Recommending metamodel concepts during modeling activities with pre-trained language models

Software and Systems Modeling - The design of conceptually sound metamodels that embody proper semantics in relation to the application domain is particularly tedious in model-driven engineering....     

New p-type sp-based half-Heusler compounds LiBaX(X = Si,Ge) for spintronics and thermoelectricity via ab-initio calculations

Journal of Computational Electronics - We have investigated the structural, electronic, magnetic, elastic and thermoelectric properties of the sp-based half-Heusler LiBaX (X?=?Si and...     

Influence of recycled fines on the flexural creep of self-compacting concrete beams under four-point bending load

The current need to find new technical solutions respecting sustainable development leads to study the aging character of concrete, especially of self-compacting concrete (SCC). The objective of this work is to experimentally assess the flexural creep of SCC beams (section 10 × 10 × 120 cm³) under a constant four-point bending stress, by studying the influence of limestone powder (LP) total replacement by recycled fines namely marble powder (MP) glass powder (GP) and granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) on endogenous and total creep. So, four sets of beams, with the same basic formulation (W/P ratio, paste volume), have been put under a constant stress of 1.3 MPa to determine the total and endogenous creep. Besides, the compressive strength, the four-point bending strength and the elastic modulus were measured. The results indicate that LP total replacement by GP or GBFS reduces the total creep and creep coefficient, while its total replacement by MP increases this coefficient.     

Improving design-pattern identification: a new approach and an exploratory study

The identification of occurrences of design patterns in programs can help maintainers to understand the program design and implementation. It can also help them to make informed changes. Current identification approaches are limited to complete occurrences, are time- and resource-consuming, and lead to many false positives. We propose to combine a structural and a numerical approach to improve the identification of complete and incomplete occurrences of design patterns. We develop a structural approach using explanation-based constraint programming and we enhance this approach using experimentally built numerical signatures. We show that the use of numerical signatures improves the identification of complete and incomplete occurrences in terms of performance and precision.     

Assessment of wind energy to power solar brackish water greenhouse desalination units: A case study from Algeria

The Algerian desert dominates large parts of the country's vast territory, and Algeria is among the countries filling most of the world's largest desert. In fact the country is over 80% desert. Even though more than 80% of the population is located in the northern Mediterranean coastal zone, most of oil and gas fields are located in the country's vast southern desert called Sahara. Furthermore, the desert region is developed into a major tourist destination. This arid zone region is characterized by a lack of potable water. However, in addition to the abundant solar energy, the region is also endowed with important wind and brackish groundwater resources with different qualities. Therefore, a brackish water greenhouse desalination unit that is powered by wind energy is a good solution for desalting groundwater for irrigation purposes in this region. Brackish water can be used to cool the greenhouse, creating the proper climate to grow valuable crops. Moreover, at the same time the fresh water that is produced in this system may be sufficient for the irrigation of crops grown inside the unit. In this study, five typical regions in the Sahara were selected and investigated. These regions were selected since they were areas of traditional agriculture. The frequency distributions of wind speed data were collected from Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE) statistics developed by NASA and evaluated for a 10-year period. The distributions were used to determine the average wind speed and the available wind power for the five locations. The results indicated that the available wind energy is a suitable resource for power production and can be used to provide the required electricity for the brackish groundwater greenhouse desalination units.     

Small field of view imaging using wavelet encoding with 2 dimensional RF pulses and gradient echo: phantom results

Object  

The objective of this work is to propose an imaging sequence based upon the wavelet encoding approach to provide MRI images free from folding artifacts, in the small field of view (FOV) regime, such as dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies.     

Fuzzy model-based fault detection and diagnosis for a pilot heat exchanger

This article addresses the design and real-time implementation of a fuzzy model-based fault detection and diagnosis (FDD) system for a pilot co-current heat exchanger. The design method is based on a three-step procedure which involves the identification of data-driven fuzzy rule-based models, the design of a fuzzy residual generator and the evaluation of the residuals for fault diagnosis using statistical tests. The fuzzy FDD mechanism has been implemented and validated on the real co-current heat exchanger, and has been proven to be efficient in detecting and isolating process, sensor and actuator faults.     

Reasons for the Fast Growing Seawater Desalination Capacity in Algeria

Seawater/brackish water desalination has been widely adopted by the Algerian Government in the last few years to supply potable water to municipality for various purposes mainly for domestic and industrial uses especially in areas where demand is high due to shortage of fresh water resources, rapid population growth and development of industry and tourism. Ten years ago, desalination was confined to the industrial use only especially in oil and gas industry as the country was relying on rain water and other available sources to supply fresh water to municipalities. Due to chronic drought conditions, the Ministry of Water Resources reviewed the national water strategy and a strong option for desalination was adopted where an ambitious program was thus put into action. Sixteen mega-plants, with capacities ranging from 100,000 to 500,000 m³ per day, primarily based on Reverse Osmosis technology, were launched in the last few years making the Algerian desalination program one of the world’s fastest growing markets. Five desalination plants, including the Africa’s largest seawater reverse osmosis project with a total capacity of 200,000 m³ per day, are already in operation and the remaining projects are either under construction or in commissioning. An integrated water resources management was also adopted as additional option to cuter the increasing water demand as there is also a great potential for water reuse and conventional water treatment. An additional benefit of this would be reducing the volume of treated wastewater disposed into the environment.     

Effect of the shaft eccentricity and rotational direction on the mixing characteristics in cylindrical tank reactors

Strategy of the shaft eccentricity is introduced to enhance the mixing characteristics in a flat bottomed cylindrical vessel without baffles. The mixing is ensured by a six-curved blade impel er. Three solutions which are models of food emulsions are used as working fluids. These solutions have a shear thinning behavior modeled by the power-law. The effects of fluid properties, stirring rates, impeller rotational direction and impeller eccentricity on the 3D flow fields and power consumption are investigated. Three values of impeller eccentricity are consid-ered, namely 0%, 24%and 48%of the vessel diameter. It is found that the opposite clockwise rotational direction reduces the power consumption, compared with the clockwise rotational direction. Also, the obtained results show that an impeller placed at an eccentric position between 24%and 48%of the vessel diameter and at the third of the vessel height may ensure the best mixing characteristics.