Comparative study of protective magnesium deposit behaviour obtained by continuous and pulsed currents from methylmagnesium chloride solution

Pulsed and continuous (or direct) currents were used for the electrodeposition of magnesium from methylmagnesium chloride solution. The analytical characterization of the magnesium coating was performed by scanning electron spectroscopy (SEM) and the X-ray diffraction (XRD). The electrochemical behaviour of the steel substrate coated by magnesium was assessed by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and potentiodynamic polarization curves. The deposits morphology was quite different; it changed from smooth and irregular with cracks for the deposit obtained by continuous current (cc), to granulate with an average grain diameter of about 3 µm for the deposit obtained by pulsed current (pc). The electrochemical results showed that the protection of the steel substrate against corrosion was better with the magnesium deposit obtained by pulsed electrodeposition process.     

Electrochemically deposited poly(3,4-propylenedioxythiophene) for dye-sensitized solar cell

Journal of Applied Electrochemistry - In this work, poly(3,4-propylenedioxythiophene) (PProDOT)-based counter electrode (CE) was elaborated. The PProDOT polymer was electropolymerized by using...     

Synthesis,structural and optical characterizations of ZrO2-bromothymol blue nanocomposite thin-film [ZrO2+BTB]C and its application: experimental and TDD-DFT computations

Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics - A [ZrO2+BTB]C nanocomposite was synthesized and prepared as a thin film using the sol–gel spin coating...     

Toward Kinecting cognition by behaviour recognition-based deep learning and big data

The majority of older people wish to live independently at home as long as possible despite having a range of age-related conditions including cognitive impairment. To facilitate this, there has been an extensive focus on exploring the capability of new technologies with limited success. This paper investigates whether MS Kinect (a motion-based sensing 3-D scanner device) within the MiiHome (My Intelligent Home) project in conjunction with other sensory data, machine learning and big data techniques can assist in the diagnosis and prognosis of cognitive impairment and hence prolong independent living. A pool of Kinect devices and various sensors powered by minicomputers providing internet connectivity are being installed in up to 200 homes. This enables continuous remote monitoring of elderly residents living alone. Passive and off-the-shelf sensor technologies were chosen to implement data acquisition specifically from sources that are part of the fabric of the homes, so that no extra effort is required from the participants. Various constraints including environmental, geometrical and big data were identified and appropriately dealt with. A visualization tool (MAGID) was developed for validation and verification of numerous behavioural activities. Then, a subset of data, from twelve pensioners aged over 65 with age-related cognitive decline and frailty, were collected over a period of 6 months. These data were subjected to several machine learning algorithms (multilayer perceptron neural network, neuro-fuzzy and deep learning) for classification and to extract routine behavioural patterns. These patterns were then analysed further to ascertain any health-related information and their attributes. For the first time, important routine behaviour related to Activities of Daily Living (ADL) of elderly people with cognitive and physical decline has been learnt by machine learning techniques from selected sample data obtained by MS Kinect. Medically important behaviour, e.g. eating, walking, sitting, was best learnt by deep learning with accuracy of 99.30% during training stage and average error rate of 1.83% with maximum of 12.98% during the implementation phase. Observations obtained from the application of the above learnt behaviours are presented as trends over a period of time. These trends, supplemented by other sensory signals, have provided a clearer picture of physical (in)activities (including falls) of the pensioners. The calculated behavioural attributes related to key indicators of health events can be used to model the trajectory of health status related to cognitive decline in a home setting. These results, based on a small number of elderly residents over a short period of time, imply that within the results obtained from the MiiHome project, it is possible to find indicators of cognitive decline. However, further studies are needed for full clinical validation of these indications in conjunction with assessment of cognitive decline of the participants.

     

A method for constructing commodity by industry flow matrices

This paper presents theory and methods used to construct an interregional commodity by industry flow matrix for the United States. The interregional flow matrix method involves the construction of single-state (and DC) social accounting matrices (SAMs) using data derived from IMPLAN. Once complete, the interregional flows connecting states are estimated using a method based on the commodity flow survey data published by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The estimated interregional SAM is then adjusted to insure the integrity of intra-regional and system-wide accounts. The procedures have been designed with ease of replicability as a goal so that updates and extensions of the database can be generated efficiently and at low cost as new data are released. The resulting US interregional framework describes flows within and among the 51 regions. The method is flexible and will provide a valuable database for a broad range of analyses on regions, interregional relationships, and policy.

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Effect of vehicular technology on energy consumption and emissions

Sustainable development requires inter al the reduction of energy consumption and of traffic-induced pollutant emissions. Hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) are one of the most promising approaches to decrease emissions. This paper considers the influence of hybridization of transport on energy consumption and emissions on single lanes of road traffic. We have developed a micro-simulation tool which integrates instantaneous consumption and emission models. We have modelled microscopic behaviour of vehicles using a full velocity difference model for longitudinal moving. Then, we have used two macroscopic energy consumption models (COPERT and HBEFA) and an instantaneous energy-consumption model concerning the conventional Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicle to illustrate the relevance of microscopic modelling of energy consumption. Furthermore, we have compared the energy consumption of the HEV Toyota Prius with that of the conventional ICE vehicle. An emission model emissions from traffic (EMIT) was also implemented and extended in order to estimate HEV emissions. The model is used to quantify CO₂ and CO emissions for the HEV Toyota Prius and the conventional ICE vehicle. Moreover, we have studied the influence of fleet hybridization level on energy consumption for congested and uncongested traffic flow state. HEVs can offer major environmental improvements as well as substantial reductions of energy consumption and road traffic emissions. Hybridization is a relevant solution to reduce energy consumption and emissions.     

Evaluation of the stability of blends of sunflower and rice bran oil

Blends of sunflower oil (SFO) and rice bran oil (RBO) were evaluated for their stability. Additionally, known amounts of natural antioxidants extracted from RBO were added to SFO, and their protective effect was compared to that of the blends. The results found indicate that by raising the amount of RBO, from 10 to 50%, an increase of OLO, OLP, PPL, OOO, PPO, OPO, 18:1 and 16:0 occurred, followed by a decrease of LLL, LLO, and 18:2. These changes in fatty acid and triacylglycerol (TAG) composition led to an increase of the oil stability index at 120 °C and a reduction of polymer TAG formation in the heated blends at 180 °C during 8 h. A comparable protective effect of natural antioxidants to that of blending was observed in a 50 : 50 blend, by remarkably increasing the induction period.     

The Effect of Rotation on a Fiber-Reinforced Medium under Generalized Magneto-Thermoelasticity with Internal Heat Source

In the present article, we discussed the transient waves caused by a line heat source with a uniform velocity inside a rotating half-space fiber-reinforced thermoelastic media permeated into a uniform magnetic field. The formulation of the problem is applied under the coupled theory (CD), Green-Lindsay (G-L) theory, and Lord-Shulman (L-S) theory. The normal mode analysis is used to obtain expressions for the temperature, displacement components, and thermal stresses. Numerical results are given and illustrated graphically. A comparison is made with the results predicted by three theories in the presence and absence of magnetic field and rotation as well as fiber-reinforced.     

XPS characterization and corrosion resistance of cerium-treated magnesium coatings

Cerium conversion treatment was applied on magnesium coatings in a solution containing CeCl3.The composition of the cerium conversion layer on magnesium was investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS).It was revealed that the composition predominately consisted of a three-valent state cerium compound with a relative abundance around 90%.Some of Ce3+ was oxidized to Ce4+.Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy results revealed that the total impedance of cerium-treated samples increased for a sho...     

Antibacterial and Antifungal Activities of the Essential Oils of Two Saltcedar Species from Tunisia

The chemical composition of the volatile constituents from the flowering parts of Suaeda fructicosa and Limonium echioides were analysed by GC-FID and GC-MS. Sixty-five compounds were identified in L. echioides aerial parts. 48 out of 65 were found common to the aerial part of S. fructicosa. Palmitic acid was found as a predominant compound in both tested halophytic oils. Furthermore, the essential oil was tested against six bacteria and four fungi at different concentrations. Both oils, tested at 0.5 and 0.8 mg ml⁻¹, inhibited the visible growth of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Micrococcus luteus, Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium, but no antibacterial effect was detected against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Additionally, both halophytic oils failed to show antifungal activity against all the test fungi when applied at 80, 200 and 500 μg/disc.