Using Interval Constrained Petri Nets and Fuzzy Method for Regulation of Quality: The Case of Weight in Tobacco Factory

The existence of maximal durations drastically modifies the performance evaluation in Discrete Event Systems (DES). The same particularity may be found on systems where the associated constraints do not concern the time. For example weight measures, in chemical industry, are used in order to control the quantity of consumed raw materials. This parameter also takes a fundamental part in the product quality as the correct transformation process is based upon a given percentage of each essence. Weight regulation therefore increases the global productivity of the system by decreasing the quantity of rejected products. In this paper we present an approach based on mixing different characteristics theories, the fuzzy system and Petri net system to describe the behaviour. An industriel application on a tobacco manufacturing plant, where the critical parameter is the weight is presented as an illustration

Benign osteoblastoma in an unusual mastoid location

SummaryIntroductionBenign osteoblastoma (OB) is an unusual primary bone tumor. The preferred locations are the posterior arch of vertebrae and long bones. We report herein an extremely rare location of an OB in the mastoid process of the temporal bone.Case reportA 22-year-old woman presented with painful left retro-auricular swelling. Computed tomography features were suggestive of an aggressive osteolytic lesion of the left mastoid. The pathologic examination of bone curettage material revealed a benign OB. A complete resection of the tumor was performed later, with no evidence of recurrence at 1 year.Discussion/ConclusionTo our knowledge, this is the 14th reported case of OB confined to the mastoid process of temporal bone. Its histological diagnosis can be difficult and osteosarcoma is its principal differential diagnosis. Although generally regarded as benign, OB has potential for recurrence and local invasion. As such, complete resection, whenever possible, is preferred over conventional curettage

An Optimization approach for the early design of safety critical automotive embedded systems

The embedded system design is a challenging task. The engineers are faced with technological, cost, complexity and safety constraints. These constraints have a big impact on the system architecture and consequently on the final cost. we propose in this thesis an approach for system design and architecture optimization driven by safety and cost constraints. It consists of an architecture synthesis approach that takes into account the safety constraints in the ISO 26262 context. It allows, at one hand, to reach a system preliminary architecture by choosing the architecture elements that reduce the overall cost. On the other hand, it leads to a functions mapping that respects the safety constraints related to the integrity levels and to the dependent failures. We use exhaustive and genetic algorithm for the design space exploration. By applying it on an industrial study-case we demonstrate its contribution in reaching compliant design and its capability in reducing the safety constraints costs

Automatic Decomposition and Allocation of Safety Integrity Level Using System of Linear Equations

In ISO-26262, the Automotive safety integrity level (ASIL) represents the degree of rigour that should be applied in the development, implementation and verification of a requirement in order to reduce and control the risk in the final product. The ASILs are allocated to the safety requirements which are inherited by the subsystems and components in a hierarchical approach. During the allocation process, the safety requirements could be decomposed over redundant elements. It is referred to as ASIL decomposition and is an important feature, as it helps to reduce the complexity and the development cost of the design. The decomposition could lead, however, to different allocations. In this paper, we propose an approach to find all the possible allocations in order to assist the analyst in reaching the optimal allocation

Effectiveness of pre-treatment method to hinder rebar corrosion in concrete

This paper aims to evaluate the ability of phosphate pretreatments applied on steel rebars to hinder the corrosion reinforcements using synthetic pore electrolyte and mortar contaminated by chloride ions. The electrochemical behaviour of the pretreated substrate was assessed by corrosion potential, polarisation resistance and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements. The results have demonstrated that the treatment of the rebar by immersion in the Na3PO4 (0·5M) solution favours the formation of a passive layer on the steel rebar surface, which increases the resistance to corrosion initiation up to 0·3M Cl– instead of 0·1M Cl– without treatment. The pretreatment also provides enhancement of corrosion protection of the steel rebar in mortar. The evolution of the impedance spectra in function of chloride concentration is in a fairly good agreement with the results obtained from RP measurements

Effect of phosphate based inhibitor on the threshold chloride to initiate steel corrosion in saturated hydroxide solution

cited By 17International audienceIn this paper, a phosphate-based inhibitor was used to increase the well-known critical ratio [Cl-]/[OH-] (R), inducing the localized corrosion of steel reinforcements in saturated Ca(OH)2 solution. For this purpose, electrochemical measurements and characterization methods (SEM, EDS, XRD, etc.) were first employed to identify the phosphate layer formation, and then to evaluate the inhibition effectiveness for the localized corrosion of steel reinforcements. The process of pitting corrosion is evaluated by cyclic polarization and is followed by acoustic emission. The experimental results show that electrochemical techniques can evaluate the pitting corrosion and reveal that the introduction of phosphate-based inhibitor increases strongly the critical ratio [Cl-]/[OH-] from which the depassivation and pitting corrosion can be initiated. This clearly confirms its positive effect on the localized corrosion resistance of steel reinforcements in saturated Ca(OH)2 solution. A perfect correlation with the evolution of the acoustic activity is also demonstrated. Thus, it was significantly possible to highlight the acoustic signature of depassivation damage and to chloride concentration. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Effect of Na3PO4 addition in mortar on steel reinforcement corrosion behavior in 3% NaCl solution

cited By 7International audienceThe influence of a phosphate inhibitor on the corrosion behavior of steel reinforcement in mortar immersed in 3% NaCl solution was investigated. For this purpose, characterization methods (SEM, XRD), mechanical (flexural strength and compressive strength), electrochemical and acoustic emission measurements were carried out. It was demonstrated that the addition of phosphate inhibitor induces a slight decrease of the mortar compressive strength but no change of the flexural strength. The electrochemical measurements indicate that the addition of Na3PO4 in mortar leads to an improvement of the steel reinforcement corrosion resistance in chloride solution. It was also confirmed by the acoustic emission technique that the phosphate inhibitor decreases the corrosion rate. Furthermore the visual observation of the mortar corroborates these results. Thus it can be concluded that the addition of this phosphate inhibitor in concrete decreases the chloride ions effect on localized corrosion. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Sustainable use of Natural Resources as Alternative for the Hazardous Corrosion Inhibitor of Mild Steel/Dilute Sulfuric Acid Interface: Weight Loss, EIS, AFM and FTIR Studies

Point of present exploration was to figure out the anticorrosion activity of Acacia Cyanophylla (Saligna leaves) extract on the corrosion of mild steel in dilute sulfuric acid medium, using weight loss measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The result of the study revealed that the extract act as a potent inhibitor on mild steel in acid medium. The increase in inhibitor concentration and immersion time showed a positive effect on inhibition efficiency. EIS exhibited one capacitive loop which indicates that the corrosion reaction is controlled by charge transfer process. The increase of phase shift (n) in presence of (ACLE) lower surface roughness. This change reveals the adsorption of the inhibitor compound on the steel surface. According to the results of weight loss measurements, the adsorption of the extract on the steel surface can be described by the Langmuir isotherm. The inhibition mechanism of (ACLE) molecules involves physical interaction between the inhibitor and metal surface. Additionally, Protective film formation against acid attack was confirmed by FT-IR and AFM techniques

Effect of phosphorus doping on some properties of electroplated Zn-Ni alloy coatings

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