Performance Augmentation of Single-Slope Solar Distiller Using an Evacuated Tube Solar Collector: Theoretical Study

In this research, the performance analysis of a solar-powered desalination system incorporating a single slope-slope solar still and an evacuated tube solar collector is theoretically investigated. The system comprises a solar evacuated tube that absorbs solar radiation, transferring heat to saline water. This water then flows into a solar still, where it absorbs solar energy, boosting the evaporation rate. Two solar distillers, namely the conventional solar distiller (Still-I) and solar still integrated with evacuated tube solar collector (Still-II), are simulated and analyzed under identical outdoor conditions in Tanta, Egypt. A comprehensive theoretical model, developed using FORTAN programming, simulates the performance of the two distillers and provides insights into the heat transfer mechanisms within the distiller components. Additionally, a comparative energetic analysis of the two proposed distillers is conducted. The simulation outcomes indicate that Still II achieved a notable improvement in freshwater production, recording a 31.26% enhancement (8.02 kg/m2.day) compared to Still I (6.11 kg/m2.day) under a consistent saline water depth of 2.0 cm. Moreover, the daily energy efficiency was obtained to be 36.00% and 46.72% % for Still I and Still II, respectively

Developing a Generic Decision Support System for Poultry Feeding

Poultry breeding of birds such as chickens, ducks, and turkeys, provide humans mainly with meat and eggs. It represents a great share of investment in many countries. Feeding is one of the factors that play an essential role in poultry industry. Moreover, feeding represents a major direct cost in poultry industry. Therefore, it is generally vital to deliver the best animal diet at the minimum cost, to gain more profit. However, mixing feed ingredients turns out to be more troublesome, since several issues got the opportunity to be involved all at the same time. In this paper, the linear programming algorithm is applied and used in a web application to help farmers and producers to find the minimum cost of feeding, considering many factors including: the purpose of breeding, poultry type, growth stage, nutritional requirements and available feedstuffs

Predictive values of first trimester ultrasound screening for twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome and selective intrauterine growth restriction in monochorionic twin pregnancies

Background: Monochorionic diamniotic (MCDA) twins are at significantly increased risk of perinatal morbidity and mortality due to shared placentation and the presence of inter-twin placental vascular anastomoses. Aim of the work: The main aim of this study was to validate first trimester ultrasound screening for twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) and selective intrauterine growth restriction (sIUGR) in monochorionic twin pregnancies using the triad of nuchal translucency (NT), cord insertion site and inter-twin discordance in fetal size. Summary: We have demonstrated that NT and CRL were significantly higher in TTTS group than sIUGR group. And difference in NT, CRL and cord insertion site was identified as predictive markers for sIUGR and TTTS

Neutrosophic Logic Theory and Applications

Neutrosophic logic is a very powerful and effective concept. It has different application areas due to its ability to capture the stochasticity in many complex real-life use cases. This paper presents the main types of neutrosophic sets. It also surveys and analyzes its most common applications

Modeling Customer Lifetime Value Under Uncertain Environment

Customer lifetime value (CLV) is an essential measure to determine the level of profitability of a customer to a firm. Customer relationship management treats CLV as the most significant factor for measuring the level of purchases and, consequently, the profitability of a given customer. This motivates researchers to compete in developing models to maximize the value of CLV. Dynamic programming models in general—and the Q-learning model specifically—play a significant role in this area of research as a model-free algorithm. This maximizes the long-term future rewards of a certain agent, given their current state, set of possible actions, and the next state of that agent, assuming the customer represents the agent and CLV is their future reward. However, due to the stochastic nature of this problem, it is inaccurate to obtain a single crisp value for Q. In this paper, fuzzy logic and neutrosophic logic shall be utilized to search for the membership values of Q to capture the stochasticity and uncertainty of the problem. Both fuzzy Q-learning and neutrosophic Qlearning were implemented using two membership functions (i.e., trapezoidal, and triangular) to search for the optimal Q value that maximizes the customer\u27s future rewards. The proposed algorithms were applied to two benchmark datasets: The Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining (KDD) cup 1998 direct mailing campaign dataset and the other from Kaggle, related to direct mailing campaigns. The proposed algorithms proved their effectiveness and superiority when comparing them to each other or the traditional deep Q-learning models

A kinetic study for the removal of anionic sulphonated dye from aqueous solution using nano-polyaniline and Baker’s yeast

In this study, a method for the removal of anionic sulphonated Acid Red 14 (AR) dye from aqueous solution using the chemical interaction of dye molecules with nano-polyaniline is reported. Nano-polyaniline (PANI) was synthesized by chemical oxidation in presence of different surfactants. The experimental observations from UV/Vis spectroscopy, rule out the possibility of secondary doping of polyaniline salt by AR14 molecules. A possible mechanism for the chemical interaction between the polymer and dye molecules is proposed. In order to get a better comparison, adsorption experiments were also carried out using Baker’s yeast (BY) individually and in mixture with nano-PANI. Kinetic parameters for the adsorption of AR dye on the selected adsorbents are also reported. It was found that application of BY with PANI for the removal of anionic sulphonated dyes such as AR dye from aqueous solution is very promising

MRI findings in symptomatic patients following anterior cruciate ligament surgery

Introduction: Considering the large number of patients undergoing anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) surgery, it is important for radiologists to be familiar with these procedures, the normal imaging findings as well as the appearances of common complications that can occur in these patients. Symptomatic patients might present with complications related to the graft itself or due to other causes not related to the graft. Aim of the work: Evaluate the MRI findings in symptomatic patients following ACL surgery. Patients and methods: The study included 26 symptomatic patients following anterior cruciate ligament surgery. The examination was done on 1.5 Tesla magnet MRI machines. Results: Twenty-five patients had reconstruction surgery (96%) and 1 patient had fixation of tibial attachment (4%). Among 25 cases of ACL reconstruction 21 patients had semi-membranosus/semi-tendinosus graft (84%) and 4 patients had Bone-patellar tendon-Bone graft (16%). The most common finding was complete graft tear (32%); followed by abnormal tunnel position (24%); screw failure (16%); graft impingement and partial graft tear (12% each); tibial tunnel and femoral tunnel cysts (8% each); arthrofibrosis (4%). Conclusions: MRI is the modality of choice in evaluating the causes of symptomatic patients following ACL reconstruction surgery

Application of enriched Cyclops abyssorum divergens with mixed algal diet compared to Artemia franciscana for improving larval growth and body composition of Dicentrarchus labrax

Larval rearing techniques with suitable nursery feed should be prioritized for better survival and growth. We evaluate the potential use of Cyclops abyssorum divergens as a natural live food candidate instead of the costly traditional Artemia franciscana in the feeding strategy for Dicentrarchus labrax larvae. C. abyssorum divergens and A. franciscana were enriched with mixed valuable algae strains (Isochrysis galbana, Tetraselmis chuii, Chlorella marina and Nannochloropsis oculata) that were used in equal biomass proportions (1:1:1:1) on dry weight basis. Amino acids and fatty acid profiles were found to be highly significantly different in enriched C. abyssorum divergens (EC) compared to enriched A. franciscana (EA). The findings also revealed compensated deficiency in some amino acids such as histidine, isoleucine, and methionine in EC and also increased levels of total essential amino acids (EAA) in EC by 8.2 % more than that of EA. Further metabolizing of palmitic acid (C16:0) and bio-conversion of α- linolenic acid, ALA (C18:3 n-3) to high accumulation of DHA fatty acid lead to higher PUFAs contents in EC and lower levels in EA. Specific growth rates (SGR) and survival percentages (S %) of D. labrax were higher in larvae fed with EC compared to the lower values in EA. Moreover, analyzing final carcass composition revealed increased levels of DHA fatty acid attaining DHA/EPA ratio in fish-fed EC of 2.95 % (>1) compared to 0.90 % (<1) in larvae-fed EA. The elevated levels of the amino acids in the larvae-fed EC were a yardstick to the surged growth and survival rate of the examined species. The present study concluded that C. abyssorum divergens is the best promising candidate for Sea bass larvae-culture

Pelvic congestion syndrome due to agenesis of the infrarenal inferior vena cava

The inferior vena cava (IVC) is the main conduit of venous return to the right atrium from the lower extremities and abdominal organs. Agenesis of the IVC has an incidence of <1% in the general population [1], although it has been reported in the literature as occurring in up to 8.7% of the population [2]. Patients with absent IVC may present with symptoms of lower extremity venous insufficiency [6], idiopathic deep venous thrombosis [7], or pelvic congestion syndrome. To our knowledge there have only been a few cases reported in the literature of agenesis of the IVC associated with pelvic congestion syndrome [3,10,11]. We present another interesting case of pelvic congestion syndrome due to absent IVC. Keywords: Absence of IVC, IVC anomalies, Pelvic congestion syndrome, DVT, Varice

Magnetic Graphene Oxide as an Efficient Adsorbent for the Separation and Preconcentration of Cu(II), Pb(II), and Cd(II) from Environmental Samples

The separation and preconcentration of copper(II), lead(II), and cadmium(II) ions on magnetic graphene oxide (MGO) by solid-phase extraction was carried out. Quantitative recovery was obtained by adsorption of analytes on MGO at pH 6 and elution of 3 M HNO3 in 10% acetone. To optimize the presented method, the effects of various parameters-including pH, eluent conditions, and vortex time-were examined. Matrix effects were also investigated. Mean recoveries of the analytes were between 95 and 105%. The proposed method was validated by applying it to certified reference materials. Addition and recovery tests were also performed. The method was applied to verify the analyte content of several water and food samples