Effect of coir fiber loading on mechanical and morphological properties of oil palm fibers reinforced polypropylene composites

Hybrid composites were fabricated by compounding process with varying the relative weight fraction of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) and coir fibers to assess the effect of hybridization of oil palm EFB with coir fibers in polypropylene (PP) matrix. The mechanical and morphological properties of oil palm/coir hybrid composites were carried out. Tensile and flexural properties of oil EFB‐PP composites enhanced with hybridization of coir fibers except coir/oil palm EFB (25:75) hybrid composite, whereas highest impact properties at oil palm:coir fibers with 50:50 ratios. Results shown that hybrid composites with oil palm:coir fibers with 50:50 ratios display optimum mechanical properties. In this study, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) had been used to study morphology of tensile fractured surface of hybrid composites. Its clear from SEM micrograph that coir/EFB (50:50) hybrid composites display better tensile properties due to strong fiber/matrix bonding as compared with other formulations which lead to even and effective distribution of stress among fibers. The combination of oil palm EFB/coir fibers with PP matrix produced hybrid biocomposites material can be used to produce components such as rear mirrors' holder and window levers, fan blades, mallet, or gavel. POLYM. COMPOS., 35:1418–1425, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers     

CARD15/NOD2, CD14 and Toll-like 4 Receptor Gene Polymorphisms in Saudi Patients with Crohn's Disease

Crohn's disease (CD) is a multifactorial disease with a genetic component and an observed association with genes related to the innate immune response. Polymorphisms in the CARD15/NOD2 gene, in addition to functional variants of the toll-like receptor-4 (TLR4) and CD14 genes, have been associated with the development of Crohn's disease. There is no information about the frequency of these polymorphisms in the Saudi population. We examined the frequency of the three major CARD15/NOD2 risk alleles (Leu1007fsinsC, Arg702Trp, and Gly908Arg) and the TLR4 (Thr399Il) polymorphism as well as a functional polymorphism in the promoter of the CD14-159C/T in 46 Saudi CD patients and 50 matched controls. Genotyping was performed by allele-specific PCR or by restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis. The mutant genotype frequencies of the Leu1007fsinsC, Arg702Trp and Gly908Arg in the patient group were 6.5, 21.7 and 6.5%, respectively, compared with frequencies of 0, 4 and 2%, respectively, in the control group. There were 15 patients who carried the mutant alleles for all three CARD15/NOD2 variants, Leu1007fsinsC, Arg702Trp and Gly908Arg, while none of the control candidates carried the three alleles. This genetic study provides evidence that the three major CARD15/NOD2 variant alleles and the CD14 -159C/T polymorphism are associated with Crohn's disease (CD) susceptibility in the Saudi population; however, there is no evidence that the TLR4 (Thr399Il) or CARD15/NOD2 polymorphisms can be considered risk factors for Crohn's disease.     

Spatial and inter-annual variability of specific sediment yield: case of hillside reservoirs in Central Tunisia

Water erosion is the major process responsible for soil loss in Central Tunisia. It represents a main risk of sedimentation which threatens the lifetime of water and soil conservation works in the region, such as hillside reservoirs. This paper focuses on the study of spatial and inter-annual variability of specific sediment yield (SSY) estimated from sediment yield (SY) of 23 small watersheds of hill reservoirs located in the Tunisian Dorsal and the Cap Bon regions. The calculated values of mean inter-annual specific sediment yield varied from 180 to 3298 t/km²/year, over a period of 12 years (from 1994 to 2006). The selected catchments were classified into three groups according to their SSY data. The SSY map, elaborated with a geographical information system (GIS), showed an important spatial variability between watersheds of the same group. Moreover, analyses of the coefficient of variation (CV) showed that 70% of the considered sites demonstrate a tendency to moderate and high inter-annual variability of SSY. In order to identify the principal factors governing variability of erosion and sedimentation, a multiple regression analysis was carried out using nine parameters characterizing morphology, topography, land cover, climate and protection works of the 23 considered sites. The generated model revealed that 85% of SSY variability is correlated to seven principal factors, which are drainage area (A), rainfall intensity recorded in 30 min (I ₃₀), percentage of water and soil conservation works, percentage of clay and carbonate in soils, vegetation land cover, overall slope index (I _G) and rainfall amount (R _a). The obtained SSY results were compared to others cited in a large bibliographical synthesis of studies carried out at the planet scale. We deduced that the SSY values obtained in this study are among the relatively high series in the world. The high variability of specific erosion rates in Central Tunisia is believed to be related to the semi-arid climate, characterized by the irregularity and the severity of storms and the spatial and temporal variability of other multiple factors affecting erosion processes.     

Supercritical CO2/co-solvent extraction of porogens and surfactant templates to obtain ultralow dielectric constant films

A method of pore generation by supercritical CO₂ (SCCO₂) and co-solvent extraction for the preparation of nanohybrid film and mesoporous organosilicate thin film for ultralow dielectric constant materials is investigated. The films were treated with SCCO₂/methyl ethyl ketone-tetrahydrofuran co-solvent combination and it was found that the treatment produced dielectric constant (k) values of 2.30 for closed-pore and 1.61 for open-pore nanohybrid films; 2.14 for cetyl trimethylammonium bromide-based and 2.50 for polyethylene glycol octadecyl ether-based films. These results suggest that the SCCO₂/co-solvent treatment produces closely comparable results with thermal decomposition in terms of Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy data, optical constants obtained from variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry, and k values.     

Failure initiation and propagation characteristics of honeycomb sandwich composites

The energy absorbed during the failure of a variety of structural shapes is influenced by material, geometry and the failure mode. Failure initiation and propagation of the honeycomb sandwich under loading involves not only non-linear behavior of the constituent materials, but also complex interactions between various failure mechanisms. Therefore, there is a need for an improved understanding of the material characteristics and energy absorption modes to facilitate the design of sandwich performance. In the present study, failure initiation and propagation characteristics of sandwich beams and panels subjected to quasi-static and impact loadings were investigated. Experimental studies involved a series of penetration and perforation tests on 2D beam and 3D panel configurations using a truncated cone impactor with impact velocities up to 10 m/s. Preliminary tests were also performed on the sandwich beams subjected to the three-point bending. Load-carrying, energy-absorbing characteristics and failure mechanisms under quasi-static and impact loading were determined. Dominant deformation modes involved upper skin compression failure in the vicinity of the indenter, core crushing and lower skin tensile failure.     

Prediction of Aircraft＇s Longitudinal Motion Based on Aerodynamic Coefficients and Derivatives by Surrogate Model Approach

The accuracy of a flight simulation is highly dependent on the quality of the aerodynamic database and prediction accuracies of the aerodynamic coefficients and derivatives. A surrogate model is an approximation method that is used to predict unknown functions based on the sampling data obtained by the design of experiments. This model can also be used to predict aerodynamic coefficients/derivatives using several measured points. The objective of this paper is to develop an efficient digital flight simulation by solving the equation of motion to predict the aerodynamics data using a surrogate model. Accordingly, there is a need to construct and investigate aerodynamic databases and compare the accuracy of the surrogate model with the exact solution, and hence solve the equation of motion for the flight simulation analysis. In this study, sample datas for models are acquired from the USAF Stability and Control DATCOM, and a database is constructed for two input variables （the angle of attack and Mach number）, along with two derivatives of the X-force axis and three derivatives for the Z-force axis and pitching moment. Furthermore, a comparison of the value predicted by the Kriging model and the exact solution shows that its flight analysis prediction ability makes it possible to use the surrogate model in future analyses.     

Enhanced Nature-Inspired Meta-Heuristic Algorithm for Microgrid Performance Improvement

Abstract

In this article, a new selection technique based on Enhanced Nature-Inspired Meta-Heuristic (ENIMH) optimization algorithm is presented to improve the Microgrid (MG) dynamic performance. Interconnected microgrids have the ability to provide a clean and sustainable energy during normal and emergency operating conditions. The concerned microgrid includes hybrid renewable energy sources (RES) and energy storages systems (ESS). MG achieves a reduced dependency on the electric grid and provides flexible and adaptive energy supply. This paper develops a new selection technique based on ENIMH optimization that distinguishes the degrees of resemblance between the best individual and other individuals of current population. This technique proposes a binary coding of individuals, and is compared to conventional techniques; it allows each individual to occupy a section of the modified roulette wheel selection for the calculated degree of resemblance. This enhanced optimization technique tunes the dynamic PID parameters of microgrid closed loop system. The designed strategy is dependably to locate the arrangement of enhanced parameters to minimize the system frequency fluctuations in the microgrid and to provide the improved dynamic performance by being sensitive to variations for closed loop response under various power and load conditions. The proposed technique has been demonstrated using Matlab/Simulink simulation on the underlined microgrid, where the achieved results confirm the effectiveness of proposed selection method for the reproduction of best individuals to show the improved performance. The proposed technique achieved satisfactory performance for PID-controllers, and provided a good closed loop performance, minimum overshoot and minimum fitness index, in comparison with other well-established methods. The results emphasize that ENIMH optimization algorithm has the exploration and exploitation capability of population best individuals to accomplish the best solutions.