An investigation on renewable energy education at the university level in Turkey

In the present study, to discover how teaching of renewable energy sources in Turkey is carried out at the university level, a questionnaire was developed and applied at different universities in Turkey. The analyses conducted on the data obtained from the questionnaire revealed that education about geothermal, solar and wind energy is given at master’s level, other renewable energy sources are taught at the undergraduate level within the curriculum of some engineering courses. The teaching performed about renewable energy sources is in Turkish and at encyclopedic level. As preparing and obtaining the required materials are costly, some problems are encountered in the teaching of renewable sources. In Turkish universities, no degree about renewable energy sources is granted. Hence, the country must make use of the people having engineering degree to capitalize on its renewable energy sources. As there is no program specializing on providing training about the renewable energy sources, it seems to be difficult to find experts about this issue. The current state of renewable energy sources education seems to be inadequate and it should be expanded and strengthened

Portable Lightboard Use in Online Higher Education

The emergency distance education period has led to new instructional experiences and unique practices in higher education. This study focuses on one such practice that included portable lightboards designed as a cost-effective solution to support instructors’ online teaching processes from their homes. Using a case study design, data were collected via using through interviews with eight students and nine instructors who used the lightboard for the first time in order to to explore their perceptions and lived experiences. The findings obtained in this study showed that the instructors could benefit from the writing/drawing feature supported by the dynamic drawing principle of multimedia learning from their homes. Student engagement was enhanced due to offering a sustainable learning environment resembling face-to-face courses with unique limitations. The results offer key aspects of portable lightboards with great potential for future online or blended learning environments

The Effect Of Digital Storytelling On The Development Of Preservice Mathematics Teachers’ Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge

Digital storytelling (DST) is, in general terms, a form of storytelling created by incorporating technological elements into traditional storytelling. DST has begun to be used frequently in education. Digital stories are utilised to provide information or instruction on personal stories, historical events or a specific subject. One of the subjects studied is the effect of DST on the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) of teachers and prospective teachers. DST helps to integrate the curriculum, pedagogy and technology holistically with advantages such as active participation, development of skills and development of the learner as a person. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of DST on the development of TPACK in preservice secondary mathematics teachers. A transformative mixed research method was used in the study. The participants were 44 preservice mathematics teachers studying in their final year at a state university in Turkey. The data were obtained through a demographic form, the TPACK-Math scale, lesson plans and interviews. For the data analysis, the paired samples t-test, Wilcoxon signed-rank test, Shapiro-Wilk test and TPACK diagram were used. As a result of the research, it was seen that DST enabled the development of the preservice teachers’ TPACK knowledge. In addition, it was determined that the prospective teachers felt most comfortable in using the software, whereas they had the most difficulty in creating the script

Numerıcal ınvestıgatıon of lamınar forced convectıon and entropy generatıon of fe3o4/water nanofluıds ın dıfferent crosssectıoned channel geometrıes

In this study, forced convection of nanofluid flow in various channel geometries with a hydraulic diameter of 16 mm and length of 1.5 m under laminar flow condition has been investigated numerically. Constant heat flux of 6 kW/m2 has been applied on to the surfaces of the channels. Fe3O4/water nanofluid has been used in the analyses to enhance the convective heat transfer of the base fluid. Analyses have been performed for Reynolds numbers between 500≤Re≤2000, and for volume concentrations of nanoparticles between 1% and 5% in cylindrical, square, rectangle, and triangle cross-sectioned channel geometries. The finite volume discretization method has been used to solve the governing equations. The effects of some parameters; Reynolds number, nanoparticle volume fractions, channel geometries on the average Nusselt number, Darcy friction factor and entropy generation have been investigated in detail. The results indicate that nanofluid offers further convective heat transfer enhancement according to base fluid and cylindrical cross-sectioned channel gives the best heat transfer performance among other cross-sectioned channel geometries. Using water as a working fluid, cylindrical cross-sectioned channel geometry gives the highest heat transfer rate among other channel geometries, whereas triangle one gives the lowest. Cylindrical cross-sectioned channel geometry offers up to 77.6% enhancement compared to triangle cross-sectioned channel geometry for the same hydraulic diameter and same heat flux. However, triangle cross-sectioned channel geometry has highest convective heat transfer increment ratio (4.12%) for changing working fluid as water to nanofluid. Also, some new Nu correlations based on the channel geometries and nanoparticle volume fractions were proposed in the present study

Production of Metal Oxide Containing Antibacterial Coated Textile Material and Investigation of the Mechanism of Action

The main aim of this study was to produce PVC coated textile based antibacterial textile material and to investigate the antibacterial mechanism with detailed analyzes. Metal oxide (calcium oxide, zinc oxide, magnesium oxide) powders were used to provide antibacterial functionality to coated materials. Metal oxide concentrations were varied between 5-35 %. Antibacterial tests were performed according to ISO 22196-2011 standard. Antibacterial efficiency of the samples was tested for each metal oxide type and concentration with L. innocua species. The antibacterial mechanism was investigated with ESR technique, fluorescent microscobe and microplate reader using DCFH-DA probe, UV-vis spectrometer using fluorescein probe. The results indicated that the antibacterial effect of used metal oxides was strongly arisen from radical oxygen species. The morphology of coatings was investigated with SEM and the distribution of metal oxide particles on the surface was examined with EDX analysis and EDX mapping. The changes on the molecular basis of the coating due to the metal oxide addition was analyzed with FT-IR spectroscopy. High antibacterial efficiencies (up to 100 %) were detected. It is suggested that the non-toxic metal oxides can be used as an effective and economically feasible alternative to conventional antibacterial additives for industrial applications such as conveyor belts

METAL OXIDE DOPED ANTIBACTERIAL POLYMERIC COATED TEXTILE MATERIALS AND ASSESSEMENT OF ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY WITH ELECTRON SPIN RESONANCE

Antibacterial activity of a food conveyor belt is an essential property in some cases. However, every antibacterial chemical is not suitable to contact with food materials. Many metal oxides are suitable option for this purpose. The aim of this study was to investigate antibacterial properties of zinc oxide doped PVC polymer coated with electron spin resonance technique. Therefore, optimum zinc oxide containing PVC paste was prepared and applied to textile surface. Coating construction was designed as double layered, first layer did not contain antibacterial agent, thin second layer contained zinc oxide at 10-35% concentration. Oxygen radicals released from zinc oxide containing polymeric coated surface were spin trapped with DMPO (dimethylpyrroline-N-oxide) spin trap and measured with Electron Spin Resonance (ESR). Besides conveyor belt samples, oxygen radical release from zinc oxide surface was measured with ESR under UV light and dark conditions. Oxygen radical release was determined even at dark conditions. Antibacterial properties were tested with ISO 22196 standard using Listeria innocua species. Measured antibacterial properties were related with ESR results. Higher concentration of zinc oxide resulted in higher antibacterial efficiency. DCFH-DA flourometric assay was carried out to determine oxidative stress insidebacteria. It is tought that, this technique will lead to decrease on the labour and time needed for conventional antibacterial tests

The prediction of photovoltaic module temperature with artificial neural networks

In this study, photovoltaic module temperature has been predicted according to outlet air temperature and solar radiation. For this investigation, photovoltaic module temperatures have been determined in the experimental system for 10, 20, 30, and 40 °C ambient air temperature and different solar radiations. This experimental study was made in open air and solar radiation was measured and then this measured data was used for the training of ANN. Photovoltaic module temperatures have been predicted according to solar radiation and outside air temperature for the Aegean region in Turkey. Electrical efficiency and power was also calculated depending on the predicted module temperature. Kutahya, U§ak and Afyon are the most suitable cities in terms of electrical efficiency and power product in the Aegean region in Turkey

The artificial neural network model to estimate the photovoltaic modul efficiency for all regions of the Turkey

Erkaymaz, Okan/0000-0002-1996-8623; GEDIK, Engin/0000-0002-3407-6121; Gurel, Ali Etem/0000-0003-1430-8041WOS: 000345182000025Artificial neural network (ANN) is a useful tool that using estimates behavior of the most of engineering applications. In the present study, ANN model has been used to estimate the temperature, efficiency and power of the Photovoltaic module according to outlet air temperature and solar radiation. An experimental system consisted photovoltaic module, heating and cooling sub systems, proportional integral derivative (PID) control unit was designed and built. Tests were realized at the outdoors for the constant ambient air temperatures of photovoltaic module. To preserve ambient air temperature at the determined constant values as 10, 20, 30 and 40 degrees C, cooling and heating subsystems which connected PID control unit were used in the test apparatus. Ambient air temperature, solar radiation, back surface of the photovoltaic module temperature was measured in the experiments. Obtained data were used to estimate the photovoltaic module temperature, efficiency and power with using ANN approach for all 7 region of the Turkey. The study dealing with this paper not only will beneficial for the limited region but also in all region of Turkey which will be thought established of photovoltaic panels by the manufacturer, researchers and etc. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.Karabuk University Scientific Research Projects Unit, Karabuk/TURKEYKarabuk University [KBO-BAP-13/2-YL-037]The authors would like to thank the Karabuk University Scientific Research Projects Unit, Karabuk/TURKEY for providing the financial supports for this study under the KBO-BAP-13/2-YL-037 project

Key instructional design issues in a cellular phone-based mobile learning project

Adding flexibility to the learning process, mobile learning offers great opportunities for education, especially for teenagers, who show great attentiveness to mobile technologies. Thus, the need to focus on design aspects of such learning is growing. This study aims to reveal critical issues in designing mobile learning based on a program for 11th graders and to unfold students' perceptions about reasons for participation, satisfaction, implementation processes, and specific content representation types. Reflections on insights gleaned from the instructional design process of the project and students' perceptions are presented with related recommendations