Alternative treatments in the control of psoroptic mange in a flock of organic production sheep.

Abstract The aim of the experiment was to verify the efficacy of the treatment of psoroptic mange in a flock of Churra sheep farmed under organic production conditions, using alternative methods. One group, C Control (N=9), was given no treatment, a second group, TAH Antihomotoxic (N=10), was intramuscularly administered an antihomotoxic preparation every two days, thus receiving a total of seven injections over a two-week period. The third group, TCI Citronella (N=10), was topically administered a 1% solution of 50%essential Citronella Java oil and 50% Potassium Soap twice daily, in each milking, during the two-week period. A fourth group, TCIT Citronella+Thymol (N=10), was topically administered Citronella with 1% mother tincture of Thymol to boost the acaricide activity. The results obtained were analysed by ANOVA for scores and improvement of lesions. At the end of the experiment, TCI and TCIT showed significantly fewer lesions (P<0.05) than the control group and TAH, no differences being detected between the latter two groups. Improvement was significantly higher (P<0.05) in TCI (45%) and TCTT (48%) in comparison with the control group,which only showed 3% improvement. TAH improved by 30% (P<0.05) in comparison with the control group. There were no significant differences between TCI and TCIT. In conclusion, treatment with essential Citronella Java oil and potassium soap can be used as an alternative to conventional methods to control psoroptic mange

Customer Experience Assessment: Forgotten Effects

The objective of this study is to contribute with new tools to customer experience management, because the importance that is reaching this area in business and academic world. We propose “Forgotten Effects Theory”, developed by Kaufman and Gil Aluja (1988) that look for causality relations to help to recover variables that could been obviated at first, during initial analysis of a problem. Empirical investigation was carried out to 1.045 customers of different air companies of Spanish market, it values variables affecting value chain of this companies, which affect in different degree customer experience and his/her brand satisfaction. Finally we present those variables selected as more important to improve customer experience and so, deliver information to company to development of future strategies

Knowledge-based supervision and control of wastewater treatment plant: a real-time implementation

The hardware architecture and the software development of a real-time knowledge-based distributed control system for the supervision of a wastewater treatment pilot plant are presented. The operation scheme is based on an A²/O system (anaerobic, anoxic, oxic) and includes organic matter removal, nitrification/denitrification, and Enhanced Biological Phosphorous Removal (EBPR). The hardware architecture involves different supervision levels, including two autonomous process computers (plant control and analysers control) and a PLC. The software architecture includes a Knowledge-Based Expert System (KBES) as the top control system. The KBES has been developed in G2, an expert system development environment based on object-oriented structural design. This system is fed with data obtained from the plant monitoring (in-line, on-line and off-line data) and with actuation data of the lower control levels. Using this information, the KBES supervises the pilot plant in order to help with fault detection and plant maintenance, but also modifies setpoints and other variables of the local control level to adapt the system to the different influent conditions. The overall system has been implemented and validated at pilot scale.Spanish Inter-Ministry Commission of Science and Technology (C.I.C.Y.T.) - BIO94-0679-C02, AMB97-0889-c03-01.Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian (FCG).Generalitat de Catalunya. Consell Interdepartamental de Recerca i Innovació Tecnològica (CIRIT)

Real-time expert control of a pilot WWTP with nitrogen and phosphorus removal

Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian; C.I.R.I.T. (Generalitat de Catalunya)

Knowledge-based supervision and control of WWTP: a real-time implementation

Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian (FCG) - post-doctoral research grant.Generalitat de Catalunya. Consell Interdepartamental de Recerca i Innovació Tecnològica (CIRIT) - predoctoral fellowship

Experimental and predicted vapour-liquid equilibrium of the binary mixtures n-heptane + chlorobutane isomers

The study of the isothermal vapour-liquid equilibrium (VLE) of the binary mixtures n-heptane plus chlorobutane isomers (1-chlorobutane, 2-chlorobutane, 1-chloro-2-methylpropane or 2-chloro-2-methylpropane) at three different temperatures, T = 288.15, 298.15 and 308.15 K, is presented in this contribution. The experimental results were correlated using Wilson equation and the thermodynamic consistency of the data was checked by the van Ness method. Furthermore, two different methods have been used to predict the phase equilibrium in isothermal conditions: a pure group contribution method (modified-UNIFAC) and a group contribution equation of state (VTPR)

A knowledge-based distributed system for supervision and control of wastewater treatment processes

This paper presents the hardware architecture and the software development of a real-time knowledge-based distributed control system for the supervision of a wastewater treatment pilot plant with biological removal of organic matter and nitrogen. A continuous monitoring of plant and controls data is used by an expert system developed in G2, a development environment based on object-oriented paradigm. A set of rules and procedures to help fault detection, plant maintenance, and nitrification - denitrification cycle operation was implemented and validated at pilot scale. The hardware architecture includes different supervision levels, including two autonomous process computers (plant control and analysers control).Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian (FCG) - postdoctoral research grant..Generalitat de Catalunya. Consell Interdepartamental de Recerca i Innovació Tecnològica (CIRIT) - predoctoral fellowship

Thermophysical study of the binary mixtures of N, N-dimethylacetamide with 1-propanol and 1-butanol

Several thermophysical properties such as densities, p, speeds of sound, u, refractive indices, nD, and kinematic viscosities, v, have been measured for the binary mixtures of N, N-Dimethylacetamide with 1-propanol and 1-butanol over the entire range of composition, at the temperatures (283.15, 298.15 and 313.15) K and at atmospheric pressure p = 0.1 MPa. From these experimental data, excess molar volumes, VE, excess isentropic compressibilities, ?S E , refractive index deviations, ?nD, and viscosity deviations, ??, were calculated. Then, correlated with the Redlich-Kister equation and the corresponding parameters were drived. The results obtained, were discussed in terms of structural effects and specific molecular interactions, and the influence of the alkanol chain length was also considered