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Search results for: EFFECTIVENESS OF UTILIZATION
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Influence of Cement Replacement with Sewage Sludge Ash (SSA) on the Heat of Hydration of Cement Mortar
PublicationThe amount of fly ash from the incineration of sewage sludge is increasing all over the world, and its utilization is becoming a serious environmental problem. In the study, a type of sewage sludge ash (SSA) collected directly from the municipal sewage treatment plant was used. Five levels of cement replacement (2.5%, 5%, 7.5%, 10% and 20%) and unchanged water-to-binder (w/b) ratio (0.55) were used. The purpose of the study was...
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Overcoming carboxylic acid inhibition by granular consortia in high-load liquefied food waste fermentation for efficient lactate accumulation
PublicationGranular sludge, a self-aggregating spherical biofilm, possesses better stability compared to flocculent sludge under extreme conditions. This study compared the ability of anaerobic granular sludge (AnGS) and flocculent waste activated sludge (WAS) to convert food waste (FW) into highly-valuable optically active lactic acid (LA), a central and versatile intermediate platform molecule. Different loadings (30–60 g volatile suspended...
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Analysis of the Heating Process of Hydraulic Motors during Start-Up in Thermal Shock Conditions
PublicationConditions that prevail during harsh winters and hot summers pose a serious challenge for machine designers building devices suitable for operation in extreme weather. It is essential for the designers and the users to define the principles and conditions for the safe operation of machines and devices with hydraulic drive in low ambient temperatures. Bearing in mind the above, the author tested the hydraulic motors in thermal shock...
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More than just a beer – Brewers' spent grain, spent hops, and spent yeast as potential functional fillers for polymer composites
PublicationBeer is among the most popular beverages in the world, with the production distributed uniformly between the biggest continents, so the utilization of brewing by-products is essential on a global scale. Among their potential recipients, the plastics industry offers extensive range of potential products. Herein, the presented study investigated the application of currently underutilized solid brewing by-products (brewers' spent...
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Maximizing Bio-Hydrogen and Energy Yields Obtained in a Self-Fermented Anaerobic Bioreactor by Screening of Different Sewage Sludge Pretreatment Methods
PublicationEgypt faces significant challenges in managing its sewage sludge generated in large quantities from wastewater treatment plants. This study investigates the feasibility of utilizing sewage sludge as a renewable resource for hydrogen production through anaerobic digestion at the 100 L bioreactor level. Hydrogen is considered a promising alternative energy source due to its high energy content and environmental benefits. To optimize...
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From ashes to porous hierarchical nanocarbon electrode: Upcycling secondary waste materials through self-catalytic chemical vapour deposition
PublicationMetal and metal oxide particles are abundant in various ash-based wastes. Utilizing these as catalyst sources for the fabrication of carbon nanomaterials could present a valuable approach to reduce our reliance on non-renewable and costly catalyst sources, thereby facilitating large-scale nanomaterial production. In this context, secondary waste materials (SWMs) are by-products resulting from the (complete or partial) combustion...
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Computational Approach towards Repetitive Design Tasks: The Case Study of Parking Lot Automated Design
PublicationThe study aims to develop and assess an algorithm for efficiently generating parking spot layouts within predefined area outlines. The algorithm is an attempt to streamline the decisionmaking process by producing different design variants and optimizing the utilization of available space. The algorithm’s primary objective is to streamline decision-making by generating diverse design variants while optimizing the use of available...
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The Simulation of Activated Sludge System for Optimization of Predictive Aeration at Large WWTP
PublicationEffective use of biodegradable substrates as an internal carbon sources (ICS) for denitrification and EBPR and predicting performance of aeration systems during nitrification in activated sludge bioreactors, may be useful in realization the sustainable development by potentially saving energy consumption at WWTPs. A large number of WWTPs use activated sludge systems with an integrated removal of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus...
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The impact of filler thermomechanical modifications on static and dynamic mechanical performance of flexible foamed polyurethane/ground tire rubber/zinc borate composites
PublicationThe rapid development of the automotive industry is very beneficial to many aspects of human life, but it is also a very significant environmental burden. The most straightforward impact is related to the generation of exhaust, but the management of post-consumer car parts is also a major challenge. Among them, waste tires are very burdensome due to their enormous numbers. Therefore, it is essential to develop novel, environmentally...
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CO2 capture using steam ejector condenser under electro hydrodynamic actuator with non-condensable gas and cyclone separator: A numerical study
PublicationThe concept for condensation of steam and CO2 separation in a negative CO2 emission gas power plant involves the utilization of a steam ejector condenser (SEC) for direct-contact condensation of vapor with inert gas (CO2) on a spray of subcooled liquid, integrated with a separator to produce pure CO2. Due to the increasing diffusion resistance and reduced convective heat transfer between the steam and subcooled water phases...
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Globalized Simulation-Driven Miniaturization of Microwave Circuits by Means of Dimensionality-Reduced Constrained Surrogates
PublicationSmall size has become a crucial prerequisite in the design of modern microwave components. Miniaturized devices are essential for a number of application areas, including wireless communications, 5G/6G technology, wearable devices, or the internet of things. Notwithstanding, size reduction generally degrades the electrical performance of microwave systems. Therefore, trade-off solutions have to be sought that represent acceptable...
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Multi-objective optimization of expensive electromagnetic simulation models
PublicationVast majority of practical engineering design problems require simultaneous handling of several criteria. For the sake of simplicity and through a priori preference articulation one can turn many design tasks into single-objective problems that can be handled using conventional numerical optimization routines. However, in some situations, acquiring comprehensive knowledge about the system at hand, in particular, about possible...
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Corrosion Inhibition Mechanism and Efficiency Differentiation of Dihydroxybenzene Isomers Towards Aluminum Alloy 5754 in Alkaline Media
PublicationThe selection of efficient corrosion inhibitors requires detailed knowledge regarding the interaction mechanism, which depends on the type and amount of functional groups within the inhibitor molecule. The position of functional groups between different isomers is often overlooked, but is no less important, since factors like steric hinderance may significantly affect the adsorption mechanism. In this study, we have presented how...
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Fast and reliable knowledge-based design closure of antennas by means of iterative prediction-correction scheme
PublicationA novel framework for expedited antenna optimization with an iterative prediction-correction scheme is proposed. The methodology is comprehensively validated using three real-world antenna structures: narrow-band, dual-band and wideband, optimized under various design scenarios. The keystone of the proposed approach is to reuse designs pre-optimized for various sets of performance specifications and to encode them into metamodels...
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Air-cooled photovoltaic roof tile as an example of the BIPVT system – An experimental study on the energy and exergy performance
PublicationThe air-cooled photovoltaic tile is a subject of presented investigations, which focused on improving the overall system efficiency of PV tiles with heat recovery. The operational efficiency of a PV roof tile, together with the construction optimising the air cooling efficiency, were the main points of plans realized at this research stage. The article describes the experimental research consisting of the assessment of electrical,...
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Low-cost performance-driven modelling of compact microwave components with two-layer surrogates and gradient kriging
PublicationUtilization of electromagnetic (EM) simulation tools has become indispensable for reliable evaluation of microwave components. As the cost of an individual analysis may already be considerable, the computational overhead associated with EM-driven tasks that require massive simulations (e.g., optimization) may turn prohibitive. One of mitigation methods is the employment of equivalent network models. Yet, they are incapable of accounting...
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Accelerated Gradient-Based Optimization of Antenna Structures Using Multi-Fidelity Simulations and Convergence-Based Model Management Scheme
PublicationThe importance of numerical optimization has been steadily growing in the design of contemporary antenna structures. The primary reason is the increasing complexity of antenna topologies, [ a typically large number of adjustable parameters that have to be simultaneously tuned. Design closure is no longer possible using traditional methods, including theoretical models or supervised parameter sweeping. To ensure reliability, optimization...
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Shading, Dusting and Incorrect Positioning of Photovoltaic Modules as Important Factors in Performance Reduction
PublicationThe amount of solar radiation reaching the front cover of a photovoltaic module is crucial for its performance. A number of factors must be taken into account at the design stage of the solar installation, which will ensure maximum utilization of the potential arising from the location. During the operation of a photovoltaic installation, it is necessary to limit the shading of the modules caused by both dust and shadowing by trees...
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Comparison of the Efficiency of Deammonification under Different DO Concentrations in a Laboratory-Scale Sequencing Batch Reactor
PublicationThe efficiency of deammonification depends on the cooperation of ammonium oxidizing bacteria and archaea (AOB/AOA), anaerobic ammonium oxidizing bacteria (AnAOB) and the effective suppression of nitrite oxidizing bacteria (NOB) that compete with AnAOB for nitrite (NO2 -N). One of the effective NOB suppression strategies is intermittent aeration. However, it is important to have a good understanding of the optimum dissolved oxygen...
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Generalized regression neural network and fitness dependent optimization: Application to energy harvesting of centralized TEG systems
PublicationThe thermoelectric generator (TEG) system has attracted extensive attention because of its applications in centralized solar heat utilization and recoverable heat energy. The operating efficiency of the TEG system is highly affected by operating conditions. In a series-parallel structure, due to diverse temperature differences, the TEG modules show non-linear performance. Due to the non-uniform temperature distribution (NUTD) condition,...
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Trust Management Method for Wireless Sensor Networks
PublicationA Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) is a network of spatially distributed autonomous sensors to monitor physical or environmental conditions, such as temperature, sound, pressure, etc. and to cooperatively pass their data to the main location. The first wireless network that bore any real resemblance to a modern WSN is the Sound Surveillance System (SOSUS), developed by the United States Military in the 1950s to detect and track Soviet...
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Rapid design optimization of antennas using variable-fidelity EM models and adjoint sensitivities
PublicationPurpose – Development of techniques for expedited design optimization of complex and numerically expensive electromagnetic (EM) simulation models of antenna structures validated both numerically and experimentally. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The optimization task is performed using a technique that combines gradient search with adjoint sensitivities, trust region framework, as well as...
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Thermodynamic, ecological, and economic analysis of negative CO2 emission power plant using gasified sewage sludge
PublicationCurrently, sewage sludge is considered as a biomass, according to the Polish act on renewable energy sources from 20th of February 2015 and its novel version from 19th of July 2019. Possibility to utilize sewage sludge in gasification process is an additional advantage of the negative CO2 emissions power plant (nCO2PP). The work presents results of thermodynamic, ecological, and economical analysis using a zero-dimensional mathematical...
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Analysis of cyclone separator solutions depending on SEC outlet conditions in nCO2PP
PublicationUtilization of spray ejector condenser in order to carry out direct-contact condensation of vapour with inert gas (CO2) on a spray of subcooled liquid integrated with separator (to make pure CO2) has been proposed for the task of condensation and CO2 separation in the negative CO2 emission gas power plant. Condensation and separation has a significant impact on the thermodynamic efficiency of the entire negative CO2 emission gas...
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A novel approach in wood waste utilization for manufacturing of catalyst-free polyurethane-wood composites (PU-WC)
PublicationIn recent decades, due to the increase in environmental awareness and noticeable environmental degradation, the area of wood waste management has attracted increasing attention. The purpose of this study is to develop a new type of highly filled polyurethane wood-composite (PU-WC) by the utilization of large amount of wood wastes without addition of a catalyst. Although wood-plastic composites (WPCs) are widely known, there is...
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Design and Preparation of Magnetically-Oriented Poly(styr-co-MMA)-3MPS Capped Fe(ZnO) Hybrid Microspheres for Ion Exchange Removal of Toxic Pollutants from Wastewater
PublicationIn this work, polymeric microspheres derived from polystyrene-co-methyl methacrylate embedded with magnetic ZnO nanoparticles (poly(styrene-co-MMA)-3MPS-Fe (ZnO)) were synthesized using the suspension polymerization method. The surfaces of polymeric Fe(ZnO) microspheres were improved by functionalization with amino and sulphonate groups. The physicochemical analysis indicated a large number of positively charged (anion exchange)...
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Tackling microplastics pollution in global environment through integration of applied technology, policy instruments, and legislation
PublicationMicroplastic pollution is a serious environmental problem that affects both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Small particles with size of less than 5 mm, known as microplastics (MPs), persist in the environment and pose serious threats to various species from micro-organisms to humans. However, terrestrial environment has received less attention than the aquatic environment, despite being a major source of MPs that eventually...
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Direct Constraint Control for EM-Based Miniaturization of Microwave Passives
PublicationHandling constraints imposed on physical dimensions of microwave circuits has become an important design consideration over the recent years. It is primarily fostered by the needs of emerging application areas such as 5G mobile communications, internet of things, or wearable/implantable devices. The size of conventional passive components is determined by the guided wavelength, and its reduction requires topological modifications,...
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Real-Time Facial Features Detection from Low Resolution Thermal Images with Deep Classification Models
PublicationDeep networks have already shown a spectacular success for object classification and detection for various applications from everyday use cases to advanced medical problems. The main advantage of the classification models over the detection models is less time and effort needed for dataset preparation, because classification networks do not require bounding box annotations, but labels at the image level only. Yet, after passing...
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Machine-Learning-Powered EM-Based Framework for Efficient and Reliable Design of Low Scattering Metasurfaces
PublicationPopularity of metasurfaces has been continuously growing due to their attractive properties including the ability to effectively manipulate electromagnetic (EM) waves. Metasurfaces comprise optimized geometries of unit cells arranged as a periodic lattice to obtain a desired EM response. One of their emerging application areas is the stealth technology, in particular, realization of radar cross section (RCS) reduction. Despite...
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The Staged Combustion of Meat-and-Bone Meal:The Characteristics of Conversion Sub-processes and Large-Scale Process Outputs
Publicationt Organic waste has been playing an increasingly important role in the energy market as those that may support the economies in pursuing towards decarbonization by increasing the share of renewables in the overall energy balance. In this group of alternative fuels, meat-and-bone meals being a post-production waste of the steadily developing meat industry, constitute a considerable proportion. Though they are rich in minerals, their...
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Remarks on use of the term “deep eutectic solvent” in analytical chemistry
PublicationAbout 20 years ago, Abbott and co-workers researched new solvents that were based on mixtures of choline chloride with urea and carboxylic acids and that were liquid at ambient temperature. The term “deep eutectic solvent” (DES) was later adopted for similar mixtures. As DESs have a number of interesting features, they quickly attracted the attention of researchers and found application in various branches of chemical and materials...
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Analytical method for calculation of heat source temperature drop for the Organic Rankine Cycle application
PublicationIn the paper presented are considerations on the cooperation of the limited capacity heat source with the Organic Rankine Cycle unit. Usually the heat source providing thermal energy to the Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) may have twofold characteristics. It can be in the form of a single phase fluid, i.e. as hot exhaust gas or hot liquid, or in some cases it may be available as a phase changing fluid, as for example, technological...
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Broken Rotor Symptons in the Sensorless Control of Induction Machine
PublicationInverter fed sensorless controlled variable speed drives with induction machine are widely used in the industry applications, also in wind power generation and electric vehicles. On-line self diagnostic systems implementation is needed for early stage fault detection and avoiding a critical fault. Diagnostic algorithms in modern DSP-based controllers can operate simultaneously with control system functions. In the closed-loop controlled...
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Concentrations of monoaromatic hydrocarbons in the air of the underground car park and individual garages attached to residential buildings
PublicationThe paper describes the characteristics of a two-level underground car park and three individual garages attached to residential buildings, differing by the resident utilization habits, located in North Poland (Tri-City agglomeration area). The strategy of collecting the analyte samples from air in mentioned enclosed areas, concerning the determination of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, o-xylene and p,m-xylenes (BTEX) concentrations...
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A novel approach to enhance high optically active L-lactate production from food waste by landfill leachate
PublicationThe recycling of food waste (FW) through anaerobic fermentation into lactic acid (LA), with two isomers L-LA and D-LA, aligns with the principles of a bio-based circular economy. However, FW fermentation is often limited by competing pathways, acidification inhibition, and trace metals deficiency. This study investigates the introduction of landfill leachate, containing buffering agents (ammonia) and trace metals, into FW fermentation....
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An experimental assessment on a diesel engine powered by blends of waste-plastic-derived pyrolysis oil with diesel
PublicationThe utilization of plastic solid wastes for sustainable energy production is a crucial aspect of the circular economy. This study focuses on pyrolysis as an effective method to convert this feedstock into renewable drop-in fuel. To achieve this, it is essential to have a comprehensive understanding of feedstock composition, pyrolysis process parameters, and the physicochemical characteristics of the resulting fuel, all correlated...
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A new construction of shell-and-tube heat exchanger with impinging jets and minichannels technologies for heat recovery from gases – experimental analysis
PublicationA dynamic development of technologies allowing waste heat utilization is observed in a correspondence with a pro-ecological approach of the zero waste idea. Such approach becomes the most demanding in the area of low-temperature was heat sources, especially gaseous media. Till now, they were usually not utilized due to unfavorable thermal conditions and high costs. Therefore, the zero waste approach directs research on techniques...
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Wastes from Agricultural Silage Film Recycling Line as a Potential Polymer Materials
PublicationThe recycling of plastics is currently one of the most significant industrial challenges. Due to the enormous amounts of plastic wastes generated by various industry branches, it is essential to look for potential methods for their utilization. In the presented work, we investigated the recycling potential of wastes originated from the agricultural films recycling line. Their structure and properties were analyzed, and they were...
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Nitrogen-Incorporated Boron-Doped Nanocrystalline Diamond Nanowires for Microplasma Illumination
PublicationThe origin of nitrogen-incorporated boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond (NB-NCD) nanowires as a function of substrate temperature (Ts) in H2/CH4/B2H6/N2 reactant gases is systematically addressed. Because of Ts, there is a drastic modification in the dimensional structure and microstructure and hence in the several properties of the NB-NCD films. The NB-NCD films grown at low Ts (400 °C) contain faceted diamond grains. The morphology...
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Managing safety of industrial hazardous installations with emphasis on the control systems, interfaces and human factors
PublicationIn the paper a procedure for the layer of protection analysis (LOPA) as a tool to evaluate the risk of accident scenarios occurrence in hazardous installations is outlined. In such installations several protection layers exist. Human operator performance in each layer is unavoidable, but the role and tasks are different and depend on the context of situation. Based on suggestions form literature (EEMUA, CREAM) and own proposals...
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Review of sewage sludge management: standards, regulations and analytical methods
PublicationThis article presents the most popular methods of sewage sludge management and associated unit operations and processes referring to them. The most popular methods are: Reclamation and adaptation of lands to specific needs; plant cultivation not intended for consumption or for production of food; usage in agriculture; usage in building; recovery of phosphorus, rare earth metals or fats and usage in industry; producing combustible...
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Nutritional Characterization of Whole Mangosteen Pulp with Seeds and Its Application as an Alternate Functional Ingredient in Crackers
PublicationMangosteen (Garcinia mangostana L.) fruits are high in nutrients and phytochemical compounds. The use of fresh whole mangosteen fruit pulp, including the seeds (MFS), instead of flour and sugar in crackers not only enhances the functional nutritional and medicinal benefits for consumers but also adds value to the products. The study investigated the nutritional value of MFS and then employed MFS to formulate MFS-based crackers...
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On Nature-Inspired Design Optimization of Antenna Structures Using Variable-Resolution EM Models
PublicationNumerical optimization has been ubiquitous in antenna design for over a decade or so. It is indispensable in handling of multiple geometry/material parameters, performance goals, and constraints. It is also challenging as it incurs significant CPU expenses, especially when the underlying computational model involves full-wave electromagnetic (EM) analysis. In most practical cases, the latter is imperative to ensure evaluation reliability....
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Advancing sustainable wastewater management: A comprehensive review of nutrient recovery products and their applications
PublicationWastewater serves as a vital resource for sustainable fertilizer production, particularly in the recovery of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). This comprehensive study explores the recovery chain, from technology to final product reuse. Biomass growth is the most cost-effective method, valorizing up to 95 % of nutrients, although facing safety concerns. Various techniques enable the recovery of 100 % P and up to 99 % N, but challenges...
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Cleaner energy for sustainable future using hybrid photovoltaics-thermoelectric generators system under non-static conditions using machine learning based control technique
PublicationIn addition to the load demand, the temperature difference between the hot and cold sides of the thermoelectric generator (TEG) module determines the output power for thermoelectric generator systems. Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) control is needed to track the optimal global power point as operating conditions change. The growing use of electricity and the decline in the use of fossil fuels have sparked interest in photovoltaic-TEG...
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Improved-Efficacy EM-Based Antenna Miniaturization by Multi-Fidelity Simulations and Objective Function Adaptation
PublicationThe growing demands for integration of surface mount design (SMD) antennas into miniatur-ized electronic devices have been continuously imposing limitations on the structure dimen-sions. Examples include embedded antennas in applications such as on-board devices, picosatel-lites, 5G communications, or implantable and wearable devices. The demands for size reduction while ensuring a satisfactory level of the electrical and field...
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Regulation of LPS assembly via controlled proteolysis and sensing of LPS stress in Escherichia coli
PublicationLipopolysaccharide (LPS) is a complex glycolipid, essential for the bacterial viability and along with phospholipids, it constitutes the major amphiphilic component of outer membrane (OM) in most of the Gram-negative bacteria, including Escherichia coli. LPS molecules confer an effective permeability barrier to the OM and play a crucial role in bacteria-environment and -host interactions. The synthesis and accumulation of this...
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Analytical methods for exhaustive characterization of Brassica plants and dietary products based on them
PublicationGlucosinolates (GLs), and particularly two classes of their degradation products - isothiocyanates (ITC) and indoles - released upon myrosinase catalyzed hydrolysis, belong to the most promising chemopreventive dietary components. Despite their wide use in plant research, studies on chemopreventive mechanisms and industrial utilization in the production of e.g. dietary supplements, the methods of reliable characterization of myrosinase-GLs...
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Denitrification Process Enhancement and Diversity of the Denitrifying Community in the Full Scale Activated Sludge System after Adaptation to Fusel Oil
PublicationImplementation of anaerobic digestion of primary sludge in modern wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) limits the availability of organic carbon for denitrification in conventional nitrification-denitrification (N/DN) systems. In order to ensure efficient denitrification, dosage of the external carbon source is commonly undertaken. However, application of commercial products, such us ethanol or acetate, greatly increases operational...