Effects of upholstery materials on the burning behavior of real‐scale residential upholstered furniture mock‐ups

Fire spread and growth on real‐scale four cushion mock‐ups of residential upholstered furniture (RUF) were investigated with the goal of identifying whether changes in five classes of materials (barrier, flexible polyurethane foam, polyester fiber wrap, upholstery fabric, and sewing thread), referred to as factors, resulted in statistically significant changes in burning behavior. A fractional factorial experimental design plus practical considerations yielded a test matrix with 20 material combinations. Experiments were repeated a minimum of two times. Measurements included fire spread rates derived from video recordings and heat release rates (HRRs). A total of 13 experimental parameters (3 based on the videos and 10 on the HRR results), referred to as responses, characterized the measurements. Statistical analyses based on Main Effects Plots (main effects) and Block Plots (main effects and factor interactions) were used. The results showed that three of the factors resulted in statistically significant effects on varying numbers of the 13 responses. The Barrier and Fabric factors had the strongest main effects with roughly comparable magnitudes. Foam was statistically significant for fewer of the responses and its overall strength was weaker than for Barrier and Fabric. No statistically significant main effects were identified for Wrap or Thread. Multiple two‐term interactions between factors were identified as being statistically significant. The Barrier*Fabric interaction resulted in the highest number of and strongest statistically significant effects. The existence of two‐term interactions means that it will be necessary to consider their effects in approaches designed to predict the burning behavior of RUF.     

The impacts of cattle access points on deposited sediment levels in headwater streams in Ireland

Cattle access to streams has been linked globally with degradation of stream water quality, driven largely by bank erosion and resultant instream, fine sediment deposition. The majority of evidence on such effects is however based in arid and semiarid regions of the United States and Australia, with few studies relating to cool temperate climates such as Northwest Europe. In this study, “Quorer” resuspendable sediment samples were taken from riffle geomorphic units upstream (control) and at two points downstream (pressure and recovery) of cattle access points in headwater streams in agricultural catchments in Ireland to assess levels of deposited stream sediment. Samples were taken in April/May (2016) prior to the grazing season and in October (2016) at the end of the grazing season. Sites in good‐high ecological status catchments and less than good ecological status catchments were included in the study. Higher levels of sediment were found downstream of cattle access points in both good‐high status and less than good status catchments; however, the impacts of access points were spatially confined to, in most cases, the area immediately downstream of the point of access. There was a strong correlation between deposited sediment mass and organic matter (OM) mass, with levels of OM increasing linearly with deposited sediment mass. Levels of measured sediment were negatively correlated with riparian habitat health (measured using a qualitative habitat assessment). The results of this study highlight the need for measures to prevent cattle access to headwater streams where access points can be many in order to manage local habitat quality and downstream water quality issues.     

Training and optimization of an artificial neural network controlling a hybrid power filter

A hybrid power compensator (HPC) consisting of a static VAr compensator and a dynamic compensator needs to be optimally controlled during the compensation of nonlinear loads. The HPC must be controlled to meet minimum requirements in terms of power factor and harmonic distortion, while at the same time minimizing its total cost. An artificial neural network (ANN) is used to control the HPC amidst a very dynamic power system environment. The performance of a reference ANN is evaluated while controlling an HPC connected to a typical nonlinear industrial load. The training and performance of the ANN is then optimized in terms of training set size, training set packing and ANN topology and the performance compared to the reference ANN. This paper highlights the importance of optimising the mentioned ANN parameters to achieve optimum ANN training and modeling accuracy. The results obtained reveals that the application of an ANN in controlling an HPC is feasible given that the ANN parameters are chosen appropriately.     

Changes in Volatile Components of Stored Tangerines and Other Specialty Citrus Fruits with Different Coatings

ABSTRACT: Shellac and wax-based citrus coatings were applied to Fallglo, Robinson, Sunburst, Dancy and Murcott tangerines, Nova and Orlando tangelos, and Temple oranges. Flavor volatiles were measured before and after storage. Concentrations of ethyl acetate, ethyl butyrate, isopentanol and 2-methyl-3-buten-2-ol increased markedly for fruit with shellac-based coatings, and were highly correlated with ethanol content, but at different ratios for the different varieties. The concentration increases were relatively less for fruit coated with the wax-based coatings, and suggest that high-gloss shellac and resin-based coatings are not appropriate for tangerines.     

台北101层国际金融中心之结构施工技术与其设计考量概述

本文旨在简要说明目前正在施工中之超高层大楼—台北国际金融中心之结构系统、钢结构工程、钢筋混凝土工程基础与深开挖工程等特殊施工技术,并佐以相关之设计考量与施工规划概要,以供工程界做参考。     

Neuroticism and depressive symptoms among spouse caregivers: Do health behaviors mediate this relationship?

This study examined the mediating role of health behaviors in the relationship between neuroticism and depressive symptoms among spouse caregivers. Path analysis was used to test a model of the caregiver stress process among 233 caregivers of people with dementia. Results indicate that neuroticism has a significant direct effect on depressive symptoms and also indirectly influences depressive symptoms through health behaviors and perceived stress. When individual health behaviors were examined in the path model, only physical activity served a significant mediating role. These findings suggest that neuroticism may lead to depressive symptoms among caregivers partly through declines in physical activity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The function of bleaching earths in the processing of palm,palm kernel and coconut oils

The results presented in the literature, which attempt to elucidate the mechanisms by which triglyceride oils are bleached by earths, are reviewed. The impact of this work and how the mechanistic proposals affect changes in oil properties are considered, with particular emphasis on the needs of the palm oil processor. Important properties include color, metals and phosphorus content and oxidative stability of the oil. Investigations made in our own laboratories have been aimed at elucidating the effect of varying physical and chemical properties of the bleaching earth on the quality of bleached and deodorized oils. Techniques used in this work are pore-size distribution, surface area, scanning and transmission electron microscopy and a variety of chemical and X-ray analysis methods. The ability to vary such parameters in montmorillonite clays by alteration of process conditions to give materials with specific performance characteristics is demonstrated. Comparisons are made between acid-activated montmorillonites and other clay types.