Earticle

The purpose of this paper is to reveal two problems in the existing inventory systems in retail market, and to suggest a Two-Bin System under Automatic Ordering System considering only base-stock. Large retailers already have a sophisticated inventory system based on an automatic ordering principle. However, why does the out-of-stock (OOS) happen in large discount stores in spite of having a good inventory system? This paper suggests two systems after finding the root causes concerning the previous question. For evaluating the performance of each system, the random 200 data set in each sample group was generated from MINITAB 16 and obeyed the Poisson distribution. The existing inventory system in retail market cannot help generating OOS due to indwelling contradiction in itself. The reasons are the ordering deadline and the relationship between ordering quantity and base stock. This paper also demonstrates that these previous studies on inventory fall into the closed loop. Also the paper shows that the performance of the replenishment policy was better than traditional methods dealing with ordering quantity and base stock.

Currently, abundant wastes from the palm oil refining process have been generated which are hard to handle. Spent Bleaching Earth (SBE) is the solid waste from this process and leads the cost of elimination to the company. This study aims to utilize the SBE as the alternative material in the non-fired wall tiles. The main raw materials used in non-fired wall tiles consist of laterite soil, fluvial sand, and Portland cement. The experimental formulas have been conducted and divided into 3 groups by varying the percentage of the SBE in main raw materials. The specimens of material mixture have been produced by uniaxial pressing at 100 bars, dimensions in 50x100x8 mm. These specimens are sprayed with water and cured in the air for 7 days. After that, bending strength and water absorption test of these specimens has been performed. It can be concluded that the best formula with the percentage of laterite soil, fluvial sand, Portland cement, and SBE are 60.94%, 13.125%, 22.5%, and 3.435%, respectively. Its bending strength and %water absorption are 0.68 MPa and 5.64%. Material costs of specimen are approximately $0.00276 USD /100g. Furthermore, the comparison of curing period between 7 days and 30 days has been performed. The 30 days of curing period can improve the bending strength of the specimen, but there is no effect on water absorption.

This study aims to synthesis the self-cleaning fibers. The nano-titanium dioxide (TiO2) were blend with the polypropylene (grade 561R) at 1wt%, 3wt%, 5wt%, 10wt%, 15wt% and 20wt%. The TiO2-fibers were obtained from single screw extruder. The mechanical, thermal, rheology and self-cleaning properties were also investigated. The results showed that the tensile strength of the nTiO2-PP fibers decreased with increasing of the amount of TiO2. The presents of the TiO2 in the PP fibers significantly showed the improving of the self-cleaning properties under sunlight and 20 watt of UV radiation. The TiO2-PP fibers in presents of TiO2 20wt% showed the best results of self-cleaning under 5 hours of the sunlight which the similar results were found under 5 hours of 20 watts of UV radiation.

Bonding strength of a thermal sprayed coating is difficult to measure using a conventional pull-off test method. Scratch test is a potential alternative testing method. An adhesive and a cohesive bond strength of the coating can be measured by the pull-off test while the scratch test performed on the cross- section of the thermal sprayed coating can only demonstrate the cohesive bond strength of the coating. Nevertheless, it is still beneficial to perform the scratch testing on the cross-section of the coating for the sake of comparison thus providing an alternative to the pull-off test. The scratch test method can reduce testing time and cost in the long run due to a significant cost reduction in consumables and energy and time saving from the curing step of the glue used in the pull-off test. This research investigates the possibility of using the scratch test to measure the cohesive bond strength of Mo/NiCrBSi composite coating. The results from the pull-off test and the scratch test indicate that the cohesive bond strengths of the Mo composite coating show similar trend and that the cohesive bond strength are increased when increasing NiCrBSi content.

The design and construction of nitrogen liquefier begins with the process design of the cycle. The simulation of the cycles has been done using the software Aspen HYSYS. The compressor unit is available in the laboratory. Two number of high effectiveness, vacuum brazed aluminum plate fin heat exchangers are designed and fabricated. Turboexpander is designed and all of its components are fabricated. A suitable modification has been done with a precession needle valve to operate as a long stem JT valve. For separating the liquid, a phase separator is designed and fabricated. All the components are assembled inside a double walled cold box with pipes as per the process need. The necessary pressure, temperatureand other measuring instruments, valves and safety devices are mounted on the liquefier. After successful running of the liquefier, for the mass flow rate of 296 kg/hr for gaseous nitrogen, it is expected to deliver 17.44 lit/hr of liquid nitrogen.

An online survey was conducted to assess motivations for using, reliance on, and perceived credibility of political blogs and microblogs during both the Taiwanese general election of 2009 (the blog epoch) and the presidential elections of 2012 (the microblog epoch). Results indicated higher reliance on and motivation for using political blogs than microblogs. Blogs were also perceived to be more credible than microblogs. Respondents who primarily engaged in blogging for information purposes were more likely to judge candidate blogs as highly credible, whereas interest in entertainment emerged as the strongest predictor of the perceived credibility of microblogs. This research also provided quantitative evidence showing how users viewed blogs and microblogs differently in the context of political campaigns. The aim is to explore the pros and cons of blogging and microblogging as a tool for political communication.

This paper aims to compare the use of Centrifugal Turbine and Tesla Turbine in an application of Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) Machine using Isopentane as working fluid expanding. The working fluid has boiling point below boiling water and works in low-temperature sources between 80-120 C which can be produced from waste heat, solar-thermal energy and geothermal energy etc. The experiment on ORC machine reveals that the suitability of high pressure pump for working fluid has result on the efficiency of work. In addition, Thermodynamics theory on P-h diagram also presented the effect of heat sources’ temperature and flow rate on any work. Thus, the study and design on ORC machine has to concern mainly on pressure pump, flow rate and optimized temperature. Result experiment and calculate ORC Machine using centrifugal Turbine efficiency better than Tesla turbine 30% but Tesla Turbine is cheaper and easily structure. Further study on the machine can be developed throughout the county due to its low cost and efficiency

This paper aims to study and design of Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) Machine using Isopentane as working fluid expanding through Tesla turbine. The study on ORC machine expanding through Tesla turbine has result on the efficiency of Tesla turbine. In addition, Thermodynamics theory on isentropic efficiency proved to be a successful method for overcoming the difficulties associated with the determination of very low torque at very high angular speed. By using an inexpensive experiment device and a simple method, the angular acceleration method, for measuring output torque and power in a Tesla turbine is able to predict a tendency of output work. The experiments using two Tesla turbine sizes, the first size is 1.6 bigger than the second one. In comparison with the first size, the tesla turbine can produce power output more than 62% of the second size. Further study on the machine can be developed throughout the county due to its low cost and efficiency.

In this paper there is an overview of some standards and security models which are implemented in such an IP-based and heterogeneous networks and we also present some security models in an open environment and finally we obtain that as a result of the nature of 4G networks there are still more security holes and open issues for expert to notice. Our survey shows that a number of new security threats to cause unexpected service interruption and disclosure of information will be possible in 4G due mainly to the fact that 4G is an IP-based, heterogeneous network. Other than that, it tells about the security issues and vulnerabilities present in the above 4G standards are discussed. Finally, we point to potential areas for future vulnerabilities and evaluate areas in 4G security which warrant attention and future work by the research and advanced technology industry.

Fast depletion of fossil fuels is urgently demanding a carry out work for research to find out the viable alternative fuels for meeting sustainable energy demand with minimum environmental impact. In the future, our energy systems will need to be renewable and sustainable, efficient and cost-effective, convenient and safe. Hydrogen is expected to be one of the most important fuels in the near future to meet the stringent emission norms. The use of the hydrogen as fuel in the internal combustion engine represents an alternative use to replace the hydrocarbons fuels, which produce polluting gases such as carbon monoxide (CO), hydro carbon (HC) during combustion. In this paper contemporary research on the hydrogen-fuelled internal combustion engine can be given. First hydrogen-engine fundamentals were described by examining the engine-specific properties of hydrogen and then existing literature were surveyed.

Environmental problems from petroleum-based plastic wastes have been rapidly increasing in recent years. The alternative solution is focus on the development of environmental friendly plastic derived from renewable resource. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is a biodegradable polymer synthesized from biomass having potential to replace the petroleum-based non-degradable polymers utilizations. PLA can be synthesized by two methods: (1) ring-opening of lactide intermediate and (2) direct polycondensation of lactic acid processes. The latter process has advantages on high yields and high purity of polymer products, materials handling and ease of process treatments. The polymerization process of PLA synthesis has been widely studied in a laboratory scale. However, the mass scale production using direct polycondensation of lactic acid has not been reported. We have investigated the kinetics and scale-up process of direct polycondensation method to produce PLA in a pilot scale. The order of reaction is 2 and activation energy of lactic acid to lactic acid oligomers is 61.58 kJ/mol. The pre-polymer was further polymerized in a solid state polymerization (SSP) process. The synthesized PLA from both the laboratory and pilot scales show the comparable properties such as melting temperature and molecular weight. The appearance of synthesized PLA is yellow-white solid powder.

10 wt% (Ni-Co) catalysts with different Ni and Co content : 10%Ni, 9%Ni1%Co, 7%Ni3%Co, 5%Ni5%Co, 3%Ni7%Co, and 10%Co; were prepared using sol-gel method followed by incipient wetness impregnation method. To investigate the catalytic activity including the stability, dry methane reforming were demonstrated over the pelletized catalysts at 620˚C under atmospheric pressure in a CH4:CO2:N2 feedstock for 360 min. The results showed that bimetallic catalysts with the Co content equal to or greater than 3% were more stable than monometallic catalysts (10%Ni and 10%Co). The temperature programmed hydrogenation interpreted that the additional of Co into Ni catalyst improved the carbon resistance from methane cracking. Promoted this type of bimetallic catalyst using 1wt% K (trimetallic catalyst) prevented the carbon formation on the catalyst. The temperature programmed desorption of CO2 indicated that this trimetallic catalyst has a greater number of strong basic sites. Moreover, the appearance of K lowered the number of weak basic sites and decreased the conversion of methane by 12 %.

IT environment gets more complicated in terms of open platform, network standards, device design and hardware, etc. Smart network and application are in the fields of corporate as well as national competition for future fusion technology. In development environment focused on computers, the ideas of authoring tool have been presented in terms of improved software productivity. In smart environment where subdividing works are consecutively done, current authoring tool should be effectively updated for effective development of programs and easier access to business works. The basic concept of a new conceptual App development tool, Smart App Authoring Tool, which has been designed in this study and enables to apply on-site requirements to smart phones, is to develop Apps on the level using easy-to-learn Word or Excel in a computer. Therefore, this study is intended to design a conceptual Smart App Authoring Tool to optimize the cost and time for developing and maintaining new application services under various smart phone platform environments. Based on the performance of smart app authoring tool herein, every people can develop a smart app program at moderate level. So this paper have designed a conceptual smart app authoring tool. This study presented educational efficiency of the authoring tool by developing business Apps under various business environments and applying them under university and high school environments.

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has been employed for the Heat exchanger efficiency of a counter flow heat exchanger. The Heat exchanger efficiency has been assessed by considering the computed Nusselt number and flow friction characteristics in the double pipes heat exchanger equipped with two types twistedtapes: (1) single clockwise direction and (2) alternate clockwise and counterclockwise direction. Cold and hot water are used as working fluids in shell and tube side, respectively. Hot and cold water inlet mass flow rates ranging are between 0.04 and 0.25 kg/s, and 0.166 kg/s, respectively. The inlet hot and cold water temperatures are 54 and 30 C, respectively. The results obtained from the tube with twisted-tapes insert are compared with plain tube. Nusselt number and friction factor obtained by CFD simulations were compared with correlations available in the literature. The numerical results were found in good agreement with the results reported in literature.

The purpose of this paper was to investigate the effects of solution treatment time and Sr- modification on the microstructure and property of the Al-Si piston alloy. It was found that as-cast microstructures of unmodified and Sr-modified Al-Si alloys consisted of a coarse acicular plate of eutectic Si, Cu3NiAl6 and Mg2Si phases in the -Al matrix but different in size and morphology. Both size and inter-particle spacing of Si particles were significantly changed by increasing of the solution treatment time. After a short solution treatment, the coarse acicular plate of the eutectic Si appears to be fragmented. Fully modified microstructure of Sr-modified alloy can reduce the solution treatment time to shorter compared to unmodified alloy. The maximum of a peak hardness value is found in the very short solution treatment of both Al-Si piston alloys. Compared to 10 h solution treatment, the solution treatment of 2-4 h is sufficient to achieve appropriate microstructures and hardness. The short solution treatment is very useful to increase the productivity and to reduce the manufacturing cost of the Al-Si piston alloys.

This paper was aimed to study the drying kinetics of coffee and to investigate the thin-layer drying kinetics of coffee by using a convective air dryer. The coffee was dried for the temperatures of 40, 50 and 60 ℃ with relative humidity in the range of 14-25% the airflow rate fixed at 1 m/s. According to the experiment result, the drying rate curve showed that drying process took place only in the falling rate period. Seven thin layer drying models (Newton, Page, Henderson and Pabis, Logarithmic, Wang and Singh, Two terms, Modified Henderson and Pabis) were fitted to the experimental moisture content data. The Two-trem model was found to be a better model for describing the characteristics of coffee for the temperatures of 40, 50 and 60 ℃. The effective moisture diffusivity of coffee increased when the drying temperature increased. The value was in the range of 4.5028 x 10-11 to 6.4803 x 10-11 m2/s.

The paper presents the estimation of power losses in distribution transformer of Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) distribution system at Muang district of Suphanburi province in Thailand. Data of 416 power distribution transformers composed of transformer (kVA), load current, no load loss and full load loss which were used for calculating energy losses. It was found that the total energy loss of all transformers is approximately 1,756,380 kWh/year.

Mean separated histogram equalization in order to preserve the original mean brightness has been proposed. To provide the minimum mean brightness error after the histogram modification, the input image’s histogram is successively divided by the factor of 2 until the mean brightness error is satisfied the defined threshold. Then each divided group or sub-histogram will be independently equalized based on the proportional input mean. To provide the overall minimum mean brightness error, each group will be controlled by adding some certain pixels from the adjacent grey level of the next group for giving its mean near by the corresponding the divided mean. However, it still exists some little error which will be put into the next adjacent group. By successive dividing the original histogram, we found that the absolute mean brightness error is gradually decreased when the number of group is increased. Therefore, the error threshold is assigned in order to automatically dividing the original histogram for obtaining the desired absolute mean brightness error (AMBE). This process will be applied to the color image by treating each color independently.

In this work, mixing processes of hot and cold fluids of three different jet types are predicted by large-eddy simulation (LES) on FLUENT platform. Temperature at different positions of internal wall and mixing conditions of T-junctions at different times are obtained, then the simulated normalized mean and root-mean square (RMS) temperature, temperature contour and velocity vector of every case are compared. The results indicate that, the mixing regions in the tee junction is related to the jet type, and temperature fluctuations on the pipe wall in the type of the deflecting jet is the least.