Different glazing systems and their impact on human thermal comfort—Indian scenario

In the present communication, fifteen different glazing systems ranging from 3 mm single glazed clear glass to double glazed with low-e and solar control coating, have been analysed in terms of their human thermal comfort impact. Thermal comfort is measured in term of PMV (predicted mean vote) and PPD (predicted percentage of dissatisfied). Study encompasses all the six climatic zones of India. By using OPTICS 5.0 and WINDOW 5.0, U-values, solar heat gain coefficient, inside glazing surface temperatures and inside solar radiation have been computed. Depending upon different climatic zones, six sets of different design conditions, in terms of ambient temperatures, solar radiation and wind velocity, have been chosen. Typical values of metabolic rate and clothing insulation taken are 1.2 met and 0.5 clo for summer and 1.0 met and 1.0 clo for winter, respectively. Inside room air velocity is taken as 0.15 m s⁻¹ round the year. Room temperature is taken as 20 °C in winter and 25 °C in summer. It is found that for cold station (e.g. Leh) all glazings except solar control glazings, ensure thermal comfort and total PPD is less than 10% (|PMV|?0.5). For warm and hot climates, solar control glazings are thermally suitable. Results for winter night of Delhi shows that all the 15 glazings are inadequate for thermal comfort and PPD, due to cold feeling, varies between 27% and 33% approximately.     

Nanoscale zerovalent iron-Sargassum swartzii biocomposites for the removal of malachite green from an aqueous solution

A novel nanoscale zerovalent iron-Sargassum swartzii (nZVI-SS) biocomposite was tested for its ability to remove malachite green from aqueous solutions. Batch equilibrium tests at different pH conditions showed that at pH 10, a maximum removal of 142.85 mg/g was observed according to Langmuir model. Involvement of various functional groups of the biosorbent in preferential biosorption of cationic dye was observed using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Morphological changes occurring on the biocomposite materials were characterized using scanning electron microscopy. Furthermore, temperature and kinetic profiles during the biosorption process were also reported.     

Sediment Yield Assessment of a Large Basin using PSIAC Approach in GIS Environment

Reservoirs are the key infrastructure for the socio-economic development of a country. The reservoirs are proven to be a remedial solution of highly erratic spatial and temporal availability of water. The growth in population and consequent developmental activities within a catchment area has shown to aggravate the problem of sedimentation which comprised of erosion, sediment transport and its deposition in these reservoirs. Among all above mentioned, reservoir sediment deposition is most important as it reduces its useful life and impairs the purposes of these vast water resource. The sediment yield has been considered as comprehensive index for assessing sustainability of such resources. The present study investigates the suitability of Pacific Southwest Inter-Agency Committee (PSIAC) model in determining the sediment yield rate for a drainage basin considering nine basin factors in geographical information system (GIS) environment. For the analysis, a large river basin at the foothill of Himalayas in India has been considered as case study. It was realized that the GIS approach made large basin characteristic sampling very easy and efficient for this hilly basin. A regression equation between specific sediment yield and effective model factors was established based on geomorphic features for this basin. It was observed that most of the basin area is falling under moderate to high sediment yielding potential zone, leading to high sediment yield.     

Effect of urban-site and vegetation on channel capacity in higher altitude platform communication system

Communication services using higher altitude platforms have highlighted a need for estimating the effect of local obstructions on radio wave link. Vegetation and buildings are the major factors responsible for attenuation. The authors have calculated the radio wave attenuation because of vegetation and buildings. Here, the authors have used the fitted radio international telecommunication union model to calculate the vegetation attenuation. The attenuation because of buildings is calculated for an urban-site (residential area of Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology, NSIT, New Delhi, India) using geometrical optics and a uniform theory of diffraction. Further, channel capacity is calculated for vegetation and urban-site environment using Shannon?s channel capacity theorem.     

Horizontal collaboration in semiconductor manufacturing industry supply chain: An evaluation of collaboration intensity index

This paper aims to provide a generic quantitative model to comprehensively assess the degree of collaboration with individual horizontal collaboration initiatives with a view to check feasibility for satisfying the customer requirements. The analytic hierarchy process–fuzzy logic model (AHP–FLM) approach is chosen for developing the model, a method that is often used to tackle complex strategic decision making that calls for subjective judgment based on well-established logical reasoning, rather than on simple feeling and intuition. In the process, the complex and unstructured problem for ‘compatibility test’ is broken down into elements, and then a customized hierarchy structure is set up to demonstrate the relationship between different hierarchy levels and among these elements. Each element may have a different level of importance for the horizontal collaboration. A fuzzy rule based collaboration intensity index (CII) is developed to build up the relationships among these evaluation attributes. Synthesizing the generic relative importance and the forecasted degree of collaboration, the proposed approach can determine the success of the collaboration initiative. An illustrative example of a semiconductor industry supply chain (SSC) member that intends to partner with a potential and competing candidate enterprise is developed to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed fuzzy strategic alliance selection framework and to measure the effectiveness of a horizontal collaboration initiative.     

Remote Sensing and GIS Based Approach for Identification of Artificial Recharge Sites

The main aim of this paper is to demonstrate the capabilities of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques for the demarcation of suitable sites for artificial recharge of groundwater aquifers, in the Loni watershed, located in Unnao and Raebareli districts, Uttar Pradesh, India. In this study, the SCS-CN model, groundwater depth data and morphological parameters (bifurcation ratio, elongation ratio, drainage density, ruggedness number, relief ratio, and circulatory ratio) have been used to delineate the recharge sites for undertaking water conservation measures. Augmentation of water resource is proposed in the watershed by constructing runoff storage structures, like check dam, percolation tank and nala bund. The site suitability for these water harvesting structures is determined by considering spatially varying parameters, like runoff potential, slope, groundwater fluctuation data and morphometric information of the watershed. GIS has been used as an effective tool to store, analyse and integrate spatial and attribute information pertaining to runoff, slope, drainage, groundwater fluctuation and morphometric characteristics for such studies.     

A graphical representation for a statistical test of average equivalence and variance comparison with process data

This paper provides a graphical approach for presenting results of a statistical test of average equivalence with process data. In addition, a graphical representation of process change in variance is presented. An example from the biopharmaceutical industry is provided to illustrate the information contained in the chart. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES ON A NOVEL CHEMICAL HEAT PUMP DRYER USING A GAS-SOLID REACTION

The authors have been studying Chemical Heat Pumps (CHP) from the viewpoints of energy saving and environmental impact. The CHP can store thermal energy in the form of chemical energy by an endothermic reaction, and release it at various temperature levels during heat demand periods by exo/endothermic reactions. The authors have proposed in an earlier study a novel chemical heat pump (CHP) system for environmentally-friendly effective utilization of thermal energy in drying as a chemical heat pump dryer (CHPD). In this exploratory study, we test the effectiveness of operating the proposed CHPDs experimentally. Basic experiments on the CHPDs such as hot dry air production for convective drying are performed on lab-scale CHPD apparatuses using gas-solid reactions in calcium oxide/calcium hydroxide reactant beds. The proposed CHPDs are found to produce hot air by CHP operation for drying. The temperature levels of the produced hot air and the reaction rates/conversions are as good as in the case of hot water supply system using basically same CHP operation. The cold heat for air dehumidification is also found to be generated/recovered by the same CHPD system. The generated heat amounts can be increased by changing the operating conditions although the heat recovery must be enhanced for practical application of CHPDs.