Three plants extracts were used for biosynthesis of Ag nanoparticles (AgNPs). AgNPs nucleation process requires effective reduction agents which secure Ag+ to Ag0 reduction and also stabilizing/capping agents. The UV-vis and TEM observation revealed that the best results were obtained by R. officinalis leaf extract. The strong SPR band peak appeared at the wavelength 418 nm. Synthetized AgNPs were globular, fine (~20 nm), uniform and stabile throughout the experiment. A rapid rate of AgNPs synthesis was also significant and economically advantageous factor. Fine (10-20 nm) and globular nanoparticles were synthetized also by U. dioica leaf extract, but the stability of nanoparticles was not permanent. Despite V. vitis-idaea fruit extract contains a lot of reducing agents, UV-vis did not confirm the presence of AgNPs in solution. Synthetized Ag particles were very unstable, Ag particles agglomerated very fast and clearly indicated sediment was formed.
Hydrobionts are considered as highly potential source for bioproduction (including energy carriers and fertilizers) and many biotechnological processes that include hydrobionts, particularly their biomass as a substrate are used in different fields of energy, cosmetology, medicine, pharmaceutics, aquaculture, agriculture, forestry etc. Latest developments prove efficiency in applying anaerobic digestion for purifying wastewaters from organic pollutants with the help of macrophytes and microphytes in conducting biomethanogenesis. Many studies have established that it is possible to reach high level of lipid extraction from algae (to 95%) with the help of organic solvents (methanol, acetone, hexane, diethyl ether etc). Blue – green algae biomass has been scientifically proved to be a good source for methane, methanol, ethanol, propanol, isopropanol, biodiesel and other biofuel types production. Macroalgae and microalgae contain β- carotene, biotin, folic acid, fucoidans, lectins, phenolics, sulphated polysaccharides and other derived biologically active compounds that can be used in producing vitamins, have anti-ulcer, antioxidant, antibiotic, antifouling, immune modulatory and other properties. Cyanidioschyzon merolae, Ostreococcus lucimarinus, O. tauri, Micromonas pusilla have shown high potential for hydrogen production while Rhizoclonium sp. has been experimentally used as a bounding material in briquetting miscanthus granules, resulting in 20 % higher dynamic strength. The article is a literature review and the purpose of this work is to classify and systemize hydrobionts, reveal regularity of their growth, conduct critical analysis on existing biotechnologies on using separate representatives of aquatic biomes as a raw material and also to review ways of intensification for these biotechnologies.
End-of-life oriented product design (design for recycling, disassembly, remanufacturing) is considered an emerging area in modern approach to product lifecycle. Numerous tools aiding the design process have been developed, but many of them work as independent computer applications. The presented solution is strictly integrated with typical design environment: CAD 3D and PLM systems. This paper presents the application of agent technology operating in the PLM environment to support the design process. The architecture of the proposed solution is shown. A method of product assessment, based of three indicators, is described. The example analysis of real household appliance is presented
Convenient human-computer interaction is essential to carry out many exhausting and concentration-demanding activities. One of them is cyber-situational awareness as well as dynamic and static risk analysis. A specific design method for a multimodal human-computer interface (HCI) for cyber-security events visualisation control is presented. The main role of the interface is to support security analysts and network operators in their monitoring activities. The proposed method of designing HCIs is adapted from the methodology of robot control system design. Both kinds of systems act by acquiring information from the environment, and utilise it to drive the devices influencing the environment. In the case of robots the environment is purely physical, while in the case of HCIs it encompasses both the physical ambience and part of the cyber-space. The goal of the designed system is to efficiently support a human operator in the presentation of cyberspace events such as incidents or cyber-attacks. Especially manipulation of graphical information is necessary. As monitoring is a continuous and tiring activity, control of how the data is presented should be exerted in as natural and convenient way as possible. Hence two main visualisation control modalities have been assumed for testing: static and dynamic gesture commands and voice commands, treated as supplementary to the standard interaction. The presented multimodal interface is a component of the Operational Centre, which is a part of the National Cybersecurity Platform. Creation of the interface out of embodied agents proved to be very useful in the specification phase and facilitated the interface implementation.
The possibility of Cu(II), Ni(II) and Sn(II) removal from model solutions and real wastewater from
the production of PCBs using Na2
CS3
for precipitation was presented in this paper. The testing was carried out
on a laboratory scale using model and real industrial wastewater containing additives in the form of complexing
compounds used in the production of PCBs (Na2
EDTA, NH3(aq), thiourea) and recommended by the USEPA
(Na3
MGDA, Na4
GLDA). Application of Na2
CS3
in optimal conditions of conducting precipitation process was
connected with obtaining wastewater containing low concentrations of metals (Cu 0.02 mg/L, Sn <0.01 mg/L, Ni
<0.005 mg/L at pH 9.39 and Cu 0.07 mg/L, Sn <0.01 mg/L, Ni 0.006 mg/L at pH 7.79). Controlled application of
Na2
CS3
by the use of a platinum redox electrode was also connected with obtaining treated wastewater containing
low concentrations of metals (Cu 0.019 mg/L, Sn <0.05 mg/L, Ni <0.0098 mg/L at pH 9–9.5 and E= -142 mV in the
laboratory scale and Cu 0.058 mg/L, Sn <0.005 mg/L, Ni 0.011 mg/L at pH 9.14 and E= +10 mV in the industrial
scale). Changing the value of redox potential of treated wastewater by dosing Na2
CS3
made it possible to control
the precipitation process on laboratory and industrial scale by the use of a platinum redox electrode. Controlled
application of Na2
CS3
can be used to remove Cu(II), Ni(II) and Sn(II) from industrial effl uent containing chelating
compounds like Na2
EDTA, NH3(aq), thiourea, Na3
MGDA and Na4
GLDA.
The effects of different types of process control agents (PCA) on the microstructure evolution of Ni-based oxide dispersion-strengthened superalloy have been investigated. Alloy synthesis was performed on elemental powders having a nominal composition of Ni-15Cr-4.5Al-4W-2.5Ti-2Mo-2Ta-0.15Zr-1.1Y2O3 in wt % using high energy ball milling for 5 h. The prepared powders are consolidated by spark plasma sintering at 1000oC. Results indicated that the powder ball-milled with ethanol as PCA showed large particle size, low carbon content and homogeneous distribution of elemental powders compared with the powder by stearic acid. The sintered alloy prepared by ethanol as PCA exhibited a homogeneous microstructure with fine precipitates at the grain boundaries. The microstructural characteristics have been discussed on the basis of function of the PCA.
The paper presents a universal architectural pattern and an associated specification method that can be applied in the design of robot control systems. The approach describes the system in terms of embodied agents and proposes a multi-step decomposition enabling precise definition of their inner structure and operation. An embodied agent is decomposed into effectors, receptors, both real and virtual, and a control subsystem. Those entities communicate through communication buffers. The activities of those entities are governed by FSMs that invoke behaviours formulated in terms of transition functions taking as arguments the contents of input buffers and producing the values inserted into output buffers. The method is exemplified by applying it to the design of a control system of a robot executing one of the most important tasks for a service robot, i.e. picking up, by a position–force controlled robot, an object located using an RGB-D image acquired from a Kinect. Moreover in order to substantiate the universality of the presented approach we present how classical, known from the literature, robotic architectures can be expressed as systems composed of one or more embodied agents.
This paper proposes the development of a formation control algorithm of multiple acoustic underwater vehicles by employing the behaviour of autonomous mobile agents under a proposed pursuit. A robust pursuit is developed using the distributed consensus coordinated algorithm ensuring the transfer of information among the AUVs. The development of robust pursuit based on characteristics of multi-agent system is for solving the incomplete information capabilities in each agent such as asynchronous computation, decentralized data and no system global control. In unreliable and narrow banded underwater acoustic medium, the formation of AUVs based distributed coordinated consensus tracking can be accomplished under the constant or varying virtual leader’s velocity. Further, the study to achieve tracking based on virtual leader AUV’s velocity is extended to fixed and switching network topologies. Again for mild connectivity, an adjacency matrix is defined in such a way that an adaptive connectivity is ensured between the AUVs. The constant virtual leader vehicle velocity method based on consensus tracking is more robust to reduce inaccuracy because no accurate position and velocity measurements are required. Results were obtained using MATLAB and acquired outcomes are analysed for efficient formation control in presence of the underwater communication constraints.
Fly-ash is a form of production waste produced as a result of the burning of coal for energy production. Millions of tonnes of this waste are produced worldwide every year; hence it is extremely important to dispose of it in a useful way, including through treating the initial raw material to obtain a material of higher quality. The aim of the present work is to determine the suitability of processed fly-ash from lignite for reinforcing (stabilizing) soils used in the building of road foundations and embankments. The results provide a method of recycling this waste while at the same time obtaining new materials and technologies for use in road building. This is an important issue both environmentally and in terms of the positive effect that processed fly-ash can have on the stability of road structures.
This article presents the results of experiments carried out using fly-ash produced from lignite at the P¹tnów Power Plant. This ash was first modified (activated) using a Wapeco magnetic activator, and then used to produce hydraulic binders (with the addition of cement) and soil-binder mixtures. These mixtures were made using natural soils from seven different deposits in the Lubuskie region (western Poland). They were stabilized using two hydraulic binders (strength ratings 3 MPa and 9 MPa) added in different amounts (6% and 8% relative to the mass of the soil). During the experiment, a determination was made of the increase in the strength of the analysed samples (after 14, 28, and 42 days) and the increase in the bearing ratio (immediately after consolidation and after 7 days).
Interpretation of the results of the experiment made it possible to assess the dynamics of the increase in compression strength and load-bearing capacity of various soils stabilized with hydraulic binders produced from lignite ash, and to indicate possibilities for the use of these materials.
The analysis showed that it is possible to use these binders for the stabilisation of soils, enabling soils formerly considered to have weak load-bearing capacity (clayey sand; clayey, sandy gravel; clays) to be classified as fully usable in road construction.
Acoustical Driving Forces (ADF), induced by propagating waves in a homogeneous and inhomogeneous lossy fluid (suspension), are determined and compared depending on the concentration of suspended particles. Using integral equations of the scattering theory, the single particle (inclusion) ADF was calculated as the integral of the flux of the momentum density tensor components over the heterogeneity surface. The possibility of negative ADF was indicated. Originally derived, the total ADF acting on inclusions only, stochastically distributed in ambient fluid, was determined as a function of its concentration. The formula for the relative increase in ADF, resulting from increased concentration was derived. Numerical ADF calculations are presented. In experiments the streaming velocities in a blood-mimicking starch suspension (2 μm radius) in water and Bracco BR14 contrast agent (SF6 gas capsules, 1 μm radius) were measured as the function of different inclusions concentration. The source of the streaming and ADF was a plane 2 mm diameter 20 MHz ultrasonic transducer. Velocity was estimated from the averaged Doppler spectrum obtained from originally developed pulsed Doppler flowmeter. Numerical calculations of the theoretically derived formula showed very good agreement with the experimental results.