The assessment of viscoelastic models for nonlinear soft materials

The increasing use of soft materials in robotics applications requires the development of mathematical models to describe their viscoelastic and nonlinear properties. The traditional linear viscoelastic models are unable to describe nonlinear strain-dependent behaviors. This limitation has been addressed by implementing a piecewise linearization (PL) in the simplest viscoelastic model, the Standard Linear Solid (SLS). In this work, we aim to implement the PL in a more complex model, the Wiechert model and compare the stress response of both linearized models. Therefore, the experimental data from the stress relaxation and tensile strength tests of six rubber-based materials is used to approximate the spring and dashpot constants of the SLS and the Wiechert model. Prior to implement the PL into the stress-strain curve of each material, the stress response from the Maxwell branches must be subtracted from this curve. By using the parameters obtained from fitting the Wiechert model into the stress relaxation curve, the response of both linearized models was improved. Due to the selection of constitutive equations evaluated, the linearized SLS model described the stress-strain curve more accurately. Finally, this work describes in details every step of the fitting process and highlights the benefits of using linearization methods to improve known models as an alternative of using highly complex models to describe the mechanical properties of soft materials

Board 399: The Freshman Year Innovator Experience (FYIE): Bridging the URM Gap in STEM

The project focuses on increasing “effective STEM education and broadening participation” in underrepresented minority STEM students at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) to successfully face academic and professional challenges, recently exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Freshman Year Innovator Experience proposes the development of self-transformation skills in freshman mechanical engineering students to successfully face academic and professional challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic while working on two parallel projects of technical design innovation and academic career pathways. The authors will present the work in progress and preliminary results from a pilot implementation of the Freshman Year Innovator Experience. This project is funded by NSF award 2225247

Los insectos comestibles: un recurso para el desarrollo local en el centro de México

Los insectos comestibles forman parte de los hábitos tradicionales de alimentación de México y el mundo, su preparación y consumo ha permanecido prácticamente igual durante siglos, pero en la actualidad, se observan cambios radicales debido, entre otras cosas a que se piensa que lo que cuenta es la cosmética de los alimentos de una manera predominante por lo cual se ha dejado de lado, además, con estos recursos naturales silvestres se tiene la posibilidad de iniciar grandes negocios al ser clasificados según el punto de vista occidental como “Alimentos exóticos”. La modificación de la apariencia y a la vez la conservación del valor cultural y el reconocimiento de la territorialidad de un producto, son factores de peso que permitirán la subsistencia y posterior aprovechamiento de los recursos naturales de las regiones. Tal es el caso del Escamol (huevos de hormiga- Liometopum apiculatum), insecto endémico de las inmediaciones de la cuenca de México, con el cual se pretende establecer las bases de reproducción -no en cautiverio- de una especie con gran demanda en el mercado gastronómico y que al paso del tiempo impulsará el desarrollo local de las regiones donde se produzca.Insectos comestibles, Teotihuacán, México, desarrollo local, tradiciones, escamoles., Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Labor and Human Capital,

Review of control algorithms for mobile robotics

This article presents a comprehensive review of control algorithms used in mobile robotics, a field in constant evolution. Mobile robotics has seen significant advances in recent years, driven by the demand for applications in various sectors, such as industrial automation, space exploration, and medical care. The review focuses on control algorithms that address specific challenges in navigation, localization, mapping, and path planning in changing and unknown environments. Classical approaches, such as PID control and methods based on classical control theory, as well as modern techniques, including deep learning and model-based planning, are discussed in detail. In addition, practical applications and remaining challenges in implementing these algorithms in real-world mobile robots are highlighted. Ultimately, this review provides a comprehensive overview of the diversity and complexity of control algorithms in mobile robotics, helping researchers and practitioners to better understand the options available to address specific problems in this exciting area of study.Comment: 8 pages, in Spanis

Report on perceived policy needs and decision contexts

Adaptation to climate change is a new challenge for existing institutions and decision-making processes. In order to assess what form this challenge takes for decision-makers, we conducted interviews and a policy review to determine the perceived policy needs in Austria, Finland, France, Italy, Poland, Romania, Spain and the United Kingdom. In each country, interviews are conducted at the national level and the sub-national (state) level if the national level is not sufficiently active in adaptation planning yet. We focus on general adaptation policy as well as specific sectors for each country, in line with the distribution of MEDIATION case studies. Different countries are at different stages of developing adaptation policy, but the underlying needs are similar across them. We group the needs into nine categories: inter-agency coordination, multi-level governance, mainstreaming, awareness-raising, coping with uncertainty, research needs, tools and information access, financial and human resources, and political commitment. We also look at suggestions for the EU's role in coordinating adaptation policy

Extraction of emerging contaminants from environmental waters and urine by dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction with solidification of the floating organic droplet using fenchol:acetic acid deep eutectic mixtures

In this work, several eutectic mixtures formed by fenchol and acetic acid at seven molar ratios (between 4:1 and 1:4) were characterized and studied for the first time for their possible application as extraction solvents in dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction based on the solidification of the floating organic droplet (DLLME-SFO). A group of 13 emerging contaminants (gemfibrozil, bisphenol F, bisphenol A, 17β-estradiol, testosterone, estrone, levonorgestrel, 4-tert-octylphenol, butyl benzyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, 4-octylphenol, 4-nonylphenol, and dihexyl phthalate) was selected and determined by liquid chromatography with ultraviolet and tandem mass spectrometry detection. Among the studied mixtures, only those of 2:1 and 1:1 provided the suitable features from an operational and repeatability point of view, suggesting that several eutectic mixtures of the same components may also provide similar results. Once the extraction conditions of both mixtures were optimized, the method was applied to the extraction of sea water, urine, and wastewater at different concentration levels, allowing the achievement of absolute recovery values between 49 and 100% for most analytes with relative standard deviation values below 19%. In addition, several samples of each type were analyzed, finding bisphenol A and gemfibrozil in some of them. The greenness of the method was also evaluated using the AGREEprep metric. The DLLME-SFO procedure was found to be very simple, quick, and effective and with a good sample throughput