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Search results for: COMPOSED SYSTEMS
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Core-Shell Nanoparticles with Hyperbranched Poly(arylene-oxindole) Interiors
PublicationCore-shell type star polymers composed of poly(tert-butyl acrylate) (poly(t-BuA)) arms and 100% hyperbranched poly(arylene-oxindole) interiors were synthesized via the "core-first" method. Atom transfer radical polymerization of t-BuA initiated by 2-bromopropionyl terminal groups of the hyperbranched core was applied for the synthesis of the stars. The resultant star structures were characterized by gel permeation chromatography...
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Sodium alginate decreases the permeability of intestinal mucus
PublicationIn the small intestine the nature of the environment leads to a highly heterogeneous mucus layer primarily composed of the MUC2 mucin. We set out to investigate whether the soluble dietary fibre sodium alginate could alter the permeability of the mucus layer. The alginate was shown to freely diffuse into the mucus and to have minimal effect on the bulk rheology when added at concentrations below 0.1%. Despite this lack of interaction...
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Numerical Comparison of Damping Amplification Effects Obtained in Neighborhood of a Mechanism Singular Position - Viscous and Electromagnetic Cases
PublicationIn the paper, results of numerical investigations are presented. A continuous beam is considered as the main vibrating element. Two energy dissipations methods are compared: viscous dampers and DC generators. To increase the damping effectiveness, velocity amplification is proposed, i.e., a mechanism is introduced between the beam and the damping element, and the mechanism configuration is set as closed to the singular position...
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Transformational Leadership and Acceptance of Mistakes as a Source of Learning: Poland-USA Cross-Country Study
PublicationThis study explores the influence of transformational leadership on internal innovativeness mediated by mistakes acceptance, including country and industry as factors to be considered and gender and risk-taking attitude as moderators. General findings, primarily based on the US samples (healthcare, construction, and IT industry), confirmed that transformational leadership and internal innovativeness are mediated by mistakes acceptance...
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Application of the expanded clay aggregate in form of granular materials for water treatment
PublicationThe paper aimed to evaluate the efficiency of Filtralite MonoMulti compared to the conventional dual-media filter beds comprising silica sand layer covered with anthracite coal. Filtralite media are composed of processed (expanded), highly porous clay products characterized by relatively rough grain surfaces. In order to compare these different media filters in a reliable way, the pilot filter columns operated in parallel, under...
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Theoretical and Economic Evaluation of Low-Cost Deep Eutectic Solvents for Effective Biogas Upgrading to Bio-Methane
PublicationThis paper presents the theoretical screening of 23 low-cost deep eutectic solvents (DESs) as absorbents for effective removal of the main impurities from biogas streams using a conductor-like screening model for real solvents (COSMO-RS). Based on thermodynamic parameters, i.e., the activity coefficient, excess enthalpy, and Henry’s constant, two DESs composed of choline chloride: urea in a 1:2 molar ratio (ChCl:U 1:2), and choline...
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Constitutive Modelling of Knitted Abdominal Implants in Numerical Simulations of Repaired Hernia Mechanics
PublicationThe paper presents a numerical approach to describe mechanical behavior of anisotropic textile material, which is a selected abdominal prosthesis. Two constitutive nonlinear concepts are compared. In the first one the material is considered composed from two families of threads (dense net model) and in the second one the material is homogeneous but anisotropic (as proposed by Gassel, Ogden, Holzapfel). Parameters of both models...
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Strength parameters of polyester reinforced PVC coated fabric after short term creep loading in biaxial mode
PublicationThis study addresses the analysis of tensile strength parameters of the technical fabric VALMEX, which is composed of two orthogonal polyester thread families (named the warp and fill) and both sides PVC coated. The material was firstly subjected to 48-hour biaxial creep loading with the equal stress level in both orthogonal directions of the fabric. The stress levels were established as follows: 4.6 kN/m, 10.4 kN/m, 16.4 kN/m,...
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Numerical Modelling of Connections Between Stones in Foundations of Historical Buildings
PublicationThe aim of this paper is to analyse the behaviour of old building foundations composed of stones (the main load-bearing elements) and mortar, based on numerical analysis. Some basic aspects of historical foundations are briefly discussed, with an emphasis on their development, techniques, and material. The behaviour of a foundation subjected to the loads transmitted from the upper parts of the structure is described...
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Vegetable derived-oil facilitating carbon black migration from waste tire rubbers and its reinforcement effect
PublicationThree dimensional chemically cross-linked polymer networks present a great challenge for recycling and reutilization of waste tire rubber. In this work, the covalently cross-linked networks of ground tire rubber (GTR) were degraded heterogeneously under 150 °C due to the synergistic effects of the soybean oil and controlled oxidation. The degradation mechanism was discussed using Horikx theory and Fourier transformation infrared...
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Preparation and characterization of genipin cross-linked porous chitosan–collagen–gelatin scaffolds using chitosan–CO2 solution
PublicationNovel porous scaffolds composed of chitosan, collagen and gelatin were prepared by the multistep procedure involving final freeze-drying and characterized. To eliminate the need for residual acid removal from the material after drying, carbon dioxide saturation process was used for chitosan blend formulation. The use of CO2 for chitosan dissolution made the scaffold preparation process more reproducible and economically sustainable....
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Effect of cobalt addition on the corrosion behaviorof near equiatomic NiTi shape memory alloy in normal saline solution: electrochemical and XPS studies
PublicationThe electrochemical and corrosion (uniform and localized) behavior of a binary Ni52Ti48 shape memory alloy (SMA) and two ternary Ni52Ti48-xCox (x = 1.5 and 4.0 wt.%) SMAs were studied. Measurements were conducted in 0.9% NaCl solution at 37 oC employing various electrochemical methods. These include: linear polarization resistance (LPR), linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), chronoamperometry and dynamic electrochemical impedance spectroscopy...
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Fading Modeling in Maritime Container Terminal Environments
PublicationIn this paper, an analytical model for slow and fast fading effects in maritime container terminals is derived, from fitting distributions to the results of measurements performed in an actual operational environment. The proposed model is composed of a set of equations, enabling to evaluate fading statistical distribution parameters for different system and environments conditions, as a function of frequency, base station antenna...
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Antibacterial evaluation of bioactive modifiers of bone cements: antibiotics, nanometals and chitosan
PublicationModern biomaterials in addition to their basic tasks, can serve as carriers of active substance. The release of a bioactive particles allows to locally fight infection or its prevent it. Bone cements additionally to their basic applications in orthopedic surgery can also serve to deliver locally active substances. Currently, only antibiotics are routinely used as modifiers for bone cements. Bioactive bone cements constitute...
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Broadband Compact Single-Layer Magic-T Junction with Separation of DC Signals between All Ports
PublicationA novel structure for a four-port microstrip magic-T junction is presented. The device is composed of microstrip and slotline circuits etched onto two sides of a dielectric substrate. The device is extremely compact and occupies an area more than three times smaller than similar structures recently reported in the literature. The novelty of the device lies in the use of microstrip/slotline transitions for both input ports: summation...
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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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The valance state of vanadium-key factor in the flexibility of potassium vanadates structure as cathode materials in Li-ion batteries
PublicationPotassium hexavanadate (K2V6O16·nH2O) nanobelts have been synthesized by the LPE-IonEx method, which is dedicated to synthesis of transition metal oxide bronzes with controlled morphology and structure. The electrochemical performance of K2V6O16·nH2O as a cathode material for lithium-ion batteries has been evaluated. The KVO nanobelts demonstrated a high discharge capacity of 260 mAh g−1, and long-term cyclic stability up to 100...
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Preparation and characterization of porous scaffolds from chitosan-collagen-gelatin composite
PublicationNovel porous scaffolds composed of chitosan, collagen and gelatin were prepared and characterized. For preparing scaffolds gelatin and collagen isolated from fish skins with various physicochemical properties were used. In order to reduce preparation solubility glutaraldehyde in the amount of 1%, w/w relative to the total biopolymers weight in solution was used. All obtained biomaterials showed a homogeneous porosity. Protein polymer...
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Deodorization of model biogas by means of novel non-ionic deep eutectic solvent
PublicationThe paper presents new non-ionic deep eutectic solvent (DES) composed of natural and non-toxic components i.e. guaiacol, camphor and levulinic acid in 1:1:3 molar ratio as a promising absorbent for removal of selected volatile organic compounds (VOCs) including dichloromethane, toluene, hexamethyldisiloxane and propionaldehyde from model biogas. The affi nity of DES for VOCs was determined as vapour-liquid coeffi cients and the...
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Electrophoretic Deposition and Characteristics of Chitosan–Nanosilver Composite Coatings on a Nanotubular TiO2 Layer
PublicationThe surface treatment of titanium implants has been applied mainly to increase surface bioactivity and, more recently, to introduce antibacterial properties. To this end, composite coatings have been investigated, particularly those based on hydroxyapatite. The present research was aimed at the development of another coating type, chitosan–nanosilver, deposited on a Ti13Zr13Nb alloy. The research comprised characterization of the...
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EXPERIMENTAL AND NUMERICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF CONCRETE BEHAVIOUR AT MESO-LEVEL DURING QUASI-STATIC SPLITTING TENSION
PublicationThe paper describes experimental and numerical results of quasi-static splitting tensile tests on concrete specimens at meso-scale level. The loading strip was made of plywood or steel. Fracture in concrete was detected at the aggregate level by means of three non-destructive methods: 3D x-ray micro-computed tomography, 2D scanning electron microscope and manual 2D digital microscope. The discrete element method was used to directly...
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Infiltration in a double-porosity medium: Experiments and comparison with a theoretical model
PublicationThis paper presents experimental verification of the mathematical model of unsaturated flow in double‐porosity soils developed by the asymptotic homogenization method. A series of one‐dimensional infiltration experiments was carried out in a column filled with a double‐porosity medium composed of a mixture of sand and sintered clayey spheres arranged in a periodic manner. The unsaturated hydraulic properties of each porous material...
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Peptide conjugates of lactoferricin analogues and antimicrobials—Design, chemical synthesis, evaluation of antimicrobial activity and mammalian cytotoxicity
PublicationEight new peptide conjugates composed of modified bovine lactoferricin truncated analogues (LFcinB) and oneof the three antimicrobials — ciprofloxacin (CIP), levofloxacin (LVX), and fluconazole (FLC) — were synthesized. Four different linkers were applied to connect a peptide and an antimicrobial agent. The FLC-containing peptidic conjugates were synthesized using the “click chemistry” method. This novel approach is reported here...
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Building a Nest by an Automaton
PublicationA robot modeled as a deterministic finite automaton has to build a structure from material available to it. The robot navigates in the infinite oriented grid $Z x Z$. Some cells of the grid are full (contain a brick) and others are empty. The subgraph of the grid induced by full cells, called the {\em field}, is initially connected. The (Manhattan) distance between the farthest cells of the field is called its {\em span}. The robot...
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Comparison of tuning procedures based on evolutionary algorithm for multi-region fuzzy-logic PID controller for non-linear plant
PublicationThe paper presents a comparison of tuning procedures for a multi-region fuzzy-logic controller used for nonlinear process control. This controller is composed of local PID controllers and fuzzy-logic mechanism that aggregates local control signals. Three off-line tuning procedures are presented. The first one focuses on separate tuning of local PID controllers gains in the case when the parameters of membership functions of fuzzy-logic...
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N-doped mesoporous carbon nanosheets obtained by pyrolysis of a chitosan–melamine mixture for the oxygen reduction reaction in alkaline media.
PublicationBy simple thermal decomposition of low-cost precursors (chitosan, melamine) in an inert atmosphere, nitrogen-doped porous carbonaceous materials were prepared. The samples pyrolyzed at 700 C are composed of mainly mesoporous nitrogen-doped carbon nanosheets and partially graphitized carbon. The nanosheets contain a disordered area due to the strain imposed by the presence of nitrogen and/or oxygen groups in their structure. Some...
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The scope of fiscal decentralisation in EU countries: a comparative analysis
PublicationMotivation: Decentralization is one of the main challenges in public sector reform. In democratic countries the level of decentralisation in individual countries is not identical. The varying scope of decentralization affects the quality, quick and efficient decision-making by public leaders. Aim: Comparison of the extent of fiscal decentralisation in EU Member States; creation of groups of states with similar levels of decentralisation;...
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Performance Analysis of the OpenCL Environment on Mobile Platforms
PublicationToday’s smartphones have more and more features that so far were only assigned to personal computers. Every year these devices are composed of better and more efficient components. Everything indicates that modern smartphones are replacing ordinary computers in various activities. High computing power is required for tasks such as image processing, speech recognition and object detection. This paper analyses the performance of...
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Do mistakes acceptance foster innovation? Polish and US cross-country study of tacit knowledge sharing in IT
PublicationAbstract Purpose – This study aims to understand and compare how the mechanism of innovative processes in the information technology (IT) industry – the most innovative industry worldwide – is shaped in Poland and the USA in terms of tacit knowledge awareness and sharing driven by a culture of knowledge and learning, composed of a learning climate and mistake acceptance. Design/methodology/approach – Study samples were drawn from...
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Interplay between Aryl···Perfluoroaryl and Hydrogen Bonding Interactions in Cocrystals of Pentafluorophenol with Molecules of Trigonal Symmetry
PublicationCocrystals of seven star-shaped triaryl compounds with pentafluorophenol (pfp) were prepared and structurally characterized by the single-crystal X-ray diffraction method. Cocrystallization of pfp with planar (or almost planar) compounds gave six 3:1 molecular complexes with well-defined layered structures. The layers are composed of alternating pfp3 trimers, linked by hydrogen bonding, and triaryl molecules held together in planes...
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Shear fracture of longitudinally reinforced concrete beams under bending using Digital Image Correlation and FE simulations with concrete micro-structure based on X-ray micro-computed tomography images
PublicationThe paper presents experimental and numerical investigations of the shear fracture in rectangular concrete beams longitudinally reinforced with steel or basalt bar under quasi-static three point bending. Shear fracture process zone formation and development on the surface of beams was investigated by Digital Image Correlation (DIC) whereas thorough analyses of 3D material micro-structure, air voids, width and curvature of shear...
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Discrete element method simulations of fracture in concrete under uniaxial compression based on its real internal structure
PublicationThe paper describes experimental and numerical results of concrete fracture under quasi-static uniaxial compression. Experimental uniaxial compression tests were performed on concrete cubic specimens. Fracture in concrete was detected at the aggregate level by means of three non-destructive methods: three-dimensional X-ray microcomputed tomography, two-dimensional scanning electron microscope and manual two-dimensional digital...
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Numerical analyses of novel prefabricated structural wall panels in residential buildings based on laboratory tests in scale 1:1
PublicationThe paper presents experimental and numerical investigations on novel prefabricated composite building wall panels for residential building constructions. The wall panels were composed of reinforced concrete ribbed elements with the core from the EPS foam as the thermal insulation. The wall panels in the full-scale 1:1 were subjected to vertical loads. In the first step, the experiments were analysed with simple usual static methods....
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Comparison of noise reduction methods in radiometric correlation measurements of two-phase liquid-gas flows
PublicationTwo-phase liquid-gas flows occur frequently in the mining, energy, chemical, and petrochemical industries. One of non-contact methods used to analyse these flows is the gamma ray absorption method. However, the signals received from radiation detectors contain a significant stochastic noise, which makes them difficult to analyse. The article describes four methods of noise reduction in cross-correlation measurements of water-air...
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Optimization algorithm and filtration using the adaptive TIN model at the stage of initial processing of the ALS point cloud
PublicationAirborne laser scanning (ALS) provides survey results in the form of a point cloud. The ALS point cloud is a source of data used primarily for constructing a digital terrain model (DTM). To generate a DTM, the set of ALS observations must be first subjected to the point cloud processing methodology. A standard methodology is composed of the following stages: acquisition of the ALS data, initial processing (including filtration),...
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Self-compacting grout to produce two-stage concrete
PublicationTraditional concrete (TC) is primarily composed of a mixture of cement, fine and coarse aggregates, and water. TC is made by mixing together all the components before placing them. Using non-traditional concrete (two-stage concrete) to solve and to eliminate the problem of the aggregate segregation which appears in TC and in the self-compacting concrete. Two-stage concrete (TSC) consists of two main components, namely the grout...
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Numerical Analysis of Recharge Rates and Contaminant Travel Time in Layered Unsaturated Soils
PublicationThis study focused on the estimation of groundwater recharge rates and travel time of conservative contaminants between ground surface and aquifer. Numerical simulations of transient water flow and solute transport were performed using the SWAP computer program for 10 layered soil profiles, composed of materials ranging from gravel to clay. In particular, sensitivity of the results to the thickness and position of weakly permeable...
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Rapid Microwave Design Optimization in Frequency Domain Using Adaptive Response Scaling
PublicationIn this paper, a novel methodology for cost-efficient microwave design optimization in the frequency domain is proposed. Our technique, referred to as adaptive response scaling (ARS), has been developed for constructing a fast replacement model (surrogate) of the high-fidelity electromagnetic-simulated model of the microwave structure under design using its equivalent circuit (low-fidelity model). The basic principle of ARS is...
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Particle shape dependence in 2D granular media
PublicationParticle shape is a key to the space-filling and strength properties of granular matter. We consider a shape parameter eta describing the degree of distortion from a perfectly spherical shape. Encompassing most specific shape characteristics such as elongation, angularity and non-convexity, eta is a low-order but generic parameter that we used in a numerical benchmark test for a systematic investigation of shape dependence in sheared...
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Poroelastic Low Noise Road Surfaces
PublicationNoise is one of the most important problems related to road traffic. During the last decades, noise emitted by engine and powertrain of vehicles was greatly reduced and tyres became a clearly dominant noise source. The paper describes the concept of low noise poroelastic road surfaces that are composed with mineral and rubber aggregate bound by polyurethane resin. Those surfaces have a porous structure and are much more flexible...
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Experimental Verification of the CFD Model of the Squeeze Film Lifting Effect
PublicationAbstract: The presented study shows the results of the research into the squeeze film levitation phenomena. The system introduced in the investigation is composed of a vibrating surface, air squeeze film, and the surface of the body freely suspended over the film. The use of the CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) model used in the system allows us to determine the steady state, periodic behavior of the air film (described by Navier–Stokes,...
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Pathways of nitrogen compounds depletion in hybrid constructed wetlands
PublicationHybrid Constructed Wetlands are composed of two or more filters with mixed flow direction of sewage. Apparently in the HCWS the benefits of both types of bed are merged, resulting in better effluent quality (organic and nitrogen componds removal). Such heterogeneous environment creates possibilities for different ways of nitrogen "disappearing". The objective of the present study was to compare the removal of nitrogen with accompanying...
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Research on operational characteristics of tyres with run flat insert
PublicationThe paper describes results of research on heavy vehicle tyre with Run Flat VFI insert. The experiment has included the determination of heat generation, rolling resistanceand radial stifnessof two different tyre designes (textile and steel carcass). The results have been used for the purpose of ewalution of tyre operating characteristics. The study included research on non-inflated tyre properties. The purpose of the paper is...
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Sustainable Strategy for Algae Biomass Waste Management via Development of Novel Bio-Based Thermoplastic Polyurethane Elastomers Composites
PublicationThis work concerns the waste management method of algae biomass wastes (ABW). For this purpose, we prepared bio-based thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer (bio-TPU) composites. Algae biomass wastes are derived from algal oil extraction of Chlorella vulgaris and from biomass of Enteromorpha and Zostera marina. ABWs were used in the bio-TPUs composites as a filler in the quantity of 1, 5, 10, and 15 wt.%. The bio-based composites...
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Ultra Low Noise Poroelastic Road Surfaces
PublicationNoise is one of the most important environmental problems related to road traffic. During the last decades, the noise emitted by the engines and powertrains of vehicles was greatly reduced and tires became a clearly dominant noise source. The article describes the concept of low noise poroelastic road surfaces that are composed of mineral and rubber aggregate bound by polyurethane resin. Those surfaces have a porous structure and...
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High-performance anode-supported solid oxide fuel cells with co-fired Sm0.2Ce0.8O2-δ/La0.8Sr0.2Ga0.8Mg0.2O3−δ/Sm0.2Ce0.8O2-δ sandwiched electrolyte
PublicationIn this study, intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs) with a nine-layer structure are constructed via a simple method based on the cost-effective tape casting-screen printing-co-firing process with the structure composed of a NiO-based four-layer anode, a Sm0.2Ce0·8O2-δ(SDC)/La0·8Sr0.2Ga0.8Mg0·2O3−δ (LSGM)/SDC tri-layer electrolyte, and an La0·6Sr0·4Co0·2Fe0·8O3-δ (LSCF)-based bi-layer cathode. The resultant...
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Optimizing FSO networks resilient to adverse weather conditions by means of enhanced uncertainty sets
PublicationThis work deals with dimensioning of wireless mesh networks (WMN) composed of FSO (free space optics) links. Although FSO links realize broadband transmission at low cost, their drawback is sensitivity to adverse weather conditions causing transmission degradation on multiple links. Hence, designing such FSO networks requires an optimization model to find the cheapest configuration of link capacities that will be able to carry...
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Extractive detoxification of feedstocks for the production of biofuels using new hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents – Experimental and theoretical studies
PublicationThe paper presents a synthesis of novel hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents (DESs) composed of natural components, which were used for removal of furfural (FF) and 5-hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) from lignocellulosic hydrolysates. The main physicochemical properties of DESs were determined, followed by explanation of the DES formation mechanism, using 1H NMR, 13C NMR and FT-IR analysis and density functional theory (DFT). The most...
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Initial Field Validation of Poroelastic Pavement Made with Crumb Rubber, Mineral Aggregate and Highly Polymer-Modified Bitumen
PublicationTire/road noise in most driving conditions dominates other sources of traffic noise. One of the most efficient ways of reducing tire/road noise is to use the so-called “low noise pavement”. According to numerous studies, at present, poroelastic road pavement that is composed of rubber and mineral aggregate and polyurethane or bituminous binder gives the best noise reduction up to 12 dB. Unfortunately, there are many problems with...
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Behavior of residual current devices at frequencies up to 50 kHz
PublicationThe use of residual current devices (RCDs) is obligatory in many types of low-voltage circuits. They are devices that ensure protection against electric shock in the case of indirect contact and may ensure additional protection in the case of direct contact. For the latter purpose of protection, only RCDs of a rated residual operating current not exceeding 30 mA are suitable. Unfortunately, modem current-using equipment supplied...