Machine learning (ML) methods has recently contributed very well in the advancement of the prediction models used for energy consumption. Such models highly improve the accuracy, robustness, and precision and the generalization ability of the conventional time series forecasting tools. This article reviews the state of the art of machine learning models used in the general application of energy consumption. Through a novel search and taxonomy the most relevant literature in the field are classified according to the ML modeling technique, energy type, perdition type, and the application area. A comprehensive review of the literature identifies the major ML methods, their application and a discussion on the evaluation of their effectiveness in energy consumption prediction. This paper further makes a conclusion on the trend and the effectiveness of the ML models. As the result, this research reports an outstanding rise in the accuracy and an ever increasing performance of the prediction technologies using the novel hybrid and ensemble prediction models.

Fossil fuels and carbon origin resources are affecting our environment. Therefore, alternative energy sources have to be established to co-produce energy along with fossil fuels and carbon origin resources until it is the right time to replace them. Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) is a promising technology in the field of energy production. Compared to the conventional power sources it is more efficient and not controlled by the Carnot cycle. Its high efficiencies, low noise, and less pollutant output could make it revolutionize in the power generation industry with a shift from centrally located generating stations and long-distance transmission lines to dispersed power generation at load sites. In this review, several characteristics of the MFC technology will be highlighted. First, a brief history of abiotic to biological fuel cells and subsequently, microbial fuel cells is presented. Second, the focus is then shifted to elements responsible for the making MFC working with efficiency. Setup of the MFC system for every element and their assembly is then introduced, followed by an explanation of the working machinery principle. Finally, microbial fuel cell designs and types of main configurations used are presented along with scalability of the technology for the proper application.

Online food delivery service (OFDS) has been widely utilized during the new normal of COVID-19 pandemic especially in a developing country such as Indonesia. The purpose of this study was to determine factors influencing customer satisfaction & loyalty in OFDS during the new normal of COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia by utilizing an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) approach. 253 respondents voluntarily participated and answered 65 questions. Structural equation modeling (SEM) indicated that Hedonic Motivation (HM) was found to have the highest effect on customer satisfaction, followed by Price (P), Information Quality (IQ), and Promotion (PRO). Interestingly, this study found out that usability factors such as Navigational Design (ND) and Perceived Ease of Use (PEOU) were not significant to customer satisfaction and loyalty in OFDS during the new normal of COVID-19. This study can be the theoretical foundation that could be very beneficial for OFDS investors, IT engineers, and even academicians. Finally, this study can be applied and extended to determine factors influencing customer satisfaction and loyalty in OFDS during the new normal of COVID-19 in other countries.

The article focuses on mining of non-energy mineral resources with minimum environmental impacts. It issues from research results of a project Competence Centre for Effective and Ecological Mining of Mineral Resources implemented at the Faculty of Mining and Geology at VŠB-Technical University of Ostrava, Czech Geological Survey, a company Watrad ltd., a state enterprise Diamo, a company RPS Ostrava plc and a company Sedlecký kaolin plc. The paper starts with a partial analysis of the existing legal norms related to mining and processing of mineral resources. Next, it analyses mineral resource mining options free of negative environmental impacts. The fundamental tool to assess potential environmental impacts of mining is the implementation of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process for a given mineral resource. In the Czech Republic environmental impact assessment is carried out by course of Act 100/2001 Coll. Its important amendment is Act 39/2015 Coll. claiming, inter alia, that the environmental impact assessment is rigidly connected with other permits and procedures, such as the zoning process and building construction permits. The article describes the environmental impacts of mining of non-energy mineral resources, including the following factors: appropriation of land, impacts on surface water, ground water and soil, noise, influence on the landscape character, and air pollution. The paper also includes a case study summarizing information on the environmental factors that may play a role in potential underground mining of graphite in the deposit Český Krumlov - Městský Vrch and the deposit Lazec - Křenov.

Choice of the salts of therapeutic agents or active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) is based on the physicochemical properties of API and the dosage form considerations. The appropriate salt can have positive effect on overall therapeutic and pharmaceutical effects of API. However, the incorrect salt form can negatively affect the overall pharmaceutical outcomes of the API. This review addresses various criteria for choosing appropriate salt form along with the effect of salt forms on API’s pharmaceutical properties. In addition to comprehensive review of the criteria, this review also gives a brief historic perspective of the salt selection process.

Starting from December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has emerged as a once-in-a-century pandemic with deadly consequences, which urgently calls for new treatments, cures and supporting apparatuses. Remdesivir was reported by World Health Organization (WHO) as the most promising drug currently available for the treatment of COVID-19. Here, we use molecular dynamics simulations and free energy perturbation methods to study the inhibition mechanism of remdesivir to its target SARS-CoV-2 virus RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp). In the absence of a crystal structure of the SARS-CoV-2 RdRp, we first construct the homology model of this polymerase based on a previously available structure of SARS-CoV NSP12 RdRp (with a sequence identify of 95.8%). We then build the putative binding mode by aligning the remdesivir + RdRp complex to the ATP bound poliovirus RdRp. The putative binding structure is further optimized with molecular dynamics simulations and demonstrated to be stable, indicating a reasonable binding mode for remdesivir. The relative binding free energy of remdesivir is calculated to be -8.28 ± 0.65 kcal/mol, much stronger than the natural substrate ATP (-4.14 ± 0.89 kcal/mol) which is needed for the polymerization. The ~800-fold improvement in the K_d from remdesivir over ATP indicates an effective replacement of APT in blocking of the RdRp binding pocket. Key residues D618, S549 and R555 are found to be the contributors to the binding affinity of remdesivir. These findings demonstrate that remdesivir can potentially act as a SARS-CoV-2 RNA-chain terminator, effectively stopping its RNA reproduction, with key residues also identified for future lead optimization and/or drug resistance studies.

Bodybuilders utilize peaking strategies in a bid to fine-tune their aesthetics for competition day. The most prevalent peaking strategies utilized by natural bodybuilders are unreported in the current literature. Eighty-one (M - 59, F - 22) natural bodybuilders were recruited from competitions during the 2016 and 2017 British Natural Bodybuilder Federation seasons. Competitors completed a 34-item questionnaire designed to investigate peaking and contest day strategies. The questionnaire listed commonly utilized peaking strategies and provided additional space for qualitative information. Analysis of the data indicated that carbohydrate (CHO), water and sodium manipulation were the most commonly utilized peak week strategies. The consumption of high glycemic index CHO was the most common competition day strategy. Only 6.2 % of competitors reported following their regular diet the week prior to competition. The CHO manipulation strategies were similar to classical CHO loading, whereby bodybuilders attempt to maximize muscle glycogen concentrations. Furthermore, bodybuilders attempted to remove superfluous water by exploiting the diuretic/polyuria effect associated with water loading/restriction. The potentially deleterious effects of peaking on bodybuilders' health is considered and the efficacy of these strategies to enhance appearance is discussed. The findings of the present investigation are likely to be of interest to bodybuilders and their coaches.

Very well into the dawn of the fourth industrial revolution (industry 4.0), we hardly distinguish between what is artificial and what is natural (e.g. man-made virus and natural virus). Thus, the level of discombobulation among people, companies or countries is indeed unprecedented. The fact that industry 4.0 is explosively disrupting or retrofitting each and every industrial sector, makes industry 4.0 the famous buzzword amongst researchers today. However, the insight of industry 4.0 disruption in the industrial sectors remains ill-defined in both academic and non-academic literature. The present study aimed at identifying industry 4.0 neologisms, understanding the industry 4.0 disruption and illustrating the disruptive technologies convergence in the major industrial sectors. A total of 99 neologisms of industry 4.0 were identified. Industry 4.0 disruption in Education industry (Education 4.0), Energy industry (Energy 4.0), Agriculture industry (Agriculture 4.0), Healthcare industry (Healthcare 4.0), and Logistics industry (Logistics 4.0) are described. The convergence of 12 disruptive technologies including 3D printing, Artificial intelligence, Augmented reality, Big Data, Blockchain, Cloud computing, Drones, Internet of things, Nanotechnology, Robotics, Simulation and Synthetic biology in agriculture, healthcare and logistics industries are illustrated.

This panel study investigates the relationship between green logistics indices, economic, environmental, and social factors in the perspective of Asian emerging economies. This study adopted FMOLS and DOLS methods to test research hypothesis, catering the problem of endogenity and serial correlation. The results suggest that logistics operations, particularly LPI2 (efficiency of customs clearance processes), LPI4 (quality of logistics services) and LPI5 (trade and transport-related infrastructure), are positively and significantly correlated with per capita income, manufacturing value added and trade openness. While, greater logistics operations are negatively associated with social and environmental problems including, climate change, global warming, carbon emissions, and poisoning atmosphere. In addition, human health is badly affected by heavy smog, acid rainfall, and water pollution. The findings further extend and reveal that political instability, natural disaster and terrorism are also a primary cause of poor economic growth and environmental sustainability with poor trade and logistics infrastructure. Further, the application of renewable energy resources and green practices can mitigate negative effects on social and environmental sustainability without compromising the performance of economic growth. There is very limited empirical work presented in literature using renewable energy and green ideology to solve macro-level social and environmental problems, while this study will assist the policymakers and researchers to understand the importance of green concept in improving countries’ social, economic and environmental performance.

Diamidophosphate has been identified as a possible prebiotic compound used in the precursor membranes of the first ‘life’. Compounds such as these will be helpful in developing novel biomimetic approaches in synthetic chemistry. Thermochemical data for this type of compounds are not available. Hess’ law and estimates from calorimetric measurements used by Wakefield in the 1970s for other amido phosphates have been used to estimate the thermochemical values for the diamido and monoamido-phosphoric acid. Enthalpy of formation at 298.15 ^oC is calculated as – 821.9 kJ/mol and the free energy of formation calculated as -813.5 kJ/mol for the diamidophosphoric acid. The calculated enthalpy of formation of monoamidic phosphoric acid is -1117.1 kJ/mol and its free energy of formation is - -1105 kJ/mol.

Stormwater drainage and urban flooding are the popular issues in policy agendas and academia. Although the research on these title increases steadily an integrated review on stormwater drainage and urban flood with a focus on pluvial flooding has yet to be produced. This paper presents a critical review on stormwater drainage and urban flood based on 78 selected journal papers published over the period of 1990 to 2018. The review focus on pluvial flooding to relate urban stormwater drainage management and urban flood disaster management and to show the links between the two. The methods taken to manage urban stormwater drainage and urban flooding as well as the complexity of achieving a comprehensive urban flood disaster management are evaluated and discussed. To better understand the concepts behind urban flood and improve the urban flood risk management strategies, recommendation of future research directions are also provided.

Hydrologic studies on rainfall-runoff have been extensively conducted in many regions around the globe to fulfill various desirable needs with a purpose of effective and proper planning and managing water resources for present and future uses, whereas such study is not well drawn much attention to river catchments of Tonle Sap Lake Basin in Cambodia, which may prevail to water insecurity. The Stung Sreng catchment, which is one among them considered to be a significant basin for water resources management in Cambodia, is remarkably increasing under intolerable pressures in water resources development. This study was to apply HEC-HMS (Hydrological Engineering Center-Hydrological Model System) model to predict streamflow of Stung Sangker catchment, located in Tonlesap Lake Basin in Cambodia. The result showed that the calibration was good at monthly basis. The model performance was given by Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency criteria followed by 0.44 for daily and 0.71 for monthly basis, respectively. Moreover, the Percent Bias (PBIAS) for daily and monthly simulation was 4.13% and 3.56%, indicating a satisfactory model fit. The HEC-HMS conceptual model can be used to simulate flow of Stung Sangke catchment on a continuous time scale particularly monthly basis. The result also indicated that there was a clear seasonal variation in monthly water availability, especially during both wet and dry season.

Heavy metals and organic pollutants are ubiquitous environmental pollutants affecting the quality of soil, water and air. Over the past 5 decades, many strategies have been developed for the remediation of polluted water. Strategies involving aquatic plant use are preferable to conventional methods. In this study, an attempt was made to provide a brief review on recent progresses in research and practical applications of phytoremediation for water resources with the following objectives: (1) to discuss the toxicity of toxic chemicals pollution in water to plant, animals and human health (2) to summarise the physicochemical factors affecting removal of toxic chemicals such as heavy metals and organic contaminants in aqueous solutions by aquatic plants; (3) to summarise and compare the removal rates of heavy metals and organic contaminants in aqueous solutions by diverse aquatic plants; and (4) to summarise chemometric models for testing aquatic plant performance. More than 20 aquatic plants specie have been used extensively while duckweed (L. minor), water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), water lettuce (P. stratiotes) are the most common. Overall, chemometrics for performance assessment reported include: Growth rate (GR), Growth rate inhibition (% Inhibition), Metal uptake (MU), translocation/transfer factor (TF), bioconcentration factor (BCF), Percent metal uptake (% MU), Removal capacity (RC) and Tolerance index (TI) while absorption rate have been studied using the sorption kinetics and isotherms models such as pseudo-first-order (PFO), pseudo-second-order (PSO), Freundlich, Langmuir and Temkin. Using modeling and interpretation of adsorption isotherms for performance assessment is particularly good and increases level of accuracy obtained from adsorption processes of contaminant on plant. Conclusion was drawn by highlighting the gap in knowledge and suggesting key future areas of research for scientists and policymakers.

The popularity of functional gummies has increased, which is evident from the growing line of functional gummies from almost every nutraceutical companies. Sensory evaluation serves the purpose of determining which brand of functional gummy would capture the largest market share. Texture profile analysis was used to determine the mechanical properties of functional gummies. The brands of functional gummies that came under the scope of this study were denoted as Brand A, B, C, D, E, F and G. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy was utilised to detect organic material and functional groups in the functional gummies. Texture profile analysis gave valuable insights into the gummies’ mechanical properties which are cohesiveness, springiness, hardness, gumminess, and chewiness. Amongst the gummies that were studied, Brand F gummy has the highest value of cohesiveness of 0.92. Brand A gummy has a high springiness value of 1.0. Brand B gummy possesses the highest value of hardness, gumminess and chewiness of 12 532.2 g, 7617.6 N, and 6256.8 J, respectively. Qualitative sensory evaluation reveals that Brand G gummy has the best aesthetic qualities in terms of colour and appearance. Brand B gummy tastes the best while brand A gummy claims the top spot for gumminess and chewiness. Overall, the respondents in this study preferred brand A gummy over other brands.

Over the years, sustainability, impact on the environment, as well as the operation expenditure have been a major concern to the deployment of mobile cellular base stations worldwide. This is because the mobile cellular base stations are known to consume a high percentage of power within the mobile cellular network. Such energy consumption contributes to the emission of Greenhouse Gases (GHG) through the use of conventional diesel generating a set. As a result, the mobile cellular operators are faced with the dilemma of minimising the power consumption, GHG emission, and the operation cost, while improving the Quality of Service of the networks. In attempting to find a solution, this study presents the feasibility and simulation of a solar photovoltaic (PV) with battery hybrid power system (HPS) as a predominant source of power for a specific mobile cellular base station site situated in Soshanguve area of the city of Pretoria, South Africa. It also presents the technical development, showed the environmental advantage and cost benefits of using a solar PV-battery HPS to power a base station site of a 24 hrs daily load of 241.10 kWh/d and the peak load of 20.31 kW as compared to using the HPS of solar PV-diesel generating set-battery. The solar resource pattern for the city of Pretoria was collected from The National Aeronautics and Space Administration and modelled statistically. Thus, the statistical modelling done using solar radiation resource exposure characteristic patterns of Pretoria, South Africa, revealed an average annual daily solar radiation of 5.4645 Wh/m2/d and 0.605 clearness index. The simulation and the design were done using the Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewables and Matlab/Simulink software. The simulation finding shows that the HPS of solar PV-battery combination has about 59.62 % saving on Net Present Cost, Levelized Cost of Energy, and 80.87% saving on Operating cost as against conventional BS powered with Gen Set-Battery.

In this paper, Rice water requirement and irrigation water requirement in Amol agro meteorological Station in 2016-2045 are forecasted based on the projected meteorological data of Hadcm3 under A2 scenario. Rice water requirements are estimated by using crop coefficient approach. Reference evapotranspiration are calculated by FAO Penman-Monteith method. Moreover, the irrigation water requirements are simulated by calibrated CROPWAT model using the meteorological parameters. The results show that both crop water requirement and irrigation water requirement present downward trend in the future. In 2016-2045, the rice water requirement and irrigation water requirement decrease by more than 9.9% under A2 scenario, respectively. Furthermore, the precipitation rise may be the main reason for the decrease in crop water requirement, while significant decrease of irrigation water requirement should be attributed to combined action of rising precipitation and a slight increase in temperature.

Malaysia generates significant quantities of Oil Palm Wastes (OPW) which can be potentially valorised into sustainable bioenergy as envisaged by the National Biomass Strategy (NBS-2020). Despite significant investments, policy directives and government support, the valorisation of OPW into bioenergy has remained low exacerbating waste management challenges. Therefore, the strategies and impediments to the rapid bioenergy development and bioelectricity generation from OPW require practical assessment. Therefore, this paper examines the level of development and diffusion of the biomass innovation system in Malaysia based on the Functions of Innovations Systems (FIS) approach developed by Dutch and Swedish researchers. Furthermore, the key factors hindering biomass energy technologies implementation in Malaysia and potential solutions were identified, highlighted and examined. Based on the FIS analysis the functions; entrepreneurial activities, knowledge development, and resources mobilization functions are well established in the Malaysian biomass innovation system (BIS). However, the functions of guidance of search; creation of legitimacy; knowledge diffusion and market formation are underdeveloped resulting in the low penetration of bioenergy in Malaysia. Other factors include; fossil fuel subsidies, numerous or conflicting energy policies and weak collaboration between academia and the industry. The outlined challenges can be addressed by revising fuel subsidies, Feed-in tariffs, RETs implementation, roles of supervisory agencies, and bureaucratic procedures for access to funds for research and development of bioenergy in Malaysia.

This paper deals with the techno-economic study of the hybrid renewable energy system based on energy storage aspect under the form of hydrogen and methane. Indeed, with the intermittency of the renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic and wind energy, several problems of produced energy injection to the power system network can be encountered due to the shortage or the excess of these sources. This situation appeals the use of systems that ensure the stability of network based on the storage of energy surplus into gas using electrolyzer systems, which will be used afterward to cover the eventual shortage. In the present paper, the study of performance of each pathway of methane and hydrogen storage has been performed by the treatment of multiple scenarios via different architecture case studies in an Algerian location. Whereas, the energy produced by the photovoltaic system, the wind energy and the gas micro turbine sources are considered similar in each case. The modeling and simulation of the studied system operation under optimization criteria has been performed in this work, where the main aim is to define the appropriate configuration taking into account the different with low costs of investment, maintenance operation and immediate reactivity with a big storage capacity.

The study aims to provide technical information on the development and application of hazard analysis and critical control points (HACCP) in one of Dhaka's popular baking (cake) industries. A generic HACCP plan in accordance with legal requirements was created after a detailed analysis of data collected from the company. Every step of the production was examined for biological, chemical, and physical hazards. The prerequisite program was designed to address some hazards prior to production, thereby simplifying the HACCP plan. The critical control points were determined by answering the questions in the decision trees. Finally, the HACCP control chart was created to include critical limits, monitoring, and corrective action as components of several HACCP principles. One critical control point (CCP) and two operational pre-requisite programs (oPRPs) were identified throughout the manufacturing process.

This review analyzes the preparation and characterization of metal organic frameworks (MOFs) and their application as photocatalysts for water purification. The study begins by highlighting the problem of water scarcity and the different solutions for purification, including photocatalysis with semiconductors such as MOFs. It also describes the different methodologies that can be used for the synthesis of MOFs, paying attention to the purification and activation steps. The characterization of MOFs and the different approaches that can be followed to learn on the photocatalytic processes are also detailed. Finally, the work reviews literature focused on the degradation of contaminants from water using MOF-based photocatalysts under light irradiation.

Hybrid machine tools combining additive and subtractive processes have arisen as a solution to the increasing manufacture requirements, boosting the potentials of both technologies, while compensating and minimizing their limitations. Nevertheless, the idea of hybrid machines is relatively new and there is a notable lack of knowledge in the field. Therefore, in the present paper, an insight into the advancements of hybrid machines is given, identifying their real capabilities, together with the latest developments from an industrial context. In addition, the current situation and future perspectives of hybrid machines from the point of view of process planning, monitoring and inspection are discussed. Finally, the challenges that must be overcome and the opportunities that the hybrid machines will provide in the forthcoming years are presented.

The diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella L. (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) is very destructive crucifers specialized pest that has resulted in significant crop losses worldwide. The pest is well attracted to glucosinolate-containing crucifers such as; Barbarea vulgaris (Brassicaceae), and generally to other plants in the genus Barbarea. B. vulgaris on their part, build up resistance against DBM and other herbivorous insects using glucosinolates; that are plant secondary metabolites used in plant defense–contained only in plants of the order Brassicales. Aside glucosinolates, plants in this genus Barbarea (Brassicaceae) also contain saponins; which is toxic to insects and act as feeding deterrents for plant herbivores, most importantly, DBM, as it was found to prevent the survival of DBM larvae on the plant. Saponins are plant secondary metabolites have been established in higher concentrations in younger in contrast to older leaves within the same plant. Previous studies have found a relationship between ontogenetical changes in the host plant’s saponin content and attraction/resistance to P. xylostella. The younger leaves recorded higher concentrations of glucosinolates and saponins, which naturally attracts the plant herbivores. DBM was reported to have evolved mechanisms to avoid the toxicity of the former. The plant-herbivore had adapted glucosinolates for host plant recognition, feeding and oviposition stimulants. Despite the adaptation for oviposition by P. xylostella adults, larvae of the insect cannot survive on the same plant. An example is in some varieties of B. vulgaris. The triterpenoid saponins which act as feeding deterrents in larvae are responsible for this direct defense mechanism against P. xylostella. In the future, trials by plant breeders could aim at transferring this insect resistance to other crops. The previous trials had limited because of lack of knowledge on the biosynthetic pathways and regulatory networks of saponins. Herein, we discussed exclusively; saponins mediated plant defense mechanisms against the DBM.

Menaquinone-7 is a member of the vitamin K family whose interest has considerably increased over the last decade due to its beneficial role in human health mainly in respect to bone and cardiovascular health leading to a growing use in different nutritional supplement. Menaquinone-7 can be produced by synthesis or fermentation and its purity profile can differ depending on methodologies and extraction procedures. Finished formulation show a large heterogeneity of purity profiles as well as frequent discrepancies in the nominal content compared to the actual title. In the present study we compared purity profiles of different raw material and we related them to stability assay in normal (12months/25°C/60%RH) and accelerated conditions (6 months/40°C/75% RH) in order to test their performance in presence of different common excipients. Results show that higher purity profile correlates with enhanced stability and this could explain title discrepancies found in finished products found on the market worldwide.

Solar energy is derived from photons of light coming from the sun in a form called radiation. Solar energy finds extensive application in air and water heating, solar cooking, as well as electrical power generation, depending on the way of capturing, converting and distribution. To enable such application, it is necessary to analyze the horizontal tilt angle of horizontal surfaces – in order that when the solar energy reaches the earth surface to be completely absorbed. This paper tends to describe the availability of solar radiation for south-facing flat surfaces. The optimal monthly, seasonal, and annual tilt angles have been estimated for Pristina. The solar radiation received by the incident plane is estimated based on isotropic sky analysis models, namely Liu and Jordan model. The annual optimum tilt angle for Pristina was found to be 34.7°. The determination of annual solar energy gains is done by applying the optimal monthly, seasonal and annual tilt angles for an inclined surface compared to a horizontal surface. Monthly, seasonal and annual percentages of solar energy gains have been estimated to be 21.35%, 19.98%, and 14.43%. Losses of solar energy were estimated by 1.13 % when a surface was fixed at a seasonal optimum tilt angle, and when it was fixed at an annual optimum tilt angle, those losses were 5.7%.

Frequency, amplitude and phase information of the grid voltage are of great importance in constructing a robust controller structure for grid connected inverter systems. This paper presents a simple and robust approach for the instantaneous estimation of positive and negative sequence voltage components under distorted voltage conditions. A second order generalized integrator (SOGI) is used to filter the distorted voltage and to generate orthogonal voltage components for each of the three phases. These filtered and orthogonal components are used for instantaneous calculation of symmetrical components. The implemented method is frequency adaptive; the method is demonstrated and compared to a conventional phase locked loop (PLL) technique with both MATLAB/Simulink simulations and experiments utilizing the dSPACE ds1103 digital controller.

Agricultural greenhouse is largely answered in the agricultural sphere, despite the shortcomings it has, including overheating during the day and night cooling which sometimes results in the thermal inversion mainly due to its low inertia. The glasshouse dressed chapel is relatively more efficient than the conventional tunnel greenhouse. Its proliferation on the ground is more or less timid because of its relatively high cost[14-22]. Agricultural greenhouse aims to create a favorable microclimate to the requirements of growth and development of culture, from the surrounding weather conditions, produce according to the cropping calendars fruits, vegetables and flower species out of season and widely available along the year. It is defined by its structural and functional architecture, the quality thermal, mechanical and optical of its wall, with its sealing level and the technical and technological accompanying[12-13]. The greenhouse is a very confined environment, where multiple components are exchanged between key stakeholders and them factors are light, temperature and relative humidity[8]. This state of thermal evolution is the level sealing of the cover of its physical characteristics to be transparent to solar, absorbent and reflective of infrared radiation emitted by the enclosure where the solar radiation trapping effect otherwise called "greenhouse effect" and its technical and technological means of air that accompany. The socio-economic analysis of populations in the world leaves appear especially the last two decades of rapid and profound transformations These changes are accompanied by changes in eating habits, mainly characterized by rising consumption spread along the year[14]. To effectively meet this demand, greenhouse-systems have evolved, particularly towards greater control of production conditions (climate, irrigation, ventilation techniques, CO2 supply, etc ...). Technological progress has allowed the development of greenhouses so that they become increasingly sophisticated and of an industrial nature (heating, air conditioning, control, computer, regulation, etc ...). New climate driving techniques have emerged, including the use of control devices from the classic to the use of artificial intelligence[10-11] such as neural networks and / or fuzzy logic, etc... As a result, the greenhouse growers prefer these new technologies while optimizing the investment in the field to effectively meet the supply and demand of these fresh products cheaply and widely available throughout the year.

Hybrid carbon-silicon, carbon-nitrogen, and carbon-boron clathrates are new classes of Type I carbon-based clathrates that have been identified by first-principles computational methods by substituting atoms on the carbon clathrate framework with Si, N, and/or B atoms. The hybrid framework is further stabilized by embedding appropriate guest atoms within the cavities of the cage structure. Series of hybrid carbon-silicon, carbon-boron, carbon-nitrogen, and carbon-silicon-nitrogen clathrates have been shown to exhibit small positive values of the energy of formation, indicating that they may be metastable compounds and amenable to fabrication. In this overview article, the energy of formation, elastic properties, and electronic properties of selected hybrid carbon-based clathrates are summarized. Theoretical calculations that explore the potential applications of hybrid carbon-based clathrates as energy storage materials, electronic materials, or hard materials are presented. The computational results identify compositions of hybrid carbon-silicon and carbon-nitrogen clathrates that may be considered candidate materials for use as either electrode materials for Li-ion batteries or as hydrogen storage materials. Prior processing routes for fabricating selected hybrid carbon-based clathrates are highlighted and difficulties encountered are discussed.

This research paper is to analyze the planning and design techniques of the tourism complexes in the process of municipalities’ master planning. First, it explains the importance of the tourism industry with the help of theories of scholars and experts. Then, it emphasizes the link between the economic developments of cities/regions with the development of the tourism industry. The innovation of this work is to integrate tourism industry planning and comprehensive regional/ urban planning. The main way of doing this is to plan and design the tourism complexes in the early stages of the master planning of the municipality. Urban land-use policies and locating techniques are suggested through this research. Land-use policies and new urban design models for the regional/urban sustainable development are some of the other handouts in this paper. The outcome of this research is good assistance for engineers, planners, and students of urban and regional development.

The hybrid system is analyzed and optimized to produce electric energy in Non-Interconnected Zones in the Colombian Caribbean region, contributing both to the improvement in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and to the rational use of energy. A comparative analysis of the performance of these systems was carried using a dynamic model in real wind and solar data. The model is integrated by a Southwest Wind Power Inc. wind turbine. AIR 403, a proton exchange fuel cell (PEM), an electrolyze, a solar panel and a charge regulator based on PID controllers to manipulate oxygen and hydrogen flows in the cell. The transient responses of the cell voltage, current, and power were obtained for the demand of 200 W for changes in solar radiation and wind speed for all days of the year 2013 in the Ernesto Cortissoz airport, Puerto Bolívar, Alfonso Lopez airport and Simon Bolívar airport, by regulating the flow of hydrogen and oxygen into the fuel cell. The maximum contribution of power generation from the fuel cell was presented for the Simon Bolívar airport in November with a value of 158,358W (9.45%). A multi-objective design optimization under a Pareto front is presented for each place studied to minimize the Levelized Cost of Energy and CO₂ emission, where the objective variables are the number of panel and stack in the PV system and PEM.

Solar energy is a renewable resource of energy that is broadly utilized and has the least emissions among the renewable energies. In this study, machine learning methods of artificial neural networks (ANNs), least squares support vector machines (LSSVM), and neuro-fuzzy are used for advancing prediction models for thermal performance of a photovoltaic-thermal solar collector (PV/T). In the proposed models, the inlet temperature, flow rate, heat, solar radiation, and the sun heat have been considered as the inputs variables. Data set has been extracted through experimental measurements from a novel solar collector system. Different analyses are performed to examine the credibility of the introduced approaches and evaluate their performance. The proposed LSSVM model outperformed ANFIS and ANNs models. LSSVM model is reported suitable when the laboratory measurements are costly and time-consuming, or achieving such values requires sophisticated interpretations.

This review deals with the adaptive mechanisms that plants can implement to cope with the challenge of salt stress. Plants tolerant to NaCl implement a series of adaptations to acclimate to salinity, including morphological, physiological and biochemical changes. These changes include increases in the root/canopy ratio and in the chlorophyll content in addition to changes in the leaf anatomy that ultimately lead to preventing leaf ion toxicity, thus maintaining the water status in order to limit water loss and protect the photosynthesis process. Furthermore, we deal with the effect of salt stress on photosynthesis and chlorophyll fluorescence and some of the mechanisms thought to protect the photosynthetic machinery, including the xanthophyll cycle, photorespiration pathway and water-water cycle. Finally, we also provide an updated discussion on salt-induced oxidative stress at the subcellular level and its effect on the antioxidant machinery in both salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive plants. The aim is to extend our understanding of how salinity may affect the physiological characteristics of plants.

The paper examines design and operating data of current concentrated solar power (CSP) solar tower (ST) plants. The study includes CSP with or without boost by combustion of natural gas (NG), and with or without thermal energy storage (TES). The latest, actual specific costs per installed capacity are very high, 6085 $/kW for Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System (ISEGS) with no TES, and 9227 $/kW for Crescent Dunes with TES. The actual production of electricity is very low and much less than the expected. The actual capacity factors are 22% for ISEGS, despite combustion of a significant amount of NG largely exceeding the planned values, and 13% for Crescent Dunes. The design values were 33% and 52%. The study then reviews the proposed technology updates to produce better ratio of solar field power to electric power, better capacity factor, better matching of production and demand, lower plant’s cost, improved reliability and increased life span of plant’s components. The key areas of progress are found in materials and manufacturing processes, design of solar field and receiver, receiver and power block fluids, power cycle parameters, optimal management of daily and seasonal operation of the plant, new TES concepts, integration of solar plant with thermal desalination, integration of solar plant with combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) installations and finally, specialization and regionalization of the project specification.

LULC changes are major environmental challenges in many parts of the world which are adversely affecting ecosystem services. This study was aimed to analyze LULC changes in the ecological landscape of Ethiopia CRV areas from 1985 to 2015. Satellite images were accessed and pre-processing and classification is done. Major LULC types were detected and change analysis was executed. Nine LULC changes were successfully evaluated. The classification result revealed that in 1985, 44.34% of the land was covered with small scale farming followed by mixed cultivated/acacia (21.89%), open woodland (11.96%), and water bodies (9.77%). Whereas for the same study year open grazing land, forest, degraded savannah and settlements accounted the smallest proportion. Though the area varied among land use classes, the trend of share occupied by the LULC types in the study area remained the same in 1995 and 2015. Increase in small and large scale farming, settlements and mixed cultivation/acacia while a decrease in water bodies, forest, and open woodlands is noted. About 86.11% of the land showed major changes in land use/cover. Lastly, DPSIR framework analysis was done and integrated land use and development planning and policy reform are suggested for sustainable land use planning and management.

Gut bacteria play an important role in several metabolic processes and human diseases, such as obesity and its co-morbidities, like fatty liver disease, insulin resistance/diabetes and cardiovascular events. Among several factors, dietary patterns, probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics, antimicrobials and non-dietary factors, such as stress, age, exercise and climatic conditions, can dramatically impact the human gut microbiota diversity and equilibrium. However, the effect of minor food constituents, including food additives and trace contaminants, on human gut microbiota has received less attention. Consequently, the present review aimed to provide an objective perspective of the current knowledge regarding the impacts of minor food constituents on human gut microbiota and consequently, on human health.

The Wind Energy Conversion System (WECS) plays an inevitable role across the world. In particular, the attention for Permanent Magnet Synchronous Generators (PMSGs) connected with wind farm is popular. This paper deals with the literature review that describes the recent advances, progresses and innovatory trends on PMSGs for WECS. Comparison between geared and direct-driven conversion systems and the classification of electrical machines used in WECS are discussed. A detailed analysis on the design aspects considering various topologies of PMSGs are encompassed in the literature. The PMSG design and optimization problems are solved by field computation techniques and optimized by using Soft Computing (SC) techniques .The three-dimensional, finite element software platform for the analysis and design of PMSGs is discussed. This paper also deals with the interdisciplinary modeling, analysis, and optimization of PMSG using Finite Element Analysis (FEM) and SC techniques. Finally, PMSGs are reviewed and compared for further exploration.

The relationship of the animal with its environment has been of longstanding interest in philosophy and science. Here I provide a brief introduction to concepts that place an emphasis on mutualism as the basis of organism - environment interaction, in contrast to the long standing view that the environment exerts an instrumental role in shaping the organism. Two influential theories have been von Uexküll’s theory of umwelt and Gibson’s theory of affordances. The former envisioned the animal as immersed in its surroundings (umwelt) to form a functional unit. In a similar manner, the latter theory describes a unity between 1) environmental information that provides the animal with opportunities for action (affordances) and 2) the ability of the animal to perceive and engage with those affordances. These views have influenced more recent ecological models of the organism as the functional unit of biology and have also influenced models of immune function. In ecological models, agency is seen as the ability of the organism to predict and control its engagement with the environment in order to maintain its integrity. The predominant contemporary model of neural function in which perception and action are understood to operate through Bayes-like active inference complements the concept of agency as proposed by the mutualism models. However, it is suggested that rather than a constant mutualism, encounters between organism and environment range over a dynamic spectrum from dualism to mutualism. It is also suggested that along this spectrum, agency emerges when the balance of instrumentality shifts from the environment to the organism, and that the balance of this relationship can further progress towards a felicitous mutualism. Meaning emerges between environmental information and an agent as opportunity for action. Implications for opportunities to foster agency in animals within our care is noted.

Natural gas combined cycle power plants (CCPPs) are widely used to meet peak loads in electric energy production. Continuous monitoring of the output electrical power of CCPPs is a requirement for power performance. In this study, the role of ambient temperature change having the greatest effect on electric production is investigated for a natural gas CCPP. The plant has generated electricity for fourteen years and setup at 240 MW in Aliağa, İzmir, Turkey. Depending on the seasonal temperature changes, the study data were obtained from each gas turbine (GT), steam turbine (ST) and combined cycle blocks (CCBs) in the ambient temperature range of 8-23°C. It has been found that decreases of the electric energy in the GTs because of the temperature increase and indirectly diminishes of the electricity production in the STs. As a result, the efficiency of each GT, ST and CCB reduced, although the quantity of fuel consumed by the controllers in the plant was decreased. As a result of this data, it has been recommended and applied that additional precautions have been taken for the power plant to bring the air entering the combustion chamber to ideal conditions and necessary air cooling systems have been installed.

Rapid peri-urbanization has resulted in increasing demand for and pressure on peri-urban lands at the expense of agricultural lands. Households’ decision to convert from agricultural land uses to residential and commercial land uses is driven by a myriad of factors, ranging from social to economic, in the Asante-Akim South district of the Asante region, Ghana. The paper examined the effects of agricultural land use trade-off on food production in the district. Using a triangulation of qualitative and quantitative methods, 115 household respondents were proportionately sampled from three selected communities in the district, for the collection of data through the administration of questionnaires. The data were subjected to the Pearson’s chi-square, embedded in the SPSS V.16, to test for association among the variables. We report that the increasing rate of agricultural land uses conversions was as a result of increasing demand for residential and commercial land usage at the expense of agricultural land uses. Converting prime agricultural lands into other land uses was seen as profitable to agricultural expansion. A re-examination of the district land use plans by the Ghanaian Physical (Town and Country) Planning Department in tandem with the Lands Commission is therefore recommended.

Small and micro hydropower represents an attractive solution for electricity generation, with low cost and low environmental impact. The pump-as-turbine (PAT) approach has promise in this application owing to its low purchase and maintenance costs. In this paper, a new method to predict the inverse characteristic of industrial centrifugal pumps is presented. This method is based on results of simulations performed with commercial three-dimensional CFD software. Model results have been first validated in pumping mode using data supplied by pump manufacturers. Then, results have been compared to experimental data for a pump running in reverse condition. Experimentation has been performed on a dedicated test bench installed in the Department of Civil Construction and Environmental Engineering of the University of Naples Federico II. Three different pumps, with different specific speeds, have been analyzed. Using the model results, the inverse characteristic and the best efficiency point have been evaluated. Finally, results of this methodology have been compared to prediction methods available in the literature.

Water quality assessment in pastoral of Tibetan Plateau, which is water sources for about 40% of world's population and the runoff-yield area of Yellow rivers, is very important. In this paper, Xiahe county which belongs to Tibetan Plateau pastoral was investigated. Six parameters(via, chloride, COD, ammonia nitrogen, nitrate, fluoride, sulfate) were selected to assess the water quality and health degree by using fuzzy comprehensive evaluation methods. The hydrochemical type in surface water was of HCO3--Mg2+-Ca2+ type. The cations and anions in surface water were mainly from weathering and dissolution of carbonate rock. Results showed that the water quality in all 69 sampling sites was all of class Ⅰ. The integrated health degree reached more than 0.85 and the health rate were 100%. Although ammonia nitrogen was regarded as the main contamination factor, but it had a little effect on the entire body of water. Overall, the surface water qualities of most samples in Xiahe County was good condition.

Integration of battery energy storage in photovoltaic (PV) systems can reduce the electricity costs and provide desirable flexibility and reliability to these systems decreasing renewable energy fluctuations. This paper presents a review of the PV-battery application in Brazil, highlighting the challenges and prospects based on the state-of-art. A PV-battery systems description is presented in this work, as well as the most applied battery technology and its comparison. The paper also describes the set of applications such as voltage and frequency regulation, renewable energy integration, power quality, etc. In the Brazilian scenario, there are applications of PV-battery systems, most of them part of research and development projects (R&D’s), and some real cases are shown, including its goals, applied equipment, operation modes, strategies, and perspectives. Additionally, this work evaluates the Brazilian scenario regarding the energy storage systems implementation challenges, such as regulatory barriers, business models, and opportunities for R&D in the energy market. In conclusion, it is need develop proper regulatory models to expand PV-battery systems and make them visible to the agents in the electricity sector.

Paper presents the energy policy of the Republic of Serbia with special attention to the energy situation on the government controlled territory. South Serbian autonomous province of Kosovo and Metohija is under UN jurisdiction since the 1999 according to UNSC Resolution 1244. Renewable energy sources are rarely used in Serbia with exception of energy from hydropower plants, but in this sector priorities in geothermal and energy coming from biomass recently increased. In natural gas sector, Serbia has the deal with Russia for construction of South Stream gas-line through Serbia and for construction of the first underground storage in depleted gas reservoir in Banatski Dvor. In 2008, Serbia also sold 51% of the government founded petroleum industry – NIS which has exclusive monopoly for exploitation of crude oil. Serbian government has complete monopoly in electric power sector. Electric power infrastructure became technologically obsolete, and operative efficiency is at very low level. Serbia has not yet decided whether Serbian Electric Power Industry – EPS will be privatized. District heating sector mostly natural gas fuelled is highly inefficient and it is in jurisdiction of local municipalities but also has social component dictated by central government.

Avocado (Persea americana Mill.) plant fruits are well-known for their high nutritional value, unique test, and healthy oil. It has a history of about 10,000 years. Avocado fruit offers many health benefits, and its production is rapidly increasing. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)’s recent data suggest that the Avocados produced in the world in 2019 was twice that of 2010 (3778010 tons). Avocado’s global Gross Production Value was about 5.812 billion USD in 2018, and it is likely to increase rapidly because of the increasing demand for Avocado fruits. Avocado oil is also used in the cosmetic industry because of its therapeutic properties, and it boosts the economic value of the Avocado industry. Avocado fruits have a rough green-gold skin; however, fruits are called ‘the green gold’ because of their massive global demand in the worldwide market and a lucrative business. The cultivation of Avocado has tremendous potential in increasing the rural economy, rural agriculture-based employment and reducing the poverty rate of growers. On the other hand, the Avocado industry is highly criticised because of deforestation, massive water utilisation, polluting water bodies with insecticides and fertilisers, posing a threat to other plant species, and environmental pollution. However, it doesn’t preclude the importance of Avocado. Cameroon’s average temperature is about 23 °C, which is considered optimal for Avocado propagation and commercial cultivation. Cameroon Association of Active Youths (CAMAAY) want to explore the possibilities of engaging Cameroon youths in Avocado cultivation. This review is aimed to provide an overview of Avocado. The review also highlights Avocado cultivation related issues from one health and sustainability perspective in line with the global goals.

Food allergy has been recognised by the World Health Organisation as a chronic disease that could lead to fatality. The symptoms can mediate from mild to severe consequences. Some cases have reported that food allergy sufferers are bullied and are discriminated at workplace, thus increasing their stress level, apart from facing difficulty in consuming certain food due to allergy. This has an adverse effect on the quality of life amongst food allergy sufferers. Medical bills are increased when food allergy sufferers become unknowingly exposed to food allergen. Hence, this study investigated food allergens among food allergy sufferers in order to make their lives better. A total of 250 respondents participated in an online survey. Surprisingly, apart from chicken, soybean and other food allergens that have been listed under the Big Eight Allergens, the respondents mentioned some fruits that could trigger allergic reactions, such as rambutans and watermelons. Food allergy sufferers can be allergic to seafood and seafood products as well, such as shrimp paste or locally known as belacan, which refers to fermented shrimp paste cured under the sun. It is a common food ingredient used among Malaysians. The study findings offer practical insights, such as avoidance of food allergens amidst food allergy sufferers and help the government to carefully manage for menu planning. The knowledge contribution of this study reveals several specific food and fruits, as aforementioned, which appear to be common and nutritious food, yet harmful to food allergy sufferers.

The microbial contamination in food packaging have been a major concern that paved the way for the search for natural based new anti-microbial agents, such as modified α-mangostin. In the present work, twelve synthetic analogs were obtained via semi-synthetic modification of α-mangostin by Ritter reaction, reduction by palladium-carbon (Pd-C), alkylation, and acetylation. The evaluation of the anti-microbial potential of the synthetic analogs showed higher therapeutic value than the parent molecule. The anti-microbial studies proved that I E showed higher antibacterial activity whereas I I showed most significant antifungal activity. Due to their microbial properties, modified α-mangostin can be utilized as active anti-microbial agents in food packaging.

This thesis completion works it out to deepen into diverse modeling techniques for Point Absorbers. A combined frequency-time domain model is conceived, designed and developed in Matlab with FoRtran as a base., leading to obtain physical variables of primary importance, namely position, velocity and power to Energy net balance relationships of absorption. Integration of different degrees of freedom with heave as main executable leads in turn to a single buoy motion focus. Acquisition of the needed hydrodynamic coefficients is provided though application of NEMOH & BEMIO solvers due to the Boundary Element Methodology. Initially, this Wave-to-motion model is validated through comparison with previous experimental results for a floating cone cylinder shape (Buldra-FO3). A single, generic, vertical floating cylinder is contemplated then, that responds to the action of the passing regular waves excitation. Later, two equally sized vertical floating cylinders aligned with the incident wave direction are modeled for a variable distance between the bodies. For both unidirectional regular and irregular waves as an input in deep water, we approximate the convolutive radiation force function term through the Prony method. By changing the spatial disposition of the axisymmetric buoys, using for instance triangular or rectangular shaped arrays of three and four bodies respectively, the study delves into motion characteristics for regular waves. The results highlight efficient layouts for maximizing the energy production whilst providing important insights into their performance, revealing displacement amplification- and capture width-ratios, while deriving in possible interpretations of scenarios related to the the known park effect. These terms are encompassed by the novelty of a new conceptual Post-Processing methodology in the field, which leads to obtain an optimal distance for the separated bodies with effective energy absorption in a regular wave regime. In conclusion, this computational excursion envisions and proposes potentials fields of study, which will surely enhance new connections and link this renewable energy form.

High electricity demand for consumption at current supply level in Indonesia led to the rising cost of electricity bills. This factor is compounded by the fact that many electric generators in Indonesia still use fossil fuels, which contributes to the high basic generation cost. UBL is one of the universities that aim to be a green campus. Our research explores the possibility of installing motion sensor to contribute on the energy efficiency. Although mostly common in developed countries, the use of motion sensor for energy efficiency is still rare, especially in Indonesia. despite rising cost and supply shortages, Indonesian buildings are still of high energy consumption. our experiment shows that simple installation of commercially available motion sensors can contribute to reduce the electricity bill from the increase of energy efficiency. One of the efforts to lower energy demand in consumer side is to use the electricity efficiently, such as turning off lights in a room when it's not in use. This method can be simply done by turning the light switches for office and classrooms, but difficult to do in public spaces such as toilets and corridors. Our experiment shows that simple installation of commercially available motion sensors can contribute to reduce the electricity bill from the increase of energy efficiency. Automatic light switches experimentally installed in sample toilet room prove that electricity consumption from the lamps can contribute to the reduction of total weekly energy that translates into Green House Gas emission reduction.

Current problem facing researchers globally is microplastics as well as toxic chemical pollution of the ecosystem. Microplastics carry toxic chemicals in the ecosystem.serving as a vector for transport. In this study, a review of the literature has been conducted with the following objectives: (1) to summarise the concentrations of toxic chemicals such heavy metals and hydrophobic organic contaminants sorped on microplastics; (2) to evaluate their spatial distribution regarding adsorbed contaminant (3) to discuss plausible mechanism by which microplastics adsorp or desorp toxic chemicals in the environment; (4) to discuss implications of their occurrence in air, water and soil media; and (5) to discuss the impact of ingested microplastics to human health. Microplastics are ubiquitous environmental contaminant. Concentrations of sorped toxic chemical varied with location which represents a local problem; industrialized areas (especially areas experiencing crude oil related activities or have history of crude oil pollution) have higher concentrations than less industrialized areas. Ingestion of microplastics has been demonstrated in a range of marine and soil organisms as well as edible plants, thus possible contaminating the base of the food-web. Potential health effect to human is by particle localization, chemical toxicity and microbal toxins. We conclude by highlighting the gap in knowledge and suggesting key future areas of research for scientists and policymakers.

Urban sprawl propelled by rapid population growth leads to the shrinkage of productive agricultural lands and pristine forests in the suburban areas and, in turn, substantially alters ecosystem services. Hence, the quantification of urban sprawl is crucial for effective urban planning, and environmental and ecosystem management. Like many megacities in fast growing developing countries, Chennai, the capital of Tamilnadu and one of the business hubs in India, has experienced extensive urban sprawl triggered by the doubling of total population over the past three decades. We employed the Random Forest (RF) classification on Landsat imageries from 1991, 2003, and 2016, and computed spatial metrics to quantify the extent of urban sprawl within a 10km suburban buffer of Chennai. The rate of urban sprawl was quantified using Renyi’s entropy, and the urban extent was predicted for 2027 using land-use and land-cover change modeling. A 70.35% increase in urban areas was observed for the suburban periphery of Chennai between 1991 and 2016. The Renyi’s entropy value for year 2016 was ≥ 0.9, exhibiting a two-fold rate of urban sprawl. The spatial metrics values indicate that the existing urban areas of Chennai became denser and the suburban agricultural, forests and barren lands were transformed into fragmented urban settlements. The forecasted urban growth for 2027 predicts a conversion of 13670.33ha (16.57 % of the total landscape) of existing forests and agricultural lands into urban areas with an associated increase in the entropy value of 1.7. Our findings are relevant for urban planning and environmental management in Chennai and provide quantitative measures for addressing the social-ecological consequences of urban sprawl and the protection of ecosystem services.

The shrimp industry in the Philippines play a vital role in the local and national economy through exports with markets abroad such as in South Korea, Japan, the USA, and others. This study aimed to describe the various cultural and operational characteristics of small-holder and commercial shrimp farms (P. vannamei) in the Davao region. It also evaluated the current risks and challenges faced by the shrimp farmers. A semi-structured questionnaire that focused on shrimp farmers, and operators in the region was used to collect data with N=41 farmers and operator. The results showed that respondents were engaged in small-holder farming activities which had an average yield of 10 tons/ha. On the other hand, the commercial farms that operate intensively had an average yield of 24 tons/ha. Most small-holder operators used electric generator machines to conduct aeration in their farms using paddlewheels and blowers. For the commercial farms, more paddlewheels and blowers were employed per pond compared to small-holder farms. Generally, the income of a farm was related to the yield of farms or the number of fries rather than social factors or size of farms cultivated. In terms of input costs, feeds were found to have the highest input costs, followed by the fry, fuel, labor, and others (fertilizers and water treatment chemicals). Most of the farmers mentioned that they are affected by diseases such as white spot syndrome (60%), black gills (35%), and red tail (5%). They perceived that the main contamination come from the water source (31%). The main threats mentioned are declining shrimp prices in the market, source of fry, water disposal, and overstocking, and water quality. Based on this study, farmers should follow good shrimp aquaculture practices and there is a need for them to regularly monitor their water quality.

In eastern part of Ethiopia groundnut is very commonly intercropped with sorghum. Even though intercropping of sorghum with groundnut is practiced in the eastern part of Ethiopia the population density at what ratio should not be known. Therefore determining the population ratio is found to be crucial to draw management options. The study was conducted at two locations at Fadis (on station) and Babile (sub- station). Sorghum variety (Teshale) and groundnut (Fetene) were used as planting materials. All agronomic data were collected and analyzed by using GenStat software. Significant different were obtained among the treatments. The research result showed that, there were significance difference for both sorghum and ground nut yield per hectare in the years (2014 and 2015) among treatments. The result over time(in 2014 and 2015) at Fadis and Erer showed that the highest sorghum and groundnut yield per hectare were obtained/harvested from the intra row spacing of 25cmx20cm and 30cmx20cm intercropping sorghum with ground nut system with (1.27 and 1.31) respectively. The highest LER (1.31) and highest GMV (10218.00 ETBr/ha) were obtained from the intercropping of 30cmx20cm (Sorghum & groundnut). Clearly showed that, with intercropping of sorghum and Groundnut, it is possible to produce additional yield of sorghum without significant reduction in groundnut yield. As a result of this, the intra spacing of the main crop (sorghum) 25cm and 30cm and for the subsidiary crop (groundnut) 20cm was recommended for further production in the study areas of eastern Harerghe zone and similar agro-ecologies.

Abstract: The study focuses on how socio-economic and demographic indicators affect fertilization sustainability (excessive amount of fertilization). Principally we aim to examine the significance magnitude of the effects of three socio-demographic variables such as traditional way of fertilization, rental land farming, and farmers’ younger age on over-fertilization in Bangladesh and other developing countries. In 1960s, Bangladesh state authority launched a campaign ‘Grow more Food’ to feed huge numbers of population and thus the farmers are provided chemical fertilizers and pesticides at a subsidized low price. Farmers began to use huge amount of fertilizers for gaining high yields and continued it to present causing environmental woes a lot. We interview (face-to-face, focus group discussion, and phone interview) 210 Bangladesh farmers in 2016 by semi-structured questionnaire. Data has been analyzed using General Linear Model (GLM) in Univariate Analysis of Variance. The study found the effect of traditional way of fertilization on excessive amount of fertilization is strongly significant at 1% level. Apart from, rental land farming and farmers’ younger age have a significant influence on over- fertilization; though their significance level (5% and 10% respectively) is quasi-strong. Policy makers can be able to formulate fertilizer policy on the basis of these findings.

An adequate representation of the water infiltration process in the soil allows improving the efficiency in application and the uniformity in surface irrigation. The Green and Ampt model has shown a good representation of the process, and researchers from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) determined the values of their parameters for soils of that country, which are shown in tables or through functional relationships and this information is used as reference in several parts of the world, although there is no certainty that they are representative of the soils in Mexico. In this study, the parameters of the Green & Ampt equation were determined and evaluated in some soils of agricultural importance in Mexico. The parameters were obtained in four ways: one of them applied a methodology adapted from Brooks and Corey to quantify the wetting front capillary pressure head and used an permeameter under constant hydraulic head to determine the saturated hydraulic conductivity, and the other three consisted in taking them from three studies reported by the USDA. The values of the parameters suggested in Mexico drastically underestimated the results with relative errors (RE) in a range of -49.0 to -94.0% and the most representative were those obtained with the methodology proposed in this research with RE of -15.0 to 6.0%.

Packaged water consumption has grown rapidly in urban areas of many low and middle income countries, but particularly in Ghana. However, the sources of water used by this growing packaged water industry and its implications for water resource management and transport-related environmental impacts have not been described. This study aimed to assess the spatial distribution of regulated packaged water production in Ghana, both in relation to demand and for natural mineral water, to hydrogeological characteristics. 764 addresses for premises licenced to produce packaged water from 2009-2015 were mapped and compared to regional sachet water consumption and beverage import/export data examined. We find evidence to suggest packaged water is transported shorter distances in Ghana than in developed countries. For natural mineral waters, producers should be able to address the most widespread water quality hazards (including high salinity, iron and nitrates) in aquifers used for production through reverse osmosis treatment. The study suggests there is scope to integrate beverage product and groundwater regulatory databases to support groundwater management.

Kei-apple (Dovyalis caffra L) is an indigenous fruit tree of southern Africa. It is currently found in the dry, wooded grassland and forest edges of the arid and semi-arid regions of the world. Existing literature have mainly focused on the medicinal and nutritional as well as phytochemical characterization of Kei-apple. Thus, this review highlights beneficial economic prospects of Dovyalis caffra and its contribution to the economic prosperity. It is a drought tolerant plant with diverse uses such as income from the sale of the fruit, cultivated as a fence or to form an impenetrable hedge while the leaves are used for nutrient leaching prevention, fodder and compost making. The trunk of Dovyalis caffra serves as a good source of hard wood for fuel, house building and furniture making. It is also a good apicultural fruit tree and an excellent habitat and fertilizer derivation agent for farming activities. Considering the multidimensional effect of poverty and the food insecurity on many rural communities globally, there is a need to explore the potentials by encouraging the cultivation of Dovyalis caffra to assist with reducing unemployment, food insecurity and income-poverty problems in the arid and semi-arid areas of the world.

Surface water distribution extracted from remote sensing data has been used in water resource assessment, coastal management, and environmental change studies. Traditional manual methods for extracting water bodies cannot satisfy the requirements for mass processing of remote sensing data; therefore, accurate automated extraction of such water bodies has remained a challenge. The histogram bimodal method (HBM) is a frequently used objective tool for threshold selection in image segmentation. The threshold is determined by seeking twin peaks, and the valley values between them; however, automatically calculating the threshold is difficult because complex surfaces and image noise which lead to not perfect twin peaks (single or multiple peaks). We developed an operational automated water extraction method, the modified histogram bimodal method (MHBM). The MHBM defines the threshold range of water extraction through mass static data; therefore, it does not require the identification of twin histogram peaks. It then seeks the minimum values in the threshold range to achieve automated threshold. We calibrated the MHBM for many lakes in China using Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) images, for which the relative error (RE) and squared correlation coefficient (R2) for threshold accuracy were found to be 2.1% and 0.96, respectively. The RE and root-mean-square error (RMSE) for the area accuracy of MHBM were 0.59% and 7.4 km2. The results show that the MHBM could easily be applied to mass time-series remote sensing data to calculate water thresholds within water index images and successfully extract the spatial distribution of large water bodies automatically.

In urban area, one of the great problem is the rise of temperature, which leads to form the urban heat island effect. This paper refers to the trend of the urban surface temperature extracted from the Landsat images from which to consider changes in the formation of surface urban heat island for the north of Ho Chi Minh city in period 1995-2015. Research has identified land surface temperature from thermal infrared band, according to the ability of the surface emission based on characteristics of normalized difference vegetation index NDVI. The results showed that temperature fluctuated over the city with a growing trend and the gradual expansion of the area of the high-temperature zone towards the suburbs. Within 20 years, the trend of the formation of surface urban heat island with two typical locations showed a clear difference between the surface temperature of urban areas and rural areas with space expansion of heat island in 4 times in 2015 compared to 1995. An extreme heat island located in the inner city has an area of approximately 18% compared to the total area of the region. Since then, the solution to reduce the impact of urban heat island has been proposed, in order to protect the urban environment and the lives of residents in Ho Chi Minh City becoming better

This paper presents a review of the electrical heating method for heavy oil recovery based on past, current, and future prospects of electrical heating. Heavy oil is one of the potential crude oil used as a link to reduce the crisis of light oil used today. The obstacle of heavy oil is a high viscosity and density in which thermal injection is a method for heavy oil recovery, but it results in economic and environmental issues. Electrical heating is one of the thermal methods by transferring heat into the reservoir. The basic process of electrical heating is to increase the mobility of the oil. Because the temperature rises, it can reduce oil viscosity and makes it easier for heavy oil to flow. The past and current developments have been carried out to fill up the gap of electrical heating projects. The future prospects must meet energy efficiency, and the excessive heat will damage formation that must be tackled in the future prospect. the works adopt several electrical heating projects and applications in the world where the works give a brief future prospect of electrical heating.

Natural carotenoids are secondary metabolites that exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. These types of compounds are in high demand by pharmaceutical, cosmetic, textile and food industries, leading to the search for new natural sources of carotenoids. In recent years, the production of carotenoids from bacteria has become of great interest for industrial applications. In addition to carotenoids with C40-skeletons, some bacteria have the ability to synthesize characteristic carotenoids with C30-skeletons. In this regard, a great variety of methodologies for the extraction and identification of bacterial carotenoids has been reported and this is the first review that condenses much of this information. To understand the diversity of these carotenoids, we present their biosynthetic origin in order to focus on the methodologies employed in their extraction and characterization. Special emphasis has been made on high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) for the analysis and identification of bacterial carotenoids. We end up this review showing their potential commercial use of bacterial carotenoids. This review is proposed as a guide for the identification of these metabolites, which are frequently reported in new bacteria strains.

Almost all single-family detached house in Canada consume huge electricity for space heating and domestic hot water (DHW) purposes. There are many possibilities to design an energy-efficient house. A solar water heating system can be used for domestic water and space heating. Water temperature can be kept constant always by connecting a heat pump or oil burner because solar energy is intermittent. Proper and optimized solar photovoltaic and collector design, tank design, heat pump selection, house insulation, total demand calculation in each section are essential. Energy-Efficient house design has been proposed with water heating and space heating system and compared with the existing system, solar PV based systems, and solar collector based system. The tracking and non-tracking based solar thermal collector based and the solar photovoltaic based system has been compared in this paper and investigate the suitable one for practically applicable and acceptable by the people. Simulation has been done by using the PolySun software. It found that by implementing the proposed PV based system with tracking is highly suitable considering lower cost, high output power, flexibility, easy installation.

Distributed Energy Resources might have a severe influence on Power Line Communications, as they can generate interfering signals and high frequency emissions or supraharmonics that may cause loss of metering and control data. In this paper, the influence of various energy resources on Narrowband Power Line Communications is described and analyzed through several test measurements performed in a real microgrid. Accordingly, the paper describes the effects on smart metering communications through MAC layer analysis. Results show that the commutation frequency of inverters and the presence of battery chargers are remarkable sources of disturbance in low voltage distribution networks. In this sense, the results presented can contribute to efforts towards standardization and normative of emissions at higher frequencies higher, such as CENELEC EN 50160 and IEC/TS 62749.

The paper presents a method to assess the effect of electrolyte additives on the energy capacity of Pb-acid batteries. The method applies to any chemically unreactive additive, including suspensions and gels. The approach is thermodynamically based and it leads to the definition of a region of admissible concentrations –the battery’s admissible range– where the battery can undergo an indefinite number of charge/discharge cycles without suffering permanent damage. An experimental procedure to determine this range is presented. The obtained results provide a way to assess the potential of electrolyte additives to improve the energy capacity of Pb-acid batteries. The same results also provide a means to determine the additive concentration that produces the maximum energy capacity increase of the battery. The paper closes with an example of application of the proposed approach to a practical case.

Ocean wave energy conversion as one of the renewable clean energy sources is attracting the research interests of many people. This review introduces different types of power take-off technology of wave energy converters. The main focus is the linear direct drive power take-off devices as they have the advantages for ocean wave energy conversion. The designs and optimizations of power take-off systems of ocean wave energy converters have been studied from reviewing the recently published literature. Also, the simple hydrodynamics of wave energy converters have been reviewed for design optimization of the wave energy converters at specific wave sites. The novel mechanical designs of the power take-off systems have been compared and investigated in order to increase the energy harvesting efficiency.

Abstract: High step-up voltage gain nonisolated DC-DC converter have attracted much attention in photovoltaic, fuel cells and other renewable energy system applications. In this paper, by combining input current ripple-free boost cell with coupled-inductor voltage-doubler cell, an input current ripple-free high voltage gain nonisolated converter is proposed. In addition, passive lossless clamp circuit is adopted to recycle the leakage inductor energy and to reduce the voltage spike across the power switch. By utilizing voltage-doubler cell consisting of diode and capacitor, the voltage stress of switch is further reduced and the resonance between the leakage inductor and the stray capacitor of the output diode is eliminated. A low switch-on-resistance low-voltage-rated MOSFET can therefore be employed to reduce the conduction loss and cost. The reverse recovery loss of output diode is reduced, and the efficiency of converter can be improved. Furthermore, the proposed converter can achieve nearly zero input current-ripple and make the design of electromagnetic interference (EMI) filter easy. Steady state analysis and operation mode of the converter is performed. Finally, experimental results are presented to verify the analysis results of the proposed converter.

Food handlers’ medical examinations are mandated by most countries as a way of safeguarding the health and safety of consumers. Food-borne diseases are an important cause of morbidity and mortality. In Zimbabwe, the use of chest radiographs and throat and rectal swab tests are a requirement during food handlers’ medical examinations. This study aimed at exploring the patterns and outcomes of physical medical examinations, chest radiographs, and other tests of food handlers. A cross-sectional review of retrospective occupational health records was carried out. The mean age for the study population was 37 years with an age range of 21 to 56 years. Males accounted for 73% of the study participants. All of the 157 rectal swabs were normal and did not culture any organism. Fifteen percent (24) of the throat swabs cultured one or more organisms. Ninety-seven percent of chest radiographs were normal. Ninety-seven percent of employees were certified as fit. Thirty-six percent of the food handlers were in the overweight and obese categories. Hypertension and high blood pressure were common conditions in the study sample. It can be concluded that routine radiological and laboratory testing of the food handlers in this study was of little value.

A simple, efficient and stand-alone method for purification of river water using moringa seed powder and copper is discussed. Coagulant property of the seed powder clears turbid raw water and the oligodynamic activity of copper completely destroys E.coli bacteria. Both raw and treated water samples were tested for contaminants to verify the efficacy of the system. Treated water has turbidity in the range 3 NTU - 5 NTU and non-detected (< 1 MPN/100 mL) E.coli count making it suitable for drinking. The technique is very cost effective and can be practiced anywhere using locally available materials. It does not require a power source or any technical assistance. Being a stand-alone system the technique exceptionally useful in providing drinking water as an immediate solution in disaster areas affected by cyclone or floods.

Plants of the genus Zingiber (Family Zingiberaceae) are widely used throughout the world as food and medicinal plants. They represent very popular herbal remedies in various traditional healing systems; in particular, rhizome of Zingiber spp. plants has a long history of ethnobotanical uses because of a plethora of curative properties. Antimicrobial activity of rhizome essential oil has been extensively confirmed in vitro and attributed to its chemical components, mainly consisting in monoterpene and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons such as α-zingiberene, ar-curcumene, β-bisabolene and β-sesquiphellandrene. In addition, gingerols have been identified as the major active components in the fresh rhizome, whereas shogaols, dehydrated gingerol derivatives, are the predominant pungent constituents in dried rhizome. Zingiber spp. may thus represent a promising and innovative source of natural alternatives to chemical food preservatives. This approach would meet the increasing concern of consumers aware of the potential health risks associated with the conventional antimicrobial agents in food. This narrative review aims providing a literature overview on Zingiber spp. plants, their cultivation, traditional uses, phytochemical constituents and biological activities.

Nowadays, all the stakeholders, policy makers, regulators, aircraft designers, producers, operators, etc.) are intensively working on development of the aircraft with full electric and hybrid propulsion systems. However, the technical, technological constrains (like limit on accumulator energy density) require introducing a new approach to conceptual design of such aircraft. The new methods is based on energy and mass balance evaluation. This paper analyses the identified constrains; integrates the energy and mass balance equations into the preliminary definition and calculations of the aircraft performance. By this way, the technological constrains might be transferred into the limitation on the aircraft energy and mass breakdown, that initiates a new approach to aircraft conceptual design uses the knowledge based multidisciplinary optimization. The paper describes the developed methodology for conceptual design of aircraft. It show results of implementing this new development philosophy to conceptual design of a four-seat small electric/hybrid aircraft and a special hybrid cargo UAV. The discussion of the results including got by using the emerging and enabling new technologies and new methods and solutions (including for example distributed propulsion system, unconventional forms, morphing, biomimics, etc.), demonstrates the possible implementation of the new development philosophy, new approach to aircraft conceptual design.

This study investigates the asymmetric impacts of oil price changes on inflation in Algeria, Angola, Libya and Nigeria. Three different oil price data were applied in this study; the specific spot oil price of individual countries, the OPEC reference basket oil price and an average of the Brent, WTI and Dubai oil price. The dynamic panels ARDL were used to estimate the short and the long-run impacts. Also, this study partitioned the oil price into positive and negative changes to capture asymmetric impacts and found both positive and negative oil price changes positively influenced inflation. However, the impact was found to be more significant when oil prices dropped. The results from the study also found that money supply, the exchange rate and GDP are positively related to inflation while food production is negatively related to inflation. Accordingly, policymakers should be cautious in formulating policies between the positive and negative changes in oil prices as it was shown that inflation increased when the oil price dropped. Additionally, the use of contractionary monetary policy would help to reduce the inflation rate, and lastly, it is proposed that the government should encourage domestic food production both in quantity and quality to reduce inflation.

The process of modelling energy systems is accompanied by challenges inherently connected with mathematical modelling. However, due to modern realities in the 21st century, existing challenges are gaining in magnitude and are supplemented with new ones. Modellers are confronted with a rising complexity of energy systems and high uncertainties on different levels. In addition, interdisciplinary modelling is necessary for getting insight in mechanisms of an integrated world. At the same time models need to meet scientific standards as public acceptance becomes increasingly important. In this intricate environment model application as well as result communication and interpretation is also getting more difficult. In this paper we present the open energy modelling framework (oemof) as a novel approach for energy system modelling and derive its contribution to existing challenges. Therefore, based on literature review, we outline challenges for energy system modelling as well as existing and emerging approaches. Based on a description of the philosophy and elementary structural elements of oemof, a qualitative analysis of the framework with regard to the challenges is undertaken. Inherent features of oemof such as the open source, open data, non-proprietary and collaborative modelling approach are preconditions to meet modern realities of energy modelling. Additionally, a generic basis with an object-oriented implementation allows to tackle challenges related to complexity of highly integrated future energy systems and sets the foundation to address uncertainty in the future. Experiences from the collaborative modelling approach can enrich interdisciplinary modelling activities. Our analysis concludes that there are remaining challenges that can neither be tackled by a model nor a modelling framework. Among these are problems connected to result communication and interpretation.

The abundant mechanical vibration energy in bridge road environment can be converted into electric energy by using the piezoelectric energy harvest technology, which could be an efficient way to provide energy required by the wireless sensor network in the bridge condition monitoring system. An autonomous energy harvesting system has been designed based on cantilever beams for sensing and acquiring the bridge vibration energy. After the analysis of the dynamic properties of the piezoelectric cantilever beam in the energy conversion, three kinds of interface circuits were compared through simulation and experimental results. It was shown that the VD interface circuit has less power loss. Furthermore, the proposed closed loop control method based on the VD circuit was simple, adaptive, and self-powered, which is suitable for the road energy harvesting application. Finally, the energy harvesting system based on VD circuit was realized with harvested power of around 0.8mW.

Reliable evapotranspiration (ET) estimation is a key factor for water resources planning, attaining sustainable water resources use, irrigation water management, and water regulation. During the past few decades, researchers have developed a variety of remote sensing techniques to estimate ET. The Earth Engine Evapotranspiration Flux (EEFlux) application uses Landsat imagery archives on the Google Earth Engine platform to calculate the daily evapotranspiration at the local field scale (30 m). Automatically calibrated for each Landsat image, the EEFlux application design is based on the widely vetted Mapping Evapotranspiration at high Resolution with Internalized Calibration (METRIC) model and produces ET estimation maps for any Landsat 5, 7 or 8 scene in a matter of seconds. In this research we evaluate the consistency and accuracy of EEFlux products that are produced when standard US and global assets are used. Processed METRIC products for 58 scenes distributed around the western and central United States were used as the baseline for comparison. The goal of this paper is to compare the results from EEFlux with the standard METRIC applications to illustrate the utility of the EEFlux products as they currently stand. Given that EEFlux is derived from METRIC, differences are expected to occur due to differing calibration methods (automatic versus manual) and differing input datasets. The products compared include the fraction of reference ET (ETrF), actual ET (ETa), and surface energy balance components net radiation (Rn), ground heat flux (G), and sensible heat flux (H), as well as Ts, albedo and NDVI. The product comparisons show that the intermediate products of Ts, Albedo, and NDVI, and also Rn have similar values and behavior for both EEFlux and METRIC. Larger differences were found for H and G. Despite the more significant differences in H and G, results show that EEFlux is able to calculate ETrF and ETa values comparable to the values from trained expert METRIC users for agricultural areas. For non-agricultural areas such as semi-arid rangeland and forests, the automated EEFlux calibration algorithm needs to be improved in order to be able to reproduce ETrF and ETa that is similar to the manually calibrated METRIC products.

Diseases caused by contaminated water consumption and poor hygiene are among the leading cause of death in children, the elderly and people with compromised immune system. The present study aims to assess the drinking water quality of some selected drinking water sources in the chosen study area using water quality index (WQI). Samples of drinking waters were collected from four different sources—river, sachet (packaged), borehole and well in Jabi, Abuja, Nigeria for physicochemical and bacteriological analyses using standard methods. With the exception of pH, river water had the highest content of all the physicochemical parameters examined. Some of the physicochemical parameters such as temperature and pH determined in this study were mostly within the World Health Organization (WHO) standard. The bacteriological analyses revealed that the highest total viable counts of 1.54 (0.12) × 10² (cfu/mL) were obtained in the river sample while the least values of 0.03 (0.00) × 10² (cfu/mL) were obtained in the sachet water. Three bacterial isolates of Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas spp and Aeromonas spp were isolated from well water while Pseudomonas spp and Proteus spp were isolated from borehole water. All other bacteria were isolated from the river. The study demonstrates that the safest drinking water source in Idu district, Jabi, Abuja is the sachet/packaged water while the least safe is the river water due to the presence of significant opportunistic pathogens. The results of this study are beneficial for water quality management and could be used for low-cost effective water quality assessment in Jabi.

Wireless Powered Communication Networks (WPCN), which has attracted much attention of researchers, also been recently recommended in 5^th generation (5G) wireless networks. With the help of the WPCN, the reliability and battery life of wireless low-power devices can be improved. In this paper, we investigate throughput and ergodic capacity in WPCN-assisted amplify-and-forward (AF) relaying system, considering two transmission modes including delay-tolerant and delay-limited. As important achievement, we propose symmetric energy harvesting protocol, namely time power switching relaying (TPSR) in order to find maximal throughput. In particular, both time switching and power switching coefficients in this schemes are considered. Unlike most of the previous works, we further focus on impact of outdated channel state information (CSI) in this WPCN. In order to evaluate information processing efficiency, the performance can be substantially improved by optimally harvesting time and power coefficients of the received signal at relay node for energy and information extraction, and by deploying several scenarios. By deploying Monte Carlo simulation, it is confirmed that the system performance is more sensitive to CSI estimation error, noise variance, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and resulting in other reasonable computations of TPSR need be deployed to obtain QoS requirement.

The experiences gathered during the past 30 years support the operational use of irrigation scheduling based on frequent multi-spectral image data. Currently, the operational use of dense time series of multispectral imagery at high spatial resolution makes monitoring of crop biophysical parameters feasible, capturing crop water use across the growing season, with suitable temporal and spatial resolutions. These achievements, and the availability of accurate forecasting of meteorological data, allow for precise predictions of crop water requirements with unprecedented spatial resolution. This information is greatly appreciated by the end users, i.e. professional farmers or decision-makers, and can be provided in an easy-to-use manner and in near-real-time by using the improvements achieved in web-GIS methodologies. This paper reviews the most operational and explored methods based on optical remote sensing for the assessment of crop water requirements, identifying strengths and weaknesses and proposing alternatives to advance towards full operational application of this methodology. In addition, we provide a general overview of the tools which facilitates co-creation and collaboration with stakeholders, paying special attention to these approaches based on web-GIS tools.

This article presents an in-depth review of Virtual Power Plant (VPP), its organization in the energy system and its prospects in the face of the promising future of the increasing bidirectional complexity exposed in the current scenario. A new paradigm for the operations of modern power distribution and transmission systems requires greater grid flexibility that is accompanying an extensive change in the structure of electricity markets, the fruit of the development of the renewable industry and of the growing photovoltaic systems popularized, but in contrast due to the intermittent nature cause variable uncertainties in the power system. Innovative concepts like VPP are becoming a reality, establishing an efficient and effective mechanism. The objectives and components are described in a comprehensive way, and some of the most important are pointed out and presented in detail to contribute with a description of the energy systems and the implicit research needed for sustainability and resilience in the eminent energy scenario with this technology. In addition, the literature and studies of this technology already indicate a direction of this new tool as a promising solution to manage the uncertainties of the renewable energies.

Cycling reliability is crucial for Si-based materials due to severe volume change during cycles that results in the fast capacity fading. Though the binder only occupies a very low amount of the total mass of anodes, it is proved to perform a key parameter to improve the cycle performance of Si-based anodes. Because they are eco-friendly and cost saving, water-based binders styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) are regarded as the better binder to substitute Poly (vinylidene difluoride) (PVDF) as the binder for Si-based anode. In this study, the anodes are fabricated by simply mixing the active materials (naso Si, graphite and conductive additive) together and using the mixture of SBR and CMC as a binder. The results showed that the retention capacities of the anodes are more than 440 mAh/g after 400 cycles. It indicates that it is an easy and simple way to make high performance anodes.

Although microgrids facilitate the increased penetration of distributed generations (DGs) and improve the security of power supplies, they have some issues that need to be better understood and addressed before realising the full potential of microgrids. This paper presents a comprehensive list of challenges and opportunities supported by a literature review on the evolution of converter-based microgrids. The discussion in this paper presented with a view to establishing microgrids as distinct from the existing distribution systems. This is accomplished by, firstly, describing the challenges and benefits of using DG units in a distribution network and then those of microgrid ones. Also, the definitions, classifications and characteristics of microgrids are summarised to provide a sound basis for novice researchers to undertake ongoing research on microgrids.

Although, promotion of urbanization culture in recent decades has made inevitable development of cities in the world, however, the development can be guided in a direction that leave, to the extent possible, minimum socioeconomic and environmental impacts. For this, it is required to first forecast auto-spreading orientation of cities and suburbs in rural areas over time and then avoid shapeless growth of cities. This paper is an attempt to develop a dynamic hybrid model based on logistic regression (LR), Markov chain (MC), and cellular automata (CA) for prediction of future urban sprawl in fast-growing cities. The model was developed using 12 widely-used urban development criteria, whose significant coefficient was determined by logistic regression, and validated by relative operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. The validated model was run in Guilan, a tourist province in northern Iran with a very high rate of urban development. For this, changes in the area of urban land use were detected over the period of 1989 to 2013 and then, future sprawl of the province was forecasted by the years 2025 and 2037. The analysis results revealed that the area of urban land use was increased by more than 1.7 % from 36012.5 ha in 1989 to 59754.8 ha in 2013, and the area of Caspian Hyrcanian forestland was reduced by 31628 ha. The results also predicted an alarming increase in the rate of urban development in the province by the years 2025 and 2037, during which urban land use is predicted to develop 0.9 % and 1.38 %, respectively. The development pattern is expected to be uneven and scattered, without following any particular direction. The development will occur close to the existing or newly-formed urban basements as well as around major roads and commercial areas. This development, if not controlled, will lead to the loss of 13863 ha of Hyrcanian forests and if the trend continues, 21013 ha of Hyrcanian forests and 20208 ha of Barren/open lands are expected to be destroyed by the year 2037. In general, the proposed model is an efficient tool for the support of urban planning decisions and facilitates the process of sustainable development of cities by providing decision-makers with an overview on future development of cities where the growth rate is very fast.

COVID-19 is now a major global health crisis, can lead to severe food crisis unless proper measures are not taken. Though a number of scientific studies have addressed the possible impacts of COVID-19 in Bangladesh on variety of issues, problems and food crises associated with aquatic resources and communities are missing. Therefore, this study aimed at bridging the gap in the existing situation and challenges of COVID-19 by linking its impact on aquatic food sector and small-scale fisheries with dependent population. The study was conducted based on secondary data analysis and primary fieldwork. Secondary data focused on COVID-19 overview and number of confirmed, recovered and death cases in Bangladesh; at the same time its connection with small-scale fisheries, aquatic food production, demand and supply was analyzed. Community perceptions were elicited to present how the changes felt and how they affected aquatic food system and small-scale fisheries and found devastating impact. Sudden illness, reduced income, complication to start production and input collection, labor crisis, transportation abstraction, complexity in food supply, weak value chain, low consumer demand, rising commodity prices, creditor’s pressure were identified as the primary affecting drivers. Dependent people felt the measures taken by the Government should be based on protecting the health and food security, although it could be detrimental to economic growth in the short term. The study provides insight into policies adopted by the policy makers to mitigate the effects of the pandemic on aquatic food sector and small-scale fisheries.

When focusing on materials science in civil engineering, the current trend is to investigate the use of innovative solutions in order to enhance thermal and energy performances. This trend is amplified with the need for a sustainable development strategy for the construction sector. This paper assesses the integration of a Phase Change Material (PCM) in cement intended for building construction. The key characteristic of PCMs is their capacity to absorb energy and restore it. In building construction, this feature could be harnessed to save energy by incorporating PCMs in the materials used. In this study, passive integration of PCM in cement was tested and thermal properties of such an integration was assessed. The results provide insights into how PCMs affect cement as part of the concrete mixture, thus identifying the contribution of PCM-based cements in concrete mixtures.

Current hydrogen production is based on the reforming process leading to the emission of pollutants; therefore, a substitute production method is imminently required. Water electrolysis is an ideal alternative for large-scale hydrogen production, as it does not produce any carbon-based pollutant byproducts. Production of green hydrogen from water electrolysis using intermittent sources (e.g., solar, eolic) would facilitate clean energy storage. However, the electrocatalysts currently required for water electrolysis are noble metals, making this potential option expensive and inaccessible for industrial applications. Therefore, there is a need to develop electrocatalysts based on earth-abundant and low-cost metals. Nickel-based electrocatalysts are a fitting alternative because they are economically accessible. Extensive research has focused on developing nickel-based electrocatalysts for hydrogen and oxygen evolution. Theoretical and experimental work have addressed the elucidation of these electrochemical processes and the role of heteroatoms, structure, and morphology. Even though some works tend to be contradictory, they have lit up the path for efficient nickel-based electrocatalysts. For these reasons, herein, a review of recent progress is presented.

We have studied the relative positions of the frontier levels determine the main electronic properties and reaction ability, there is important necessity to compare the MO of the purine and рyrimidine bases: adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), thymine (T) and uracil (U). The donor and acceptor properties are the fundamental characteristic of the conjugated molecules and can be quantitatively estimated by relative positions of the frontier molecular orbitals. The MO’s energies can be estimated experimentally or quantum-chemically. Analysis of the relative position of the frontier levels (calibrated by the energy gap) enables the investigation of the donor/acceptor properties of the RNA/DNA bases more detailed. The index φ0 is proposed for the quantitative quantum-chemical estimation of the donor ability of the conjugated molecules: it points on the shifting of the energy gap relative to the reference electron balanced system. The RNA/DNA bases divided strictly by two groups: predominantly donors (φ0 > 0.5) and predominantly acceptors (φ0 > 0.5). Each representative base of the first group forms the stable base pair the representative base of the second group the difference of indices Δφ0 should be optimal to enables the DNA replication.

This paper investigates an Energy Neutral System using Micro Energy Harvesters for a Health Monitoring Wireless Sensor Node (HM-WSN). We have implemented HM-WSN consisting of a solar cell energy harvester, a Power Management Unit (PMU) and the ucontroller, sensor and transmitter acting as load. A battery extender and a switching logic circuit for sensor node is designed to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed system. The HM-WSN senses body temperature with improvement in lifetime of coincell. The HM-WSN is built using commercially available off the shelf (COTS components and consumes 47.2uW for data being updated every 134s. It can be operated for approximately 1.32 years only on a coincell. Furthermore, the HM-WSN can be operated with solar energy at 200lux, achieving 96.36 years with a combination of a coincell with an additional capacitor of 2.2mF. It attains 4.07 years to 16.87 years lifetime with the load capacitor varying from 1mF to 1.5mF at 350lux lighting condition. With the same ambient condition and a 2mF load capacitor, HM-WSN attains complete energy autonomy.

Ferrocenium (Fc+) inherits a number of molecular/electronic properties from the neutral counterparts’ ferrocene (Fc) including the high symmetry. Both Fc+ and Fc prefer the eclipsed structure (D5h) over the staggered structure (D5d) by an energy of 0.36 kcal·mol-1. The present study using the recently developed excess orbital energy spectrum (EOES) shows that the open shell Fc+ cation exhibits similar conformer dependent configurational changes to the neutral Fc conformer pair. A further energy decomposition analysis (EDA) discloses that the reasons for the preferred structures are different between Fc+ and Fc. The dominant differentiating energy between the Fc+ conformers is the electrostatic energy (EEstat), whereas in neutral Fc, it is the quantum mechanical Pauli repulsive energy (EPauli). Within the D5h conformer of Fc+, the EOES reveals that the -electrons of Fc+ experience more substantial conformer dependent energy changes than the -electrons (assumed the hole is in a β orbital).

The interaction between spinors and gravity is the most complicated and subtle interaction in the universe, which involves the basic problem to unified quantum theory and general relativity. By means of Clifford Algebra, a unified language and tool to describe the rules of nature, this paper systematically discusses the dynamics and properties of spinor fields in curved space-time, such as the decomposition of the spinor connection, the classical approximation of Dirac equation, the energy momentum tensor of spinors and so on. To split spinor connection into Keller connection $\Upsilon_\mu\in\Lambda^1$ and pseudo-vector potential $\Omega_\mu\in\Lambda^3$ by Clifford algebra not only makes the calculation simpler, but also highlights their different physical meanings. The representation of the new spinor connection is dependent only on the metric, but not on the Dirac matrix. Keller connection only corresponds to geometric calculations, but the potential $\Omega_\mu$ has dynamical effects, which couples with the spin of a spinor and may be the origin of the celestial magnetic field. Only in the new form of connection can we clearly define the classical concepts for the spinor field and then derive its complete classical dynamics, that is, Newton's second law of particles. To study the interaction between space-time and fermion, we need an explicit form of the energy-momentum tensor of spinor fields. However, the energy-momentum tensor is closely related to the tetrad, and the tetrad cannot be uniquely determined by the metric. This uncertainty increases the difficulty of deriving rigorous expression. In this paper, through a specific representation of tetrad, we derive the concrete energy-momentum tensor and its classical approximation. In the derivation of energy-momentum tensor, we obtain a spinor coefficient table $S^{\mu\nu}_{ab}$, which plays an important role in the interaction between spinor and gravity. From this paper we find that, Clifford algebra has irreplaceable advantages in the study of geometry and physics.

Biocultural heritage-based products, including regional specialty foods, are increasingly part of sustainable rural development strategies. While export-oriented biocultural products are often the most visible, we examine the role of campesino gastronomic heritage in the Central Valley of Tarija, Bolivia, as a case study of a local market-centered biocultural resource-based development strategy reflected in an alternative agri-food network. We develop a biocultural sustainability framework to examine this network from ecological, economic and sociocultural perspectives. Data are drawn from interviews (n=77), surveys (n=89) and participant observation, with primary and secondary producers of traditional and new products, as well as restaurant owners, market vendors and local consumers. We find that campesino biocultural heritage and the alternative agri-food network surrounding it represent an influential territorial project that underpins many household economies, particularly for women. We conclude that the relatively small investments by local governments to promote campesino gastronomic heritage are having positive ripple effects on small-scale producer livelihoods and on biocultural sustainability. We suggest that further support to increase market access and reduce other barriers to participation in alternative food networks will likely increase the options and benefits available to small-scale producers mobilising campesino gastronomic heritage within the local economy.

This study aimed to focus on how to design a low-cost greenhouse for the cultivation of crops, to propose the cost-effectiveness analysis of small agribusiness, and to promote sustainable agricultural production during and after the COVID-19 crisis for helping grassroots and anyone who lost their job. This article is qualitative engineering research, studying of literature reviews of greenhouse farming concept and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, then, designing low-cost greenhouse model which was preliminarily adapted for hot climate countries. Three plants that were selected as representative plants of this model include sunflower, water spinach, and wheat. The greenhouse model, measuring 5 x 7 x 4 m (W x L x H), was designed for this mission. The total cost of one building is approximately 97,994 THB. For the worthiness of the investment, farmers should build at least three greenhouse buildings, which will return total income to farmers approximately 34,666.09 THB per month. The suggestion includes further knowledge and financial supports from the government sectors among farmers, then, boost them up using high-level technology and also planting high-price agribusiness production to promote the local economy to be strong and sustainable.

Climate change is a global issue that draws widespread attention from the international society. As an important component of the climate system, the water cycle is directly affected by climate change. Thus, it is very important to study the influences of climate change on the basin water cycle with respect to maintenance of healthy rivers, sustainable use of water resources, and sustainable socioeconomic development in the basin. In this study, by assessing the suitability of multiple General Circulation Models (GCMs) recommended by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Statistical Downscaling Model (SDSM) and Automated Statistical Downscaling model (ASD) were used to generate future climate change scenarios. These were then used to drive distributed hydrologic models (Variable Infiltration Capacity, Soil and Water Assessment Tool) for hydrological simulation of the Yangtze River and Yellow River basins, thereby quantifying the effects of climate change on the basin water cycle. The results showed that suitability assessment adopted in this study could effectively reduce the uncertainty of GCMs, and that statistical downscaling was able to greatly improve precipitation and temperature outputs in global climate mode. Compared to a baseline period (1961–1990), projected future periods (2046–2065 and 2081–2100) had a slightly decreasing tendency of runoff in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River basin. In particular, a significant increase in runoff was observed during flood seasons in the southeast part. However, runoff of the upper Yellow River basin decreased continuously. The results provide a reference for studying climate change in major river basins of China.

The Italian herbal products market is the most prosperous in Europe. The proof is represented by the use of these products in several marketing categories, ranging from medicine to nutrition and cosmetics. Market and legislation in Italy are at the same time cause and consequence of this peculiar situation. In fact, the legislation on botanical food supplements in Italy is very permissive and at the same time the market shows an overall satisfaction of users and strong feedback in terms of consumption, which brings a widening use of medicinal plants, formerly the prerogative of pharmaceuticals, to other fields such as nutrition. This review summarizes the market and normative panorama of herbal products in Italy, highlighting the blurred boundaries of health indications, marketing authorizations and quality controls between herbal medicines and non pharmaceutical products, such as food supplements, cosmetics and other herbal-based “parapharmaceuticals”.

Diseases in articular cartilages have affected millions of people globally. Although the biochemical and cellular composition of articular cartilages is relatively simple, there is the limitation in self-repair ability of cartilage. Therefore, developing the strategies for cartilage repair is very important. Here, we reported a new manufacturing process of water-based polyurethane based photosensitive materials with hyaluronic acid and applied the materials for 3D printed customized cartilage scaffolds. The scaffold has high cytocompatibility and is one that closely mimics the mechanical properties of articular cartilages. It is suitable for culturing human Wharton's jelly mesenchymal stem cells (hWJMSCs) and the cells showed an excellent chondrogenic differentiation capacity. We consider that the 3D printing hybrid scaffolds may have potential in customized tissue engineering and facilitate the development of cartilage tissue engineering.

In this paper, the technical aspects of a multi-lidar instrument, the long-range WindScanner system, will be presented accompanied by an overview of the results from several field campaigns. The long-range WindScanner system consists of three spatially separated coherent Doppler scanning lidars and a remote master computer that coordinates them. The lidars were carefully engineered to perform arbitrary and time controlled scanning trajectories. Their wireless coordination via the master computer allows achieving and maintaining lidars’ synchronization within ten milliseconds. As a whole, the long-range WindScanner system can measure an entire wind field by emitting and directing three laser beams to intersect, and then by moving the beam intersection over the points of interest. The long-range WindScanner system was developed to tackle the need for high-quality observations of wind fields from scales of modern wind turbine and wind farms. It has been in operation since 2013.

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) are now filling in the gaps between spaceborne and ground-based observations and enhancing the spatial resolution and temporal coverage of data acquisition. In the realm of hydrological observations, UAVs have a key role to quantitatively characterize the surface flow allowing for remotely accessing the water body of interest. In this paper we propose a technology which uses a sensing platform encompassing a drone and a camera to determine the water level. The images acquired my means of the sensing platform are then analyzed using the Canny method to detect the edges of water level and of Ground Control Points (GCPs) used as reference points. The water level is then retrieved from images and compared to a benchmark value obtained by a traditional device. The method is tested at four locations in an artificial lake in central Italy. Results are encouraging as the overall mean error between estimated and true water level values is around 0.02 m. This technology is well suited to improve hydraulic modeling and thus provide a reliable support to flood mitigation strategies also in uneasy-to-access environments.

Today, the style of light construction materials used in building is one of the most important factors in reducing building's dead load and better performance of the structures in the earthquake. One of the ways to reduce the structure weight is to use lightweight blocks instead of using traditional materials. The main purpose of this research is to compare density, compressive strength and water absorption volume of non-load-bearing lightweight blocks made of natural and artificial lightweight aggregates. Scoria lightweight aggregates of Sanandaj, Ghorveh mine, pumice in Tabriz, Bostanabad mine, and Leca in Leca enterprise have been used to make the samples. Given the importance of the materials used, grading of coarse-grained materials has been conducted based on the standard of 7657 and grading of fine materials have been conducted based on the standard of 302.The experiments' results show that Scoria blocks due to hard texture, and high mechanical resistance of their lightweight aggregates, have had higher compressive strength, and density and lower water absorption volume compared to pumice and Lika lightweight aggregate blocks. Pumice blocks despite having desirable compressive strength and lower density compared to the two other blocks have higher water absorption volume, and do not meet the standard conditions. This same factor causes it faces with less interest. Among these Lika blocks with density of 1151.94 (kg per cubic meter) below 2000 kilograms per cubic meter of Iran density standard of 7782 (28-day compressive strength of 2.57 MPa), higher than 2.5 MPa of Iran compressive strength standard of 7782 (and water absorption volume of 282.92 kg per cubic meter) below 288 kilograms per cubic meter of Iran water absorption volume standard of 7782 (as a non-load-bearing lightweight block) have been diagnosed desirable.

The food system, the most important driver of planetary transformation, is in a deep crisis. Therefore, seeking a sustainable and socially-fair transition pathway becomes an issue of utmost priority for our own survival. The consideration of food as a commodity, a social construct that played a central role in driving this crisis, remains the uncontested narrative to lead the different transition pathways what seems rather contradictory. By exploring the normative values in the transition landscape, this paper seeks to understand how relevant is the hegemonic narrative of “food as commodity” and its alternative of “food as commons” to determine transition trajectories and food policy beliefs. Applying the Multi-level Perspective framework and developing the ill-studied “agency in transition”, this research enquired food-related professionals that belong to an online community of practice (N=95) on valuation of food dimensions and agency in food transitions to check whether the valuation of food is relevant to explain personal stances in transition. Results suggest the socially-constructed view of food as commodity is positively correlated to the gradual reforming attitude, whereas food as commons is positively correlated to the counter-hegemonic transformers regardless the self-defined position in the transition landscape (regime or niches). At personal level, there are multiple loci of resistance with counter-hegemonic attitudes in varied institutions of the regime and the innovative niches, many of them holding this discourse of food as commons. Conversely, alter-hegemonic attitudes are not positively correlated to this alternative discourse and they may inadvertently or purportedly reinforce the ‘‘neoliberal narrative’’. Food as commons, a different narrative whose rationale is explained in the paper, seems to be a relevant framework that could enrich the multiple transformative constituencies that challenge the industrial food system and therefore facilitate the convergence of movements that reject the commodification of food.

In this study, the impact of energy, agriculture, macroeconomic and human-induced indicators on environmental pollution from 1971 to 2011 is investigated using the statistically inspired modification of partial least squares (SIMPLS) regression model. There was evidence of a linear relationship between energy, agriculture, macroeconomic and human-induced indicators and carbon dioxide emissions. Evidence from the SIMPLS regression shows that a 1% increase in crop production index will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 0.71%. Economic growth increased by 1% will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 0.46%, thus supports the environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis that an increase in a country’s economic growth leads to a reduction in environmental pollution. An increase in electricity production from hydroelectric sources by 1% will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 0.30%, thus increasing renewable energy sources in Ghana’s energy portfolio will help mitigate carbon dioxide emissions. Increasing Enteric Emissions by 1% will increase carbon dioxide emissions by 4.22% and a 1% increase in the Nitrogen content of Manure Management will increase carbon dioxide emissions by 6.69%. The SIMPLS regression forecasting exhibited a 5% MAPE from the prediction of carbon dioxide emissions.

COVID-19 pandemic and its restrictive measures have present serious unprecedented challenges to human eating behavior. Given that Google Search has become a valuable information resource to examine, predict, and estimate human online interests and behavior, that somehow linked to real people concerns. This study aimed to investigate the features and evaluate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and its lockdown on consumer worldwide interest in eating behavior and its related factors. Google Trends-Relative Search Volumes (RSV) of distinct keywords related to eating behavior, were obtained from a timeframe before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, from January 1, 2018, to December 13, 2020. During the global lockdown from March 11, 2020, to June 30, 2020, RSV curves exhibited a short-term fluctuation of interest in multiple keywords related to eating behavior and its related factors such as food purchasing, food security, food poisoning, panic buying, stocking up, health awareness and mental illness. Spearman’s correlation analysis showed a strong correlation between daily confirmed cases and examined keywords. Univariate repeated measures ANOVA following with Bonferroni Post-hoc test revealed that during the year with the presence of COVID-19 pandemic, people worldwide pay more concerns in each keyword (1) environmental and economic factors (unemployment: +269%, food shortage: +180%, food bank: +50%); (2) health- and food-safety concerns (immunity: +138%, vitamin C: +90%, vitamin D: +55%, zinc: +47%, food storage containers: +40%, food packaging: +31%); (3) food choices and interest (local meat: +84%, frozen food: +67%, CSA: +65%, flour: +66%, bread: +53%, soybean oil: +45%, local fruit: +43%, canned tomato: +42%, refrigerated food: +41%, canned meat: +39%, pancake: +37%, cookie: +29%, butter: +29%, canned fish: +29%, liquior: +20%); (4) social and individual factors (take-out: +128%, deliver: +53%), (6) lifestyle factors (stationary bicycle: +110%, dumbbell: +89%, yoga mat: +84%, treadmill: +65%, grocery store: +51%); (6) psychological factors (isolation: +113%). COVID-19 pandemic and its lockdown have had far-reaching effects on global concerns in many factors related to human eating behavior. Swift action is necessarily performed to strengthen the resilience of the food supply chain system, support and adapt to the new normal behavior, and mitigation the profound negative changes, especially targeting those in high-risks and vulnerable groups and food-insecure regions.

To address the question whether there is evidence that drinking water in general or mineral water in particular is effective in preventing diabetes; we performed a literature search of randomized controlled trials (PubMed). The search resulted in very few trials (N = 9) investigating this topic: one trial investigates the effect of increasing water consumption on glycemic control in diabetic patients; two trials investigate the effect of drinking water with a meal in diabetic patients; while six trials compare the effect of mineral rich water with that of low mineralized water on glucose metabolism in healthy subjects. There is evidence that increasing water consumption can improve glucose metabolism and randomized controlled trials with mineral water suggest that waters containing relevant amounts of magnesium can exert an additional effect. The role of bicarbonate; which is present in all the mineral waters used in the trials; will be discussed. Future research needs to investigate the effect of mineral water in prediabetic individuals or individuals with impaired glycemic control.

In this paper, modelling, simulation and verification of multi-agent manufacturing system with application of bio-inspired techniques are addressed. To this end, the new solution of abstract architecture for control and coordination decentralized systems - CODESA is suggested. Centralized architecture suffers from various problems, such as rigidity, scalability, low fault-tolerance or very limited flexibility, agility, energy efficiency and productivity. Prime is concrete application of CODESA in manufacturing domain. The undesirable characteristics of emergent behaviour are the problem to achieve optimization and impossibility to predict future states of the system. CODESA-Prime has been tested by simulations for automatic guided vehicle (AGV) systems guided by magnetic tape in Ella Software Platform.

As the world’s second largest economy, China ranks amount the world’s top nations when it comes to carbon emission, and therefore its attitude towards climate change is closely followed by all parties concerned. There have been few researches on the role of environmental governance in low-carbon city transformation process, especially the Chinese one. This paper analyses the role of government environmental regulation played in the low-carbon city transformation process by taking Shenzhen as the research object. One of the world's youngest super cities, it also happens to be the lowest carbon emission intensity city in China. Striving to explore green low-carbon development path for the whole country, Shenzhen provides practical experience for countries to cope with global climate change. However, its efforts to reduce the total carbon emissions failed, but it emphasized the carbon emission intensity, which is consistent with the international commitments made by the central government. China’s policy towards handling climate change relies on hierarchical governance arrangement. The strength of the NGOs in the country is weak and incomparable with the government’s, which has mastered most of the resources and is just a reality in China.