Author-weighted impact factor and reference return ratio: can we attain more equality among fields?

Scientometrics - Despite its problems, journal impact factor (JIF) is the most popular journal quality metric. In this paper, two simple adjustments of JIF are tested to see whether more equality...     

CCII-based simulated floating inductor and floating capacitance multiplier

Analog Integrated Circuits and Signal Processing - In this work, a new lossless simulated floating inductor (SFI) and a new lossless floating capacitance multiplier (FCM) are proposed. Both...     

Estimating national exhaust emissions from railway vehicles in Turkey

The estimated exhaust emissions from railway vehicles in Turkey were presented. The emissions of nitrogen oxides (NO(X)), hydrocarbon compounds (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), particulate matter (PM), sulfur dioxide (SO(2)) and carbon dioxide (CO(2)) from the diesel locomotives and railcars were calculated using the railway traffic data recorded by Turkish State Railways (TSR) for the period of 2000-2005. EPA emission factors were used for different vehicle types and operation modes such as shunting and line-hauling. Total emissions from railway vehicles in Turkey were estimated as 384 t y(-1) for HC, 1016 t y(-1) for CO, 6799 t y(-1) for NO(X), 256 t y(-1) for PM, 357 t y(-1) for SO(2) and 383 537 t y(-1) for CO(2) for the year 2005. The distribution of emissions with respect to type of railway vehicles shows that the mainline locomotives contribute approximately 91% to the total emissions. The increases of 22%, 39% and 49% in the current numbers of mainline locomotives, shunting locomotives and diesel railcars, respectively corresponding to the full capacity of railway network in Turkey will increase the annual emissions to 431 t y(-1) for HC, 1121 t y(-1) for CO, 7399 t y(-1) for NO(X), 342 t y(-1) for PM, 552 t y(-1) for SO(2) and 420 256 t y(-1) for CO(2). Total railway emissions constitute 0.15%, 0.08% and 4.21% of total Turkish traffic emissions for HC, CO and NO(X), respectively.     

Performance and sustainability assessment of energy options for building HVAC applications

In this study, a building with a volume of 351 m³ and a net floor area of 117 m² is considered as a case study with the indoor and exterior air temperatures of 20 and 0 °C, respectively. For the heating applications, four options are studied with (1) a heat pump, (2) a condensing boiler, (3) a conventional boiler and (4) a solar collector, which are driven by renewable and non-renewable energy sources. An energy and exergy analysis is employed to assess their performances and compare them through energy and exergy efficiencies and sustainability index. Energy and exergy flows are investigated and illustrated. Also, the energetic and exergetic renewability ratios are utilized here along with sustainability index. The results show that overall exergy efficiencies of heat pump, condensing boiler, conventional boiler and solar heating systems are found to be 3.66, 3.31, 2.91, and 12.64%, while the sustainability index values for the four cases considered are calculated to be 1.039, 1.034, 1.030 and 1.144, respectively. So, solar collector-based heating system gives the highest efficiency and sustainability index values.     

Detection of Enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus in Raw Milk and Dairy Products by Multiplex PCR

Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus in 122 samples, including 60 raw milk, 32 white cheese, 10 kashar cheese, 10 butter, and 10 ice cream samples obtained from Samsun province, Turkey. In this study, S. aureus was detected in 64 samples, including raw milk (45/60; 75%), white cheese (12/32; 37.5%), kashar cheese (3/10; 30%), butter (3/10; 30%), and ice cream (1/10; 10%) samples. A total of 81 isolates were identified as S. aureus by PCR with the presence of 16S rRNA and nuc genes. The presence of genes encoding the staphylococcal enterotoxins (SEs) SEA, SEB, SEC, and SED was detected by multiplex PCR. According to the analysis, seven isolates from the raw milk samples (7/51; 13.7%) were enterotoxigenic; five of them produced SEA (5/7; 71.4%), one produced SEB (1/7; 14.2%), and one produced SEA+SEB (1/7; 14.2%). Four isolates from the white cheese samples (4/21; 19%) produced the SEA (1/4; 25%), SEC (1/4; 25%), SED (1/4; 25%), and SEA+SED (1/4; 25%) toxins. Two isolates from the kashar cheese samples (2/4; 50%) were found to be enterotoxigenic; one produced SEA (1/2; 50%) and the other produced SED (1/2; 50%). One isolate from the butter samples (1/4; 25%) showed enterotoxigenic character (SEB, 1/1; 100%). The products were found to be potentially hazardous to public health because of the fact that levels of contamination were higher than 105–106 cfu/g ml in 39% (25/64, 17 raw milk, 7 white cheese, and 1 butter) of the analyzed samples.     

Economic analysis of a wind power plant: A case study for the Cappadocia region

Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology - The scenario analysis was conducted for a wind power plant in the Cappadocia region, which was selected due to its importance as a historical region...