Sustainability is imperative to the welfare and continual growth of society. Concrete is one of the most widely used sustainable construction material. It is persistently undergoing contemporary developments due to its versatility. Presently, sustainability in concrete is being achieved by several techniques including partial replacement of cement with supplementary cementitious materials like fly ash. These high-volume fly ash mixtures incite meticulous study of curing method followed. It would be also be of substantial significance to seek for an environmentally sustainable curing method that works equally well for conventional concrete mixtures and fly ash mixtures. The present study addresses curing of concrete with coloured polythene sheets. The coloured polythene sheets reflect/absorb/transmit solar radiation to concrete members in a definite fraction depending upon their thickness and optical properties. The vital objective of present study lies in identifying a curing method that supplies optimum amount of solar radiation to a concrete member for desired compressive strength development.
In this paper we describe an algorithm for removing the baseline drift often observed in GC and HPLC plots of complex environmental samples which causes reduction of the analytical accuracy of peak area measurements. The proposed method determines the real baseline (i.e. baseline modeling) directly on the chromatographic plot of each analyzed sample and then substrate it to the analytical time series signals of the chromatogram, so reducing instrumental noise and then improving analytical accuracy. The proposed algorithm, based on a polynomial fitting estimation of the baseline, has been applied to the GC analysis of the hydrocarbon content in marine sediments.
Spatial interaction of land use is one factor which drives land use change. A recent study indicates that in the fringe of Jakarta Metropolitan, the significance of land use externalities creates sprawl. This inefficient development activity leads to premature conversion of some environmentally sensitive sites in the southern fringe. A proper land use policy to protect those sites should be formulated based on precise information about the extent of land use externalities. The development of semivariogram analysis enables the formulation of this distance, which is the aim of this study. Applying the analysis for two years data, this study indicates that, in this area the furthest distance for interaction between developments is between 21-29km, while the interaction between agricultural uses are still in effect between 29-30km. Those results will be useful to predict the future land use change in the area.
Organization's characteristic formed within the framework of the society, environment, law and norms is defined organization culture. The notion of culture may seem too far from construction works, but recently, it is often discussed and analyzed. The wholeness and acting together are observed in the firms whose organizational culture has already advanced is the main reason to attach importance to this issue. Thus, the performance of companies is increased by common goals and working harmoniously. Some attitudes as avoidance of risk, competition and entrepreneurship are frequently encountered in Turkey's construction industry. Because of the organizational culture has not been fully understood yet. In this study, "the organizational culture of the construction industry" which thought to be significant in order to make a sustainable contribution to the national economy is discussed. It also believed that organizational culture will boost the value of Turkey's construction sector in national and international context.
The aim of this reserch were investigate the substitution of sawdust with Vetiveria zizaniodes (L.)Nash, Sri Langka cultivar on the media in mycelia growth of Ganoderma lucidum in plastic bag. The suitable three media from eleven formulas with different weight ratio of sawdust and V. zizaniodes leaves at 100:0, 0:100 and 20:80 are selected in this research and gave the biological efficiency with 42.72, 00.00 and 40.71% respectively. This results show the opportunity for substitution of sawdust with V. zizaniodes leaves which can reduce the production cost of G. lucidum. Nutrition analysis of fruiting body of mushroom are cultivated on different type of the substrates, particularly sawdust 100:0 in plastic bag, found more protein than cultivated in sawdust 20:80 with 10.29 and 8.45mg/100g dry weight in G. lucidum respectively. In amount of essential amino acid and non-essential amino acid of G. lucidum cultivated sawdust 100:0 gave more amino acid than 20:80.
Critical depth is an important parameter in the design, operation and maintenance of open channels and analysis of gradually varied flow. For horseshoe cross section channels, the governing equations are highly nonlinear in the critical flow depth and thus solution of the implicit equations involves time consuming numerical methods. In current research, through conversion of critical depth equation to an objective function and then its minimization by using Particle Swarm Optimization algorithm, we calculate critical depth in horseshoe channels. The accuracy of the proposed model was also evaluated by comparing with existing equations. Furthermore this method can be used to deal with other optimization problems in hydraulic engineering.
The influence of dispersant, pH and various additives on stability of ZnO suspension have been studied. Water and ethylene glycol were used as dispersants, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (NaCMC) have been adsorbed on ZnO particles. Equilibrium in the system is mostly influenced by pH. The lowest stability of suspensions of ZnO was found around isoelectric point which was confirmed by simultaneous measurement of particle size and zeta potential. The values of the zeta potential were also affected by the presence of surfactants, especially SDS and CTAB.
Soil is a dynamic medium in which the physical, chemical and biological processes are changing all the time under the influences of man and nature. The rate at which soil changes under the influence of man's activities are so fast and often negative that this degradation needs urgent attention. Healthy soil includes not only the physical particles making up the soil, but also adequate pore space between the particles for the movement and storage of air and water. This is necessary for plant growth and for a favourable environment for soil organisms to live. Compaction occurs when soil particles are pressed together, thereby reducing the amount of pore space. Most farmers are aware of compaction problems, but the significance is often underestimated. Compaction effects on crop yield can be a significant factor in today's farm economy with a specific reference to tobacco. Thus in order to understand the causes, effects and impacts of soil compaction, ITC limited - Agri Business Division –ILTD undertook a comprehensive study in Mysore region (India) to diagnose the extent of soil compaction in farms and evaluate the impact of subsoiling in breaking the compaction layers.
Under the title of agriculture, Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) enmesh the globe and represent a transformational opportunity for the livelihoods of smallholders to connect with the knowledge, institutions necessary, as well as sharing information on networking. With respect to information sharing, the Information-Centric Networking (ICN) is the Future Internet which has been recently proposed for efficiently accessing and distributing of content by replace the current host-oriented communication model toward a content-centric model. This article provides an overview of the novel of ICN architecture that is better suited to today's use, with a particular spotlight on content distribution and mobility technologies, which make ICN an excellent networking community for agriculture sector.
This paper was designed to explore the influence of energy labelling toward the consumer purchasing behaviour. Based on information from a total of 117 samples, this paper finds mean correlations between consumers' awareness, knowledge, attitude, social norm and energy efficiency labels with purchase intention. Energy labelling shows a negative correlation with green purchasing behaviour. This finding demonstrates that energy labelling was fruitless to deliver a good message in encouraging consumer buying decision. Energy labels have to be understood, trusted and valued as a tool for consumers' decision making. It is believed that the use of energy labels alone is not considered enough to protect the environment. Thus, all the stakeholders should enhance some other factors as a complementary to the energy labelling programs.
The experiment was carried out to study the dissolved air flotation (DAF) process in a tank involving mainly velocity distribution and turbidity removal. Chitosan and Bentonite were known as coagulant agents thus were used in the study. Measurements were carried out on four cases with different inlet velocities of 0.3m/s, 0.6m/s, 0.9m/s and 1.2m/s. Laboratory tests were conducted to test the water quality based on turbidity values and basic drinking water parameters. From the test results, it was found that the inlet velocity gave impacts on the distribution of flow in the tank and thus affected the efficiency of the flotation process. Chitosan and Bentonite can be applied to the flotation tank resulting in an average of 97% turbidity removal. This study successfully proved the effectiveness of the combination of Chitosan and Bentonite as a coagulating agent in the DAF tank for raw water treatment process.
Pollinators are crucial in agricultural crop production as a large variety of crops including horticultural and vegetable crops depend essentially on insect pollination. Unfortunately over the past decades, the pollinator population in the agricultural system has declined across the globe due to over use of synthetic chemical pesticides. Disruption of ecosystem service provided by pollinators due to pollinator decline in chemical intensive cropping systems has assumed a global dimension. This paper addresses how farming practices and designs affect the diversity of pollinators. In this study the relationship between pollinator density and brinjal (Solanum melongena, Fam. Solanacae) productivity was evaluated in a chemical intensive vegetable cropping system in North 24 Parganas, West Bengal, India (hot sub-humid to humid eco-region; Lat 22°22’ 26, N Lon 88°21’ 26 E). By comparing pollinator density and fruit set between ecological farm and chemical intensive farm, it was investigated whether pesticide application affects pollinator visitation and in such a scenario what was the impact on brinjal production. Visitation rate of pollinators (butterflies and bees) was significantly higher in ecological farm as compared to the conventional farm (Mann Whitney U test, p < 0.001).
Wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) are usually planned for operational duration of several decades, nonetheless, at the end of that period and in many cases earlier, they need to be replaced. In the current project a typical extended aeration activated sludge facility have demonstrated high energy and labor consumption, as well as insufficient effluent quality. Since the option of replacing the WWTP was estimated in about 1.5 million USD, it was decided to try and rehabilitate it. The technical solutions applied included mainly a new aeration array with a reactive management system. Following this rehabilitation, the effluent quality became within the desired standards and with the new management system the energy consumption was reduced by about a half. Considering that the cost of implementing the new technical solutions was about tenth of the alternative, it is clear that for similar scenarios restoration of a WWTP is superior to building a replacement.
The acrylonitrile butadiene styrene “ABS” resin is used in a variety of exterior and chassis electrical products, it have been contained brominated flame retardants to prevent fire accidients. If the resin (ABS) was thermally decomposed, the bromine compound was mixed in the pyrolysis oil. In this work, the fraction of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene “ABS” containing brominated flame retardants was pyrolyzed by using a reflux-condenser apparatus installation at 450°C.And we used additives of sodium hydroxide “NaOH”, calcium hydroxide “Ca(OH)2” and scallop shell. The total bromine compounds in product oil could be reduced from 296mg/L to 27mg/L by NaOH.
To develop 4-groups innovative pesticide test kit and vegetable farm safety surveillance program, the quasai study was performed in intervention klongtabak and control ta-ngoy village groups, Nakhonratchasima province. 62 Chinese kale samples were screened for pesticide residues using innovative test kit and confirmed by GLC/HPLC. Percent acetyl cholinesterase inhibition was measured in vegetable samples, containing anti-cholinesterase pesticide residues, using spectrophotometer. Pre-intervention analysis, two detected chlorpyrifos (>MRL) in control group, two detected cypermethrin (<MRL) and one detected <MRLs methomyl, carbofuran and carbofuran-3-OH in study group. No pesticides were detected in both groups at post-intervention. Self-test was trained to agriculturists, 92% accuracy competence results was acceptable at post-laboratory kit test training. Small farm land pesticide safety manual was used to educate agriculturists and %enzyme inhibition measurement at post-intervention period, compared with pre-intervention period was decreased 51.9% at p-value <0.011, reveal that intervention program affect reduction of pesticide inhibition at 0.05% significance level. (C) 2014 Published by Elsevier B.V.
This study examines the strategies followed by herders to pass their stock through the lean winter period in post-Soviet Kyrgyzstan determined by markets sizes and accessibility. During de-collectivization after independence, animals from collective farms were distributed to families. Support services and facilities such as animal transportation, irrigation infrastructure and fodder imports collapsed. Herders had to adjust to this new situation. The study reviews the current strategies adopted by herders in three villages that differ in access to markets and land use. Results show that big urban markets are impacting the rural areas in its vicinity to diversify cropping and feeding strategies to produce fresh milk, vegetables and fruits to meet the urban demands. To ensure regular supply of milk to urban areas the milking cows are not sent to remote pasture areas in summer and kept at higher plane of nutrition during lean winter periods.
The present study is aimed at determining the performance of an amylolytic Lactobacillus plantarum MSUL 702 for lactic acid production from the repeated-batch and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of a synthetic cassava starch wastewater (SCW). An ability of the bacteria to treat the SCW in terms of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and total kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) removal efficiencies was also investigated during the fermentation processes. The SSF experiments were performed for five consecutive batches under a non-sterile condition and at a room temperature. The highest lactic acid concentration and viable lactic acid bacteria at 28.71g/L and 9.26 log CFU/mL, respectively, were obtained in the 48h of the first batch fermentation. The highest COD and TKN removal efficiencies at 98% and 85%, respectively, were obtained in the 48h of the second batch fermentation. The bacteria could retain the high lactic acid production and treatment efficiency up to four consecutive batches.
This paper focuses on the fundamental period vibration evaluation of civil engineering constructions achieved in reinforced concrete which use the shear walls bracing system. As known, in the vibration modes assessment phase of a given structure, much of the seismic energy is absorbed by the fundamental mode. For this reason, many authors have provided empirical formulas using many approaches. Based on an elastic behavior and the Dunkerley formula, a simplified expression is proposed, which takes into account the geometrical and the mechanical characteristics of the structure. Following this development, the period value is a function of the number of floors of the considered structure. It is in good agreement with that obtained by the FEM that uses numerical methods requiring a sophisticated and more complex process. It may constitute a practical tool for practicing engineers in the preliminary design phase of any SW building.
To enhance the refinery margins there is always pressure to process different types of crude containing nitrogen and sulfur. Nitrogenous and sulfur compounds have adverse effects on the performance of catalytic processes. Studies on the effect of sulfur on catalyst and their removal through catalytic treatment have been reported. Whereas systematic study on the performance of FCC catalysts and additives in presence of nitrogenous compounds is not well understood. This topic deals with studies on effect of model nitrogen compounds like pyrrole (non-basic) on the performance of fluid catalytic cracking catalyst and additives. And we have also study the effect of concentration of nitrogen compounds on cracking activity of n-hexane and VGO, the reasons for the deactivation of the catalysts seems to be due to deactivation of active sites by the strong adsorption of nitrogen compounds Alkali-treated ZSM-5 zeolites produce higher yields of light olefins compared to either untreated zeolites or alkali-treatment introduces mesopores to the zeolites and improves their catalytic cracking ability.
pH sensitive hydrogel particles were characterized for their rheological and swelling behaviour at various pH values specific to the gastrointestinal tract simulated conditions. Scanning electron microscopy was used to view the surface morphology of the hydrogels at different pHs. Swelling at pH 7.4 and shrinkage at pH 1.2 confirmed the pH sensitive behaviour of the hydrogel particles. The Linear Viscoelastic (LVE) range was determined by considering G', one of the strain amplitude. Furthermore frequency sweep tests were performed in the LVE range where the storage modulus and loss modulus were determined at constant strain. It was observed that the loss modulus was higher at basic pH while the storage modulus was higher at lower pH. This rheological method can be used to explain the pH sensitive behaviour of hydrogels.
