Groundwater Level Simulation Using Soft Computing Methods with Emphasis on Major Meteorological Components

Water Resources Management - Precise estimation of groundwater level (GWL) might be of great importance for attaining sustainable development goals and integrated water resources management....     

Hydrothermal synthesis of Co3O4 nanosheets and its application in photoelectrochemical water splitting

In this study, Co₃O₄ nanosheets were synthesized through hydrothermal method using cobalt nitrate hexahydrate. X-ray diffraction, diffuse reflectance spectra, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and field emission scanning electron microscopy were applied to investigate the properties of as-synthesized samples. Ultimately, the electrochemical and photoelectrochemical properties were evaluated by Mott–Schottky analysis and measuring photoconversion efficiency of Co₃O₄ nanosheets. The results indicated that Co₃O₄ nanosheets exhibited a maximum efficiency of 0.92% for water electrolysis under simulated 1.5 global sunlight air mass, which further suggests the excellent potential of Co₃O₄ nanosheets for application in hydrogen generation through photocatalytic water splitting.     

Performance of advanced color difference and CAM02‐based formulas in prediction of the Crispening effect for reflective samples

The Crispening effect is defined as an increase in the perceived color difference of the two stimuli, when their color (chromaticity or luminance) is close to the background on which the two stimuli are compared. In this study, the amount of the Crispening effect for three achromatic backgrounds and also the performance of six different color difference formulas (CDFs) for prediction of this effect have been investigated, by preparing 85 sample pairs in 9 CIE's recommended color centers. Regarding the results, the maximum (50%) and the minimum (4%) amount of the Crispening effect belong to the gray and the purple centers, respectively. According to the results of a comparative test, the Crispening intensifies when two stimuli have just lightness difference instead of just chromaticity difference. The highest variation was for the gray samples, in which the amount of the Crispening effect increased from 35% to 65%. By using PF/3 and STRESS index, it is also concluded that CMC and CIEDE2000 perform better than CAM02‐SCD and CAM02‐UCS in prediction of the Crispening effect on the dark gray and gray backgrounds. According to the results, the significant differences between the performances of the CDFs disappear when the luminance of the background increases. Huang's power functions also do not improve these results significantly. Furthermore, the results indicate that the traditional L* equation used in CIELAB performs similar to the Whittle's formula in prediction of the Crispening effect for reflective samples, and no significant difference was obtained.     

High-speed GPU implementation of a secret sharing scheme based on cellular automata

The Journal of Supercomputing - Parallel implementation provides a solution for the problem of accelerating cellular automata (CA)-based secret sharing schemes and make them appropriate for bulk...     

Impacts of prior parameter distributions on Bayesian evaluation of groundwater model complexity

This study used the marginal likelihood and Bayesian posterior model probability for evaluation of model complexity in order to avoid using over-complex models for numerical simulations. It focused on investigation of the impacts of prior parameter distributions (involved in calculating the marginal likelihood) on the evaluation of model complexity. We argue that prior parameter distributions should define the parameter space in which numerical simulations are made. New perspectives on the prior parameter distribution and posterior model probability were demonstrated in an example of groundwater solute transport modeling with four models, each simulating four column experiments. The models had different levels of complexity in terms of their model structures and numbers of calibrated parameters. The posterior model probability was evaluated for four cases with different prior parameter distributions. While the distributions substantially impacted model ranking, the model ranking in each case was reasonable for the specific circumstances in which numerical simulations were made. For evaluation of model complexity, it is thus necessary to determine the parameter spaces for modeling, which can be done by conducting numerical simulation and using engineering judgment based on understanding of the system being studied.     

Highly refractive and organo-soluble poly(amide imide)s based on 5,5′-thiobis(2-amino-4-methyl-thiazole): Synthesis and characterization

A new thioether-bridged diimide-diacid (DIDA) monomer was synthesized from the condensation of 5,5′-thiobis(2-amino-4-methyl-thiazole) (DA) and trimellitic anhydride at 1 : 2 molar ratio. A series of novel organic-soluble poly(amide imide)s (PAIs) bearing flexible thioether linkages and heteroaromatic thiazole groups were synthesized from DIDA with various commercially available aromatic diamines (1–5) via a direct polycondensation method with triphenyl phosphite and pyridine. The resulting polymers were obtained in high yields and possessed inherent viscosities in the range of 0.47–0.91 dL g^–1. All of the polymers were amorphous in nature, showed good solubility and could be easily dissolved in amide-type polar aprotic solvents (e.g., N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone, dimethyl sulfoxide, and N,N-dimethylacetamide), and even dissolved in less polar solvents (e.g., pyridine and tetrahydrofuran). They showed excellent thermal stability with glass transition temperatures between 233–269°C and 10% weight loss temperatures in excess of 480°C in nitrogen and 450°C in air atmosphere. The flexible structure endowed the PAI films with good optical transparency. The optical transmittances of the PAI films at 450 nm were higher than 80% for the thickness of approximately 10 μm. Moreover, the thiazole moieties and flexible thioether linkages in the molecular chains of the PAIs provided them with high refractive indices of 1.7329–1.7509 and low birefringences of 0.0065–0.0098. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012     

Association between depression and inflammatory/anti‐inflammatory cytokines in chronic kidney disease and end‐stage renal disease patients: A review of literature

Depression is a common psychiatric disorder in patients with advanced chronic kidney diseases (CKDs). Strong correlation has been reported between depression and patients' morbidity and mortality among dialysis patients. On the contrary, chronic inflammation may be a major contributor to morbidity and mortality in these patients. Elevated plasma levels of proinflammatory cytokines, especially C‐reactive protein and interleukin (IL)‐6, have been correlated with cardiovascular events, hospitalization, and all‐cause and cardiovascular‐associated mortality in dialysis patients. Studies suggested that inflammation‐mediated atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases are the possible reasons for depression‐induced mortality among patients without renal diseases. Several studies found significant elevations in circulating levels of proinflammatory cytokines, particularly IL‐6 and tumor necrosis factor‐α, in patients with major depression. Furthermore, depressive mood and behaviors, including sadness and suicidal ideation, were observed in patients who received repeated injections of recombinant cytokines. A thorough literature review indicates that while depressive symptoms and elevated inflammatory cytokine levels coexist in CKD and dialysis patients, their association is uncertain. Depression seems to be more associated with elevated serum levels of IL‐6 than other cytokines in these patients. Further studies are needed to clarify the possibility of a causal relationship between inflammation and depressive symptoms in CKD and dialysis patients.     

The effect of paper appearance on printed color of inkjet printer

Paper properties, including the chemical or optical characteristics influence the quality and colorimetric characteristics of final printed colors. In this study, the effect of gloss, texture, and whiteness of the paper on the printed colors were investigated. The study was applied on 10 coated papers with different texture, gloss or whiteness, and the same grammage using two inkjet printers. It was found that the reproducibility of the printer can be affected with the paper brand, and this effect is statistically dependent on the brand of printer. The kind of paper significantly influences the light fastness of the final printed colors, and this effect statistically depends on the printer. Although, the paper's properties such as gloss and whiteness affect the gamut volume, it is not totally possible to model this effect. The effect of paper on the colorimetric values of the final printed colors is statistically significant. However, the influence of the brand of printer on the color changes via the paper difference is not statistically provable. Edge frequency technique was introduced as an appropriate method for computing texture properties of papers. The texture difference computed by this method shows a suitable correlation with the color differences caused by changing the paper's texture; however, it depends on the printer's brand. Furthermore, there is a good correlation between the Edge frequency difference and the gamut volume variation for papers with different texture while the other parameters such as gloss and whiteness are the same. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 38, 284–291, 2013     

Low Temperature Synthesis of TiO2 Nanoparticles with High Photocatalytic Activity and Photoelectrochemical Properties through Sol–Gel Method

In the present work TiO₂ nanoparticles were prepared by sol–gel method and both small-sized nanoparticles and proper crystals were delivered by simultaneous use of surfactant, which was applied for the purpose of size reduction of nanoparticles, and acid ions that were used so that the formation of crystalline structures occurs appropriately. Photocatalytic activity of samples was measured by degrading RO dye, and photoelectrochemical properties were assayed using anodic photocurrent responses under Xe lamp light irradiation. The synthesized nanoparticles exhibit great photoelectrochemical and photocatalytic activity compared to that of commercial photocatalyst, Degussa P-25, which demonstrates that the method can be applied in the synthesis of other semiconductor oxides nanoparticles.