Ergonomic Design of an Adaptive Automation Assembly System

Ergonomics is a key factor in the improvement of health and productivity in workplaces. Its use in improving the performance of a manufacturing process and its positive effects on productivity and human performance is drawing the attention of researchers and practitioners in the field of industrial engineering. This paper proposes an ergonomic design approach applied to an innovative prototype of an adaptive automation assembly system (A3S) equipped with Microsoft Kinect™ for real-time adjustment. The system acquires the anthropometric measurements of the operator by means of the 3-D sensing device and changes its layout, arranging the mobile elements accordingly. The aim of this study was to adapt the assembly workstation to the operator dimensions, improving the ergonomics of the workstation and reducing the risks of negative effects on workers’ health and safety. The case study of an assembly operation of a centrifugal electric pump is described to validate the proposed approach. The assembly operation was simulated at a traditional fixed workstation and at the A3S. The shoulder flexion angle during the assembly tasks at the A3S reduced between 18% and 47%. The ergonomic risk assessment confirmed the improvement of the ergonomic conditions and the ergonomic benefits of the A3S

Direct target and non-target analysis of urban aerosol sample extracts using atmospheric pressure photoionisation high-resolution mass spectrometry

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous atmospheric pollutants of high concern for public health. In the atmosphere they undergo oxidation, mainly through reactions with center dot OH and NOx to produce nitro- and oxygenated (oxy-) derivatives. In this study, we developed a new method for the detection of particle-bound PAHs, nitro-PAHs and oxy-PAHs using direct infusion into an atmospheric pressure photoionisation high-resolution mass spectrometer (APPI-HRMS). Method optimisation was done by testing different source temperatures, gas flow rates, mobile phases and dopants. Samples were extracted with methanol, concentrated by evaporation and directly infused in the APPI source after adding toluene as dopant. Acquisition was performed in both polarity modes. The method was applied to target analysis of seasonal PM2.5 samples from an urban background site in Padua (Italy), in the Po Valley, in which a series of PAHs, nitro- and oxy-PAHs were detected. APPI-HRMS was then used for non-target analysis of seasonal PM2.5 samples and results compared with nano-electrospray ionisation (nanoESI) HRMS. The results showed that, when samples were characterised by highly oxidised organic compounds, including S-containing compounds, like in summer samples, APPI did not bring any additional information with respect to nanoESI in negative polarity (nanoESI(-)). Conversely, for winter samples, APPI(-) could detect a series of aromatic and poly-aromatic compounds, mainly oxidised and nitrogenated aromatics, that were not otherwise detected with nanoESI. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT OF AN INNOVATIVE PLANT FOR THE WASTEWATER PURIFICATION IN THE BEVERAGE INDUSTRY

Nowadays, efforts to reduce the resource depletion and environmental emissions from the anthropic activities, are mandatory for sustainable development pattern. Among the key resources to save, pure water is as important as critic due to its scarcity and its essential role for life and growth. Furthermore, during the last decades, rising attention from institutions and industries is toward solutions for the water intensity decrease and wastewater recovery. This paper proposes the environmental assessment of an innovative wastewater collection and purification plant tailored to a mid-size beverage industry aiming at locally closing the loop of the water chain, allowing its recirculation and local reuse. After the description of the functional module features, sizes and design, based on a prototype actually working in Italy, the paper follows the ISO 14040 standards to develop an environmental assessment of the industrial system, quantifying the impact rising from the manufacturing and the assembly phases

Uso do ácido indol butírico na estaquia de Tibouchina sellowiana (Cham.) Cogn. no outono e inverno de 2004.

Resumo

Humin Formation on SBA-15-pr-SO3H Catalysts during the Alcoholysis of Furfuryl Alcohol to Ethyl Levulinate: Effect of Pore Size on Catalyst Stability, Transport, and Adsorption

Herein, the alcoholysis of furfuryl alcohol in a series of SBA-15-pr-SO3H catalysts with different pore sizes is reported. Elemental analysis and NMR relaxation/diffusion methods show that changes in pore size have a significant effect on catalyst activity and durability. In particular, the decrease in catalyst activity after catalyst reuse is mainly due to carbonaceous deposition, whereas leaching of sulfonic acid groups is not significant. This effect is more pronounced in the largest-pore-size catalyst C3, which rapidly deactivates after one reaction cycle, whereas catalysts with a relatively medium and small average pore size (named, respectively, C2 and C1) deactivate after two reaction cycles and to a lesser extent. CHNS elemental analysis showed that C1 and C3 experience a similar amount of carbonaceous deposition, suggesting that the increased reusability of the small-pore-size catalyst can be attributed to the presence of SO3H groups mostly present on the external surface, as corroborated by results on pore clogging obtained by NMR relaxation measurements. The increased reusability of the C2 catalyst is attributed to a lower amount of humin being formed and, at the same time, reduced pore clogging, which helps to maintain accessible the internal pore space

Tibouchina sellowiana (Cham.) Cogn.: enraizamento, anatomia e análises bioquímicas nas quatro estações do ano.

O presente trabalho buscou verificar os efeitos da aplicação de diferentes concentrações do ácido indolbutírico (AIB), em talco e em solução, no enraizamento de estacas caulinares de Tibouchina sellowiana (Cham.) Cogn. coletadas nas quatro estações do ano, bem como suas variações anatômicas e bioquímicas. Estacas semilenhosas foram tratadas com 0, 1500 e 3000 mg L-1 de ácido indolbutírico (AIB), em talco e solução 50% alcoólica. Após 65 dias em casa-de-vegetação, foram avaliados a porcentagem de estacas enraizadas, o número e o comprimento das raízes, a porcentagem de estacas com calos e a sobrevivência. O uso do AIB mostrou-se eficiente na indução radicial, sendo indiferente a forma em que foi aplicado. As estações mais promissoras foram a primavera (78,75%) com 3.000 mg L-1 ou mg kg-1 de AIB e o verão (63,12%) com 1.500 mg L-1 ou mg kg-1 de AIB. Das secções feitas na base das estacas, no momento da estaquia, não foi detectada nenhuma possível barreira anatômica ou diferença estrutural que promovesse variações no enraizamento. Análises bioquímicas feitas das estacas revelaram que as maiores concentrações de açúcares totais foram obtidas no inverno (83,21 mg g-1 de tecido) e no outono (72,79 mg g-1), as estações que também apresentaram as maiores concentrações de proteínas (4,69 e 3,95 mg g-1 respectivamente)

Rapa Nui (Easter Island) Rano Raraku crater lake basin: Geochemical characterization and implications for the Ahu-Moai Period

Rano Raraku, the crater lake constrained by basaltic tuff that served as the primary quarry used to construct the moai statues on Rapa Nui (Easter Island), has experienced fluctuations in lake level over the past centuries. As one of the only freshwater sources on the island, understanding the present and past geochemical characteristics of the lake water is critical to understand if the lake could have been a viable freshwater source for Rapa Nui. At the time of sampling in September 2017, the maximum lake depth was ~1 m. The lake level has substantially declined in the subsequent years, with the lake drying almost completely in January 2018. The lake is currently characterized by highly anoxic conditions, with a predominance of ammonium ions on nitrates, a high concentration of organic carbon in the water-sediment interface and reducing conditions of the lake, as evidenced by Mn/Fe and Cr/V ratios. Our estimates of past salinity inferred from the chloride mass balance indicates that it was unlikely that Rano Raraku provided a viable freshwater source for early Rapa Nui people. The installation of an outlet pipe around 1950 that was active until the late 1970s, as well as grazing of horses on the lake margins appear to have significantly impacted the geochemical conditions of Rano Raraku sediments and lake water in recent decades. Such impacts are distinct from natural environmental changes and highlight the need to consider the sensitivity of the lake geochemistry to human activities

Avaliação da severidade e reação de resistência a doenças em cinco espécies de trevos na safra 2021.

A produção de forragem no Sul do país está intimamente relacionada com à produtividade de bovinos de corte e de leite no período de inverno, quando as pastagens cultivadas ou naturais são reduzidas, como consequência da enorme carência de alimentação para o gado durante essa estação do ano (Reis, 2007; Montardo, 2002).ODS 2