HBMO algorithm for calibrating water distribution network of Langarud city

In this paper a new meta-heuristic approach based on the nature of honey bees mating has been used for the calibration of a real city in the north of Iran named Langarud. This city has a population of nearly 68,000 people and about 43,000 water consumers. Langarud's area is about 900 km(2). The method was used to determine the Hazen-Williams roughness factor of the main pipes of the town and a correction factor for the nodal demands in the main nodes of the network.     

A new restricted boltzmann machine training algorithm for image restoration

Multimedia Tools and Applications - A variety of approaches have been proposed for addressing different image restoration challenges. Recently, deep generative models were one of the mostly used...     

Two-Tier genetic programming: towards raw pixel-based image classification

Classifying images is of great importance in machine vision and image analysis applications such as object recognition and face detection. Conventional methods build classifiers based on certain types of image features instead of raw pixels because the dimensionality of raw inputs is often too large. Determining an optimal set of features for a particular task is usually the focus of conventional image classification methods. In this study we propose a Genetic Programming (GP) method by which raw images can be directly fed as the classification inputs. It is named as Two-Tier GP as every classifier evolved by it has two tiers, the other for computing features based on raw pixel input, one for making decisions. Relevant features are expected to be self-constructed by GP along the evolutionary process. This method is compared with feature based image classification by GP and another GP method which also aims to automatically extract image features. Four different classification tasks are used in the comparison, and the results show that the highest accuracies are achieved by Two-Tier GP. Further analysis on the evolved solutions reveals that there are genuine features formulated by the evolved solutions which can classify target images accurately.     

Self-assembly of nanoparticles to prepare of dendritic AgCl–Ag<Subscript>2</Subscript>S nanocomposites through a simple one-pot hydrothermal approach and its photocatalytic activity

Herein, AgCl–Ag₂S nanocomposites with dendritic morphology were synthesized via a simple one-pot hydrothermal route for the first time. AgNO₃, HCl, and thioacetamide were utilized as starting reagents. The as-prepared AgCl–Ag₂S nanocomposites were extensively characterized by techniques such as X-ray diffraction patterns, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and diffused reflectance UV–visible spectrum. The results showed that the nanoparticles were self-assembled to prepare AgCl–Ag₂S nanocomposites with dendritic morphology. The efficiency of AgCl–Ag₂S nanocomposites as a photocatalyst for the decolorization of methyl orange (MO) using visible light irradiation has been evaluated. As a result, an enhanced photocatalytic efficiency of AgCl–Ag₂S nanocomposites compared to AgCl nanostructures was obtained due to absorption of wider range of light wavelength by AgCl–Ag₂S nanocomposites.     

Liquid-Metal-Templated Synthesis of 2D Graphitic Materials at Room Temperature

Room-temperature synthesis of 2D graphitic materials (2D-GMs) remains an elusive aim, especially with electrochemical means. Here, it is shown that liquid metals render this possible as they offer catalytic activity and an ultrasmooth templating interface that promotes Frank–van der Merwe regime growth, while allowing facile exfoliation due to the absence of interfacial forces as a nonpolar liquid. The 2D-GMs are formed at low onset potential and can be in situ doped depending on the choice of organic precursors and the electrochemical set-up. The materials are tuned to exhibit porous or pinhole-free morphologies and are engineered for their degree of oxidation and number of layers. The proposed liquid-metal-based room-temperature electrochemical route can be expanded to many other 2D materials.     

Evaluation of Coal Bump Risk During Underground Mining: A Case Study of Tabas Coal Mine

Journal of Failure Analysis and Prevention - Coal bump is one of the most important hazards for underground miners due to occurrence without warning. This hazard leads to the problems in the form...     

Sole versus dual sourcing under order dependent lead times and prices

In this paper, we consider a dual-sourcing model with constant demand and stochastic lead times. Two suppliers may be different in terms of purchasing prices and lead-time parameters. The ordering takes place when the inventory level depletes to a reorder level, and the order is split among two suppliers. Unlike previous works in the order splitting literature, the supply lead time between vendor and buyer as well as unit purchasing prices is considered to be order quantity dependent. The proposed model finds out the optimal reorder point, order quantity and splitting proportion, using a solution procedure. Numerical results show that neglecting the relationship between ordering batch size and lead times is a shortcoming that hides one of order splitting advantages. Moreover, connecting unit prices to order quantity can decrease the percentage saving from dual sourcing compared to sole sourcing. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis shows some managerial insights.     

Converting date seed biomass into highly absorbing hydrogel

Converting biomass into value-added products has attracted great attention in recent years. In this paper, a facile approach for using date seed powder without delignification is introduced to convert date seed biomass into a water-absorbing polymer. The biomass of date seed as a source of polysaccharides was immersed in the emulsions of acrylic microgels with different chemical structures. Different polymer latexes based on acrylic acid (AA), sodium acrylate (SA), acrylamide (AM) and 2-acrylamide-2-methyl propane sulfonic acid (AMPS) were prepared using inverse emulsion polymerization. A chemical reaction was carried out between date seed and acrylic latex by heating, which caused the conversion of date seed into a semi-synthetic hydrogel with 60 % natural and 40 % synthetic components. The best modification of date seed to absorbing hydrogel was obtained with poly(AA–SA–AM–AMPS). The modified date seed with this latex had water absorbency of up to 71 g/g, while the unmodified date seed had only 0.2 g/g water absorbency. Date seed hydrogels were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), rheometric analysis and swelling measurement. The effect of several modifications of parameters such as latex type, AMPS content in latex, aquatic–organic phase ratios of latex and modification temperature on the swelling properties of hydrogel was investigated. The obtained hybrid hydrogel based on date seed biomass contained a considerable amount of biomass in its structure as well as 71 g/g water absorbency, which can be a proper candidate for agricultural applications.