Optimal robust control of drug delivery in cancer chemotherapy: A comparison between three control approaches

During the drug delivery process in chemotherapy, both of the cancer cells and normal healthy cells may be killed. In this paper, three mathematical cell-kill models including log-kill hypothesis, Norton–Simon hypothesis and E_max hypothesis are considered. Three control approaches including optimal linear regulation, nonlinear optimal control based on variation of extremals and H_∞-robust control based on μ-synthesis are developed. An appropriate cost function is defined such that the amount of required drug is minimized while the tumor volume is reduced. For the first time, performance of the system is investigated and compared for three control strategies; applied on three nonlinear models of the process. In additions, their efficiency is compared in the presence of model parametric uncertainties. It is observed that in the presence of model uncertainties, controller designed based on variation of extremals is more efficient than the linear regulation controller. However, H_∞-robust control is more efficient in improving robust performance of the uncertain models with faster tumor reduction and minimum drug usage.     

Motion control analysis of a parallel robot assisted minimally invasive surgery/microsurgery system (PRAMiSS)

This paper presents motion control architectures for a parallel robot assisted minimally invasive surgery/microsurgery system (PRAMiSS) that enable it to achieve milli/micro-manipulations under the constraint of moving through a fixed penetration point or so-called remote centre-of-motion (RCM) point without any mechanical constraint. Two control structures suitable for minimally invasive surgery operations with submillimeter accuracy and for minimally invasive microsurgery operations with the desired accuracy in micron range are proposed. The control algorithm also applies orientation constraints preventing the tip from orienting around the instrument axis due to the robot movements as well as a minimum displacement constraint to minimise the movements of the parallel micropositioning robot. Experiments were performed and the results are analysed in this paper to verify accuracy and effectiveness of the proposed control algorithm for both cases of minimally invasive surgery and microsurgery operations. The experimental results present good accuracy and performance of the control algorithm. The numerical modelling and graphical simulations were also carried out and the results are also provided that demonstrate the correlation between the experimental results and physical responses.     

Plasmonic waves of graphene on a conducting substrate

The properties of plasmonic waves of graphene on a conducting substrate are discussed based on the classical electrodynamics and linearized hydrodynamic model. General expressions are given and illustrated graphically for the dispersion relation, power flow, energy density and energy transport velocity of the plasmonic waves. The numerical results show that acoustic plasmon mode of the system has a group velocity that can be made arbitrarily close to the graphene Fermi velocity by tuning the graphene–metal distance or graphene sheet carrier density.     

Highly conductive supercapacitor based on laser-induced graphene and silver nanowires

One of the foremost necessary desires of energy systems has been the existence of efficient, flexible, transportable, and eco-friendly devices. Among all the energy storage systems, supercapacitors have attracted plenty of attention thanks to their distinctive properties. Among all capacitor technologies, laser-induced graphene (LIG)-based capacitors are within the spotlight nowadays due to their high flexibility and simple manufacture. The most downside with LIG-based capacitors is their low conductivity and low charge capacity. During this work, to overcome this problem, the surface of LIG is covered with silver nanowires (AgNWs) and LIG/AgNWs composite is employed to form supercapacitor. In this study, all the electrochemical properties of the prepared composite were investigated, and therefore the results showed that AgNWs could increase the electrical conductivity of LIG by about 2.25 times, improve electrode–electrolyte interaction, and increase areal capacitance by 1.3 times. Additionally, the synthesized supercapacitor shows stable cyclic behavior and retention capacity equal to 78% after 1000 charge–discharge cycles. A singular increase in LIG conductivity and improved in its cyclic performance. Furthermore, galvanostatic charge/discharge curves indicated acceptable charge capacity of the LIG/AgNWs supercapacitor.

     

Sliding mode control of drum water level in an industrial boiler unit with time varying parameters: A comparison with H∞-robust control approach

In steam power-plants, to prevent over-heating of drum components or flooding of steam lines, perfect control of drum water level is of great importance. But during the operation, disturbances affecting water level, model uncertainties and parameter mismatch due to variant operating conditions lead to the variation of model parameters. In this paper, under transient conditions and in the presence of model uncertainties, two control strategies are implemented to achieve desired tracking of drum water level: robust sliding mode and H_∞ control. Two transfer functions between drum water level (output variable); feed-water and steam mass rates (input variables) are considered. For the dynamic system with time varying characteristic and parametric uncertainties, a sliding mode controller is developed and an optimal H_∞ controller is designed based on μ-synthesis with DK-iteration algorithm. For different desired commands of drum water level (including a sequence of steps and ramps-steps); it is observed that both control strategies guarantee robust stability and performance of the system without actuators saturation (control signals are bounded). However, using the sliding mode controller leads to the more smooth and rapid time responses of drum water level with less oscillatory behaviour of control efforts (and consequently less energy consumption). In addition, for tracking objectives in short command times, sliding mode controller performs more appropriately.     

Hybrid Adaptive Type‐2 Fuzzy Tracking Control of Chaotic Oscillation Damping of Power Systems

In this paper a novel hybrid direct/indirect adaptive fuzzy neural network (FNN) moving sliding mode tracking controller for chaotic oscillation damping of power systems is developed. The proposed approach is established by providing a tradeoff between the indirect and direct FNN controllers. It is equipped with a novel moving sliding surface (MSS) to enhance the robustness of the controller against the present system uncertainties and unknown disturbances. The major contribution of the paper arises from the new simple tuning idea of the sliding surface slope and intercept of the MSS. This study is novel because the approach adopted tunes the sliding surface slope and intercept of MSS using two simple rules simultaneously. One advantage of the proposed approach is that the restriction of knowing the bounds of uncertainties is also removed due to the adaptive mechanism. Moreover, the stability of the control system is also presented. The proposed controller structure is successfully employed to damp the complicated chaotic oscillations of an interconnected power system, when such oscillations can be made by load perturbation of a power system working on its stability edges. Comparative simulation results are presented, which confirm that the proposed hybrid adaptive type‐2 fuzzy tracking controller shows superior tracking performance.     

Numerical simulation of mass transfer in gas–liquid hollow fiber membrane contactors for laminar flow conditions

This study presents a numerical simulation using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) of momentum and mass transfer in a hollow fiber membrane contactor for laminar flow conditions. Axial and radial diffusion inside the fiber, through the membrane, and within the shell side of the membrane contactor were considered in the mass transfer equations. The simulation results were compared with the experimental data obtained from literature for CO₂ absorption in pure water. The simulation results indicated that the removal of CO₂ increased with increasing liquid flow rate in the shell side. On the other hand, increasing temperature and gas flow rate in the tube side have an opposite effect.     

Exopolysaccharide produced by Vibrio neocaledonicus sp. as a green corrosion inhibitor: Production and structural characterization

An exopolysaccharide substances produced by Vibrio neocaledonicus sp. was introduced as a novel green inhibitor against the corrosion of carbon steel in artificial seawater and acidic media. The produced extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) is heterogeneous with composition of polysaccharides, nucleic acids and protein and average molecular weight of 29,572 Da. Adsorption of EPS on the metal surfaces and formation of Fe-EPS complexes acted as a barrier to prevent the oxygen penetration and hindered anodic and cathodic reactions. The inhibitory effect increases with increasing EPS concentration and exposure time. The highest corrosion inhibitory effect (95.1%) was observed for 10 g/L of EPS after 5 days of exposure in seawater. This is the highest inhibitory effect ever been reported by EPSs. While, the optimum concentration of EPS with the highest inhibition efficiency in 1 N H₂SO₄ was 1000 ppm. The influence of different parameters, such as initial pH, growth phase, various nitrogen and carbon sources on the production of EPS and its corrosion inhibitory effect were also investigated. According to results, the optimum culture medium for EPS production is contained artificial seawater including 5% mannitol as carbon source and 0.1% (NH₄)₂SO₄ as nitrogen source at pH = 8. This medium could produce 22.24 g/L EPS during 3 days’ incubation at 30 °C. The corrosion inhibitory efficiency of obtained EPS was 95.97%.     

The Mimo Predictive Pid Controller Design

This paper is concerned with the design of Multi‐Inputs and Multi‐Outputs (MIMO) predictive PID controllers, which have similar performance to that obtainable from model‐based predictive controllers. A new PID control structure is defined which incorporates the prediction of future outputs and uses future set point. A method is proposed to calculate the optimal values of the PID gains from generalised predictive control results. A decentralized version of the predictive PID controllers is presented and the stability of the closed loop system is studied. Simulation studies demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed controller compared with a conventional PID controller. The results are also compared with generalised predictive control solutions.     

Study of Magnetic Abrasive Finishing for AISI321 Stainless Steel

In recent years, magnetic abrasive finishing (MAF) has become a reliable unconventional technology among researchers in industries due to need for the surface roughness reduction in metals. In this study, experiments based on influential parameters in the MAF process including rotational speed, working gap, and abrasive particle size were designed and conducted in the full factorial method in order to achieve the optimum parameters in finishing of steel AISI 321. A combination of silicon carbide (SiC), iron (Fe), and oil (SAE40) was utilized as magnetic abrasive tool. Prior to the experiments, the surface of the workpiece was abraded to the lowest value of roughness in order to obtain accurate results through the procedure. In general, the results indicate that the parameters of working gap, rotational speed, and abrasive particle size influence the surface roughness from the most to the least, respectively. Indeed, the minimum surface roughness is obtained through working gap of 1 mm, workpiece rotational speed of 500 rpm, and abrasive particle size of 100 mesh, with 50% improvement compared with initial surface roughness. Finally, the more involved parameters deviate from optimum values, the worse results are obtained compared with optimum acquired consequences.