Monitoring of biofilms in technical systems - a crucial component of advanced anti-fouling strategies

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 199-204
Author(s):  
H.-C. Flemming ◽  
A. Tamachkiarow
Keyword(s):  
Relevant Information ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Piping System ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Crucial Component ◽  
A Cell ◽  
Secondary Procedures ◽  
On Line ◽  
Stable Signal

“Biofouling” is a biofilm problem which is operationally defined. It applies to biofilms which exceed a given threshold of interference. If this is the case, countermeasures are taken. However, conventional antifouling strategies are hampered by some intrinsic problems which can identified as follows: (1) there are no early warning systems, (2) detection of biofouling is not performed on surfaces but by analysis of water samples which will not indicate site or extent of biofilms, (3) disinfection is misunderstood as cleaning, (4) nutrients are not limited although they must be considered as potential fouling biomass, and (5) the efficacy of countermeasures is performed by process performance or product quality. Avoiding mistakes 1–3 and 5 requires monitoring systems which provide relevant information on line, in situ, in real time, non-destructively and suitable for computer-aided automatization. Sample removal, staining or other secondary procedures should not be necessary. A suitable monitoring device is the fibre optical sensor. It consists of a measuring head integrated into the surface to be monitored and contains a sending and a reading optical fibre. If material is deposited on the tip of the fibres, light emitted from the sending fibre will be scattered back by particles and collected by the reading fibre. Increasing deposit accumulation results in an increasing signal of backscattered light. This sensor has been successfully integrated into a water piping system and responded quantitatively to build up and removal of deposits. Under conditions in which the particles were represented by bacteria, a calibration was performed. A stable signal could be acquired above a cell density of 105 cells cm-2. The system is, in principle, suitable to be integrated into membrane modules at representative locations.

scholarly journals Investigation on Surface Tilting in the Failure Process of Shallow Landslides

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (9) ◽  
pp. 2662
Author(s):  
Shifan Qiao ◽  
Chaobo Feng ◽  
Pengkun Yu ◽  
Junkun Tan ◽  
Taro Uchimura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Early Warning ◽  
Slip Surface ◽  
Failure Process ◽  
Field Tests ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Field Monitoring ◽  
Landslide Monitoring ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Tilt Sensors

In recent decades, early warning systems to predict the occurrence of landslides using tilt sensors have been developed and employed in slope monitoring due to their low cost and simple installation. Although many studies have been carried out to validate the efficiency of these early warning systems, few studies have been carried out to investigate the tilting direction of tilt sensors at the slope surface, which have revealed controversial results in field monitoring. In this paper, the tilting direction and the pre-failure tilting behavior of slopes were studied by performing a series of model tests as well as two field tests. These tests were conducted under various testing conditions. Tilt sensors with different rod lengths were employed to investigate the mechanism of surface tilting. The test results show that the surface tilting measured by the tilt sensors with no rods and those with short rods located above the slip surface are consistent, while the tilting monitored by the tilt sensors with long rods implies an opposite rotational direction. These results are important references to understand the controversial surface tilting behavior in in situ landslide monitoring cases and imply the correlation between the depth of the slip surface of the slope and the surface tilting in in situ landslide monitoring cases, which can be used as the standard for tilt sensor installation in field monitoring.

scholarly journals User interface prototype for geospatial early warning systems – a tsunami showcase

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 555-573 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Hammitzsch ◽  
M. Lendholt ◽  
M. Á. Esbrí
Keyword(s):  
User Interface ◽  
Natural Hazards ◽  
Early Warning ◽  
Command And Control ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Synergy Effects ◽  
Human Operators ◽  
And Control

Abstract. The command and control unit's graphical user interface (GUI) is a central part of early warning systems (EWS) for man-made and natural hazards. The GUI combines and concentrates the relevant information of the system and offers it to human operators. It has to support operators successfully performing their tasks in complex workflows. Most notably in critical situations when operators make important decisions in a limited amount of time, the command and control unit's GUI has to work reliably and stably, providing the relevant information and functionality with the required quality and in time. The design of the GUI application is essential in the development of any EWS to manage hazards effectively. The design and development of such GUI is performed repeatedly for each EWS by various software architects and developers. Implementations differ based on their application in different domains. But similarities designing and equal approaches implementing GUIs of EWS are not quite harmonized enough with related activities and do not exploit possible synergy effects. Thus, the GUI's implementation of an EWS for tsunamis is successively introduced, providing a generic approach to be applied in each EWS for man-made and natural hazards.

Framework for Graphical User Interfaces of Geospatial Early Warning Systems

2013 ◽  
pp. 449-464 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Hammitzsch
Keyword(s):  
Natural Hazards ◽  
Graphical User Interface ◽  
User Interfaces ◽  
Early Warning ◽  
Synergistic Effects ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Human Operators ◽  
And Control

An important component of Early Warning Systems (EWS) for man-made and natural hazards is the command and control unit’s Graphical User Interface (GUI). All relevant information of an EWS is concentrated in this GUI and offered to human operators. However, when designing the GUI, not only the user experience and the GUI’s screens are relevant, but also the frameworks and technologies that the GUI is built on and the implementation of the GUI itself are of great importance. Implementations differ based on their applications in different domains but the design and approaches to implement the GUIs of different EWS often show analogies. The design and development of such GUIs are performed repeatedly on some parts of the system for each EWS. Thus, the generic GUI framework of a geospatial EWS for tsunamis is introduced to enable possible synergistic effects on the development of other new related technology. The results presented here could be adopted and reused in other EWS for man-made and natural hazards.

Advancements in Toxicity Testing Applied to Design and Control of Biological Processes

1991 ◽  
Vol 23 (1-3) ◽  
pp. 271-282 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. E. Herricks ◽  
B. E. Rittmann ◽  
C. P. L. Grady ◽  
D. Pascoe ◽  
L. Somlyódy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Toxicity Testing ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Line Detection ◽  
Ecological Framework ◽  
Biological Processes ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Ecosystem Disturbance ◽  
On Line ◽  
And Control

Toxicity testing is an essential tool for assessing the effects of, and fate of, many low-concentration toxicants in wastewater treatment systems. Toxicity testing can be divided into two parts: diagnostic toxicology evaluates the toxicity of a contaminant, effluent, or process, and toxicological engineering bases engineering design on the removal or production of toxicity. This paper presents six recent advancements in diagnostic toxicology and toxicological engineering identified by members of the Specialty Group on Hazard Assessment and Control of Environmental Contaminants. They are: (1) an ecological framework for applying toxicity testing, (2) biological early warning systems for on-line detection of toxic inputs, (3) inplant testing to detect and mitigate a toxic upset, (4) methods for rapid and cost-effective detection of genotoxins, (5) an approach for determining what discharged component must be controlled to eliminate an ecosystem disturbance, and (6) an application of process kinetics to design biological processes that are resistant to toxic upsets.

Framework for Graphical User Interfaces of Geospatial Early Warning Systems

2011 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 49-63
Author(s):  
Martin Hammitzsch
Keyword(s):  
Natural Hazards ◽  
User Interfaces ◽  
Early Warning ◽  
Synergistic Effects ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Graphical User Interfaces ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Human Operators ◽  
And Control

An important component of Early Warning Systems (EWS) for man-made and natural hazards is the command and control unit’s Graphical User Interface (GUI). All relevant information of an EWS is concentrated in this GUI and offered to human operators. However, when designing the GUI, not only the user experience and the GUI’s screens are relevant, but also the frameworks and technologies that the GUI is built on and the implementation of the GUI itself are of great importance. Implementations differ based on their applications in different domains but the design and approaches to implement the GUIs of different EWS often show analogies. The design and development of such GUIs are performed repeatedly on some parts of the system for each EWS. Thus, the generic GUI framework of a geospatial EWS for tsunamis is introduced to enable possible synergistic effects on the development of other new related technology. The results presented here could be adopted and reused in other EWS for man-made and natural hazards.

On-line monitoring of biofilm formation in a brewery water pipeline system with a fibre optical device

2003 ◽  
Vol 47 (5) ◽  
pp. 19-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Tamachkiarow ◽  
H.-C. Flemming
Keyword(s):  
Water System ◽  
Automatic Monitoring ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Pipeline System ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Biofilm Growth ◽  
Optical Device ◽  
On Line ◽  
Water Pipeline ◽  
Non Destructive

Any advanced anti-fouling strategy must be based on early warning systems which allow for timely, precisely directed and optimized countermeasures. Such systems must be able to detect biofilm growth on representative surfaces. In order to meet this requirement, a fibre optical device (FOS) has been developed. It is based on light which is scattered by objects deposited on the tip of an optical fibre. A receiving fibre collects the signal and forwards it to a detection and quantification unit. Both the sending and the receiving fibre are mounted in a measuring head which is integrated evenly on the inner surface of a water pipeline at representative sites. This device was applied to a water system of a brewery in order to put its reliability to test under practical conditions. The FOS detected the build-up of a deposit which was identified independently as consisting of microorganisms, i.e., a biofilm. A stable, well detectable and reproducible signal could be obtained above a colonization of 105 cells cm−2. Adjustment of the sensitivity of the amplifier allowed for detection of biofilms up to 1010 cells cm−2. Cleaning countermeasures could be detected clearly by a decrease of backscattered light intensity. The system proved to be suitable for on-line, non-destructive, real-time and automatic monitoring for a period of almost two years, and thus, provides an important constituent for an advanced anti-fouling strategy.

scholarly journals Application and verification of a multivariate real-time early warning method for rainfall-induced landslides: implication for evolution of landslide-generated debris flows

Landslides ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (10) ◽  
pp. 2409-2419
Author(s):  
Zongji Yang ◽  
Liyong Wang ◽  
Jianping Qiao ◽  
Taro Uchimura ◽  
Lin Wang
Keyword(s):  
Debris Flow ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Early Warning ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Mechanical Analysis ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Physical Mechanisms ◽  
New Strategy

Abstract Rainfall-induced landslides are a frequent and often catastrophic geological disaster, and the development of accurate early warning systems for such events is a primary challenge in the field of risk reduction. Understanding of the physical mechanisms of rainfall-induced landslides is key for early warning and prediction. In this study, a real-time multivariate early warning method based on hydro-mechanical analysis and a long-term sequence of real-time monitoring data was proposed and verified by applying the method to predict successive debris flow events that occurred in 2017 and 2018 in Yindongzi Gully, which is in Wenchuan earthquake region, China. Specifically, long-term sequence slope stability analysis of the in situ datasets for the landslide deposit as a benchmark was conducted, and a multivariate indicator early warning method that included the rainfall intensity-probability (I-P), saturation (Si), and inclination (Ir) was then proposed. The measurements and analysis in the two early warning scenarios not only verified the reliability and practicality of the multivariate early warning method but also revealed the evolution processes and mechanism of the landslide-generated debris flow in response to rainfall. Thus, these findings provide a new strategy and guideline for accurately producing early warnings of rainfall-induced landslides.

Multilingual Analysis of Twitter News in Support of Mass Emergency Events

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulrich Bügel ◽  
Andrea Zielinski
Keyword(s):  
Crisis Management ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Actual Situation ◽  
Civil Protection ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Tide Gauges ◽  
Emergency Events ◽  
Event Based ◽  
English As Lingua Franca

Social media are increasingly becoming a source for event-based early warning systems in the sense that they can help to detect natural disasters and support crisis management during or after disasters. In this article the authors study the problems of analyzing multilingual twitter feeds for emergency events. Specifically, they consider tsunami and earthquakes as one possible originating cause of tsunami. Twitter messages provide testified information and help to obtain a better picture of the actual situation. Generally, local civil protection authorities and the population are likely to respond in their native language. Therefore, the present work focuses on English as “lingua franca” and on under-resourced Mediterranean languages in endangered zones, particularly Turkey, Greece, and Romania. The authors investigated ten earthquake events and defined four language-specific classifiers that can be used to detect earthquakes by filtering out irrelevant messages that do not relate to the event. The final goal is to extend this work to more Mediterranean languages and to classify and extract relevant information from tweets, translating the main keywords into English. Preliminary results indicate that such a filter has the potential to confirm forecast parameters of tsunami affecting coastal areas where no tide gauges exist and could be integrated into seismographic sensor networks.

Framework for Graphical User Interfaces of Geospatial Early Warning Systems

2013 ◽  
pp. 257-272
Author(s):  
Martin Hammitzsch
Keyword(s):  
Natural Hazards ◽  
Graphical User Interface ◽  
User Interfaces ◽  
Early Warning ◽  
Synergistic Effects ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Early Warning Systems ◽  
Warning Systems ◽  
Human Operators ◽  
And Control

An important component of Early Warning Systems (EWS) for man-made and natural hazards is the command and control unit’s Graphical User Interface (GUI). All relevant information of an EWS is concentrated in this GUI and offered to human operators. However, when designing the GUI, not only the user experience and the GUI’s screens are relevant, but also the frameworks and technologies that the GUI is built on and the implementation of the GUI itself are of great importance. Implementations differ based on their applications in different domains but the design and approaches to implement the GUIs of different EWS often show analogies. The design and development of such GUIs are performed repeatedly on some parts of the system for each EWS. Thus, the generic GUI framework of a geospatial EWS for tsunamis is introduced to enable possible synergistic effects on the development of other new related technology. The results presented here could be adopted and reused in other EWS for man-made and natural hazards.

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