Lean production system design for fishing net manufacturing using lean principles and simulation optimization

Value stream mapping (VSM) is a useful tool for describing the manufacturing state, especially for distinguishing between those activities that add value and those that do not. It can help in eliminating non-value activities and reducing the work in process (WIP) and thereby increase the service level. This research follows the guidelines for designing future state VSM. These guidelines consist of five factors which can be changed simply, without any investment. These five factors are (1) production unit; (2) pacemaker process; (3) number of batches; (4) production sequence; and (5) supermarket size. The five factors are applied to a fishing net manufacturing system. Using experimental design and a simulation optimizing tool, the five factors are optimized. The results show that the future state maps can increase service level and reduce WIP by at least 29.41% and 33.92% respectively. For the present study, the lean principles are innovatively adopted in solving a fishing net manufacturing system which is not a well-addressed problem in literature. In light of the promising empirical results, the proposed methodologies are also readily applicable to similar industries.     

Alternatives for improving energy security in Cape Verde

The lack of consensus on the meaning of energy security and how it should be measured hinders the evaluation of alternatives for improving the Cape Verdean energy sector. The objective of the paper is to develop an energy security index adjusted to the country's context. The methods used are the multi-criteria analysis and the Delphi survey. Different alternatives to improve energy security are assessed: electrically interconnect Cape Verde's islands, increase the share of renewable energy, and a combination of the previous alternatives. The results of our analysis indicate that increasing renewable energy is the optimal alternative for Cape Verde.     

Stream-Based Data Sampling Mechanism for Process Object

Process object is the instance of process. Vertexes and edges are in the graph of process object. There are different types of the object itself and the associations between object. For the large-scale data, there are many changes reflected. Recently, how to find appropriate real-time data for process object becomes a hot research topic. Data sampling is a kind of finding c hanges o f p rocess o bjects. There i s r equirements f or s ampling to be adaptive to underlying distribution of data stream. In this paper, we have proposed a adaptive data sampling mechanism to find a ppropriate d ata t o m odeling. F irst o f all, we use concept drift to make the partition of the life cycle of process object. Then, entity community detection is proposed to find changes. Finally, we propose stream-based real-time optimization of data sampling. Contributions of this paper are concept drift, community detection, and stream-based real-time computing. Experiments show the effectiveness and feasibility of our proposed adaptive data sampling mechanism for process object.     

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.     

杭州湾南岸滩涂沉积物中HCHs与DDTs污染特征分析

摘 要：目的 了解六六六（hexachlorocyclohexanes,HCHs）与滴滴涕(dichloro diphenyl trichloroethanes,DDTs)在杭州湾南岸滩涂沉积物中的污染现状。方法 于2018年4月，采集杭州湾南岸地区4个采样点不同深度（0~80 cm）滩涂沉积物，利用气相色谱-串联质谱法（gas chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, GC-MS/MS）测定了该区域中HCHs与DDTs的含量，对其分布规律进行分析，使用共识沉积物质量基准法对其生态学风险进行了评估。结果 所有样品中均检出，HCHs与DDTs含量分别为4.20~6.24 μg/kg与3.37~4.73 μg/kg，主要以β-HCH、δ-HCH以及DDE为主，其污染主要来源于历史性工业品，整体污染处于较低水平；20.3%的沉积物样品中DDEs含量以及28.1%的样品DDTs总量介于阈值效应浓度(threshold concentration, TECs) 和可能效应浓度(probable effect concentration, PECs)之间。结论 杭州湾南岸沉积物中HCHs与DDTs的污染处于较低水平，具有较小的生态学风险。     

Biodegradability Study of the Biosurfactant Contained in a Crude Extract from Corn Steep Water

Over the last few years, the global biosurfactant market has raised due to the increasing awareness among consumers, for the use of biological or bio-based products. Because of their composition, it can be speculated that these are more biocompatible and more biodegradable than their chemical homologous. However, at the moment, no studies exist in the literature about the biodegradability of biosurfactants. In this work, a biosurfactant contained in a crude extract, obtained from a corn wet-milling industry stream that ferments spontaneously in the presence of lactic acid bacteria, was subjected to a biodegradation study, without addition of external microbial biomass, under different conditions of temperature (5–45 °C), biodegradation time (15–55 days), and pH (5–7). For that, a Box–Behnken factorial design was applied, which allowed to predict the percentage of biodegradation for the biosurfactant contained in the crude extract, between the range of the independent variables selected in the study, obtaining biodegradation values between 3 and 80%. The percentage of biodegradation for the biosurfactant was calculated based on the increase in the surface tension of samples of the crude extract. Furthermore, it was also possible to predict the variation in t_1/2 for the biosurfactant (time to achieve the 50% of biodegradation) under different conditions.     

Malic acid production from renewables: a review

Malic acid derived from fossil resources is currently applied in the food and beverage industries with a medium global production capacity. However, in the transition from a fossil-based to a bio-based economy, biotechnologically produced l -malic acid may become an important platform chemical with many new applications, especially in the field of biopolymers. In this review, currently used petrochemical production routes to dl -malic acid are outlined and insights into possible bio-based alternatives for microbial l -malic acid production are provided. Besides ecological reasons, the possibility to produce enantiopure l -malic acid by microbial fermentation is the biggest advantage over chemical synthesis. State-of-the-art and open challenges concerning production host engineering, substrate choice and downstream processing are addressed. With regard to production hosts, a literature overview is given covering the leading natural production strains of Aspergillus, Ustilago and Aureobasidium, as well as Escherichia coli as the most important engineered recombinant host. The utilization of renewable substrates as an alternative to glucose is emphasized in particular as a key aspect for a competitive bio-based production. Out of the alternative substrates discussed in this review, the industrial side-streams crude glycerol and molasses seem to be most promising for large-scale l -malic acid production. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.     

流域泥沙灾害与泥沙资源性的研究

泥沙灾害与泥沙资源性是流域泥沙的重要属性,二者在一定条件下可以相互转化。本文论述了泥沙淤积、泥沙冲刷、岸滩崩塌、山地崩塌与泥石流、粗沙淤积的土地沙化等泥沙灾害,指出泥沙灾害具有时空分布的不均匀性、渐变性或突发性、群发性、转化性及危害严重性等;流域泥沙资源化的主要途径包括填海造陆及造地、引洪淤灌、堤防淤临淤背、建筑材料、湿地形成(河流、湖泊与河口海岸)等,指出流域泥沙资源化及其优化配置既要解决思想观念、基本理论、目标效益等方面的问题,还要考虑与水资源联合配置问题。     

Quantifying and characterizing contemporary riparian sedimentation

Fluvial processes of erosion, sediment transport and deposition determine the changing form and sedimentary structure of naturally adjusting riparian zones. Riparian sediment storage has both scientific and management importance in relation to: (i) the quantities of sediment that are involved; (ii) the quality of the sediment; and (iii) the dispersal of biological materials, notably the vegetation propagules that are transported and deposited in association with the sediment. After discussing the significance of riparian sedimentation processes, this paper reviews methods for quantifying contemporary sediment deposition within water bodies and their margins. Methods for investigating contemporary riparian sedimentation are given particular emphasis, and the extent to which different methods provide comparable estimates and have been used to support the analysis of different physical and chemical properties of the sediment are outlined. The importance of the following are stressed: (i) selecting a sampling method that is suited to the sedimentation environment; (ii) incorporating careful cross‐calibration if measurements from different methods are to be combined; and (iii) replicating measurements to give more robust estimates if small traps are employed. It is concluded that artificial turf mats provide a useful design of sediment trap across a range of environmental conditions because: (i) their surface roughness reduces problems of sediment removal by flood waters or rainfall; (ii) their pliability permits installation on irregular surfaces; (iii) they can be securely attached to the ground with metal pins to resist high shear stresses from river flows; (iv) they are robust and light and so easily manipulated in the field and laboratory; (v) it is possible to fully recover the deposited sediment to accurately determine the amount of sediment deposited and to support a range of other analyses. Results are presented to illustrate how artificial turf mats can be used to estimate the quantity and quality of deposited sediment and to explore the associated deposition of viable seeds. This provides one example of the important hydroecological role of riparian sedimentation processes and of the potential for the development of innovative, interdisciplinary research on riparian sediment dynamics. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Electro-organic synthesis without supporting electrolyte: Possibilities of solid polymer electrolyte technology

The application of ion exchange membranes as solid polymer electrolytes (SPE) in fuel cells is state-of-the-art. This technology needs no supporting electrolyte; consequently it can be applied for electro-organic syntheses in order to save process steps. In this case the process is not predetermined to a maximized energy efficiency so that the selection of the cell design, of the electrode materials and of the operating conditions can be focused on a high selectivity of the electrode reactions. The electro-osmotic stream, which is caused by the solvation shells of the ions during their migration through the membrane, and hence is a typical property of SPE technology, has a significant effect on the electrode reactions. It generates enhanced mass transfer at the electrodes, which is beneficial for reaction selectivity. It can be influenced by the choice of, and possibly by the preparation of, the membrane. An additional remarkable advantage of SPE technology is the exceptional long durability of oxide coated electrodes. By combination of several process engineering methods stable operation of SPE cells has been realized, even for examples of non-aqueous reaction systems. Experiments up to 6000 h duration and in cells of up to 250 cm² membrane area show the potential for industrial application.