Preparation and characterization study on maleic acid cross-linked poly(vinyl alcohol)/chitin/nanocellulose composites

In the quest on improving composite formulations for environmental sustainability, maleic acid (MA) cross-linked poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA)-α-chitin composites reinforced by oil palm empty fruit bunch fibers (OPEFB)-derived nanocellulose crystals (NCC) had been successfully prepared. Based on the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic analysis, it was proven that molecular interactions of the cross-linker to the polymeric networks was through conjugated ester linkage. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) showed that the influence of MA was minimal toward crystallization in the PVA/chitin/NCC composite. Maximum tensile strength, elongation at break and Young's modulus of the respective PVA/chitin/NCC composites were achieved at different content of MA, dependent on the PVA/chitin mass ratio. Among all compositions, a maximum Young's modulus was achieved at 30 wt% MA loading in PVA/chitin-30/NCC, amounting to 2,413.81 ± 167.36 MPa. Moreover, the mechanical properties and selected physicochemical properties (swelling, gel content, and contact angle) of the PVA/chitin/NCC composites could be tailored by varying the chitin content (10–30 wt%) and MA content (10–50 wt% based on total mass of composite). In brief, this chemically cross-linked PVA-based biocomposites formulated with sustainable resources exhibited tunable physicochemical and mechanical properties.     

Visual perception of Fourier rainbow holographic display

The rainbow hologram provides views of reconstruction with rainbow color within a large viewing zone. In our recent paper, a Fourier rainbow holographic display using diffraction grating and a white‐light LED source was introduced. In this technique, the rainbow effect is realized by the dispersion of white‐light source on diffraction grating, while the slit is implemented numerically by reducing the demands of the space‐bandwidth product of the display. This paper presents a novel analysis on the visual perception of the Fourier rainbow holographic display using Wigner distribution. The view‐dependent appearance of the image, including multispectral field of view and viewing zone, is investigated considering the observer and the display parameters. The resolution of the holographic view is also investigated. For this, a new quantitative assessment for image blur is introduced using Wigner distribution analysis. The analysis is supported with numerical simulations and experimentally captured optical reconstructions for the holograms of the computer model and real object generated with different slit size, reconstruction distance, and different observation conditions.     

Visualizing for the Non‐Visual: Enabling the Visually Impaired to Use Visualization

The majority of visualizations on the web are still stored as raster images, making them inaccessible to visually impaired users. We propose a deep‐neural‐network‐based approach that automatically recognizes key elements in a visualization, including a visualization type, graphical elements, labels, legends, and most importantly, the original data conveyed in the visualization. We leverage such extracted information to provide visually impaired people with the reading of the extracted information. Based on interviews with visually impaired users, we built a Google Chrome extension designed to work with screen reader software to automatically decode charts on a webpage using our pipeline. We compared the performance of the back‐end algorithm with existing methods and evaluated the utility using qualitative feedback from visually impaired users.     

Effects of caffeine ingestion and thermotherapy on blood orexin circulation in humans

Food Science and Biotechnology - Caffeine and orexin can affect awakening, neuroendocrine, and sympathetic nerve function. Our previous study has reported that caffeine intake can increase human...     

Sensitivities of input parameters for predicting stability of soil slope

Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment - The infinite slope stability model is the basis for predicting the slope stability; however, the fundamental theory requires various input...     

Object-Oriented Approach in Design for Lift Installation of Offshore Structures

Abstract: A consistent representation of offshore structures and barges that is appropriate for computer processing is essential for the development of an efficient design system for offshore heavy lift installation. This paper outlines the representation of conceptual and physical entities in the preliminary design for lift installation through an object-oriented approach. The spatial and topologic abstractions of physical entities are illustrated. These abstractions, together with the locational dependency concept for an assembly, form the backbone for geometric reasoning in the top-down approach for lift installation design. An object-oriented prototype system for lift evaluation, C-LIFT, using the knowledge-based development tool kit ART_*Enterprise is described. A liftability study involving the installation of offshore modules and the associated lift sequence is then presented to illustrate the advantages of this approach.     

Modeling of a membrane reactor system for crude palm oil transesterification. Part II: Transport phenomena

The mechanistic modeling of biodiesel production process in membrane reactor with the consideration of chemical reaction, phase equilibrium, and ultrafiltration is important for the membrane reactor design. In part II of this work, the chemical and phase equilibrium (CPE) model for crude palm oil transesterification reaction in the membrane reactor developed in part I is extended to an integration of CPE with modified Maxwell–Stefan model, which considers multicomponent mass transport phenomena of concentration polarization and intramembrane. A good fit of simulated permeate fluxes and apparent solute rejection to the experimental data shows that the model has a good prediction capability. Reversible fouling was found to be the major fouling and no pore plugging was observed. Simulation results verified that micelles were retained by the membrane at CPO:MEOH molar ratio of 1:24 and catalyst concentration of 0.5 wt %. However, phase inversion happened when catalyst concentration of 0.05 and 0.1 wt % were used. © 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 61: 1981–1996, 2015