced by organizations are lack of awareness and guideline in implementing green practices in their daily operation. Under constrained resources, employers are reluctant to spend money on something unclear. During the last decade, lean manufacturing seems to be visible trend in most of the manufacturing industries in Malaysia. As lean tends to emphasize on waste reduction, it provides similarity between lean and green. Therefore, it is a better atmosphere to deploy green practices and tools under existing lean manufacturing. The purpose of this paper is to present a review on the synergies between green and lean and identifying the determinants that affecting both lean and green manufacturing for Malaysian manufacturers. The determinant obtained are financial benefit, incentive, legislation, stakeholder, management commitment, technology, environmental awareness and brand image or competitiveness. Besides, the authors identified and suggested future research directions on developing an integrated lean-green model for daily operation. This study aims to assist researchers to identify the opportunities and challenges on lean-green model and this review is useful for manufacturers and government in developing manufacturing policies and guideline.
Assessing the Integration of Large-Scale Solar PV to a Nine-Bus Power System
Authors: Khan Rehan , Yun Ii Go
Published: July 2019

Solar energy has numerous promising features which also includes CO2 reduction. The adoption of large-scale solar PV ensures that demand can be satisfied by utilising renewable energy and reduces the dependency on the conventional non-renewable energy resources. Bringing this energy to widespread consumers requires transmission medium. However, controlling and bringing the harvested energy to the homes and industries is a task which needs attention. According to the various researches, it is deduced that the implementation of large-scale solar PV will have a marked effect on the grid which may lead to instability. The main obstacle to implementation is the distribution and transmission of energy to the recipients. In this study, the efforts are put to design the large-scale solar PV suitable for Malaysia using Pvsyst designing algorithm and the designed LSS PV is studied in a power system analysis tool to analyse the potential difference variation in different buses when connected to the nine-bus power system. Three solar PV models were selected based on their efficiency; among them two best PV model were obtained by conducting PVSyst simulation. The power output respect to time obtained from the simulation is used as inputs for conducting steady state stability analysis on nine bus power system to understand the voltage fluctuations when the LSSPV is integrated to the power system.
Design of Aeroelastic Wind Belt for Low-Energy Wind Harvesting
Authors: Vinayan V A , Yap T C , Go Y I
Published: July 2019

Malaysia plans to increase the total renewable energy mix to 30% by the year 2030 as part of the Green Technology Master Plan. Currently, the role of wind power is not included in the renewable energy mix of Malaysia and diversification of the renewable energy mix needs to be encouraged to include policy support for other sources of energy. The wind speed Malaysia is ranged from 3-7 m/s and most wind turbine requires 5 m/s as cut in speed. The low average wind speeds causes wind turbine to be the least cost-effective method to generate electricity at Malaysia especially at the west coast. Therefore, low-energy wind harvesting device is proposed as alternative at this climate. This device is also intended to generate power from vehicle-induced wind. Three potential configurations (electromagnetic, piezoelectric or electrostatic) for small-scale energy harvesting device were proposed by previous researchers and studied in this work. Electromagnetic configuration of energy harvesting by fluttering was selected after analysis of three configurations. A wind belt was designed to withstand environmental conditions such as fresh water (rain), UV radiation and acid/alkali conditions. Several important parameters such as belt width, location of the magnet etc for the design were evaluated experimentally. Taffeta silk was selected as the belt materials from potential materials. The optimum length and width of the belt in this study are 1 m and 12 mm. Neodymium N45 magnet was selected based on inductance and the optimum magnet position along the belt is 20cm from the edges of the main frame. Experimental results showed the peak power recorded in parallel connection are 81.02 mW @ 6 m/s with a belt tension of 0.816 N and 24.54 mW @ 4 m/s with belt tension of 0.612 N.
Challenges of Energy Efficiency Promoting Policy in Thailand
Authors: Vivatpinyo A , Pharino C
Published: July 2019

Energy efficiency enhancement is well recognized worldwide as the efficient measures to deal with energy-related challenges, which are economic growth and development, energy security, and climate change. For Thailand to accelerate energy efficiency implementation, the energy development plan is set to meet the national targets including the Energy Efficiency Plan target and to achieve the Greenhouse Gas emission reduction target. In many countries, financing energy efficiency promoting policy is critically important strategy to provide financial incentive for mitigating clean energy investment barrier. For long-term public support, there is an emerging body of evidence on the on-going practice and performance of the financial incentive programs, which offers an opportunity to improve our understanding of the energy efficiency promoting policy. This study reviewed the latest situation of three energy efficiency financial incentive programs that governed by Department of Alternative Energy Development and Energy Efficiency (DEDE), which are (1) Energy Efficiency Revolving Fund (EERF), (2) Energy Service Company Revolving Fund (ESCO Fund), (3) DEDE Demand Side Management Bidding (DSM Bidding). The study aims to examine the positive and negative challenges posed by existing policies that need to be overcome and to identify the opportunities for policy improvement to more effectively promote energy efficiency implementation. EERF and DSM Bidding are suitably designed for large company who has strong financial capacity. ESCO Fund is well-designed for low collateral capacity company. EE measures under EERF are mostly well-known technologies that are proven generating energy savings. ESCO Fund is suitable for promoting new technologies according to project-based analysing basis. DSM Bidding can be designed for wide-range EE measures from simple to complex measures. However, there are some main challenges that can be improved, i.e., technical and financial risks bearing by customers from EERF, default projects risk taken by government and insufficient to encourage EE investment of low interest rate from ESCO Fund, and expanding to support more for complex technology instead of only well-known technology for DSM Bidding.
Microwave energy-assisted extraction of bioactive polyphenols with green technology based on magnetic ionic liquid and their stability under different conditions
Authors: Guo Zhangxing , Chen Chen , Yohannes Alula , Yao Shun
Published: July 2019

In recent years microwave-assisted extraction has been proved as a more rapid and energy-efficient technique than conventional ways, here it was employed in this study and a kind of magnetic ionic liquid (C3MIMFeCl4) was used as green medium for tea polyphenols (TP). Due to the strong polarity of the ionic liquid, it can quickly absorb microwave energy and increase the temperature; thus the extraction time will be greatly shortened. As the result, it was found when microwave power was set at 200 W, solid-liquid ratio was 1:20 and extraction time was 7 min, the highest extraction efficiency of 0.8 mol/L C3MIMFeCl4 could be obtained as 159.8 mg/g. Compared with ultrasonic-assisted mode used in previous study, the extraction time was shortened significantly from 300 min to 7 min. Moreover, magnetic ionic liquid can be easily recovered by external magnetic field. Finally, stability of TP was further investigated under related conditions by spectroscopic characterization meanwhile related intermolecular interactions; it was found IL could provide greater stabilization energy for these extracted objects in this study at some extent. The results of above research are expected to provide useful references for large-scale application of green technology based on ILs and TP production.
Thermal Stability Behaviour of Scandia Stabilised Zirconia
Authors: Ng C K , Ramesh S , Tan C Y , Muchtar A , Somalu M R , Samuel Lew W S , Ting C H , Chuah Y D , Sutharsini U
Published: July 2019

Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFCs) are emerging as an advanced and efficient energy conversion technology that could be a solution to some of the environmental issues. SOFCs are able to produce clean electricity and heat from hydrogen energy. Due to their high ionic conductivity in the intermediate temperature range of 600 °C to 800 °C, scandia stabilized zirconia is a very promising electrolyte material for SOFCs. However, the long term damage caused by cyclic heating and cooling during the stages of start-up and shut down of SOFC will greatly affect the performance of the fuel cell. The structural damages will result in poor mechanical properties which directly influence the durability of the ceramic electrolyte. Therefore, it is essential to investigate the thermal degradation behavior of various zirconia ceramic systems. In this work, the thermal degradation behavior of the zirconia ceramics are investigated by adopting thermal cycling test at two different heating rates (10°C/min and 20°C/min) to examine the durability of the zirconia electrolyte, in particular the structure degradation caused in thermal cycling. Ordered array of convex meniscus were observed on the surface of the undoped zirconia ceramics and the grain growth was suppressed during thermal cycling. The effect of thermal cycling on the mechanical stability of zirconia based ceramics were affected by the addition of 1 wt% MnO2which showed a reduction in the hardness and fracture toughness.
Thermal Performance of an Atrium with Hybrid Ventilation and cooled air supply
Authors: Liang Nan , Kong Qiongxiang , Cao Ying , Zheng Weirong , Yang Qian , Zhang Lianying
Published: July 2019

A reduced-scale model of an atrium with displacement ventilation and natural exhaust in the ceiling was applied in experimental investigation, where its air velocity field was measured by particle image velocimetry (PIV). By computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method, the indoor airflow in both the reduced-scale and real-size atrium model with hybrid ventilation under cooling conditions was simulated. The experimental and calculated results show that the hybrid ventilation that coupled natural exhaust with mechanical air supply of air conditioning can satisfy the thermal environments requirements. Moreover, with the same heat gain and supply air parameters, space cooling load of the atrium can be a little less when applying displacement ventilation. In addition, the vertical temperature gradient in the atrium, the cooling load of handling return air and the temperature difference between supply and exhaust air decrease with the increase of exhaust air rate. An optimal exhaust-supply air ratio for the minimum cooling load of the air conditioning system in the atrium was obtained under a given heat gain and fresh air parameters.
Isolated Droplet Combustion Study of Malaysian Palm Biodiesel-Diesel Blends
Authors: Yap J H , Ooi J B , Tran M V , Jeffrey Chin K L
Published: July 2019

Malaysian palm biodiesel is one of the attractive biofuels for petroleum diesel due to its zero-sulphur content (i.e., non-toxic), renewable capability, and similar physicochemical properties. Recent studies have reported significant improvement in the performance and emission characteristics of diesel engines by leveraging the blending composition between palm biodiesel and diesel. However, the fundamental aspects of combustion performance due to the blending effects of Malaysian palm biodiesel remain unexplored. This study aims to investigate the isolated droplet combustion behaviour of palm biodiesel-diesel blends at various blending compositions through a time-based image capturing method. Experimental results show that palm biodiesel-diesel blend with 60% palm biodiesel content (B60) and above produce a more prominent blue flame, which indicates cleaner and more complete combustion. The ignition delay (ID) increased when the palm biodiesel content is increased. Similarly, the burn rate constant for palm biodiesel-diesel blends increased with increasing palm biodiesel content. The combustion duration of palm biodiesel-diesel blends increased slightly when the palm biodiesel content is raised to 40% (B40) but decreased significantly when the palm biodiesel content is at 60% and above. Overall results suggest B60 is the optimum blend, which could potentially improve the performance and emissions of diesel-powered vehicles.
Effect of aeration rate and light cycle on the growth characteristics of Chlorella sorokiniana in a photobioreactor
Authors: Magdaong J B , Ubando A T , Culaba A B , Chang J S , Chen W H
Published: July 2019

Microalgae is considered to be an important resource to address the global demand for sustainable energy and green technologies. Numerous applications of microalgae have already been identified in the past. They can be cultivated to produce food, animal feeds, nutraceuticals, and even biofuels. They can also be used for environmental applications such as carbon capture and storage, and wastewater treatment. There are different environmental factors that can affect the growth of microalgae such as light, nutrients, temperature, and aeration. Among different microalgae strains, Chlorella sorokiniana had been identified to be one of the most effective and commonly used strains across these different applications. In this study, the effect of aeration rate and light cycle on the growth characteristics of C. sorokiniana in a photobioreactor was investigated. Cultivation experiments were carried out at room temperature (24 – 26 °C) under phototrophic conditions in which the light intensity was set to 150 µmol/m2-s and the carbon source used was air enriched with carbon dioxide at 2.5% concentration. The aeration rates evaluated were 0.0125, 0.0250, 0.0500, 0.1000, and 0.2000 vvm while the light cycles evaluated were 24:0 (continuous illumination), and 12:12 (diurnal illumination). The results showed that in the 24:0 light cycle, increasing the aeration rate up to 0.1000 vvm led to an increase in the cumulative biomass production, specific growth rate, overall biomass productivity, and nitrate consumption of C. sorokiniana cultures. At 0.2000 vvm, no increase in any of these parameters were observed. Meanwhile, the aeration rate did not have any effect on the carbohydrate content of C. sorokiniana. On the other hand, cultivation under a 12:12 cycle resulted in a decrease in all of the parameters across all aeration rates evaluated. However, no significant interaction between the light cycle and the aeration rate was found in this study. Finally, among the conditions evaluated, the 24:0 light cycle and 0.1000 vvm aeration rate led to the best growth characteristics of C. sorokiniana. The results from this study indicate that aeration rate and light cycle have significant effects on cultivating microalgae such as C. sorokiniana. The results also showed that appropriate levels of these factors should be considered depending on the application of the microalgae cultivation. For future work, the growth of C. sorokiniana can be modeled to dynamically optimize these factors to improve its growth and reduce its cultivation costs.
Simulation of Optimizing Diesel-Ethanol-Palm Oil Methyl Ester Blends Combustibility in Direct Injection Diesel Engine
Authors: Taib NM , Mansor MRA , Mahmood WMFW , Abdullah NR
Published: July 2019

Blending diesel with biofuels such as ethanol and PME leads to better fuel properties in producing a better engine performance and lower emission. However, the presence of ethanol that contains low cetane number and low heating value reduces the fuel combustibility. Injection system, compression ratio and air intake modification delivering good results of improving blends combustibility. The objective of this paper is to study the effect of injection parameter, compression ratio (CR) and air intake temperature (Ti) modification on blends combustibility from the combustion characteristics. Diesel-ethanol-PME blends in a diesel engine with the least engine modification also are identified. Simulation work was conducted using Converge CFD software based on single cylinder direct injection compression ignition Yanmar TF90 engine parameter. Diesel-ethanol-PME blends of 10% ethanol with 40% PME (E25B25), E25B25 and E40B10 were used and conducted on different injection parameter, compression ratio and intake temperature, Ti. This study was carried out by running the simulation at high engine speeds. Results show that advancing time, shortened the injection duration has a very small effect on ignition. For the blends with ignition problem such as E40B10, increasing compression ratio and ambient temperature helps the fuel to ignite due to high temperature and pressure in the cylinder. This modification allowed the blends to ignite at high engine speed with minimum CR of 20 and Ti of 350 K. In conclusion, blending high ethanol contents in diesel engine can be applied by advancing the injection, increasing the compression ratio and increasing the ambient temperature. The most suitable blends that can be operated in the engine without modification is E25B25.
Influence of Molar Concentration: Sol-Gel Synthesized Magnesium Oxide Thin Films for High Power Light Emitting Diode Thermal Management
Authors: Idris M S , Shanmugan S , Devarajan M , Maryam W
Published: July 2019

Sol-gel technique was used to synthesize 0.6 M and 0.8 M molar concentrations of magnesium oxide thin on aluminium substrate and enforced into heat spreader material in thermal management of lighting devices. X-ray diffraction analysis confirm the films to be polycrystalline cubic in nature with (200), (220) and (222) orientations. 20 layers from 0.8 M showed higher intensity from the X-ray analysis. Relative thermal conductivity measurement of 20 layers from 0.6 M showed a value of (26.3 W/mK) which appears to improve over other layers. At 700 mA operating current, 20 layers from 0.6 M showed higher junction temperature difference of 37.16 °C as well as higher thermal resistance difference of 5.9 K/W when compared to bare aluminium substrate. All coated films are within the accepted color correlated temperature safe operating range (< 3300 K) of light emitting diodes, addition to this, 20 layers MgO thin films from 0.6 M displayed a recommendable illuminance as well as color correlate temperature performance from optical characterization. Atomic force microscope surface analysis for both molar concentrations showed an improvement in surface smoothness over bare substrate. Overall, magnesium oxide thin films can be perfectly enforced as heat spreader for high power light emitting diodes.