Active XML-based Web data integration

Today, the Web is the largest source of information worldwide. There is currently a strong trend for decision-making applications such as Data Warehousing (DW) and Business Intelligence (BI) to move onto the Web, especially in the cloud. Integrating data into DW/BI applications is a critical and time-consuming task. To make better decisions in DW/BI applications, next generation data integration poses new requirements to data integration systems, over those posed by traditional data integration. In this paper, we propose a generic, metadata-based, service-oriented, and event-driven approach for integrating Web data timely and autonomously. Beside handling data heterogeneity, distribution and interoperability, our approach satisfies near real-time requirements and realize active data integration. For this sake, we design and develop a framework that utilizes Web standards (e.g., XML and Web services) for tackling data heterogeneity, distribution and interoperability issues. Moreover, our framework utilizes Active XML (AXML) to warehouse passive data as well as services to integrate active and dynamic data on-the-fly. AXML embedded services and changes detection services ensure near real-time data integration. Furthermore, the idea of integrating Web data actively and autonomously revolves around mining events logged by the data integration environment. Therefore, we propose an incremental XML-based algorithm for mining association rules from logged events. Then, we define active rules dynamically upon mined data to automate and reactivate integration tasks. Finally, as a proof of concept, we implement a framework prototype as a Web application using open-source tools.     

Royal Crown Shaped Polarization Insensitive Perfect Metamaterial Absorber for C-, X-, and Ku-Band Applications

This study proposed a new royal crown-shaped polarisation insensitive double negative triple band microwave range electromagnetic metamaterial absorber (MA). The primary purpose of this study is to utilise the exotic characteristics of this perfect metamaterial absorber (PMA) for microwave wireless communications. The fundamental unit cell of the proposed MA consists of two pentagonal-shaped resonators and two inverse C-shaped metallic components surrounded by a split ring resonator (SRR). The bottom thin copper deposit and upper metallic resonator surface are disjoined by an FR-4 dielectric substrate with 1.6 mm thickness. The CST MW studio, a high-frequency electromagnetic simulator has been deployed for numerical simulation of the unit cell in the frequency range of 4 to 14 GHz. In the TE mode, the offered MA structure demonstrated three different absorption peaks at 6.85 GHz (C-band), 8.87 GHz (X-band), and 12.03 GHz (Ku-band), with 96.82%, 99.24%, and 99.43% absorptivity, respectively. The electric field, magnetic field, and surface current distribution were analysed using Maxwell’s-Curl equations, whereas the angle sensitivity was investigated to comprehend the absorption mechanism of the proposed absorber. The numerical results were verified using the Ansys HFSS (high-frequency structure simulator) and ADS (advanced design system) for equivalent circuit models. Moreover, the proposed MA is polarisation and incident angle independent. Hence, the application of this MA can be extended to a great extent, including airborne radar applications, defence, and stealth-coating technology.     

Inhibition effect of a synthesized N, N＇-bis（2-hydroxybenzaldehyde）- 1, 3-propandiimine on corrosion of mild steel in HC1

The corrosion inhibition of mild steel in 1 mol/L HCl by N, N′-bis (2-hydroxybenzaldehyde)-1, 3-propandiimine (2-HBP) has been investigated by using potentiodynamic polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and chronoamperometry measurements. The experimental results suggest that this compound is an excellent corrosion inhibitor for mild steel and the inhibition efficiency increases with the increase in inhibitor concentration. Polarization curves reveal that this organic compound is a mixed type inhibitor. The effect of temperature on the corrosion behavior of mild steel with the addition of the Schiff base was studied in the temperature range from 25℃ to 65℃. The experimentally obtained adsorption isotherms follow the Langmuir equation. Activation and thermodynamic adsorption parameters such as E a , ΔH, ΔS, K ads and ΔG ads were calculated by the corrosion currents at different temperatures and using the adsorption isotherm. The morphology of mild steel surface in the absence and presence of 2-HBP was examined by atomic force microscope (AFM) images.     

Proximity effects of a layered periodic structure on miniaturization of patch antennas

A miniaturized microstrip antenna on a planar layered periodic structure is proposed, designed and fabricated. The proposed structure miniaturizes patch antennas in the microwave band. With varying the parameters of the proposed structure, the achieved miniaturization factor can be adjusted in the range 2.6–4.2. Numerical and experimental results are presented. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE, 2013.     

Design equations for prediction of pressuremeter soil deformation moduli utilizing expression programming systems

Providing precise estimations of soil deformation modulus is very difficult due to its dependence on many factors. In this study, gene expression programming (GEP) and multi-expression programming (MEP) systems are presented to derive empirical equations for the prediction of the pressuremeter soil deformation modulus. The employed expression programming (EP) systems formulate the soil deformation modulus in terms of the soil physical properties. Selection of the best models is on the basis of developing and controlling several models with different combinations of the affecting parameters. The proposed EP-based models are established upon 114 pressuremeter tests on different soil types conducted in this study. The generalization capabilities of the models are verified using several statistical criteria. Contributions of the variables influencing the soil modulus are evaluated through a sensitivity analysis. The GEP and MEP approaches accurately characterize the soil deformation modulus resulting in a very good prediction performance. The result indicates that moisture content and soil dry unit weight can efficiently represent the initial state and consolidation history of soil for determining its modulus.     

Impact of the wastedump ecosystem (phosphate ore dressing manufacture,Aswan, Egypt) on the surrounding environment

This study deals with evaluation of the impact of wastedump resulting from the phosphate ore dressing near the Mahamead Village (120 km north Aswan City), Aswan Governorate, Egypt, on the surrounding environment. The results indicate that the waste dump ecosystem contains elevated concentrations of Ca, Na, Cl～, SO^” and HCOJ as well as, relatively high concentrations of Fe, Mn, Pb and Cd. High pH (8.28–8.97) in all samples minimized the adverse effect on the soil and groundwater. The aerial parts of emergent weeds growing in the waste dump which used in this region as animal feed accumulate permissible limits of toxic metals. The wastedump can be a potential hazard to health and wildlife, if drainage from this dump (waste water) enters the Nile river.     

A method for treating wastewater containing formaldehyde

Many industrial activities utilise formaldehyde as a key chemical in organic synthesis including: synthesis of special chemicals such as pentaerythritol and ethylene glycol, synthetic resins, paper products, medicinal products and drugs and others, too numerous to mention. Therefore, effluents arising from these applications may contain significant amounts of formaldehyde. In a biodegradation experiments of a wastewater sample containing formaldehyde ranging from 31.5 to 125 mg/l, residual formalin (a solution of formaldehyde gas in water) ranging from 40% to 85%, respectively, was found at the end of the run (16 d) showing the inhibition effect of formalin which increased with the increase in formalin concentration. The biodegradation of formalin decreased significantly at concentrations higher than 300 mg/l. A method to convert formaldehyde to an easily biodegradable substance is herein described. In the commercial manufacture of resins from phenol and formalin the reaction is never completely quantitative. As a result during the dehydration stage phenol and formalin are distilled from the wastewater. Phenol is toxic to several biochemical reactions. However, biological transformation of phenol to a non-toxic entity is possible through specialized microbes. Transformation of phenol is inhibited by the presence of formaldehyde. Biotransformation of phenol in a wastewater containing high concentrations of formaldehyde started shortly after treating the wastewater with calculated amounts of sodium sulphite. Sodium sulphite is believed to react with formaldehyde forming sodium formaldehyde bisulphite, which is not only non-toxic to microorganisms but also a biodegradable substance. From the DO measurements before and after the addition of sodium sulphite, the authors noticed that the dissolved oxygen in a wastewater containing formaldehyde is not affected by the addition of the calculated amount of sodium sulphite, which is just enough to consume the measured amount of formaldehyde in that wastewater.     

The idealized structural unit method and its application to deep girder structures

An efficient method of analysis of non-linear behavior until collapse of large size redundant structures is presented. The method is named as The “Idealized Structural Unit Method”. In this method the structure is divided into the biggest possible “Structural Units” whose geometric and material nonlinear behavior can be idealized and described in a concise analytical-numerical form. The structure is reassembled and load is applied incrementally until ultimate strength is attained.In this method, modeling is an obvious operation of dividing the structure into its actual structural units. This eliminates the effort required for the choice of type of element or size of mesh as in the finite element method. The number of structural units and overall degrees of freedom required for the analysis of a structure by this method are less in order than the number of elements and overall degrees of freedom required to analyze the same structure by the FEM. Costs of computer and data preparation may be drastically reduced.Application of the method to metal structures built up of deep I girders, such as bridge girders, ships deep girders and grillage structures is considered. The “Girder Structural Unit” is defined and its behavior under increasing loads is idealized based on existing as well as newly developed theoretical and experimental studies. Conditions for web bucking, ultimate strength and full plastic strength are established and expressions for stiffness during various stages are derived. A deep girder structure may then be treated as an assembly of such “Girder Structural Units”. Results of analysis of example structures are presented. The consumed computer time is found to be very short, as expected. Comparisons with results of experimental studies show good agreement.     

Response of nonlinear sampled-data systems with nonzero initial conditions and response for in-between sampling via Volterra series

Nonzero initial conditions are included in the Volterra series solution of a class of nonlinear sampled-data systems that is described by ordinary difference equations with constant coefficients. Also, it is shown how one can find an upper bound on the intersampling response of the system under consideration. These developments are made through the use of the Banach fixed-point theorem.     

Monitoring of the pesticide levels in some water supplies and agricultural land, in El-Haram, Giza (A.R.E.)

Monitoring of pesticide residues were conducted at different locations in the El-Haram region Giza, Egypt. The water samples were collected from El-Haram Giza, canal water supplies (El-Zomor, Abd-el-aal land and seaside and El-Mansorya), in addition to El-Moheet drainage water. The soil samples were collected from the arable land that surrounds water canals. Water samples were obtained by solid phase extraction (SPE) and soil samples by gel permeation chromatography (GPC). The combination of gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy with different ionization techniques was used for determination and identification of the pesticides, which were quantitatively determined as 1 microgram 1(-1) levels in environmental samples. The residues of pesticides were varied between different locations. Also, organochlorine pesticide residues in El-Moheet drainage water were relatively higher than in the canal water. The concentrations of organophosphorous compounds (chlorpyrifos, dimethoate and parathion) seem to be low in water as compared to soil samples. Most findings were less than 1 microgram g(-1), which is considered a low-level finding. Sixteen organochlorine pesticides were detected in most of the water samples and the percent of positive samples followed the order drins > total BHC > total DDT > endosulfan > heptachlor epoxid > heptachlor. Pentachlorophenol (PCP) was detected only in El-Zomor and Abd-el-aal canal water. Results obtained confirm the presence of different pesticide residues representing different chemical classes in the canal waters. This means that the discharging of wastes in to the water supplies must be controlled. Drainage water was highly polluted and contains much more pesticide residues than different canal waters.