Study on How to Adapt Raw Clay Housing to Climate Change： Locust Bean Tree （Parkia Biglobosa） Used as Protecting Material

The use of raw clay in housing construction dates back from ancient times and is still living on. Traditional habitat comprising various buildings all over different places of our planet, give evidence. Among any other pathologies affecting naked earthen walls, the rain water wash remains a major concern and deserves careful consideration. Which justifies the interest of this research focused on the protection means of such types of walls. This article relates the experiment conducted on low walls made out of raw clay mixed with composite protecting products （traditional and modern ones as well）, being tested to intensive water floods. The result of the tests assessed through efficiency of the protecting materials, shows that the locust bean tree （local tree） fruit husk extract added to raw clay mortar and carefully blended seems to provide better ability to protect walls against water assault. Moreover, consistency check and plasticity reveal better performance in clay material properties.     

高品质钢锭生产质量控制研究

通过钢水质量控制、凝固过程控制及退火工艺优化等研究,实现了钢中合金含量的窄成分控制、夹杂物控制和凝固结构控制,改善了钢锭的纯净度、组织均匀性和性能稳定性,稳定了生产过程控制、提高了钢锭的质量。     

Emerging shadows in national solar policy? Nevada’s net metering transition in context

Nevada’s recent overhaul of its net energy metering policy, which instituted a new net billing program in its place, underscores two key insights. First, decisions about whether net metering should continue separate from the design of a given program. From an institutional perspective, legislatures are best equipped to answer the first question; PUCs have comparative expertise on the second. Further, as net metering policies are likely to become more diverse across states over time, it is critical to maximize policy stability by using—rather than abdicating—grandfathering for existing customers.     

Analysis and price prediction of cryptocurrencies for historical and live data using ensemble-based neural networks

Knowledge and Information Systems - The popularity of cryptocurrencies has been on the rise with the emergence of blockchain technologies. There have been enormous investments in the cryptocurrency...     

Development of dynamic thermal input models for simulation of photovoltaic generators

ABSTRACT

Development of dynamic thermal input models for simulation of photovoltaic generators (PVG) is the main concern of this work. The dynamic thermal input models consist of insolation and temperature models. The model development involves acquisition of meteorological input data for Kampala at latitude (0.3476^oN) and longitude (32.5825^oE), measurement of physical conditions in which PVG is operating, carrying out thermal balance around PVG and application of solar analytic equations. The emerging models are simple simulated dynamic insolation and temperature models. These models were superimposed with quadruple sinusoidal waves to obtain superimposed simulated dynamic models. Furthermore, the superimposed insolation models were validated with the superimposed sky model and meteorological data while the corresponding temperature model was validated with the experimental data. The developed models become universal by substituting localised input parameters. Moreover, these models are useful for operation, installation, design and dynamic performance analysis of PVG.     

Early public impressions of terrestrial carbon capture and storage in a coal-intensive state

While carbon capture and storage (CCS) is considered to be critical to achieving long-term climate-protection goals, public concerns about the CCS practice could pose significant obstacles to its deployment. This study reports findings from the first state-wide survey of public perceptions of CCS in a coal-intensive state, with an analysis of which factors predict early attitudes toward CCS. Nearly three-quarters of an Indiana sample (N = 1001) agree that storing carbon underground is a good approach to protecting the environment, despite 80% of the sample being unaware of CCS prior to participation in the two-wave survey. The majority of respondents do not hold strong opinions about CCS technology. Multivariate analyses indicate that support for CCS is predicted by a belief that humankind contributes to climate change, a preference for increased use of renewable energy, and egalitarian and individualistic worldviews, while opposition to CCS is predicted by self-identified political conservatism and by selective attitudes regarding energy and climate change. Knowledge about early impressions of CCS can help inform near-term technology decisions at state regulatory agencies, utilities, and pipeline companies, but follow-up surveys are necessary to assess how public sentiments evolve in response to image-building efforts with different positions on coal and CCS.     

Canadian house dust study: lead bioaccessibility and speciation

Vacuum samples were collected from 1025 randomly selected urban Canadian homes to investigate bioaccessible Pb (Pb(S)) concentrations in settled house dust. Results indicate a polymodal frequency distribution, consisting of three lognormally distributed subpopulations defined as "urban background" (geomean 58 μg g(-1)), "elevated" (geomean 447 μg g(-1)), and "anomalous" (geomean 1730 μg g(-1)). Dust Pb(S) concentrations in 924 homes (90%) fall into the "urban background" category. The elevated and anomalous subpopulations predominantly consist of older homes located in central core areas of cities. The influence of house age is evidenced by a moderate correlation between house age and dust Pb(S) content (R(2) = 0.34; n = 1025; p < 0.01), but it is notable that more than 10% of homes in the elevated/anomalous category were built after 1980. Conversely, the benefit of home remediation is evidenced by the large number of homes (33%) in the background category that were built before 1960. The dominant dust Pb species determined using X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy were as follows: Pb carbonate, Pb hydroxyl carbonate, Pb sulfate, Pb chromate, Pb oxide, Pb citrate, Pb metal, Pb adsorbed to Fe- and Al-oxyhydroxides, and Pb adsorbed to humate. Pb bioaccessibility estimated from solid phase speciation predicts Pb bioaccessibility measured using a simulated gastric extraction (R(2) = 0.85; n = 12; p < 0.0001). The trend toward increased Pb bioaccessibility in the elevated and anomalous subpopulations (75% ± 18% and 81% ± 8%, respectively) compared to background (63% ± 18%) is explained by the higher proportion of bioaccessible compounds used as pigments in older paints (Pb carbonate and Pb hydroxyl carbonate). This population-based study provides a nationally representative urban baseline for applications in human health risk assessment and risk management.     

Chemical,phase and structural change of mullite synthesized during sintering of kaolin

Mullite is of great technological relevance but rarely occurs in nature and as a result different approaches have been adopted in its synthesis from alumina bearing minerals. In this study, chemical, phase and structural change of mullite synthesized from sintering of natural kaolinite clay is investigated. Thoroughly beneficiated kaolinite clay powder was obtained from Nigeria and uniaxially pressed into cylindrical compact of 40 × 30 mm followed by sintering at temperatures of 1200°C and 1300°C, respectively. The chemical composition, microstructure change, phase transformation, and reaction bonding were carried out using EDXRF, SEM, XRD, and FT-IR, respectively, to assess the synthesized mullite. The results showed that a well-dispersed primary mullite phase was obtained which was fully developed at increased temperature of 1300°C. Better mullite phase was also obtained with increasing alumina content at more elevated temperature of 1300°C while Si-O-Al bonding of mullite crystals was also obtained from the FT-IR spectra. However, the needle-shaped mullite structure was not achieved which might be attributed to the sintering temperatures 1200°C-1300°C utilized.     

纤维网增强混凝土复合材料约束混凝土应力-应变关系研究

为研究纤维网增强混凝土(TRC)加固层对混凝土柱的约束性能,对13根混凝土柱试件(包括10根TRC加固柱和3根对比柱)进行了轴心受压试验,分析了纤维网层数、短切纤维及混凝土强度对TRC加固效果的影响,基于试验结果提出了TRC约束混凝土应力-应变关系简化计算模型.研究结果表明:TRC加固可改善混凝土柱的轴压破坏形态;与未...