Influence of the angular shape of the volume-scattering function and multiple scattering on remote sensing reflectance

Scattering phase functions derived from measured (volume-scattering meter, VSM) volume-scattering functions (VSFs) from Crimean coastal waters were found to have systematic differences in angular structure from Fournier-Forand (FF) functions with equivalent backscattering ratios. Hydrolight simulations demonstrated that differences in the angular structure of the VSF could result in variations in modeled subsurface radiance reflectances of up to +/-20%. Furthermore, differences between VSM and FF simulated reflectances were found to be nonlinear as a function of scattering and could not be explained with the single-scattering approximation. Additional radiance transfer modeling demonstrated that the contribution of multiple scattering to radiance reflectance increased exponentially from a minimum of 16% for pure water to a maximum of approximately 94% for turbid waters. Monte Carlo simulations demonstrated that multiple forward-scattering events were the dominant contributors to the generation of radiance reflectance signals for turbid waters and that angular structures in the shape of the VSF at forward angles could have a significant influence in determining reflectance signals for turbid waters.     

Control of cascaded transformer multilevel inverter based DSTATCOM

In this paper, the design of a distribution static compensator (DSTATCOM) based on cascaded transformer multilevel inverter is proposed. The topology requires controlling only a common dc storage capacitor. Two-level ramp-comparison current control method is extended for the multilevel inverter using phase-shifted multi-carrier PWM. The method provides equal switching stress and power handling for all the cascaded units. The net switching frequency increases while the ripple magnitude reduces using multilevel topology. These cause the feedforward gain to increase leading to a higher bandwidth of the control loop. An expression of the feedforward gain is derived for fixed switching frequency modulation of the inverter. It is shown that the use of proportional plus resonant controller with proposed multilevel modulation improves the tracking characteristics at fundamental frequency. A seven-level inverter based DSTATCOM is proposed for the application to the three-phase medium voltage distribution system and the results are shown through the PSCAD/EMTDC simulation. The proposed modulation and control scheme is validated through the experimental results that are obtained using the laboratory model of a single-phase, five-level inverter based DSTATCOM.     

Transmitter-Receiver Path Selection for Cell Range Extension Using Multi-Hop D2D

Conventional approach of dealing with more users per coverage area in cellular networks implies densifying the amount of (Access Point) AP which will eventually result in a larger carbon footprint. In this paper, we propose a base station off-loading and cell range extension (CRE) scheme based on multi-hop device-to-device (MHD2D) path selection between transmitter and receiver node. The paper also provides derivations of upper and lower bounds for energy efficiency, capacity, and transmit power. The proposed path selection scheme is inspired by the foraging behavior of honey bees. We present the algorithm as a modified variant of the artificial bee colony algorithm (MVABC). The proposed optimization problem is modeled as a minimization problem where we optimize the Energy Efficiency (EE). The proposed path selection MVABC is compared with the Genetic Algorithm (GA) and also with classical artificial bee colony (ABC) through simulations and statistical analysis. The student’s t-test, p-value, and standard error of means (SEM) clearly show that MVABC based path selection out-performs the GA and classical ABC schemes. MVABC based approach is 66% more efficient when compared with classic ABC and about 62% efficient when compared with GA based scheme.     

Recognition and Classification of Pomegranate Leaves Diseases by Image Processing and Machine Learning Techniques

Disease recognition in plants is one of the essential problems in agricultural image processing. This article focuses on designing a framework that can recognize and classify diseases on pomegranate plants exactly. The framework utilizes image processing techniques such as image acquisition, image resizing, image enhancement, image segmentation, ROI extraction (region of interest), and feature extraction. An image dataset related to pomegranate leaf disease is utilized to implement the framework, divided into a training set and a test set. In the implementation process, techniques such as image enhancement and image segmentation are primarily used for identifying ROI and features. An image classification will then be implemented by combining a supervised learning model with a support vector machine. The proposed framework is developed based on MATLAB with a graphical user interface. According to the experimental results, the proposed framework can achieve 98.39% accuracy for classifying diseased and healthy leaves. Moreover, the framework can achieve an accuracy of 98.07% for classifying diseases on pomegranate leaves.     

Electro-catalyst [ZrO2/ZnO/PdO]-NPs green functionalization: Fabrication,characterization and water splitting potential assessment

Present investigation reports the biomimetic synthesis of mixed metallic oxides nanoparticles (NPs) comprising of zirconia, zinc oxide and palladium oxide ([ZrO₂/ZnO/PdO]-NPs) functionalized via nature's bio-factories for the first time. [ZrO₂/ZnO/PdO]-NPs express reduction revealed via Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy and gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. X-ray diffraction express poly-crystallinity. The fabrication of green NPs is confirmed via energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy with irregular morphologies visible by scanning electron micrographs. A direct bandgap of 2.11 eV is obtained for [ZrO₂/ZnO/PdO]-NPs. Promising surficial features are disclosed via X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The electro-catalytic potential is studied using linear sweep voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy for investigation of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) activities with low over-potential of 0.37 V and Tafel slope of 74 mV/dec, indicating the suitability for OER. [ZrO₂/ZnO/PdO]-NP electro-catalyst is also tested for HER, demonstrating remarkable results with the overpotential and Tafel slope value of 157 mV and 151 mV/dec.     

Effect of nickel oxide - Modified BaCe0.54Zr0.36Y0.1O2.95 as composite anode on the performance of proton-conducting solid oxide fuel cell

The effect of NiO-m-BCZY64 (BCZY64 = BaCe_0.54Zr_0.36Y_0.1O_2.95) as a composite anode with a single anode functional layer (AFL) and gradient AFL on the performance of a button cell was systematically evaluated. The m-BCZY64 is referred to the pristine BCZY64 that was modified by a functionalized activated carbon derived from palm-oil empty fruit bunch (EFB). The electrochemical performance of the cell was investigated by impedance spectroscopy in a controlled atmosphere. The NiO-m-BCZY64 exhibited smaller grain size and homogenous elemental distribution compared to pristine NiO-BCZY64 as observed by SEM/EDX. At T = 800 °C, a button cell consists of NiO:m-BCZY64 with gradient AFL showed the best performance with total resistance (R_T) of 21.12 Ωcm² compared to the cell with single AFL (R_T = 86.04 Ωcm²) and pristine NiO-BCZY64 (R_T = 145.64 Ωcm²). The significant reduction of R_T indicates that the NiO:m-BCZY64 with gradient AFL showed high potential to be used as a composite anode for proton-conducting solid oxide fuel cells.     

Conjugated NiO-ZnO/GO nanocomposite powder for applications in supercapacitor electrodes material

The nanocomposite of NiO-ZnO/graphene oxide (GO) was synthesized for applications in supercapacitor electrodes material. GO was produced using the modified Hummers' method, and the nanocomposite of NiO-ZnO/GO was synthesized using the co-precipitation method. Thin films of nanocomposite powder were deposited on quartzite (glass) and fluorine-doped tin oxide substrates by a drop casting technique. X-ray diffraction revealed the crystallographic information of NiO-ZnO/GO nanocomposites. The surface morphology and elemental composition were studied using a scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, respectively. The electrochemical properties were examined using cyclic voltammetry in a 1.0 M solution of Na₂SO₄ electrolyte with a three-electrode system. Moreover, the NiO-ZnO/GO binary metal oxides nanocomposite based electrodes fabricated for supercapacitor delivered a high specific capacitance of 1690 F g⁻¹ for 1:1/GO sample at a scan rate of 10 mV s⁻¹ and has excellent conductivity due to reduced band gap energy range of 1.52-1.79 eV and with electrodes resistance of 0.02 Ω. The absence of semicircle in the Nyquist plot denotes low charge transfer resistance of the electrodes. The highest energy densities obtained for 1:1/GO and 2:1/GO are 192 and 148 Wh kg⁻¹, respectively, while the highest power density obtained for 1:1/GO and 2:1/GO are 8.46 and 7.42 W kg⁻¹, respectively. Our study paves way for a facile, affordable, nontoxic, and fast way to synthesis binary transition metal oxides/GO-based electrodes material for high-performance supercapacitor.     

A Multi Recipient Aggregate Signcryption Scheme Based on Elliptic Curve

The concept of Internet of bio-nano thing (IoBNT) arose from the need for Biological nanomachines to interconnect intra-body nanonetwork with the cyber Internet aiming to exchange information. However, while numerous studies have focused on communication efficiency among the nanodevices in a given network, challenges such as the IoBNT security, and the interface connection between the nanonetwork and the Internet are yet to be addressed. Thus, in this study, we propose a privacy scheme working on the top of the biocyber interface in the IoBNT paradigm. The proposed chaotic-system is based on the command signal coming from medical personnel to biocyber device embedded on the human body wherein a masked version of feature generated by applying modified Logistic map for increasing the privacy of the human life and released the exact dose. Additionally, the proposed scheme includes BPSK modulation and feature extraction with zero crossing rate. Finally, the privacy scheme increases the key space, thereby ensuring that the right dose is released and the privacy of human life is achieved. The performance analysis of the proposed scheme is presented firstly, by evaluating the proposed privacy scheme working on the top of biocyber interface device by using receiver operating characteristics curve and bit error rate. Then, we study the performance proposed scheme by employing the compartmental models in the forward and reverse biocyber interface of the IoBNT paradigm. The simulation results of the developed model reveal that the proposed IoBNT-based the privacy scheme can enhance the delivery of therapeutic drugs to the target cells while maximizing the privacy issues.