Welfare impacts of road construction using a public-private partnership : a CGE analysis of a project

The Azorean Government embarked on a public-private partnership to build a road on the island of São Miguel, to circumvent the budget restriction imposed by the central government. We build a sequentially dynamic general equilibrium model with 45 sectors to measure the welfare changes arising from the project. The initial investment is amortised over a period and the payments are simulated through an increase in income taxes, reduction in transfer payments or calculating the fall in transport margins. We find that under any type of repayment scheme the welfare benefits do not justify the road construction thus making it a poor investment decision.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The visible and invisible discourses: the securitization of Pakistan and its impact on the social construction of girls’/women education

This study examines the securitization of Pakistan and its impact on the social construction of girls’/women education. The research has applied the school of Copenhagen’s securitization model to offer a constructivist analysis of Pakistan’s security struggles. Using the ideas of Michel Foucault and Judith Butler, the study explores the power of both discourse and performativity to examine issues of gender and education in a religiously driven post-colonial-security state. The study adopted a qualitative methodological approach, and twenty-eight elite interviews were conducted with officials from five cohorts: the army, religious scholars, bureaucrats, educationists, and third-sector officials. The rationale in the selection of participants was done keeping in mind the significance of their influence on the issues of security, gender, and education in Pakistan. The findings of the study suggest that the notion of discourse, which is profoundly prevalent and holds credible relevance in educational studies but needs to be extended and adapted to engage with a postcolonial context. Therefore, the thesis argues that it is not only through visible discourses that the discourse of securitization impacts girls’/women education in Pakistan. However, there exist invisible discourses, such as, the discourse of gendered ‘hypocrisy’ and ‘hidden curriculum’, which come together with the visible discourses to constitute exclusionary gendered educational practices in Pakistan. The study also illustrates that power structures contest and negotiate power within the discourse of securitization. This negotiation and contestation generate discourses that influence the inequitable constitution of the ‘girl/woman’ as subject in Pakistan. However, the thesis discerns that in a postcolonial society, such as Pakistan, the creation of subject within discourses is diverse from the creation of Foucauldian subject in European society. Acknowledging, the diversity of discourses and the varied working ways of power among distinct societies and cultures, the research study suggests that within the realm of education, the application of theories of discourse and power have definite strengths but once applied out of their contexts can exhibit limitations as well. Hence, it argues, discourses and power should be studied and explored keeping in mind their social and cultural relevance and differences

Oxygen-Free Propane Oxidative Dehydrogenation Over Vanadium Oxide Catalysts: Reactivity and Kinetic Modelling

Propane conversion to propylene has been the subject of intensive researches. This is due to the increasing demand for propylene. Current propylene production processes suffer from several limitations. Oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) is a promising alternative technology for propylene production overcoming the drawbacks of current processes. However, selectivity control in ODH is still a challenge preventing it from an industrial application. This is due to the formation of undesired carbon oxides. Thus, the development of a selective catalyst is crucial for the commercialization of ODH. Vanadium oxide catalysts have been proposed as the most active and selective catalyst for propane ODH. Moreover, new reactor concepts such as fluidized-bed might also help to make the ODH a feasible alternative for olefins productionas, offering some outstanding advantages in comparison to conventional reactors. This dissertation provides fundamental understanding of structure-reactivity relationship of vanadium oxide catalyst for propane ODH in a fluidized-bed reactor using the lattice oxygen of vanadium oxide catalysts in the absence of gas-phase oxygen. Supported vanadium oxide catalysts with different vanadium loadings (5-10 wt %) supported on γ-Al2O3 is used. The prepared catalysts are characterized using several techniques such as BET surface area, H2-TPR, NH3-TPD, O2 Chemisorption, Laser Raman Spectroscopy, Pyridine FTIR and XRD. Characterization of the catalysts reveals that monomeric VOx species are predominant at low vanadium loadings while polymeric VOx species increase with higher loadings until monolayer surface coverage is reached. Moreover, the catalysts display moderated acidity compared to that of the bare alumina due to the relative increase in the number of Brønsted acid sites. Successive-injections propane ODH experiments in the CREC Riser Simulator over partially reduced catalyst show good propane conversions (12%-15%) and promising propylene selectivity (68-86%) at 475-550 0C. Product selectivities are found to augment with the catalyst’s degree of reduction suggesting that a certain degree of catalyst reduction is required for better propylene selectivity. Compared to average propylene yields of 5% and 15% obtained in FCC and steam cracking technologies, respectively, promising value of 7% was obtained in the present propane ODH study over vanadium oxide catalyst and under oxygen free conditions. Such result would encourage further investigation of propane ODH in the absence of molecular gas oxygen as promising alternative/supplementary technology for the production of propylene. A kinetic model relating reaction rate to the catalyst’s degree of oxidation is proposed. Non- linear regression leads to model parameters with low confidence intervals, suggesting the adequacy of the proposed model in predicting the ODH reaction under the selected reaction conditions

Analysing the impacts of closure of a military base using a dynamic CGE model

Military bases are commonplace in many countries and may have a significant impact in the communities where they are integrated. Impacts of military bases have been analysed through different perspectives. Our aim is to analyse their economic impact. The importance of military bases has become a topic of discussion particularly when base closures or base activity reductions are under consideration. In a previous paper the authors looked at the issue using a static CGE model applied to the analysis of the economic impact of a US base located in the island of Terceira in the Azores. In the current paper a dynamic model is used to study the same issue, using more recent data and disaggregating the impact among different household categories. A base closure scenario is created and the impacts traced through various economic indicators. It is concluded that GDP falls, relative to the base scenario for a number of years recovering after some time, assuming that worsened trade balances are compensated by other transfers. This fall is prompted by a fall in employment, personal income and consumption. The model also predicts that the impact hurts different household income groups with diverse intensity. Lower income households are hurt more in relative terms but generate a smaller absolute impact. With time, the negative impact tapers off for most income groups except for the lowest which keeps on loosing more until the end of the simulation period.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Task-based Instruction and English Speaking Skill of Fluency in Jordanian Context

This study investigates the effect of a Task-Based Instructional (TBI) program on Al al-Bayt University students' English speaking skill of fluency. A sample of  64 students was divided into three groups: a pilot study group, a control group and an experimental group. The experimental group was taught for eight weeks using a suggested TBI speaking program. The control group was taught for eight weeks using the teacher's book. To assess students' speaking skill of fluency, a speaking pre-post test was designed and a scoring scale was adapted. Students' responses were recorded on audio files. They were scored by two different raters and correlation coefficient was calculated. The findings of the study revealed that there were statistically significant differences at (α=0.05) in the mean scores of the fluency post test between the experimental group students and the control group students in favor of the experimental group students due to using the TBI program. Key words: speaking fluency, English speaking skills, task-based instruction, instructional program DOI: 10.7176/JEP/12-9-08 Publication date:March 31st 202

Distribution of BMI, Blood Groups, and Secretory Status Among Iraqi Patients with Beta Thalassemia Major

Background: Beta-thalassemia is an inherited disorder of hemoglobin synthesis characterized by deficient synthesis of the ß-globin chain that causes severe anemia. One of the complication is internal organ damage due to iron over load resulted from long life blood transfusion leading to growth retardation, delay of sexual maturation, and later involvement of the heart, liver, and endocrine system.Aim of study: This study was designed to determine the status of Iraqi TM patients in respect to their body mass index (BMI), blood groups, as well as secretory status in comparison to healthy subjects as control. Methodology: Sixty nine TM patients were recruited from the thalassemia center / Ibn-Albalady hospital/ Baghdad/ Iraq, and twenty normal subjects with matched age and sex. The height and weight of all subjects was measured to determine the BMI categories, blood and saliva samples were obtained to determine blood groups and secretory status respectively.Results: Non-significant difference in the distribution of blood groups was recorded between patients and normal subjects, while frequency of non-secretors was significantly elevated (P= 0.019) from 20% among normal subjects up to 49.3% among TM patients. However, BMI was significantly decreased (P ˂ 0.00001) from (23.2 ± 5.1 kg/m2) with only 5% underweight cases in control group down to (17.9 ± 2.8 kg/m2) with 14.5% underweight cases among TM patients.Conclusion: This study suggested that   status in TM patients may play an important role as risk factor that associated with severity of iron overload complications and need further investigation. Keywords: Beta-thalassemia, Blood groups, Secretory status, Body mass inde

Solvability of Some Types for Multi-fractional Integro-Partial Differential Equation

خلال البحث تم المناقشة وبالتفصيل قابلية الحل لبعض الأنظمة من المعادلات المتعددة التفاضلية التكاملية ذات الرتب الكسرية باستخدام مفهوم مسائل كوشي المختصرة وايضا نظرية شبه زمرة المختارة مع بعض الشروط الضرورية والكافية.In this article, the solvability of some proposal types of the multi-fractional integro-partial differential system has been discussed in details by using the concept of abstract Cauchy problem and certain semigroup operators and some necessary and sufficient conditions.

Study to Analyze Thermal Performance When Building Envelope Specifications Change on Cooling Load

يهدف البحث الى دراسة تأثير تغير التركيب الانشائي لغلاف المباني المشيدة في مدينه بغداد على الاحمال الحرارية المنتقلة. حيث شملت هذه المتغيرات على تغير نوعيه مواد البناء للجدران والسقوف ونوعيه مواد العزل الحراري المضافة نوعيه مواد التغليف الخارجية والداخلية "نوعيه زجاج الوجهات للمباني، تأثير وجود فجوه هوائية بين الجدران، تغير اتجاه المبنى. توصلت الدراسة الى ان افل اتجاه يحقق اقل حمل تبريد هو الاتجاه الشمالي يليه الشمال الشرقي واعلى حمل يحدث في الاتجاه الغربي، كذلك ان مواد البناء الحالية هي اعلى من المواصفات القياسية الحرارية وعليه يجب استخدام نظام العزل الحراري لتقليل حمل تبريد حيث سيتم توفير نسبه تتراوح من %35الى 85 % من حمل التبريد عند عزل الجدران و32%الى 75% عند عزل السقوف. كذلك بينت الدراسة عند استخدام الكوبوند كماده تغليف أفضل من مواد التغليف التقليدية. كذلك ضرورة استخدام الزجاج المظلل او الماص للحرارة بدل الزجاج العادي واستخدام الفجوة الهوائية بين الجدران لتقليل الحرارة المنتقلة.The research aims to study the impact of structural change makeup for the cover of the buildings in the city of Baghdad on the thermal loads .which included these variables to change the quality of construction materials for walls and ceilings and the quality of thermal insulation material added, the quality of packing material external and internal quality of the glass front of the building, the effect of the presence of air gap   between the walls, change the orientation of buildings. The study found that the best direction to achieve lower pregnancy cooling is the direction of the north and the highest heat load occurs in a westerly direction, and the current building materials are higher than the standard thermal and therefore must use a system of thermal insulation to reduce the carrying cooling, which will be available in the range of 35% to85% of the heat load on insulation in walls and 32% to 75% when isolating ceiling