Using wind turbines in high-rise buildings in the development of sustainable architecture (case study: Kish Island)

The increasing consumption of fossil fuels as limited sources of energy and its destructive effect on the environment has drawn many people attention to the use of renewable energy and in the meantime, taking advantage of the renewable energy of wind to produce clean and low-cost energy is one of the most common options throughout the world, however, due to the growing concentration of population and economic activity in contemporary cities and for increasing high-rise buildings in order to answer the problem cause irreparable damage to the environment which in order to protect the God-given natural resources, reducing environmental pollution and reducing energy consumption, using wind turbines for wind energy and converting it into mechanical and electrical energy are objectives of sustainable development plays a major role in the housing sector. Since the shallow waters of the Persian Gulf and coasts of this region are great places for installing wind turbines, in this regard, this study by studying documents and field studies to evaluate how the use of wind energy in high-rise buildings of these areas in order to maintain the environmental and energy efficiency leads to better planning for the construction of high-rise on Kish island in order to achieve the objectives of sustainable development.Keywords: Renewable Energy, Wind Energy, Wind Turbine, High-Rise Buildings, Kish Island, Sustainable Architectur

Size Control in the Nanoprecipitation Process of Stable Iodine (127I) Using Microchannel Reactor—Optimization by Artificial Neural Networks

In this study, nanosuspension of stable iodine (127I) was prepared by nanoprecipitation process in microfluidic devices. Then, size of particles was optimized using artificial neural networks (ANNs) modeling. The size of prepared particles was evaluated by dynamic light scattering. The response surfaces obtained from ANNs model illustrated the determining effect of input variables (solvent and antisolvent flow rate, surfactant concentration, and solvent temperature) on the output variable (nanoparticle size). Comparing the 3D graphs revealed that solvent and antisolvent flow rate had reverse relation with size of nanoparticles. Also, those graphs indicated that the solvent temperature at low values had an indirect relation with size of stable iodine (127I) nanoparticles, while at the high values, a direct relation was observed. In addition, it was found that the effect of surfactant concentration on particle size in the nanosuspension of stable iodine (127I) was depended on the solvent temperature. © 2015, American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists

Short view of leukemia diagnosis and treatment in Iran

Background: Early diagnosis and treatment of leukemia patients remains a fundamental aim in clinical oncology, especially in developing country. Present study highlights the basic requirements of these patients in Iran. Better understanding of these issues may lead to improve the healthcare standards toward leukemia diagnosis and treatment. Methods: This descriptive study included 101 specialists in hematology-oncology and pathology serving in oncology centers. The participants were then asked to fill out a standard questionnaire on the issues around diagnosis and treatment of blood malignancies. Results: According to specialists, unfair distribution of facilities across the country, delayed diagnosis of disease, absence of psychological support for patients, and insufficient financial support were the main reasons of inappropriate diagnosis and treatment in leukemia patients. Conclusions: Our results show that making an amendment to health policies by preparing well-equipped medical centers in all provinces, improving the morale of patients through consultation during the process of treatment, and above all, subsiding leukemia patients' financial problems will promote the health standard regarding the leukemia diagnosis and treatment in Iran. © 2015, Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS). All rights reserved

Effects of varying dietary protein level on the growth, feed efficiency and body composition of lemon fin barb hybrid fingerlings

This study was conducted to determine the optimal dietary protein requirement for lemon fin barb hybrid fingerlings. Triplicate groups of fish (1.00 ± 0.05 g) were fed twice a day until apparent satiation with five isocaloric (16 kJ/g) diets containing varying protein level ranging from 20 to 40% for 60 days. Survival was not affected by the dietary protein level. The weight gain and specific growth rate were improved with dietary protein level up to 35 %. The best feed conversion ratio (1.61) was achieved at 35% dietary protein level. Protein efficiency ratio was not influenced by the dietary protein level. Using a broken line regression model, the dietary protein requirement of lemon fin barb hybrid was estimated at 34.6 % based on weight gain response but the value was not significantly better than the 30% protein diet. Proximate composition of the fish showed that dietary protein level only affected the protein content of the lemon fin barb hybrid. The study showed the protein retention was increased until 30% and decreased above this level. Lipid retention decreased as the dietary protein increased. It can be concluded that lemon fin barb hybrid required 30-35% protein at gross energy 16 kJ/g for the best growth and feed efficiency

Electrochemical determination of the antipsychotic medication clozapine by a carbon paste electrode modified with a nanostructure prepared from titania nanoparticles and copper oxide

A nanostructure was prepared from titania nanoparticles and copper oxide (TiO2NP@CuO) and used to modify a carbon paste electrode (CPE). The modified CPE is shown to enable sensitive voltammetric determination of the drug clozapine (CLZ). The sensor was characterized by various techniques and some key parameters were optimized. Under the optimum conditions and at a working potential of 0.6 V (vs. Ag/AgCl), the modified CPE has two linear response ranges, one from 30 pmol L�1 to 4 nmol L�1 of CLZ, the other from 4 nmol L�1 to 10 μmol L�1. The detection limit is as low as 9 pM. The transfer coefficient (α) and catalytic rate constant (kcat) were calculated and the reliability of the sensor was estimated for CLZ sensing in real samples where it gave satisfactory results. Figure not available: see fulltext.. © 2019, Springer-Verlag GmbH Austria, part of Springer Nature

Design, Construction and Evaluation of an Interchangeable Digital System to Measure Slip and Ground Speed of Existing 2WD Tractors in Iran

The majority of existing tractors in Iran are not equipped with any tools to measure and display slip and ground speed. This is mainly due to the lack of national standards for measuring tools and instruments of tractors. In current research, an interchangeable system for two wheel drive tractors has been designed. Furthermore, it has been assessed after construction. To measure actual and theoretical ground speed, four rotary encoders for sensing the rotation of front and rear wheels have been utilized. Slip and ground speed were measured by means of software which has been developed in an ATmega16PU microprocessor. The measured slip and speed are digitally displayed on tractor dashboard. To evaluate the performance of the system, the measured values of ground speed and slip were compared with their calculated values obtained from conventional method. The Micro-controller has been programmed in such a way that the effect of front wheel sliding on slip is eliminated. In all evaluation conditions (in field and on asphalt), the maximum difference between system measurements for slip and speed and calculated slip and speed via conventional method was 2.4% and 0.2 km h-1, respectively. With slight alteration this system can be fitted on any kind of exiting two wheel drive tractors in the country

The Feasibility of Unmanned Tractor Guidance Based on Wireless Video Transmission

Automation of tractors due to their widespread use in different sectors e.g. agriculture, construction and industry have been seriously considered by researchers. In this study a tele-steering system for tractor was designed and constructed to controling and steering so the operator can control the tractor even far away from the stressful condition of tractor cab, . A CCTV camera and an electric motor were used in order to view the path and to rotate the steering shaft accordingly. Bilateral communication between the control center outside the tractor and control unit on the tractor was provided by a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). To evaluate the effect of relevant parameters on system performance camera position, steering shaft rotational speed and tractor ground speed were selected as experimental factors in a completely randomized design. Root mean square of error (RMSE) of lateral deviations and frequency of out of range around the reference route (Nout) were used as criteria in variance analysis. The results for two different ground surfaces with three replications showed that the performance of system had less sensitivity on soil surface and had better stability because of deformable structure and condition of soil compare to asphalt. Steering speed alone had no effect on the accuracy of tractor guidance. This is because the accuracy of the system mainly depends on capability, skillfulness and mental concentration of the operator. The position of the camera installed in front of the tractor had higher accuracy than that of rear camera. Moreover, by increasing ground speed the RMSE of lateral deviations and Nout increased and this is in agreement with the results of previous research works

The Effect of Moisture Content and Temperature on the Specific Heat Capacity of Nut and Kernel of Two Iranian Pistachio Varieties

Pistachio has a special ranking among Iranian agricultural products. Iran is known as the largest producer and exporter of pistachio in the world. Agricultural products are imposed under different thermal treatments during storage and processing. Designing all these processes requires thermal parameters of the products such as specific heat capacity. Regarding the importance of pistachio processing as an exportable product, in this study the specific heat capacity of nut and kernel of two varieties of Iranian pistachio (Kalle-Ghochi and Badami) were investigated at four levels of moisture content (initial moisture content (5%), 15%, 25% and 40% w.b.) and three levels of temperature (40, 50 and 60°C). In both varieties, the differences between the data were significant at the 1% of probability; however, the effect of moisture content was greater than that of temperature. The results indicated that the specific heat capacity of both nuts and kernels increase logarithmically with increase of moisture content and also increase linearly with increase of temperature. This parameter has altered for nut and kernel of Kalle-Ghochi and Badami varieties within the range of 1.039-2.936 kJ kg-1 K-1, 1.236-3.320 kJ kg-1 K-1, 0.887-2.773 kJ kg-1 K-1 and 0.811-2.914 kJ kg-1 K-1, respectively. Moreover, for any given level of temperature, the specific heat capacity of kernels was higher than that of nuts. Finally, regression models with high R2 values were developed to predict the specific heat capacity of pistachio varieties as a function of moisture content and temperatur

Demarcation and Estimation of Agricultural Lands Using ETM+ Imagery Data (Case study: Astan Ghods Razavi Great Farm)

Application of satellite imagery and remote sensing techniques in agriculture and other natural resources has been approved by many studies. In this study two ETM+ imagery data for May and September 2012 of Astan Ghods Razavi Great Farm were acquired to identify the boundaries of lands cultivated with different crops coverage and to create crops maps of that farm. . To classify the images, the supervised classification methods including Maximum Likelihood and artificial neural network were used. In order to compare the results of two applied classification methods, the same training and testing samples were used. To evaluate the accuracy of classification results, the produced map was compared with the ground control points extracted by GPS and local observations. Kappa coefficient and overall accuracy were estimated to be 82% and 85%, respectively by maximum likelihood method and these outputs were estimated to be 84% and 87%, respectively by neural network approach. The difference of cultivated area estimated by maximum likelihood and by neural network methods with actual measured area was 16.8% and 14.2%, respectively. The results of this study showed that satellite imagery has high capabilities to classify and estimate agricultural and cultivated areas. These data can be useful for strategic management to develop mechanization and cultivation plans

Construction and Assessment of an on the Go Soil Electrical

The issue of soil salinity is one of the snags for increasing agricultural productivity, which must be inhibited by appropriate devise and scientific management. One way to identify salty areas of farm lands is to prepare salinity maps. In this study, a prototype soil apparent electrical conductivity measuring and mapping device, was designed and built. This device employs direct contact method of electrodes with soil (Also called Wenner method). The system inputs include power supply voltage, location signal from a GPS receiver and signal of voltage between the electrodes. The outputs include the apparent electrical conductivity with respective to geographical coordinate that created in a TEXT file, and then transmitted through a RS-232 serial port to a PC. Electrical conductivity data calibrated and mapped using ESAP-95 software package. To evaluate the device, electrical conductivity map of a land with area of 0.8 Ha surveyed in two ways: using the on the go EC mapper and capturing soil samples manually. The results of these two methods were then compared. Assessment of the device in a clay-loamy soil with low salt level, showed a good correlation with the laboratory EC, having mean error (ME) of -15.27μS.cm-1. Point to point comparison between surveyed data and laboratory EC’s shown that in 67 percent of measurements the errors were under 10 percent. These errors are acceptable mainly due to unknown soil variables and in comparison with other research findings