The coastal zone and estuaries of Quang Ninh and Hai Phong have great potential not only for economic development but also for protection and conservation of biodiversity and ecosystem. Nowadays, due to industrial, agricultural and anthropogenic activities signs of water pollution in the region have been found. The level of surface water pollution can be determined by traditional methods through observatory stations. However, a traditional approach to determine water contamination is discontinuous, and thereby makes pollution assessment of the entire estuary very difficult. Nowadays, remote sensing technology has been developed and widely applied in many fields, for instance, in monitoring water environments. Remote sensing data combined with information from in-situ observations allow for extraction of polluted components in water and accurate measurements of pollution level in the large regions ensuring objectivity. According to results obtained from Spot-5 imagery of Quang Ninh and Hai Phong, the extracted pollution components, like BOD, COD and TSS can be determined with the root mean square error, the absolute mean error and the absolute mean percentage error (%): ±4.37 (mg/l) 3.86 (mg/l), 27%; ±55.32 (mg/l), 48.30 (mg/l), 14%; and ±32.90 (mg/l), 23.38 (mg/l), 28%; respectively. Obtained outcomes guarantee objectivity in assessing water contaminant levels in the investigated regions and show the advantages of remote sensing applications in Resource and Environmental Monitoring in relation to Water – Air – Land.

Landfilling is the main method of waste disposal in Poland as well as in most countries all over the world. Leachate originating during waste deposition may be a source of ground water pollution. The aim of the paper was to characterize and compare the composition of leachate originating from three landfills in Lublin Province (Poland) and differing in their methods of waste pre-treatment. Ozonation was used in the initial trials to treat landfill leachate. Experiments were carried out to determine whether ozonation using a single dose of 1.8 gO,lm3 has the same effect on the efficiency of organic removal from leachates characterized by different ages and degrees of solid waste pretreatment. From analyses (BOD5, COD, N-NH,, heavy metals) it was concluded, that excluding some fractions (glass, paper, plastics, aluminum, fine organic fraction) from the waste mass affects the leachate quality. The studied oxidizing method was found to influence the BOD5 and COD levels

This work describes the behaviour of organic pollutants along the wadi Mouillah watercourse and its main tributaries and their impacts on the Hammam Boughrara dam, located in the NW of Algeria, in the Wilaya of Tlemcen. The use of a database relating to physico-chemical, biotic and hydrological variables, covering the period from January 2006 to December 2009, contributed to the understanding of the spatiotemporal evolution of each variable. The application of a mathematical model of the diffusion by convection-dispersion with a reaction on two characteristic parameters of organic pollution, the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD ₅) which records values above the norm, with peaks that can reach 614%, and total phosphorus (P _tot), which the concentration is always higher with maxima reaching 53 mg∙dm ^–3 favouring eutrophication; this made it possible with precision to synthesise the propagation of pollutants in the liquid mass. The results obtained on the waters of Wadi Mouillah are therefore of poor quality; there is a need to set up a rigorous water quality monitoring system, with water treatment and decontamination devices to preserve the water resources. This will allow to contribute to better management of water quality in terms of combating the spread of pollution. Therefore, they can be used to support decisions in the context of sustainable development.

Latest developments in international standardization of whole-body and hand-arm vibration are pre- sented. In addition, two German projects are presented that might have impact on international work programs in the next years.

Disorders of the heart and blood vessels are the leading cause of health problems and death. Early detection of them is extremely valuable as it can prevent serious incidents (e.g. heart attack, stroke) and associated complications. This requires extending the typical mobile monitoring methods (e.g. Holter ECG, tele-ECG) by introduction of integrated, multiparametric solutions for continuous monitoring of the cardiovascular system.

In this paper we propose the wearable system that integrates measurements of cardiac data with actual estimation of the cardiovascular risk level. It consists of two wirelessly connected devices, one designed in the form of a necklace, the another one in the form of a bracelet (wrist watch). These devices enable continuous measurement of electrocardiographic, plethysmographic (impedance-based and optical-based) and accelerometric signals. Collected signals and calculated parameters indicate the electrical and mechanical state of the heart and are processed to estimate a risk level. Depending on the risk level an appropriate alert is triggered and transmitted to predefined users (e.g. emergency departments, the family doctor, etc.).

Wireless body area network (WBAN) has evolved from Wireless personal area network (WPAN), a prominent area of research with vast applications in last decade. In WBAN, various wirelessly interconnected body node (BN) are implanted in or around the human body. Also due to advancement in technology a miniature low power device/BN is developed. The main challenge in WBAN body node is to maintain finite size of battery as well as to increase its capacity. Hence this issue can be resolved by using energy harvesting. Generally researchers have used piezoelectric, electromagnetic or solar harvester only. But, in this research energy harvesting using the hybrid optimization of Piezoelectric and Peltier sensors by controlling on-off timing of body nodes is introduced. A hybrid optimized algorithm is developed using MATLAB 2015b platform and extensive simulation is performed considering four different human gestures (relaxing, walking, running and fast running) which in turn improves overall Quality of Service (QoS) including average (packet loss, end to end delay, throughput) and overall detection efficiency.

This work outlines a unified multi-threaded, multi-scale High Performance Computing (HPC) approach for the direct numerical simulation of Fluid-Solid Interaction (FSI) problems. The simulation algorithm relies on the extended Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (XSPH) method, which approaches the fluid flow in a Lagrangian framework consistent with the Lagrangian tracking of the solid phase. A general 3D rigid body dynamics and an Absolute Nodal Coordinate Formulation (ANCF) are implemented to model rigid and flexible multibody dynamics. The twoway coupling of the fluid and solid phases is supported through use of Boundary Condition Enforcing (BCE) markers that capture the fluid-solid coupling forces by enforcing a no-slip boundary condition. The solid-solid short range interaction, which has a crucial impact on the small-scale behavior of fluid-solid mixtures, is resolved via a lubrication force model. The collective system states are integrated in time using an explicit, multi-rate scheme. To alleviate the heavy computational load, the overall algorithm leverages parallel computing on Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) cards. Performance and scaling analysis are provided for simulations scenarios involving one or multiple phases with up to tens of thousands of solid objects. The software implementation of the approach, called Chrono::Fluid, is part of the Chrono project and available as an open-source software.

This work presents the results of numerical modeling of Karman vortex street generation performed with ANSYS/FLUENT package application. The influence of the mechanical elements located downstream of the bluff body on the vortex frequency has been found during earlier laboratory investigations. Five various geometrical configurations have been tested. Considerable differences in pictures of distributions of pressure, horizontal and vertical velocities have appeared for various configurations. Qualitative as well as quantitative results are presented in the paper. They confirm the significant dependence of the Karman vortex street parameters on the meter configuration.

In order for the working status of the aluminum alloyed hydraulic valve body to be controlled in actual conditions, a new friction and wear

design device was designed for the cast iron and aluminum alloyed valve bodies comparison under the same conditions. The results

displayed that: (1) The oil leakage of the aluminum alloyed hydraulic valve body was higher than the corresponding oil leakage of the iron

body during the initial running stage. Besides during a later running stage, the oil leakage of the aluminum alloyed body was lower than

corresponding oil leakage of the iron body; (2) The actual oil leakage of different materials consisted of two parts: the foundation leakage

that was the leakage of the valve without wear and wear leakage that was caused by the worn valve body; (3) The aluminum alloyed valve

could rely on the dust filling furrow and melting mechanism that led the body surface to retain dynamic balance, resulting in the valve

leakage preservation at a low level. The aluminum alloy modified valve body can meet the requirements of hydraulic leakage under

pressure, possibly constituting this alloy suitable for hydraulic valve body manufacturing.

The objective of this study was to determine the association between subclinical acidosis (SARA) and subclinical ketosis (SCK) with biomarkers from an automatic milking system (AMS) measuring in relation to rumination time (RT), milk yield (MY), bodyweight (BW), milk temperature, the milk fat-to-protein ratio, and the electrical conductivity of milk at the udder quarters-level which can be read in fresh dairy cows. During the course of the study, all of the fresh dairy cows (n=711) were examined according to a general clinical investigation plan. The cows were selected for 1-30 days of milk (DIM) and were milked using Lely Astronaut® A3 milking robots with free traffic. Rumination time shows a statistically significant positive correlation with milk yield (milk temperature) and is negatively correlated with the fat and protein ratio. Healthy cows demonstrated the highest level of rumination time and the lowest milk temperature. The average BW for these cows was 1.64% lower than for the SARA group and the BW kg was 2.10% higher than SCK cows. MY was 14.01% lower in comparison with SARA and 6.42% higher in comparison with SCK. According to these results, some biomarkers from the AMS have an association with SARA and SCK. However, further research with a higher number of cows is needed to confirm this conclusion.

In order to study the effects of various gating systems on the casting of a complex aluminum alloyed multi-way valve body, both software simulation analysis and optimization were carried out. Following, the aluminum alloyed multi-way valve body was cast to check the pouring of the aluminum alloy valve body. The computer simulation results demonstrated that compared to the single side casting mode, the casting method of both sides of the gating system would reduce the filling of the external gas, while the air contact time would be lower. Adversely, due to the pouring on both sides, the melt cannot reach at the same time, leading to the liquid metal speed into the cavity to differ, which affected the liquid metal filling stability. The riser unreasonable setting led to the solidification time extension, resulting in a high amount of casting defects during solidification. Also, both gating systems led the entire casting inconsequential solidification. To overcome the latter problems, a straight gate was set at the middle pouring and the horizontal gate diversion occurred on both sides of pouring, which could provide better casting results for the aluminum alloyed multi-valve body.

This paper is devoted to the problem of the appearance of a stagnation region during Karman vortex shedding. This particular phenomenon has been addressed by G. Birkhoff in his model of vortices generation. Experimental results obtained by various research methods confirm the existence of a stagnation region. The properties of this stagnation region have been described based on experimental findings involving flow visualisation and hot-wire anemometry. Special attention has been paid to the relationship between the existence of a slit in the bluff body and the size of the stagnation region. The slit takes over the role of the stagnation region as an information channel for generating vortices.

This work deals with the effectiveness of a multi-body approach for the study of the dynamic behavior of a fixed landing gear, especially the research project concerns the drop tests of the AP.68 TP-300 aircraft. First, the Digital Mock-up of the of landing gear system in a C.A.D. software has been created, then the experimental structural stiffness of the leaf spring has been validated using the FEM tools MSC.Patran/Nastran. Finally, the entire model has been imported in MSC.ADAMS environment and, according to the certifying regulations, several multi-body simulations have been performed varying the heights of fall and the weights of the system. The results have shown a good correlation between numerical and experimental tests, thus demonstrating the potential of a multi-body approach. Future development of the present activity will probably be an application of the methodology, herein validated, to other cases for a more extensive validation of its predictive power and development of virtual certification procedures.

This paper describes assumptions, goals, methods, results and conclusions related to fuel tank arrangement of a flying wing passenger airplane configuration. A short overview of various fuel tank systems in use today of different types of aircraft is treated as a starting point for designing a fuel tank system to be used on very large passenger airplanes. These systems may be used to move fuel around the aircraft to keep the centre of gravity within acceptable limits, to maintain pitch and lateral balance and stability. With increasing aircraft speed, the centre of lift moves aft, and for trimming the elevator or trimmer must be used thereby increasing aircraft drag. To avoid this, the centre of gravity can be shifted by pumping fuel from forward to aft tanks. The lesson learnt from this is applied to minimise trim drag by moving the fuel along the airplane. Such a task can be done within coming days if we know the minimum drag versus CG position and weight value. The main part of the paper is devoted to wing bending moment distribution. A number of arrangements of fuel in airplane tanks are investigated and a scenario of refuelling – minimising the root bending moments – is presented. These results were obtained under the assumption that aircraft is in long range flight (14 hours), CL is constant and equal to 0.279, Specific Fuel Consumption is also constant and that overall fuel consumption is equal to 20 tons per 1 hour. It was found that the average stress level in wing structure is lower if refuelling starts from fuel tanks located closer to longitudinal plane of symmetry. It can influence the rate of fatigue.

A one-dimensional model based on the Fourier’s theory of heat conduction is developed for ring-like bodies. The ring-like body is an incomplete or complete torus with arbitrary cross section. The thermal properties of considered rings are independent of the polar angle. Examples illustrate the application of model presented.

Although chaetognaths inhabiting polar ecosystems are relatively well known, there are few reports on their functioning in the Antarctic coastal plankton community. The presented results provide the first comprehensive description of population structure of chaetognaths in the neritic zone west of the Antarctic Peninsula. The studies were performed on samples collected in Admiralty Bay, from December 1994 to June 1995. Following six chaetognath species were determined: Eukrohnia hamata, E. bathypelagica, E. fowleri, Pseudosagitta gazellae, P. maxima and Solidosagitta marri. The representatives of Eukrohnia were observed almost throughout the research period, whereas those of Pseudosagitta and Solidosagitta were found only during first four months of our investigation. Eukrohnia hamata showed a strong dominance in respect to abundance (max. 445 ind./1000 m3). The mean abundance of all taxa significantly fluctuated in the study period and across weeks. Generally, all species were represented by the first three maturity stages (I-III), individuals stage IV occurred sporadically, and mature specimens (stage V) were not recorded at all. Morphometric analysis of the most abundant species showed distinct differences in their total length and body proportions. Our findings may suggest that chaetognath populations in Admiralty Bay are migrant, dependent on the inflow of water from the Bransfield Strait, but to prove this statement further, round year study is necessary.

A low-dimensional physical model of small-amplitude oscillations of the vocal folds is proposed here. The model is a simplified version of the body-cover one in which mucosal surface wave propagation has been approximated by the seesaw-like oscillation of the vocal fold about its fulcrum point whose position is adjustable in both the horizontal and vertical directions. This approach works for 180 degree phase difference between the glottal entry and exit displacements. The fulcrum point position has a significant role in determining the shape of the glottal flow. The vertical position of the fulcrum point determines the amplitude of the glottal exit displacement, while its horizontal position governs the shape and amplitude of the glottal flow. An increment in its horizontal position leads to an increase in the amplitude of the glottal flow and the time period of the opening and closing phases, as well as a decrease in the time period of the closed phase. The proposed model is validated by comparing its results with the low-dimensional mucosal surface wave propagation model.

This work focuses on finding a numerical solution for vehicle acoustic studies and improving the usefulness of the numerical experimental parameters for the development stage of a new automotive project. Specifically, this research addresses the importance of modal cavity damping for vehicle exerts during numerical studies. It then seeks to suggest standardized parameter values of modal cavity damping in vehicular acoustic studies. The standardized value of modal cavity damping is of great importance for the study of vehicular acoustics in the automotive industry because it would allow the industry to begin studies of the acoustic performance of a new vehicle early in the conception phase with a reliable estimation that would be close to the final value measured in the design phase. It is common for the automotive industry to achieve good levels of numerical-experimental correlation in acoustic studies after the prototyping phase because this phase can be studied with feedback from the simulation and experimental modal parameters. Thus, this research suggests values for modal cavity damping, which are divided into two parts due to their behaviour: ξ(x) = -0.0126(x − 100) + 6.15 as a variable function to analyse up to 100 Hz and 6.15% of modal cavity damping constant for studies between 30 Hz and 100 Hz. The sequence of this study shows how we arrived at these values.

The aim of this study was to determine the impact of the temperature of wastewater in a biological reactor with activated sludge and the BOD₅/N-NH₄ ratio in the influent to the treatment plant on nitrification efficiency and the concentration of ammonium nitrogen in treated wastewater. Tests were carried out in a household wastewater treatment plant which collects and treats sewage from a school building and a teacher’s house. During the 3-year study, large fluctuations in the sewage temperature in bioreactor were noted which was closely related to the ambient temperature. There were also large fluctuations in the concentration of organic matter and the concentration of ammonium nitrogen in inflowing sewage. The influence of wastewater temperature in the bioreactor and the BOD₅/N-NH₄ ratio on the concentration of ammonium nitrogen in treated wastewater was determined using Pearson’s linear correlation. A statistical analysis showed that a 1°C decrease in the temperature of wastewater in the bioreactor increased the concentration of ammonium nitrogen in treated wastewater by 2.64 mgN-NH₄·L^-1. Moreover, it was found that nitrification depended on the ratio of BOD₅ to the concentration of ammonium nitrogen in wastewater flowing into the bioreactor. An increase in the BOD₅/N-NH₄ ratio by 1 value led to a 5.41 mgN-NH₄·L^-1 decrease in the concentration of ammonium nitrogen.

One of the applications of tether system is in the field of satellite technology, where the mother ship and satellite equipment are connected with a cable. In order to grasp the motion of this kind of tether system in detail, the tether can be effectively modeled as flexible body and dealt by multibody dynamic analysis. In the analysis and modeling of flexible body of tether, large deformation and large displacement must be considered. Multibody dynamic analysis such as Absolute Nodal Coordinate Formulation with an introduction of the effect of damping force formulation can be used to describe the motion behavior of a flexible body. In this study, a parameter identification technique via an experimental approach is proposed in order to verify the modeling method. An example of swing-up control using the genetic algorithm control approach is performed through simulation and experiment. The validity of the model and availability of motion control based on multibody dynamics analysis are shown by comparison between numerical simulation and experiment.

The article provides a theoretical basis for a method allowing to calculate probability of effects of electric shock, as well as a method for determining probabilistic characteristics of random touch current values and of human body impedance in a person who suffered from specific effects of electric shock. Results of example calculations are presented, including probabilities of occurrence of sensory symptoms, exceeding the letgo threshold, and development of ventricular fibrillation, as well as probabilistic characteristics of random touch current values and of impedance of human body in people who experienced specific effects of electric shock.

Gas-liquid flows abound in a great variety of industrial processes. Correct recognition of the regimes of a gasliquid flow is one of the most formidable challenges in multiphase flow measurement. Here we put forward a novel approach to the classification of gas-liquid flow patterns. In this method a flow-pattern map is constructed based on the average energy of intrinsic mode function and the volumetric void fraction of gas-liquid mixture. The intrinsic mode function is extracted from the pressure fluctuation across a bluff body using the empirical mode decomposition technique. Experiments adopting air and water as the working fluids are conducted in the bubble, plug, slug, and annular flow patterns at ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure. Verification tests indicate that the identification rate of the flow-pattern map developed exceeds 90%. This approach is appropriate for the gas-liquid flow pattern identification in practical applications.

High resolution body surface potential maps and an equivalent current dipole model of the cardiac generator were used to assess the heart state in two abnormal conditions: WPW syndrome with single accessory pathway and local ventricular ischemia. Results of a simulation study and experimental verification of the method for both cardiologic abnormalities are presented. Single accessory pathway in WPW syndrome was simulated as initial ventricular activation at the atrio-ventricular ring. Using a current dipole model of the cardiac generator, the locus of arrhythmogenic tissue was assessed with a mean error of 11 mm. Experimental localization of the accessory pathway in a WPW patient was in good agreement with the invasively obtained site. Local repolarization changes were simulated as shortening of the myocytes action potentials in three regions typical for stenosis of main coronary arteries. Using surface QRST integral maps and dipolar source model, small subendocardial and subepicardial lesions of myocardium were inversely located with a mean error of 9 mm and larger transmural lesions with a considerable mean error of 17 mm. Extent and prevalence of subepicardial or subendocardial type of the lesion were reflected in the dipole moment and orientation. In experimental verification of the method, in 7 of 8 patients that underwent PCI of a single vessel, estimated equivalent current dipole position matched well the treated vessel. The results suggest that diagnostic interpretation of body surface potential maps based on dipolar source model could be a useful tool to assess local pathological changes in the heart.