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Search results for: BANKING STABILITY, TRANSFORMATION PROCESS, MACROECONOMIC STABILITY, THE WESTERN BALKAN REGION
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By-Products from Food Industry as a Promising Alternative for the Conventional Fillers for Wood–Polymer Composites
PublicationThe present paper describes the application of two types of food-industry by-products, brewers’ spent grain (BSG), and coffee silverskin (ŁK) as promising alternatives for the conventional beech wood flour (WF) for wood–polymer composites. The main goal was to investigate the impact of partial and complete WF substitution by BSG and ŁK on the processing, structure, physicochemical, mechanical, and thermal properties of resulting...
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Novel Cast Polyurethanes Obtained by Using Reactive Phosphorus-Containing Polyol: Synthesis, Thermal Analysis and Combustion Behaviors
PublicationPhosphorus-containing polyol applications in polyurethane synthesis can prevent volatilization of flame retardants and their migration on the surface of a material. In this work, novel cast polyurethanes were prepared by a one-step method with the use of different amounts of phosphorus-containing polyol, 4,4′–diphenylmethane diisocyanate and 1,4-butanediol. The chemical structure, thermal, physicochemical and mechanical properties...
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On the use of leading safety indicators in maritime and their feasibility for Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships
PublicationAlthough the safety of prospective Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships will largely depend on their ability to detect potential hazards and react to them, the contemporary scientific literature lacks the analysis of how to achieve this. This could be achieved through an application of leading safety indicators. The aim of the performed study was to identify the research directions of leading safety indicators in three safety-critical...
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Nonlocal three-dimensional theory of elasticity for buckling behavior of functionally graded porous nanoplates using volume integrals
PublicationIn this paper, the buckling of rectangular functionally graded (FG) porous nanoplates based on threedimensional elasticity is investigated. Since, similar researches have been done in two-dimensional analyses in which only large deflections with constant thickness were studied by using various plate theories; therefore, discussion of large deformations and change in thickness of plates after deflection in this study is examined....
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Syntheses, Structures and Reactivity of Terminal Phosphido Complexes of Iron(II) Supported by a β-Diketiminato Ligand
PublicationWe report the synthesis of the first series of terminal phosphido iron complexes supported by a β‐diketiminato ligand (Dippnacnac) and their catalytic activity in dehydrocoupling of secondary phosphines. Anionic and neutral mono‐ or diphosphido complexes were obtained from the reaction of [(Dippnacnac)FeCl2Li(dme)2] with the R2PLi (R = iPr, tBu, Cy, Ph) phosphides by tuning the stoichiometric ratio, polarity of the solvent, and...
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Structural changes of bacterial cellulose due to incubation in conditions simulating human plasma in the presence of selected pathogens
PublicationBacterial nanocellulose (BNC) is a natural biomaterial with a wide range of medical applications. However, it cannot be used as a biological implant of the circulatory system without checking whether it is biodegradable under human plasma conditions. This work aimed to investigate the BNC biodegradation by selected pathogens under conditions simulating human plasma. The BNC was incubated in simulated biological fluids with or...
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MANDARIN PEEL AS AN AUSPICIOUS FUNCTIONAL FILLER FOR POLYMER COMPOSITES
PublicationThis work describes the application of mandarin peel (MP) as a waste filler for high-density polyethylene (HDPE) composites. The main goal was to investigate the impact of the filler's essential oils, which include multiple terpenes and terpenoids, on the processing, physicochemical, mechanical, and thermal properties of the composites as a function of different filler content (1 – 10 wt%), as well as its effect on the color and...
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Chitin nanowhiskers from shrimp shell waste as green filler in acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber: Processing and performance properties
PublicationIn this work, chitin nanowhiskers with high crystallinity index were obtained from shrimp shells waste using acid hydrolysis method and then comprehensively characterized. Subsequently, the impact of chitin nanowhisker content on processing and performance of acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber based nanocomposites was evaluated. The results showed that the addition of chitin nanowhiskers increased tensile strength and tear strength...
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Investigation of praseodymium and samarium co-doped ceria as an anode catalyst for DIR-SOFC fueled by biogas
PublicationThe Pr and Sm co-doped ceria (with up to 20 mol.% of dopants) compounds were examined as catalytic layers on the surface of SOFC anode directly fed by biogas to increase a lifetime and the efficiency of commercially available DIR-SOFC without the usage of an external reformer. The XRD, SEM and EDX methods were used to investigate the structural properties and the composition of fabricated materials. Furthermore, the electrical...
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Efficient Use of Capital: Paradox of Real Estate and Industry in Turkey
PublicationIn recent years, one of the hottest debates on Turkish economy is the conflict on resource allocation between real estate and industry sectors. The debate was so intense that ex-minister of Economy Mr. Ali Babacan declared his opinions. Mr. Babacan’s statements about the creation of fixed capital by the private sector is not promising, and private sector fixed capital expenditures are not in the desired level. This situation is...
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Prediction of Ship Resonant Rolling - Related Dangerous Zones with Regard to the Equivalent Metacentric Height Governing Natural Frequency of Roll
PublicationPotentially dangerous zones corresponding to dynamical stability phenomena, possibly encountered by ships sailing in rough sea, are estimated nowadays with the use of the method recommended by IMO in the guidance coded MSC.1/Circ.1228. In this IMO method the parameter governing the natural period of roll is the initial metacentric height. Some earlier studies revealed that the initial metacentric height...
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Application of linear buckling sensitivity analysis to economic design of cylindrical steel silos composed of corrugated sheets and columns
PublicationThe paper deals with global stability of steel cylindrical silos composed of corrugated walls and vertical columns with loads imposed by a bulk solid following Eurocode 1. The optimum silo design with respect to the steel weight was based on a sensitivity analysis method. The changes of silo column profiles at each design step were performed by means of influence lines for the buckling load factor due to the unit column bending...
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Deregulation of the labour markets in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe — selected issues
PublicationThe countries of Central and Eastern Europe in the 1990s pursued the transformation processes which were to result in introducing systemic changes and building market economies. It was a process requiring adjustment of the regulatory and system framework to the requirements of the EU. One of the areas covered by the changes was the labour market. The reforms related to the functioning of national labour markets necessitated taking...
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Architektura przyjazna seniorom w Polsce XXI wieku. Kształtowanie przestrzeni zamieszkania, pracy i rozrywki
PublicationPolska, podobnie jak wiele innych krajów, zmaga się obecnie z procesem starzenia społeczeństwa, który w najbliższych latach będzie przybierał na sile. Dlatego bardzo istotne jest, aby już teraz rozpocząć proces przystosowywania miast do zmieniającej się struktury społecznej, tak aby w przyszłości mogły być one miejscem, w którym ludzie starsi będą mogli swobodnie i bezpiecznie mieszkać oraz funkcjonować. W realiach polskich można...
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Rubber wastes recycling for developing advanced polymer composites: A warm handshake with sustainability
PublicationRecycling and management of rubber wastes experiences an early-stage maturity in the quest for sustainable and circular materials. Up to now, solutions proposed for sustainable development of rubber wastes are limited, so that properties and performance features of recycled products are inadequate for practical applications. Herein, an experimental protocol is introduced for manufacturing semi-sustainable polymer composites based...
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Experimental and computational study on mechanical behaviour of carpentry corner log joints
PublicationThis work concerns experimental and numerical research on carpentry joints used in historic wooden buildings in southeastern Poland and western Ukraine. These structures are mainly sacred buildings, and the types of corner log joints characteristic of this region are primarily saddle-notch and dovetail joints; thus, these two types of joints were analysed in this study. The modelling of historic timber structures is a complex...
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Pharmaceuticals and other contaminants of emerging concern in Admiralty Bay as a result of untreated wastewater discharge: Status and possible environmental consequences
PublicationConsidering how the impact of human activity in Antarctica is growing, the aim of this study was to conduct the first assessment of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), other emerging contaminants (ECs), and antibiotic resistance genes present in the western shore of the Admiralty Bay region of King George Island. In total, more than 170 substances were evaluated to assess the potential environmental risks they pose...
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Nested Kriging Surrogates for Rapid Multi-Objective Optimization of Compact Microwave Components
PublicationA procedure for rapid EM-based multi-objective optimization of compact microwave components is presented. Our methodology employs a recently developed nested kriging modelling to identify the search space region containing the Pareto-optimal designs, and to construct a fast surrogate model. The latter permits determination of the initial Pareto set, further refined using a separate surrogate-assisted process. As an illustration,...
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Influence of the boron doping level on the electrochemical oxidation of the azo dyes at Si/BDD thin film electrodes
PublicationIn this study the efficiency of electrochemical oxidation of aromatic pollutants, such as reactive dyes, at boron-doped diamond on silicon (Si/BDD) electrodes was investigated. The level of [B]/[C] ratio which is effective for the degradation and mineralization of selected aromatic pollutants, and the impact of [B]/[C] ratio on the crystalline structure, layer conductivity and relative sp3/sp2 coefficient of a BDD electrode were...
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Superhydrophobic and superoleophilic melamine sponges impregnated with deep eutectic solvents for oil spill cleanup
PublicationThe extensive extraction of oil from the bottom of seas and oceans and its transportation by tankers increase the risk of potential environmental disasters associated with hydrocarbon fractions entering water reservoirs. Therefore, this paper presents the preparation of a simple impregnation of a melamine sponge with deep eutectic solvents (DES), which can be obtained from natural sources, including coconut oil, palm kernel oil,...
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Polyurethane/Silane-Functionalized ZrO2 Nanocomposite Powder Coatings: Thermal Degradation Kinetics
PublicationA polyurethane (PU)-based powder coating reinforced with vinyltrimethoxysilane (VTMS)-functionalized ZrO2 nanoparticles (V-ZrO2) for thermal stability was developed. Chemical structure, microstructure and thermal degradation kinetics of the prepared coatings were investigated. The peak of aliphatic C–H vibrating bond in the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectrum of V-ZrO2 was a signature of VTMS attachment. Scanning electron...
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Processing of Polyester-Urethane Filament and Characterization of FFF 3D Printed Elastic Porous Structures with Potential in Cancellous Bone Tissue Engineering
PublicationThis paper addresses the potential of self-made polyester-urethane filament as a candidate for Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF)-based 3D printing (3DP) in medical applications. Since the industry does not provide many ready-made solutions of medical-grade polyurethane filaments, we undertook research aimed at presenting the process of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) filament formation, detailed characteristics, and 3DP of specially...
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Interactions in aqueous solutions of K-peptide and DMSO – spectroscopic and calorimetric studies
PublicationIntroduction K-peptide (GILQINSRW) – short 9 amino acid fragment of the hen egg white lysozyme has the ability to form amyloid structures. Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is an osmolyte which can alter this ability. Our goal was to get an insight into the mechanism of Kpeptide-DMSO interactions in aqueous solutions. Such a knowledge can be helpful to understand processes leading to various neurodegenerative diseases. Methods ATR-FTIR...
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Exsolution of Ni nanoparticles on the surface of cerium and nickel co-doped lanthanum strontium titanate as a new anodic layer for DIR-SOFC. Anti-coking potential and H2S poisoning resistance of the prepared material
PublicationThe aim of this study was to evaluate a new catalytic material for biogas fueled DIR-SOFC. This material was a perovskite-type SrTiO3 doped with La, Ce and Ni of a general formula La0.27Sr0.54Ce0.09Ni0.1Ti0.9O3-σ (LSCNT). Additional preparation steps were undertaken to promote a nickel exsolution process. Heat post-treatment of powders in a humidified H2 resulted in an intensive growth of nickel nanoparticles (NPs) while the temperature...
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Photogrammetric Development Of The Threshold Water At The Dam On The Vistula River In Wloclawek From Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (Uav)
PublicationBarrage in Wloclawek (Poland) was designed by Hydroprojekt and built in the years of 1962 - 1970 as the first stage of the planned Lower Vist ula Cascade. Cascade design assumed the construction of 8 dams in Wyszogr o d, Plock, Wloclawek, Nieszawa (Ciechocinek as an option), Solec Kujawski, Chelmno, Opalen and Tczew. Nieszawa dam was supposed to ensure the maintenance of an adequate free surface...
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An Investigation of Polyamides Based on Isoidide-2,5-dimethyleneamine as a Green Rigid Building Block with Enhanced Reactivity
PublicationNovel, semicrystalline polyamides and copolyamides were synthesized from a new carbohydrate-based diamine, namely isoidide-2,5-dimethyleneamine (IIDMA). In combination with 1,6-hexamethylene diamine (1,6-HDA) as well as the biobased sebacic acid (SA) or brassylic acid (BrA), the desired copolyamides were obtained via melt polymerization of the nylon salts followed by a solid-state polycondensation (SSPC) process. Depending on the...
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Medium-sized cyclic bis(anisylphosphonothioyl)- disulfanes and their corresponding cyclic sulfane-structures and most characteristic reactions
PublicationCyclic 8-, 9-, 10-, and 12-membered bis(anisylphosphonothioyl)disulfanes were synthesized. Next, structurally related 7 to 9-membered cis and trans sulfanes were isolated as a result of sulfur atom extrusion from the parent cyclic disulfanes. The results of the desulfurization of the disulfanes were compared to the results obtained for desulfurization of the respective bis(anisylphosphodithioates). Cyclic disulfanes predominantly...
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Risking It All or Here Comes the Flood
PublicationThe professional reality is interdisciplinary! When city transformation and evolution starts, what are the tools for successful strategies for urban interventions? How does digital planning for digital fabrication processes look like? How dedicated are the new professionals? And how does this all influence the future of bridge design? More than 60 students representing various disciplines of built environment and working together...
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A New Approach of Solidification Analysis in Modular Latent Thermal Energy Storage Unit Based on Image Processing
PublicationThe solidification process of RT18HC in a cylindrical shell and tube storage unit has been studied using a new methodology based on image processing. The main idea of the algorithm is to label the region of solidification and use statistical functions to calculate the dimensions of the solidification front over time. Said analysis includes two methods. The first method is to measure the solid fraction changes during solidification....
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Cattaneo–Christov heat flow model for copper–water nanofluid heat transfer under Marangoni convection and slip conditions
PublicationThis report is devoted to the study of the flow of MHD nanofluids through a vertical porous plate with a temperature-dependent surface tension using the Cattaneo–Christov heat flow model. The energy equation was formulated using the Cattaneo–Christov heat flux model instead of Fourier’s law of heat conduction. The Tiwari–Das model was used to take into account the concentration of nanoparticles when constructing the momentum equation....
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Highly crystalline colloidal nickel oxide hole transport layer for low-temperature processable perovskite solar cell
PublicationHighly crystalline NiOX usually requires high annealing temperature (>300 °C) which is incompatible with flexible substrate and might consume high amount of energy. Herein, we demonstrate a facile emulsion process to synthesize highly crystalline, low temperature deposition (<150 °C) and solution processable NiOx nanoparticles (NPs) as a hole transport layer for the perovskite solar cells (PVSCs)....
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MODEL OF MULTILEVEL STOCHASTIC ANALYSIS OF ROAD SAFETY ON REGIONAL LEVEL
PublicationIn this paper multilevel approach to the issue of road safety level on the road network of European regions, classified as NUTS 2 in statistical databases of the European Union, has been presented. Following the pattern of many publications on road safety it has been assumed that the risk calculated as the number of death casualties in road accidents per 100,000 inhabitants of a given region has Poisson distribution. Therefore,...
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Visual Lip Contour Detection for the Purpose of Speech Recognition
PublicationA method for visual detection of lip contours in frontal recordings of speakers is described and evaluated. The purpose of the method is to facilitate speech recognition with visual features extracted from a mouth region. Different Active Appearance Models are employed for finding lips in video frames and for lip shape and texture statistical description. Search initialization procedure is proposed and error measure values are...
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Fast EM-driven size reduction of antenna structures by means of adjoint sensitivities and trust regions
PublicationIn this letter, a simple yet robust and computationally efficient optimization technique for explicit size reduction of antenna structures is presented. Our approach directly handles the antenna size as the main design objective, while ensuring satisfactory electrical performance by means of suitably defined penalty functions. For the sake of accuracy, the antenna structure is evaluated using high-fidelity EM simulation. In order...
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Nuclear power plant as a source of electrical energy and heat
PublicationIn this paper certain issues concerning usage of nuclear power plants as sources of not only electric power but also thermal energy will be discussed. For such a solution appeals most of all the need to limit harmful emissions of gases (including CO2) and ashes, which come from the process of burning fossil fuels, as well as the raising demand for network heat and chill. Additionally combined heat and power production brings measurable...
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Modification of thermal and rheological characteristics of bitumen by waste PET/GTR blends
PublicationWaste poly(ethylene terephthalate) (wPET)/ground tire rubber (GTR) blends with variable compositions were applied as low-cost modifiers into bitumen and their performance has been evaluated via morphological, thermal and rheological analyses. Depending on the weight ratio of wPET/GTR, dispersion of single/composite domains of waste polymers in the bitumen has promoted the interaction between bitumen and blend components. Fourier...
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Performance properties of rigid polyurethane-polyisocyanurate/brewers’ spent grain foamed composites as function of isocyanate index
PublicationIn the presented work, rigid polyurethane-polyisocyanurate (PUR-PIR) foams filled with brewers’ spent grain (BSG) were prepared. The influence of the isocyanate index (II) on its performance was investigated. Foams obtained with higher isocyanate index required a higher amount of hydrofluorocarbon physical blowing agent to provide the same apparent density of material. An increase of isocyanate index resulted in a slight decrease...
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Development of potential candidate reference materials for drugs in bottom sediment, cod and herring tissues
PublicationRegular use of a reference material and participation in a proficiency testing program can improve the reliability of analytical data. This paper presents the preparation of candidate reference materials for the drugs metoprolol, propranolol, carbamazepine, naproxen, and acenocoumarol in freshwater bottom sediment and cod and herring tissues. These reference materials are not available commercially. Drugs (between 7 ng/g and 32...
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Induced-fit binding of laccase to gold and carbon electrodes for the biological fuel cell applications
PublicationAnalogues of laccase natural substrates (syringic, veratric, ferulic, vanillic, isovanillic, 3,5-dimethoxybenzoic aldehydes) were employed to bind and orient laccase molecules in a way which facilitates adsorption of the catalyst molecules and their electrical connection with the conductive support. Laccase was bound efficiently to these substrates both on gold and carbon electrodes forming, respectively, 2D and 3D films sensitive...
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Hydrogen Damage in Superaustenitic 904L Stainless Steels
Publicationresults on the influence of hydrogen on corrosion resistance and of hydrogen embrittlement of 904L superaustenitic stainless steel were investigated. The cracking behavior was studied by performing a slow strain rate test in synthetic seawater under varying cathodic polarization conditions. The results showed that the steel’s plasticity varied with the applied cathodic current density. Significant reductions in ductility were found,...
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Nano-engineered diamond-based materials for supercapacitor electrodes: A review
PublicationOwing to the popularity of carbon-based supercapacitors, diamond has also been examined as a potential candidate with unique advantages such as a wide electrochemical potential window and stable capacitive behavior in both aqueous and non-aqueous electrolytes. Moreover, its chemical stability in harsh environments at extreme applied potential and current provides rare opportunities for designing new supercapacitors. Owing to the...
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Reliability assessment of an OVH HV power line truss transmission tower subjected to seismic loading
PublicationThe study focuses on the reliability of a transmission tower OS24 ON150 + 10, an element of an OVH HV power line, under seismic loading. In order to describe the seismic force, the real-life recording of the horizontal component of the El Centro earthquake was adopted. The amplitude and the period of this excitation are assumed random, their variation is described by Weibull distribution. The possible space state of the phenomenon...
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Role of MnO in manganese–borate binary glass systems: a study on structure and thermal properties
PublicationStructural and thermal properties of x MnO−(100−x)B2O3 (where x=40, 50 and 60 mol%) glass samples have been investigated with the employment of various techniques. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy results revealed the influence of MnO on glass matrix. Decrease of B–O bond-related band intensities has been observed. MnO addition was found to introduce broken [BO2O−]n chains. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) measurements...
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On the Origin of Protein Superfamilies and Superfolds
PublicationDistributions of protein families and folds in genomes are highly skewed, having a small number of prevalent superfamiles/superfolds and a large number of families/folds of a small size. Why are the distributions of protein families and folds skewed? Why are there only a limited number of protein families? Here, we employ an information theoretic approach to investigate the protein sequence-structure relationship that leads to...
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Robust Model Predictive Control for Autonomous Underwater Vehicle–Manipulator System with Fuzzy Compensator
PublicationThis paper proposes an improved Model Predictive Control (MPC) approach including a fuzzy compensator in order totrack desired trajectories of autonomous Underwater Vehicle Manipulator Systems (UVMS). The tracking performancecan be affected by robot dynamical model uncertainties and applied external disturbances. Nevertheless, the MPCas a known proficient nonlinear control approach should be improved by the...
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Pt-rich intermetallic APt8P2 (A = Ca and La)
PublicationThe combination of experimental and theoretical investigation of two new Pt-rich intermetallic compounds: APt8P2 (A = Ca and La) is presented, including solid-state synthesis, crystal structure determination, physical properties characterization and chemical bonding analysis. APt8P2 was obtained through the high-temperature pellet synthesis. According to both single crystal and powder X-ray diffraction results, APt8P2 crystallize...
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The effect of nitrogen on the structure and thermal properties of beryllium-containing Na-(Li)-Si-O-N glasses
PublicationTwo oxynitride glass series with the composition of 35Na2O-5BeO-(60-x)SiO2-xSi3N4 and 9Li2O- 27Na2O-5BeO-(59-x)SiO2-xSi3N4, were prepared. The glasses' topography and structure were studied by Scanning Electron Microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The composition was analyzed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometer, SEM-EDS and nitrogen and oxygen elemental analyzer. Na-(Li)-Be-silicate glasses were found to contain...
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Role of bead sequence in underwater welding
PublicationThis paper presents examinations of the role of the bead sequence in underwater welding. Two specimens of wet welded layers made by covered electrodes with the use of normalized S355G10+N steel were welded by a reasonable bead sequence. For each specimen, metallographic macro- and micro-scopic tests were done. Then, Vickers HV10 hardness measurements were conducted for each pad weld in the welded layer. The results show that welding...
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Lonely and thinking about the past: The role of time perspectives, Big Five traits and perceived social support in loneliness of young adults during COVID-19 social distancing
PublicationBackground In Spring 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Polish government introduced a policy of social distancing. Being apart from one’s social network had the potential to evoke feelings of loneliness. The aim of the study was to find out how time perspectives might contribute to feeling lonely during the social distancing period, controlling for Big Five personality traits and perceived social support. Participants...
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Local buckling of composite channel columns
PublicationThe investigation concerns local buckling of compressed flanges of axially compressed composite channel columns. Cooperation of the member flange and web is taken into account here. The buckling mode of the member flange is defined by rotation angle a flange about the line of its connection with the web. The channel column under investigation is made of unidirectional fibre-reinforced laminate. Two approaches to member orthotropic...