La substitution induced linear temperature dependence of electrical resistivity and Kondo behavior in the alloys, Ce_{2-x}La_{x}CoSi_{3}

The results of electrical resistivity, heat capacity and magnetic susceptibility behavior of new class of alloys, Ce_{2-x}La_{x}CoSi_{3}, are reported. The x= 0.0 alloy is mixed valent and La substitution for Ce (x= 0.25) induces linear temperature dependence of resistivity at low temperatures, an observation of relevance to the topic of non-Fermi liquid behavior. The modifications of Kondo effect for all the alloys are also presented.Comment: Accepted for publication in Solid State Communication

Experimental Studies on Spontaneous Heating Liabilities of Coals Of Central Coalfield Limited (CCL)

Spontaneous heating of coal is a major problem worldwide and has been a great concern due to its potential to destroy precious coal resources and cause fire accidents in coal mines. Majority of fires occurring in different coalfields are started by spontaneous combustion of coal. The auto oxidation of coal gives rise to spontaneous combustion which is the major root cause for the disastrous fire in coal mines. So, extensive research work is being done to characterize the nature and causes of spontaneous heating to prevent its occurrence. Since, coal is a sedimentary rock its properties vary widely from place to place. So, coal samples from individual seams need to be tested discretely to determine liability towards spontaneous heating. In this project, different properties of coal obtained from coal mines under Central Coalfields Limited (CCL) have been evaluated based on: proximate and ultimate analysis, calorific value, FT-IR spectroscopy and DTA. The data obtained was used to compare characteristics of different seams with respect to their tendency towards spontaneous heating susceptibility. From the experimental investigations, it was found that, in general the CCL coals have high ash content, low in moisture ( below 2 %), and have higher calorific value. The CHNS analysis showed that the sulphur content of the coals is less than 1% in all the cases.Among organic compounds alkane was found to be the most abundant functional group. The transition temperature was highest at 213.28 C for seam 2 of Sarubera and was found to be 153.09 C at its lowest value for seam 8 of Pindra open cast. So, seam 2 of Sarubera is least susceptible whereas seam 8 of Pindra open cast mine is most susceptible to spontaneous heating

Can i teach a robot to replicate a line art

Line art is arguably one of the fundamental and versatile modes of expression. We propose a pipeline for a robot to look at a grayscale line art and redraw it. The key novel elements of our pipeline are: a) we propose a novel task of mimicking line drawings, b) to solve the pipeline we modify the Quick-draw dataset to obtain supervised training for converting a line drawing into a series of strokes c) we propose a multi-stage segmentation and graph interpretation pipeline for solving the problem. The resultant method has also been deployed on a CNC plotter as well as a robotic arm. We have trained several variations of the proposed methods and evaluate these on a dataset obtained from Quick-draw. Through the best methods we observe an accuracy of around 98% for this task, which is a significant improvement over the baseline architecture we adapted from. This therefore allows for deployment of the method on robots for replicating line art in a reliable manner. We also show that while the rule-based vectorization methods do suffice for simple drawings, it fails for more complicated sketches, unlike our method which generalizes well to more complicated distributions.Comment: 9 pages, Accepted for the 2020 Winter Conference on Applications of Computer Vision (WACV '20); Supplementary Video: https://youtu.be/nMt5Dw04Xh

A Cosine Similarity Based Centralized Protection Scheme for DC Microgrids

Unlike the phasor measurement based protection in AC systems, the protection of DC systems deals with complex fault transients which mandates the isolation of the faulted segment within few milliseconds as continued fault current leads to overheating issue in power electronic converters. To this end,several works have been suggested based on unit and nonunit protections for DC microgrids. Threshold selection and protection coordination are the challenges associated with nonunit protection. Similarly, communication delay and link failure limit the application of unit protection. To address these issues, this paper presents a robust centralized protection scheme for DC microgrids, which is resilient to communication delay and link failure. It uses current of each line segment to compute the similarity of current change at both ends of the line segment to derive the protection decision. To overcome the communication failure from one end of the line segment or even from multiple segments, the proposed method uses data from adjacent segments to derive the protection decision correctly. Using PSCAD/EMTDC environment, the performance of the proposed method is evaluated for various cases and compared with available techniques. Finally, the accuracy of the protection algorithm is validated under experimental conditions

An Integrated Quantitative Assessment of Urban Water Security of a Megacity in the Global South

Water security, the access to adequate amounts of water of adequate quality, is and will remain a hugely important issue over the next decades as climate change and related hazards, food insecurity, and social instability will exacerbate insecurities. Despite attempts made by researchers and water professionals to study different dimensions of water security in urban areas, there is still an absence of comprehensive water security measurement tools. This study aims to untangle the interrelationship between biophysical and socio-economic dimensions that shape water security in a megacity in the Global South—Kolkata, India. It provides an interdisciplinary understanding of urban water security by extracting and integrating relevant empirical knowledge on urban water issues in the city from physical, environmental, and social sciences approaches. To do so we use intersectional perspectives to analyze urban water security at a micro (respondent) level and associated challenges across and between areas within the city. The study concludes with the recommendation that future studies should make use of comprehensive and inclusive approaches so we can ensure that we leave no one behind

Assessment of Environmental Water Security of an Asian Deltaic Megacity and Its Peri-Urban Wetland Areas

Achieving urban water security requires sustaining the trade-offs between the exploitation of water/environmental resources and ecosystem services. This achievement not only reduces the pollution and contamination in the environment, level of water stress, but also secures good ambient water quality and future for people’s well-being and livelihoods. Changes in land use and land cover and growth of impervious structures can immediately generate severe ecological and social issues and increase the level of natural or manmade risks, affecting the condition of ecosystem services within and in the vicinity of an urban region. As a result of these transformations and further exploitation, due to the growing anthropogenic pressure, surface water and groundwater quality can be deteriorated compared to ambient water quality standards (for both chemical and biological pollutants). Based on land use and land cover (LULC) data retrieved from remote sensing interpretation, we computed the changes of the ecosystem service values (ESV) associated with the LULC dynamics, water quality and, finally, urban water security during the pre- and post-monsoon periods of 2009, 2014 and 2019 in Kolkata, an Asian deltaic megacity, and its peri-urban wetlands named East Kolkata Wetlands (EKW). The area under wetlands reduced comprehensively in 2009–2019 due to the conversion of wetlands into various other classes such as urban settlement, etc. The quality of surface water bodies (such as rivers, lakes, canals and inland wetlands) deteriorated. The groundwater quality is still under control, but the presence of arsenic, manganese and other metals are a clear indication of urban expansion and related activities in the area. As a result, there was a change in the ESV during this timeframe. In the pre-monsoon period, there was an increase in total ESV from US$53.14 million in 2009 to US$53.36 million and US$59.01 million in 2014 and 2019, respectively. In the post-monsoon period, the ESV decreased from US$67.42 million in 2009 to US$64.13 and US$61.89 million in 2014 and 2019, respectively. These changes can be attributed to the peri-urban wetlands and the benefits or services arising out of them that contribute more than 50% of the total ESV. This study found that the area under wetlands has reduced comprehensively in the past 10 years due to the conversion of wetlands for various other uses such as urban expansion of the Kolkata City, but still, this peri-urban wetland supports the urban water security by providing sufficient ecosystem services. In conclusion, the transformation in extent of the water-related ecosystem is a crucial indicator of urban water security, which also measures the quantity of water contained in various water-related ecosystems. Quantitative analysis of the LULC change, hence, is important for studying the corresponding impact on the ecosystem service value (ESV) and water quality that helps in decision-making in securing urban water future and ecosystem conservation

Machine Learning-based Linear regression way to deal with making data science model for checking the sufficiency of night curfew in Maharashtra, India

The birthplace of the novel Covid-19 sickness or COVID-19 began its spread around Wuhan city, China. The spread of this novel infection sickness began toward the start of December 2019. The Covid-19 illness spreads from one individual to another through hacking, sniffling, etc. To stop the spreading of the novel Covid-19 infection the distinctive nation has presented diverse strategies. Some regularly utilized methods are lockdown, night curfew, etc. The fundamental intention of the systems was to stop the social events and leaving homes without serious issues. Utilizing a diverse system Covid-19 first stage can address for saving individuals. Presently the second influx of this novel Covid illness has begun its top from the mid of April-May. The second convergence of this novel Covid disorder flooded all through the world and in India too. To stop the spread of this novel Covid sickness India's richest state Maharashtra government constrained the decision of night curfew. In this paper, we are taking as a relevant examination the night curfew on a schedule of Maharashtra. Here, we study that this system may or may not be able to stop the spread of pandemics. We are using the Machine learning(ML) approach to managing regulate study this case. ML has various systems yet among all of those here we use Linear Regression for the current circumstance. The reproduced insight that readies the plan orchestrated to learn with no other person. Linear Regression is the affirmed strategy for looking over the connection between two sections. Between the two segments, one is astute and another is a seen variable