scholarly journals Concrete Based on Clinker-Free Cement: Selecting the Functional Unit for Environmental Assessment

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 135
Author(s):  
Olga Smirnova ◽  
Liliya Kazanskaya ◽  
Jan Koplík ◽  
Hongbo Tan ◽  
Xianyue Gu
Keyword(s):  
Functional Unit ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Cement Composites ◽  
Concrete Durability ◽  
Industrial Construction ◽  
Design Decisions ◽  
Selection For ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of

Improving the environmental situation and obtaining cement composites with new properties for various operating conditions is possible with the use of secondary resources. The paper is devoted to the criteria for evaluating the impact of clinker-free cement on the environment. The methodological approach to the selection of a functional unit for comparative assessment of the ecological footprint of clinker-free cements is justified. The results of studying the properties determining the concrete durability in the aggressive environment of livestock farms and in transport construction are given. The results will contribute to the development of an ecological approach to the components selection for clinker-free cements and to the adoption of design decisions in construction, as well as to the expansion of the field of using clinker-free cements in transport and industrial construction.

The impact of racial pattern on the genetic improvement of Morada Nova sheep

2016 ◽  
Vol 58 ◽  
pp. 73-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Shiotsuki ◽  
P.H.T. Silva ◽  
K.M. Silva ◽  
A.V. Landim ◽  
O.R. Morais ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Birth Weight ◽  
Genetic Improvement ◽  
Coat Colour ◽  
Simulated Population ◽  
Response To Selection ◽  
Selection For ◽  
Productive Traits ◽  
Red Variety ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of

SummaryThe objective of the present study was to describe the frequency of the main racial traits of Morada Nova sheep and simulate the impact of this culling on the response to selection for birth weight. The data from sex, coat colour, hoof pigmentation, muzzle pigmentation, polled and cryptorchidism were collected individually at weaning from 385 Morada Nova sheep of the red variety, born between 2010 and 2012, which belonged to four different flocks in the state of Ceará, Brazil. To estimate the impact of culling of animals due to racial pattern on the genetic improvement of the Morada Nova population, the genetic gains in birth weight per generation were calculated considering the following different scenarios of culling due to racial pattern in a simulated population. The present results indicate that the most urgent step is flexibilization of the requirement of dark muzzles and hooves. The selection of Morada Nova sheep based on racial pattern has caused losses in the genetic gain for productive traits such as birth weight. Readaptation of the official racial pattern established for Morada Nova sheep is necessary so that the racial pattern is achieved and an adequate number of animals will be available for selection.

scholarly journals Methodological Approach for 1D Simulation of Port Water Injection for Knock Mitigation in a Turbocharged DISI Engine

Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (17) ◽  
pp. 4297
Author(s):  
Federico Millo ◽  
Fabrizio Gullino ◽  
Luciano Rolando
Keyword(s):  
Film Formation ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Direct Injection ◽  
Water Injection ◽  
Combustion Process ◽  
Spark Ignition ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Transient Phenomena ◽  
Wall Film ◽  
The Impact

In the upcoming years, more challenging CO2 emission targets along with the introduction of more severe Real Driving Emissions limits are expected to foster the development and the exploitation of innovative technologies to further improve the efficiency of automotive Spark Ignition (SI) engines. Among these technologies, Water Injection (WI), thanks to its knock mitigation capabilities, can represent a valuable solution, although it may significantly increase the complexity of engine design and calibration. Since, to tackle such a complexity, reliable virtual development tools seem to be mandatory, this paper aims to describe a quasi-dimensional approach to model a Port Water Injection (PWI) system integrated in a Turbocharged Direct Injection Spark Ignition (T-DISI) engine. Through a port-puddling model calibrated with 3D-CFD data, the proposed methodology was proven to be able to properly replicate transient phenomena of water wall film formation, catching cycle by cycle the amount of water that enters into the cylinder and is therefore available for knock mitigation. Moreover, when compared with experimental measurements under steady state operating conditions, this method showed good capabilities to predict the impact of the water content on the combustion process and on the knock occurrence likelihood.

scholarly journals The Analysis of Effectiveness of Conveyor Belt Tensioning Systems

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 283-293
Author(s):  
Piotr Kulinowski ◽  
Piotr Kasza ◽  
Jacek Zarzycki
Keyword(s):  
Conveyor Belt ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Laboratory Model ◽  
Static Characteristics ◽  
Belt Conveyor ◽  
Measuring Systems ◽  
Belt Speed ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Selection Of

AbstractThe publication presents the evaluation of the effectiveness of belt tensioning systems based on the results of model laboratory tests. The types of tensioning devices most commonly used in industry were selected for testing: winch, gravity, pneumatic and follower. The evaluation of the efficiency of belt tensioning devices is complex, as the tensioning system is not autonomous and is only part of the belt conveyor equipment. Therefore, the publication presents the impact of belt tension force on the durability of basic conveyor components such as the belt and its joints, and drums. The characteristics of the tested belt tensioning devices are presented and the construction and research capabilities of the laboratory model of the belt conveyor are described. Measuring systems mounted on the conveyor are described in detail, enabling recording of variable conveyor operating conditions, measuring belt speed, driving force and belt stress. The results of the research are the experimental static characteristics of the most commonly used tensioning devices, which show the relationship between the drive moment and the belt tensioning force. Obtained characteristics will allow the development of guidelines for the design and selection of the most effective belt tensioning devices.

scholarly journals Impact of increasing the availability of healthier vs. less-healthy food on food selection: a randomised laboratory experiment

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Pechey ◽  
Olivia Sexton ◽  
Saphsa Codling ◽  
Theresa M. Marteau
Keyword(s):  
Laboratory Experiment ◽  
Response Inhibition ◽  
Food Selection ◽  
Equal Condition ◽  
Online Study ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Direction Of Effects ◽  
Selection For ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of

Abstract Background Environmental cues shape behaviour, but few studies compare the impact of targeting healthier vs. less-healthy cues. One online study suggested greater impact on selection from increasing the number of less-healthy (vs. healthier) snacks. The current study aimed to: (1) extend the previous study by using physically-present snacks for immediate consumption; (2) explore responsiveness by socio-economic position; (3) investigate possible mediators (response inhibition, food appeal) of any socio-economic differences in selection. Methods In a between-subjects laboratory experiment UK adults (n = 417) were randomised according to their ID number (without blinding) to one of three ranges of options: Two healthier, two less-healthy [“Equal”] (n = 136); Six healthier, two less-healthy [“Increased Healthier”] (n = 143); Two healthier, six less-healthy [“Increased Less-Healthy”] (n = 138). Participants completed measures of response inhibition and food appeal, and selected a snack for immediate consumption from their allocated range. The primary outcome was selection of a healthier (over less-healthy) snack. Results The odds of selecting a less-healthy snack were 2.9 times higher (95%CIs:1.7,5.1) in the Increased Less-Healthy condition compared to the Equal condition. The odds of selecting a healthier snack were 2.5 times higher (95%CIs:1.5,4.1) in the Increased Healthier (vs. Equal) condition. There was no significant difference in the size of these effects (− 0.2; 95%CIs:-1.1,0.7). Findings were inconclusive with regard to interactions by education, but the direction of effects was consistent with potentially larger impact of the Increased Healthier condition on selection for higher-educated participants, and potentially larger impact of the Increased Less-Healthy condition for less-educated participants. Conclusions A greater impact from increasing the number of less-healthy (over healthier) foods was not replicated when selecting snacks for immediate consumption: both increased selections of the targeted foods with no evidence of a difference in effectiveness. The observed pattern of results suggested possible differential impact by education, albeit not statistically significant. If replicated in larger studies, this could suggest that removing less-healthy options has the potential to reduce health inequalities due to unhealthier diets. Conversely, adding healthier options could have the potential to increase these inequalities. Trial registration ISRCTN: ISRCTN34626166; 11/06/2018; Retrospectively registered.

scholarly journals Impact of increasing the availability of healthier vs. less-healthy food on food selection: A randomised laboratory experiment

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Pechey ◽  
Olivia Sexton ◽  
Saphsa Codling ◽  
Theresa Marteau
Keyword(s):  
Laboratory Experiment ◽  
Response Inhibition ◽  
Food Selection ◽  
Equal Condition ◽  
Online Study ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Direction Of Effects ◽  
Selection For ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of

Background. Environmental cues shape behaviour, but few studies compare the impact of targeting healthier vs. less-healthy cues. One online study suggested greater impact on selection from increasing the number of less-healthy (vs. healthier) snacks. The current study aimed to: (1) extend the previous study by using physically-present snacks for immediate consumption; (2) explore responsiveness by socio-economic position; (3) investigate possible mediators (response inhibition, food appeal) of any socio-economic differences in selection. Methods. In a between-subjects laboratory experiment UK adults (n=417) were randomised according to their ID number (without blinding) to one of three ranges of options: Two healthier, two less-healthy [“Equal”] (n=136); Six healthier, two less-healthy [“Increased Healthier”] (n=143); Two healthier, six less-healthy [“Increased Less-Healthy”] (n=138). Participants completed measures of response inhibition and food appeal, and selected a snack for immediate consumption from their allocated range. The primary outcome was selection of a healthier (over less-healthy) snack.Results. The odds of selecting a less-healthy snack were 2.9 times higher (95%CIs:1.7,5.1) in the Increased Less-Healthy condition compared to the Equal condition. The odds of selecting a healthier snack were 2.5 times higher (95%CIs:1.5,4.1) in the Increased Healthier (vs. Equal) condition. There was no significant difference in the size of these effects (-0.2; 95%CIs:-1.1,0.7). Findings were inconclusive with regard to interactions by education, but the direction of effects was consistent with potentially larger impact of the Increased Healthier condition on selection for less-educated participants, and potentially larger impact of the Increased Less-Healthy condition for higher-educated participants. Conclusions. A greater impact from increasing the number of less-healthy (over healthier) foods was not replicated when selecting snacks for immediate consumption: both increased selections of the targeted foods with no evidence of a difference in effectiveness. The observed pattern of results suggested possible differential impact by education, albeit not statistically significant. If replicated in larger studies, this could suggest that removing less-healthy options has the potential to reduce health inequalities due to unhealthier diets. Conversely, adding healthier options could have the potential to increase these inequalities. Trial registration: Retrospectively registered on ISRCTN 11/06/2018 (https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN34626166).

scholarly journals Quantifying and elucidating the effect of CO2 on the thermodynamics, kinetics and charge transport of AEMFCs

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 2806-2819 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiwei Zheng ◽  
Travis J. Omasta ◽  
Xiong Peng ◽  
Lianqin Wang ◽  
John R. Varcoe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Charge Transport ◽  
Systems Design ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of

Exposing operating AEMFCs to CO2 leads to performance-robbing overpotentials, linked to fundamental thermodynamics, transport and kinetics – the impact of which can be reduced through careful systems design and selection of operating conditions.

scholarly journals Stable differentiation and clonality of murine long-term hematopoiesis after extended reduced-intensity selection for MGMT P140K transgene expression

Blood ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 110 (6) ◽  
pp. 1779-1787 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia R. Ball ◽  
Ingo H. Pilz ◽  
Manfred Schmidt ◽  
Sylvia Fessler ◽  
David A. Williams ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cell ◽  
Hematopoietic Stem ◽  
In Vivo Selection ◽  
Cell Clones ◽  
Selection For ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Reduced Intensity ◽  
Selection Of

AbstractEfficient in vivo selection increases survival of gene-corrected hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and protects hematopoiesis, even if initial gene transfer efficiency is low. Moreover, selection of a limited number of transduced HSCs lowers the number of cell clones at risk of gene activation by insertional mutagenesis. However, a limited clonal repertoire greatly increases the proliferation stress of each individual clone. Therefore, understanding the impact of in vivo selection on proliferation and lineage differentiation of stem-cell clones is essential for its clinical use. We established minimal cell and drug dosage requirements for selection of P140K mutant O6-methylguanine-DNA-methyltransferase (MGMT P140K)–expressing HSCs and monitored their differentiation potential and clonality under long-term selective stress. Up to 17 administrations of O6-benzylguanine (O6-BG) and 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitroso-urea (BCNU) did not impair long-term differentiation and proliferation of MGMT P140K–expressing stem-cell clones in mice that underwent serial transplantation and did not lead to clonal exhaustion. Interestingly, not all gene-modified hematopoietic repopulating cell clones were efficiently selectable. Our studies demonstrate that the normal function of murine hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells is not compromised by reduced-intensity long-term in vivo selection, thus underscoring the potential value of MGMT P140K selection for clinical gene therapy.

scholarly journals Parameters and determinants of responses to selection in antibody libraries

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. e1008751
Author(s):  
Steven Schulz ◽  
Sébastien Boyer ◽  
Matteo Smerlak ◽  
Simona Cocco ◽  
Rémi Monasson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Affinity Maturation ◽  
Response To Selection ◽  
Evolutionary Potential ◽  
Term Evolution ◽  
A Genome ◽  
Antibody Libraries ◽  
Selection For ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of

The sequences of antibodies from a given repertoire are highly diverse at few sites located on the surface of a genome-encoded larger scaffold. The scaffold is often considered to play a lesser role than highly diverse, non-genome-encoded sites in controlling binding affinity and specificity. To gauge the impact of the scaffold, we carried out quantitative phage display experiments where we compare the response to selection for binding to four different targets of three different antibody libraries based on distinct scaffolds but harboring the same diversity at randomized sites. We first show that the response to selection of an antibody library may be captured by two measurable parameters. Second, we provide evidence that one of these parameters is determined by the degree of affinity maturation of the scaffold, affinity maturation being the process by which antibodies accumulate somatic mutations to evolve towards higher affinities during the natural immune response. In all cases, we find that libraries of antibodies built around maturated scaffolds have a lower response to selection to other arbitrary targets than libraries built around germline-based scaffolds. We thus propose that germline-encoded scaffolds have a higher selective potential than maturated ones as a consequence of a selection for this potential over the long-term evolution of germline antibody genes. Our results are a first step towards quantifying the evolutionary potential of biomolecules.

scholarly journals Contextualisation Method for Measuring the Degree of Innovation in Micro and Small Enterprises

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (11) ◽  
pp. 536-554
Author(s):  
André Luiz Gomes de Souza ◽  
Gabriel Francisco Da Silva
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Innovation Management ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Small Enterprise ◽  
Small Enterprises ◽  
Weighting Factors ◽  
Time Frames ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of ◽  
Degree Of Innovation

The methodologies proposed for measuring the degree of corporate innovation require a relevant selection of indicators. Nowadays, there is a growing number of indicators that can be used to describe innovation management and measure the degree of innovation. However, these indicators only provide a partial outlook of the degree of innovation, being often incomplete. Therefore, it is important to create compound indexes comprising different indicators, weighting factors and coefficients able to contextualise the conditions and characteristics of the elements analysed. This enables an assessment of the importance of contextualising indicators for measuring the degree of innovation based on the influence of different weighting factors and coefficients directly related to the context analysed. In this regard, the present work was aimed at contextualising the tool used for measuring the impact of innovation – INOVA-tec – and draw a comparison with the Innovation Radar for measuring the degree of innovation of a Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE). In addition, the present work developed a new methodological approach focused on contextualising the process for measuring the degree of innovation of business organisations based on the analysis of two MSEs. Both methodologies were applied for the measurement of the degree of innovation of 2 different retail companies from the textile and clothing sector. The results obtained concluded that the adapted version of INOVA-tec allows to contextualise the process of measuring the degree of innovation in MSEs by considering different perspectives and particularities taking into account the context of the companies analysed and the innovation actions implemented. Moreover, it enabled to assess the relevance of the indicators with regards to the value chain or type of service provided, considering different time frames and geographical scopes of the actions and their respective impacts. The adapted version of INOVA-tec also provides a greater range of analysis of the results, with a wider scope of categories which are directly proportional to the weighting criteria, weight ranges and correction factors adopted in the indicators considered. The Innovation Radar, which provided a contextualisation of the indicators analysed, showed an overlap of the degree of innovation between the different profiles of business innovation.

scholarly journals Quantitative Analysis of Degradation Modes of Lithium-Ion Battery under Different Operating Conditions

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 350
Author(s):  
Hao Sun ◽  
Bo Jiang ◽  
Heze You ◽  
Bojian Yang ◽  
Xueyuan Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electrochemical Impedance ◽  
Active Material ◽  
Lithium Ion ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Excitation Current ◽  
Quantitative Results ◽  
Aging Mechanisms ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Selection Of ◽  
Degradation Modes

The degradation mode is of great significance for reducing the complexity of research on the aging mechanisms of lithium-ion batteries. Previous studies have grouped the aging mechanisms into three degradation modes: conductivity loss (CL), loss of lithium inventory (LLI) and loss of active material (LAM). Combined with electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), degradation modes can be identified and quantified non-destructively. This paper aims to extend the application of this method to more operating conditions and explore the impact of external factors on the quantitative results. Here, we design a quantification method using two equivalent circuit models to cope with the different trends of impedance spectra during the aging process. Under four conditions, the changing trends of the quantitative values of the three degradation modes are explored and the effects of the state of charge (SoC) and excitation current during EIS measurement are statistically analyzed. It is verified by experiments that LLI and LAM are the most critical aging mechanisms under various conditions. The selection of SoC has a significant effect on the quantitative results, but the influence of the excitation current is not obvious.

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