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According to historical documents, the identity of a nation or ethnic group in each period is determined. Maintain these documents according to their structural nature that was so vulnerable to deterioration of the utmost importance. What factors should be considered Identify damaging agents and attempts to reduce it. Biological degradation is the main cause of damage to paper documents. To solve this problem, various methods were used. The most common method is using chemical antiseptic such as thymol, para chloro benzene dioxide, ethylene oxide etc. But what this study will examine the effects of abuse on the structure of these materials is cellulose paper such as ethylene oxide, indicating improper methods to remove the erosion and provide a convenient method, including freezing in order to reduce these damages. In this paper, 673 paper samples were studied, of the type of documents, which were identified first by the chemical laboratory method and then based on the information obtained from the results of tests with laboratory devices (FTIR, pH-meter). as well as by other methods. Aging, acidity and the effect of disinfectants on the structure of documents and fibers have been analyzed. In this research, which was tested on 673 paper samples, the type of dough was first identified by chemical laboratory method and then with the information obtained from the test results by laboratory devices (pH, FTIR meter) as well as methods. Aging, acidity and the effect of disinfectants on the structure of documents and fibers have been analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Avances en Ciencias e Ingeniería is the property of Avances en Ciencias e Ingenieria and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Food safety and access to systematic approaches for ensuring detection of food hazards is an important issue in most developing countries. With the arrival of paper-based analytical devices (µPADs) as a promising, rapid, easy-to-use, and low-cost analytical tool, we demonstrated a simple microfluidic-based titration study for the analysis of packaged fruit juices. Similar, to the titration experiments using traditional glassware in chemistry laboratories, in this study the titration experiments were developed using paper microfluidics for the analysis of several analytes such as pH, vitamin C, sugars, and preservatives present in the packaged fruit juices. The allergen found commonly in dairy based mixtures and the non-pathogenic biochemical component responsible for food spoilage in cider based fruit juices were also determined. The results obtained using paper microfluidics were compared with those obtained using a conventional spectrophotometric technique. Finally, a paper microfluidics based multiplexed sensor was developed for the analysis of common nutritional ingredients, an allergen, and a non-pathogenic byproduct present in packaged fruit juices on a single platform. Overall, the results presented in this study reveal that the proposed paper microfluidic assisted colorimetric multiplexed sensor offers a quick and reliable tool for on-spot routine analysis for food safety applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transparent objects are encountered frequently in our daily lives, yet recognizing them poses challenges for conventional vision sensors due to their unique material properties, not being well perceived from RGB or depth cameras. Overcoming this limitation, thermal infrared cameras have emerged as a solution, offering improved visibility and shape information for transparent objects. In this paper, we present TRansPose, the first large-scale multispectral dataset that combines stereo RGB-D, thermal infrared (TIR) images, and object poses to promote transparent object research. The dataset includes 99 transparent objects, encompassing 43 household items, 27 recyclable trashes, 29 chemical laboratory equivalents, and 12 non-transparent objects. It comprises a vast collection of 333,819 images and 4,000,056 annotations, providing instance-level segmentation masks, ground-truth poses, and completed depth information. The data was acquired using an FLIR A65 thermal infrared camera, two Intel RealSense L515 RGB-D cameras, and a Franka Emika Panda robot manipulator. Spanning 87 sequences, TRansPose covers various challenging real-life scenarios, including objects filled with water, diverse lighting conditions, heavy clutter, non-transparent or translucent containers, objects in plastic bags, and multi-stacked objects. Supplementary material can be accessed from the following link: https://sites.google.com/view/transpose-dataset. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green Chemistry and Sustainability are the two widely used concepts in the present-day Higher Education Chemistry curriculum. This paper issues a call for action for chemistry instructors to build stronger connections in the chemistry curriculum to sustainability. An acid-base titration is a commonly used experiment in undergraduate laboratories where synthetic indicators are generally used to locate the endpoint by observing the color change. In this paper, the ability of aqueous extracts of Lagerstroemia speciosa (locally known as Azar) as a natural indicator was investigated by using it instead of commonly used synthetic acid-base or neutralization indicators like Phenolphthalein, Methyl Orange, etc. The natural acid-base indicators are non-toxic, easily available, cost-effective, and environmentally benign. This inquiry-based investigation project can raise the standard of chemistry education while preserving local resources that can be used to address today's sustainability challenges. Thus, by considering several interconnected challenges to identify sustainable solutions that can be adopted in both higher secondary school and undergraduate chemistry education, such studies will enrich students' understanding of chemistry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors discuss key areas of quality control (QC) policies which are being considered by laboratories in developing and implementing a laboratory policy. Among the areas discussed include setting of quality standards, selection of quality control materials which will heavily impact the efficacy of the QC process, and setting and re-setting of QC material target using the laboratory analytical team.

Robotic automation is proving itself indispensable in the modern Chemistry laboratory, but adoption is slowed down by the technical challenges of implementing such systems. This paper reports on a novel adaptive gripper mechanism that can easily and reliably grasp cylindrical and prismatic objects of various sizes with limited clearance required. The proposed design exploits the inherent compliance of a cable that is driven to fully envelope the target object. The cable is run through a rigid finger, allowing the loop to be placed around objects with minimal clearance required and to provide support for the object once the grip is complete. Thanks to the compliant nature of the mechanism, the gripper requires minimal control effort to complete a gasping task. A prototype of the gripper has been designed and built for chemistry automation tasks, where it showed very high grasp reliability with ≤ 1 % grasp failures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carbon footprints (CFs) are the measure of extent of green house gases (GHGs) emitted from any organization or activity. Reporting of extent of CFs in terms of CO 2 e from educational campus may be considered as a first step towards sustainable educational practices. The present study employs a bottom up approach where CFs due to consumption of resources from each academic department is evaluated separately and net is obtained by adding contributions from individual departments. This method has the advantage of avoiding the potential overlaps in the calculation. Hence this approach to calculate carbon footprints can lead to their precise CF evaluation. In order to justify above hypothesis, CF evaluation was carried out at Shikshana Prasarak Mandali's Sir Parashurambhau College, Pune for three consecutive years starting from 2015 to 2016. The average carbon footprints over the study period were 3630.57 ± 296.79 tones CO 2 e per year with per capita emission of 0.81 ± 0.06 tones CO 2 e. The emission density determined from the average value was found to be 0.0361 ± 0.0029 tCO 2 e m−2 of the campus. It was observed that emission sources classified as scope-1, scope-2 and scope-3 contribute 28%, 48% and 25% respectively to total emission. Out of all the emission sources identified, apart from human contribution through respiration, electricity (35%), biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste, stationary paper, 7%, use of chemicals in the laboratories (5%), paper for official purpose (12%), LPG (3%) and transport (27%) were main contributors. As this is a multi faculty college, science faculty contributes almost 62%, commerce 9% and arts 11% of the total emission. • Present paper highlights carbon footprints from an Indian HEI using bottom up approach. • A questionnaire based survey was used to arrive at departmental and net footprints. • Carbon footprints of HEI in India are much less as compared to developed countries. • The carbon footprints of Indian HEIs are expected to grow at 5–6%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in environmental matrices is increasingly being studied due to its environmental persistence, global occurrence, bioaccumulation, and associated human health risks. Some indoor environments can significantly impact the health of occupants due to pollutants in indoor air and household dust. To investigate the potential exposure of individuals to PFOA in specific confined environments, this study reports an analytical method and results concerning the determination of PFOA in household dust, used as a passive sampler. To the best of our knowledge, this paper represents one of the first studies concerning PFOA concentrations in indoor dust collected in the south of Italy, within the European region. A total of twenty-three dust samples were collected from two different areas of Sicily (Palermo and Milena), extracted, and analyzed by an UHPLC-QTOF-MS/MS system. Finally, PFOA exposure was estimated using a new index (Indoor PFOA Exposure Index, IPEX) that incorporates the PFOA levels in dust, exposure time, and the correlation between the PFOA in dust and blood. It was then compared across four different exposure groups, revealing that PFOA exposure for people working in chemistry laboratories was evaluated to be ten times higher than the exposure for homemakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual chemistry laboratories (VCLs) are the alternative solutions of the physical laboratories, where students can virtually conduct their experiments with a lower cost, and in an efficient and safer way. Considering the importance of technology-enhanced learning and that of the experimental study, several VCLs have been proposed. However, the existing VCLs are static and only provide the simulation of pre-defined experiments, procedures, or safety procedures and cannot be adapted according to the students' level or new experimental tasks. In this paper, we proposed a dynamic virtual chemistry lab (DVCL) where instructors or experts are allowed to add a new chemical experiment by adding its apparatus, chemicals, glassware, and mechanism or add something new to its properties. We conducted a subjective study with field experts to investigate the effect of proposed DVCL in secondary school chemistry education. During evaluation, twenty-seven field experts were participated and evaluated the proposed DVCL with system usability scale (SUS)-questionnaire and by a simple questionnaire. The results showed that the proposed DVCL is very helpful for students' performance and mental modeling and also for effortlessly uplifting their knowledge for hands-on experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In today's big data context, the composition of virtual networks is becoming increasingly complex, so it is neither easy nor difficult to strengthen the control of network security issues. This paper studies the important content of network big data mining-assisted laboratory management. On the basis of discussing the connotation of laboratory safety, combined with management practice, this paper puts forward some suggestions on laboratory safety management. This paper puts forward some views and thoughts on some problems existing in the management and experimental teaching of chemistry laboratory. By judging the stability of instruments and equipment, we know whether the calibration status of instruments and equipment has changed during this period, so as to ensure the sustainable use of instruments and equipment and the accuracy and traceability of laboratory test results. The use of laboratory management system can greatly improve the utilization rate of laboratory equipment, promote students' autonomous learning, and promote the standardization of laboratory construction. Improve the network monitoring method of big data mining technology and the application mechanism of big data network monitoring, in one type of laboratory. Teachers and students in the laboratory can reasonably arrange their own time according to their own interests to guide and operate experiments. Through continuous operation and practice, students' practical ability and experimental knowledge level should be improved as much as possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a chemical analysis laboratory, sample detection via most analytical devices obtains raw data and processes it to validate data reports, including raw data filtering, editing, effectiveness evaluation, error correction, etc. This process is usually carried out manually by analysts. When the sample detection volume is large, the data processing involved becomes time-consuming and laborious, and manual errors may be introduced. In addition, analytical laboratories typically use a variety of analytical devices with different measurement principles, leading to the use of various heterogeneous control software systems from different vendors with different export data formats. Different formats introduce difficulties to laboratory automation. This paper proposes a modular data evaluation system that uses a global unified management and maintenance mode that can automatically filter data, evaluate quality, generate valid reports, and distribute reports. This modular software design concept allows the proposed system to be applied to different analytical devices; its integration into existing laboratory information management systems (LIMS) could maximise automation and improve the analysis and testing quality and efficiency in a chemical analysis laboratory, while meeting the analysis and testing requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Can plants learn? This question stirs up controversy and speculation in the classroom, as it is currently doing in the scientific community at large. We leverage the controversy to ask students to contribute tu the greater body of knowledge by using scient(fic principles in creative research projects. Ninth-grade honors biology students became familiar with original research and the surrounding controversy, and performed experiments testing two distinct forms Of plant learning in Pisum sativum (pea) and Mimosa pudica (sensitive plant). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses online laboratories as cross reality spaces in education. Cross Reality (also XR) as a term is borrowed from the field of gaming and broadly describes the integration of immersive, augmented, mixed, and virtual reality technology within physical reality. Online laboratories form an ideal example, as different realities (the real hands-on world in real labs, the virtual world in simulated labs or even a mixture of both in context with remote labs) are merged. The connection between different realities in laboratory education and their relation to engineering education contexts are discussed by describing a three-dimensional matrix for categorizing (online) laboratories in teaching and displaying current research results in this area. On basis of this, a scholarly research study is discussed, which is making use of a remote lab in mechanical engineering education for an international student body. In this study, the lab and its application are evaluated from the learner, the system, and the course perspective. These three perspectives offer a holistic view of the lab and the students' learning. The study proofs a positive effect on the students learning experiences. The results also show which current needs and future potentials lie on the intersection of engineering education, internationalization, and digitalization in terms of collaborating and learning in Cross Reality Spaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of carbon capture and storage techniques has become essential to reduce and mitigating CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. CarbFix1 and CarbFix2 projects carried out in Iceland demonstrated that the emissions of waste CO2 gas from geothermal power plants can be captured and mixed with the effluent geofluid and subsequently injected back into the geothermal reservoir. This experience gained in the CarbFix projects expanded into other geothermal fields around Europe, and one of the demonstration sites is the geothermal field in Turkey, Kızıldere. This paper focuses on the results of an updated study on early field evaluations with reactive transport simulations. In the new three-dimensional numerical model, the geological formations and fault zones were updated according to the well-logs data. Based on the tracer tests performed in the field, the anisotropic permeabilities between the wells were evaluated and imposed into the model. Geofluid chemistry, mineral components, and the volume fractions used as input in the simulations are modified depending on the performed laboratory experiments on the metamorphic schists taken from the geothermal site (i.e. X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX), scanning-electron microscope (SEM), and batch reactor tests). Different thermodynamic databases such as Lawrance Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and Thermoddem databases were tested using PHREEQC and TOUGHREACT programs for consistency with experiments. The thermodynamic conditions and the geofluid-rock-CO2 interactions prevent the mineralization of CO2 in the reservoir. This outcome differs from CarbFix projects in terms of the carbonization process, but the CO2 injection is still reliable with solubility-trapping in a geothermal reservoir to partially mitigate the emission. Roughly, 200 kt of CO2 in 10 years can be safely injected into the geothermal reservoir. According to the new analysis, the ratio of magnesium, sodium, and potassium varies in solid solution series of feldspars and clay minerals as albite end-member and montmorillonite/illite end-members, respectively. The evaluations of solid solution reactions are relatively limited in the law of mass action approach used by PHREEQC and TOUGHREACT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of gamified learning interventions is expanding in postsecondary education as a means to improve students' motivation and learning outcomes. Virtual laboratory simulations have been used in science education to supplement students' learning, as well as to increase engagement with course material. Due to COVID‐19, many instructors sought to replace or supplement hands‐on 'wet‐lab' work in an online environment. In this paper, we explored how the use of head‐mounted display technology in two laboratory simulations impacts learner motivation and learning outcomes. We used a mixed‐methods approach to analyze the experience of 39 undergraduate participants, examining test scores pre‐ and postsimulation, qualitative feedback, and quantitative experience ratings. The head‐mounted display technology was described as easy to use, with eye strain identified as a common occurrence. Participants had increased test scores following the laboratory simulations, with no significant difference between simulation groups. Very positive self‐reported measures of motivation and learner engagement were documented. Ninety‐one percent of participants agreed that virtual reality laboratory simulation would be a good supplement to regular teaching modalities. Overall, our results suggest that immersive virtual reality laboratory simulations experienced through head‐mounted display technology can be used to enhance learning outcomes and increase learner motivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Coffee is one of the most consumed beverages in the world. This has two main consequences: a high level of competitiveness among the players operating in the sector and an increasing pressure from the supply chain on the environment. These two aspects have to be supported by scientific research to foster innovation and reduce the negative impact of the coffee market on the environment. In this paper, we describe a mathematical model for espresso coffee extraction that is able to predict the chemical characterisation of the coffee in the cup. Such a model has been tested through a wide campaign of chemical laboratory analyses on espresso coffee samples extracted under different conditions. The results of such laboratory analyses are compared with the simulation results obtained using the aforementioned model. The comparison shows a close agreement between the real and in silico extractions, revealing that the model is a very promising scientific tool to take on the challenges of the coffee market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laboratory practical is an essential component for effective learning of science. To provide laboratory experience can be a challenge to some rural schools with limited laboratory facilities. The situation was exacerbated when schools were close due to the COVID pandemic. This paper reports a laboratory kit designed based on the Standard Curriculum for Secondary Schools in Malaysia (KSSM). The kit was evaluated by students and experienced teachers from town and rural schools. Pre- and post-test was conducted with the students before and after using the kit. A questionnaire was disseminated to appraise the students' perceptions on practical learning. There was a significant improvement (p < 0.05) in the overall score of the post-test comparing to the pre-test. Both rural and town schools demonstrated a marked increase in the overall mean scores in the post-test. There was also improvement in affection for chemistry among students after using the kit. The practical kit can be deployed in schools with laboratory constraints and to be used outside the school settings. It was designed to be affordable, safe and environmental-friendly, providing individualized hands-on exposure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The method of drilling and blasting with explosives is widely used in rock fragmentation applications in the mining industry for mine development and ore production. However, the use of explosives is associated with rigorous safety and environmental constraints as blasting creates toxic fumes, ground vibrations, and dust. This study is focused on the use of Soundless Chemical Demolition Agents (SCDA) as a more environmentally friendly method for rock breakage and a potential replacement of explosives. In this paper, the results of a series of experimental tests are reported to identify the effect of SCDA on hard rock breakage under no load and under uniaxial loading conditions. Stanstead granite prismatic specimens of 152.4 mm (6ʺ) × 152.4–203.2 mm (6–8ʺ) × 406.4 mm (16ʺ) are used to test the influence of borehole size on the time to fracturing with SCDA borehole size of 25.4 mm (1ʺ), 31.75 mm (1.25ʺ) and 38.1 mm (1.5ʺ). It is shown that the fracturing time decreases with increasing borehole size. It is also shown that specimens subjected to uniaxial compression of 5 MPa fracture as early as 7 h after SCDA mixing. A borehole spacing to borehole diameter ratio of 12.8 to 14.6 is suggested for practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Risk management model for unsafe behavior in university laboratories is developed. • Risk factors for unsafe behavior are identified using the adapted HFACS-UL model. • A fuzzy BN model is proposed for the risk assessment of unsafe behavior. • Risk control strategies are presented from key agents' responsibility perspective. • Results from the chemistry laboratories demonstrate the credibility of the model. Introduction: Risk assessment for unsafe behavior is an important task in the management of university laboratories. Yet related research activities are still in the early stages. This paper attempts to deepen the insight and provide a basis for further research. Method: As traditional methods are inadequate in terms of quantitative assessment and uncertainty handling, this paper proposes a method to assess the risk of unsafe behavior in university laboratories using the human factor analysis and classification system for university laboratories (HFACS-UL)-fuzzy Bayesian network (BN) approach. A BN structure was established using the HFACS-UL model for the identification of factors influencing unsafe behavior. Using a fuzzy BN approach, parameters are learned based on prior knowledge and expert experience. The model is then applied for inference analysis to identify the main risk factors. The key agents were also analyzed along with meta-networks to determine further preventive and control measures. Results: Taking chemistry laboratories of a university as an example, the results show that the probability of unacceptable unsafe behavior in chemical laboratories is 86%, indicating that commitment and cooperation from different agents are required. Of the 24 risk factors, poor organizational climate, with a sensitivity value of 24.1%, has the greatest impact on unsafe behavior. The most fundamental factor contributing to the occurrence of unsafe behavior is inadequate legislation, which in turn results in unacceptable external factors and inadequate supervision, thus forming the most likely causal chain. The functional department, lab center director, and secondary faculty leadership team are the most critical agents. Conclusions: Results from the chemistry laboratories demonstrate the credibility of the model. Practical applications: This study may help provide technical support for risk management in university laboratories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent years have seen significantly increased awareness of the need to improve the management of health and safety in academic chemical laboratories and, in particular, to reduce the potential for incidents posing a significant risk of fatality or serious injury. Studies have reported up to 30% of scientists working in academic chemical laboratories as having witnessed an injury at work severe enough to warrant attention from a medical professional. This paper is concerned with approaches to understanding and learning about why the individuals involved in incidents in chemical laboratories may have acted as they did. Drawing on two significant incidents as example and for context, the paper discusses seven themes that are typically of concern to those professionally engaged in the study and investigation of the Human Factors contributions to incidents: the difference between intentional and unintentional human failures; the concept of local rationality; four "hard truths" of human performance; the difference between "work-as-done" and "work-as-imagined"; different forms of complacency; consideration of how people might have benefited by acting the way they did; and the awareness and perception of risk and the difference between direct and indirect risk awareness. The paper includes recommendations for how different stakeholders, including academic institutions investing in new or modified chemical laboratories; administrators; environment, safety, and health (ESH) professionals; manufacturers and suppliers of chemicals and lab equipment; principal investigators; and graduate students could benefit from reflection on the seven themes. The paper includes suggestions for applied research to support long-term improvements in safety in academic chemical laboratories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As part of a wider reform to scaffold quantitative and research skills throughout the biology major, we introduced course-based undergraduate research experiences (CURE) in sections of a large-enrollment introductory biology laboratory course in a mid-level, public, minority-serving institution. This initiative was undertaken as part of the in the National Science Foundation / Council for Undergraduate Research Transformations Project. Student teams performed two or three experiments, depending on semester. They designed, implemented, analyzed, revised and iterated, wrote scientific paper-style reports, and gave oral presentations. We tested the impact of CURE on student proficiency in experimental design and statistical reasoning, and student research confidence and attitudes over two semesters. We found that students in the CURE sections met the reformed learning objectives for experimental design and statistical reasoning. CURE students also showed higher levels of experimental design proficiency, research self-efficacy, and more expert-like scientific mindsets compared to students in a matched cohort with the traditional design. While students in both groups described labs as a positive experience in end-of-semester reflections, the CURE group showed a high level of engagement with the research process. Students in CURE sections identified components of the research process that were difficult, while also reporting enjoying and valuing research. This study demonstrates improved learning, confidence, and attitudes toward research in a challenging CURE laboratory course where students had significant autonomy combined with appropriate support at a diverse public university. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Though the importance of laboratory safety has been recognized for many years, educational institutions have been slower in adopting safety protocols. Chemistry experiments, when performed in a laboratory, are associated with certain potential dangers. Still, with careful planning and safety regulations, most of the hazards can be avoided. Enforcement of safety practices in the laboratory is mandatory for every individual working in the laboratory. Safety and health should be an integral part of the planning, preparation, and implementation of any experiment. In an educational establishment where a student learns and experiences new activities, the chances of incidents, injury, and damage are higher compared to industries. Therefore, the students must be made aware of what can go wrong, how to prevent such accidents from occurring, and how to respond in case of an emergency through first-aid measures. Though many safety guides and protocols exist on paper, case studies are effective ways to get a better understanding of documented facts in real-world situations. These help in active engagement as they serve as strong pieces of evidence for the documented facts. This write-up explains how to deal with some of the common accidents in chemistry laboratories with past cases of laboratory incidents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information literacy is increasingly acknowledged as a contextual and social practice in teaching and research and can be beneficial to further our understanding of laboratory learning. However, there is a need for in-depth insight into the lived information practice in chemistry to develop contextualized information literacy instruction. This work explores the negotiation of information between beginners and experienced members of the chemistry community in a problem-based beginner laboratory. To this end, we conducted a qualitative study following the documentary method by audio-recording the students' first lab session on-site. The reconstruction of the students' information practice shows how beginners learn about group-specific knowledge through participation. The results highlight the importance of corporeal information to give meaning to textual and social information in the chemistry laboratory. Exemplified by the concept of acidification, our findings show how social and textual information alone is insufficient for beginner students' understanding of tacit information. Physical experience and social guidance are necessary to develop shared conceptions between people in the chemistry laboratory practice. Beginner laboratory instruction could benefit from this work's results by teaching beginners about the corporeal, social, and textual information modalities and showing how they connect in practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Featured Application: Virtual chemical laboratory system based on augmented reality. In the natural science curriculum, chemistry is a very important domain. However, when conducting chemistry experiments, safety issues need to be taken seriously, and excessive material waste may be caused during the experiment. Based on the 11-year-old student science curriculum, this paper proposed a virtual chemistry laboratory, which was designed by combining a virtual experiment application with physical teaching materials. The virtual experiment application was a virtual experiment laboratory environment created by using selected experimental equipment cards in combination with augmented reality (AR) technology. The physical teaching materials included all virtual equipment required for experiment units. Each piece of equipment had corresponding cards for learners to choose from and utilize in specific experimental operations. It was hoped that students were able to achieve the desired learning effectiveness of experimental teaching while reducing the waste of experimental materials through the virtual experimental environment. This study employed the quasi-experimental and questionnaire survey methods to evaluate both learning effectiveness and learning motivation. Eighty-one students and eight elementary school teachers were surveyed as research subjects. The experimental results revealed that significant differences in learning effectiveness existed between the experimental group and control group, indicating that the application of AR technology to teaching substantively helped enhance students' learning effectiveness and motivation. In addition, the results of the teacher questionnaire demonstrated that the virtual chemistry laboratory proposed in this study could effectively assist with classroom teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Medical Biochemistry is the property of Society of Medical Biochemists of Serbia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

In the past decade, several subsynchronous control interaction (SSCI) incidents have been reported in various large-scale grid-interfaced doubly-fed induction generator (DFIG) based wind farms. The subsynchronous oscillation caused by the SSCI endangers the safe and reliable operation of wind power systems. The DFIG's converter controls play a crucial role in such interactions; therefore, several SSCI mitigation schemes have been reported, which modify the DFIG's converter controls to stabilize the subsynchronous oscillation caused by the SSCI. However, the effectiveness of such converter control modifications has not been verified through laboratory or field experiments. This paper considers a practical rotor-side subsynchronous damping controller (RSDC) and fills the gap by first validating the RSDC's performance through controller hardware-in-the-loop (CHIL) simulations, and then implementing it in a real-world DFIG connected to a series compensated line. The RSDC fundamentally reshapes the effective impedance of the DFIG to stabilize the subsynchronous oscillation. The CHIL simulations, as well as the field tests, successfully validated the RSDC's ability to suppress the SSCI. The results enhanced the practical confidence of the SSCI mitigation strategy based on RSC's converter control modification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This correlational study investigated the factors affecting cyberloafing behavior in an educational environment, specifically that of a computer laboratory teaching setting. A total of 272 students selected using convenience sampling responded to a questionnaire that collected data about cyberloafing behavior and student demographics, personality type, sense of belonging, motivation, locus of control and teacher evaluation (respect, activities, communication, motivation) as well as computer lab teaching settings and norms. The results indicated that students in computer lab teaching settings cyberloaf mainly for socialization, followed by personal business and news follow-up. Males cyberloaf more frequently than females, especially for personal business and news follow-up. As students' internet skills increase, so does their cyberloafing, particularly for personal business and socialization. A lack of instructor norms in computer lab lectures and student amotivation are also associated with increases in cyberloafing for personal business, whereas instructors' respect for students and negative attitudes towards cyberloafing are associated with decreases in cyberloafing for socialization. This paper discusses the study findings in detail and makes recommendations for additional research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Kemija u Industriji is the property of Croatian Society of Chemical Engineers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Background: Since its detection in December 2019 in the city of Wuhan, China, the COVID-19 pandemic has grappled the world. Laboratories have been central in the diagnosis, prognosis and therapeutic monitoring of COVID-19 patients. With this pandemic spreading, laboratory personnel have become vital in the efforts to halt the advance of the virus. Aims and Objective: In this article, we will address various concerns in all the three phases of testing of the COVID-19 blood and serum samples in a clinical chemistry laboratory and discuss the issues pertaining to a resource-limited setting. Materials and Methods: International, national and regional guidelines on bio-safety and operational management available at the time of preparation of this manuscript were analyzed. Additionally, literature search through PubMed was done on the keywords "biosafety", "pre-analytical", "analytical", "post-analytical" and "COVID-19". Results: The pre-analytical, analytical, post analytical, general management problems we faced in our laboratory and the best practices that we followed to address the same has been included in this paper. Conclusion: Some unprecedented challenges the laboratories have encountered during this outbreak are maintaining the lab safety of highest standards, management of human resource while sustaining the quality of testing. Laboratories will have to constantly innovate in order to meet the demands of this outbreak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Politica y Sociedad is the property of Universidad Complutense de Madrid and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper describes an alternative approach to teaching and learning practices in an undergraduate physics laboratory. The instructor plans and implements the 5E instructional model into the laboratory instruction. The article includes an example of the 5E lesson for the laboratory component of a physics course, which has separate lecture and laboratory sections. Through the use of a learning model, students could make predictions, exchange ideas, collect and analyze data, and construct evidence-based explanations about the ray optics topic. This approach of teaching in a physics laboratory promoted students' engagement in scientific practices and learning of the fundamental concepts. The design of the lesson can be used as a model of a physics laboratory instructor's attempt to put inquiry-based instructional strategies into practice through the 5E cycle. This model can be useful for other instructors who are willing to improve or change their teaching practices and students' learning experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Necatibey Faculty of Education Electronic Journal of Science & Mathematics Education is the property of Balikesir University, Necatibey Faculty of Education and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The ever-growing amount of learning material poses a challenge to both learners and teachers. In order to perform a learning task, students often need to search for additional information. Inquiry might be hampered if they do not know what exactly to search for, especially if they lack prior knowledge in a domain. Furthermore, they might need to recall meta-information, e.g., the implicit links between learning resources or the location of an explanation within a document. In addition, their performance in a learning task might suffer from the constant need for further information. As the authoring of learning material is a time-intensive task, reusability of resources in different contexts should be enabled. In this paper, we present the ALMA-Yactul ecosystem, a holistic approach for student-centered integration of learning material. Based on semantic annotations, learners are provided with scaffolding support for retrieving material related to their current study task. This integration of resources is showcased in a variety of applications and domains, such as a plugin for an IDE or an enhanced sketchnoting app. Moreover, we show how Yactul, a gamified student response platform, can benefit from semantic annotations and integration of learning material. Additionally, teachers are provided with semi-automatic annotation support in the popular Office 365 suite to foster the reusability of their content. Apart from presenting the results of its usage in university classes, we also show how high school students without prior knowledge benefitted from this scaffolding support. A significantly better performance in resolving programming-related tasks could be observed compared to a traditional search process. Finally, the ecosystem is evaluated against a state-of-the-art technology integration model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this section of Resonance, we invite readers to pose questions likely to be raised in a classroom situation. We may suggest strategies for dealing with them, or invite responses, or both. "Classroom" is equally a forum for raising broader issues and sharing personal experiences and viewpoints on matters related to teaching and learning science. Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, we have planned a strategy for our institution which aims towards reuse and reduce principles of Green Chemistry. Organic preparations in the undergraduate curriculum can be utilized for other sister laboratory experiments such as recrystallization, determination of physical constants (m.pt) and detection of extra elements, detection of functional group and in qualitative analysis. The product of preparation can also be subjected to a second synthesis. This approach will reduce the amount of chemicals needed for carrying out experiments other than organic preparations. This paper illustrates a few organic preparations which can be reused for other companion laboratory exercises. This approach may set a model towards sustainability for other undergraduate laboratories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While many sources of contamination in chemical and biological laboratories are well understood and known, some are less so. To quantify the magnitude of the potential contamination of solutions by zinc in common laboratory syringes, a study was conducted on solutions stored in rubber-containing syringes in which the rubber was catalyzed by zinc. This study identified specific factors contributing to contamination from laboratory syringes, including the syringe brand, time, solution type, and pH. Two common syringe brands, Covidien and BD, were tested, and three time durations, 0 days, 1 day, and 14 days, were examined. The solutions tested included sucrose and tartaric acid, representing both covalent and ionic species. Additionally, this study employed a pH range of 2 to 13 to further explore zinc contamination across a wide range of conditions and factors. The zinc concentration from the syringes was measured using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The results, which ranged from less than 20 to over 600 μg L−1, revealed increased zinc concentration at both extreme pH values, while remaining lower but measurable at neutral pH levels. Zinc contamination is important to study because its contamination in laboratory syringes could interfere with the detection of other elements, further skew laboratory data, unexpectedly catalyze reactions, and lead to inconsistencies in experimental conditions. This study further emphasizes the broader significance of understanding pollutants within laboratory settings. The findings highlight the intricate dynamics of zinc contamination, stressing the need for the control of environmental factors and the broad dissemination of lesser-known sources. Recognizing the potential impact of contaminants like zinc is crucial, as it not only influences analytical accuracy, but also mirrors the wider concern of pollutants compromising scientific integrity in diverse experimental conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

DVB-T2 broadcasting with a single frequency network (SFN) allows an efficient management of frequency utilization and extends the coverage area, which will enable more people to view a broadcast. The SFN mode also increases the concentration of the signal in overlap areas. However, some difference of overlap areas in actual use of SFN networks may have some degradation of the received signal due to the effect of the SFN. In this research, we analyze SFN broadcasting in SISO mode. This paper represents the effects of delays on the SFN signal over different delay times within the guard interval (GI) by analyzing the minimum reception threshold. The analysis of received signal power, MER, bBER, LBER, and noise margin are studied using an actual digital television transmitter for the experiment. The results show that the minimum thresholds for a delay time at 0 microseconds will require higher receive signal power than other delay times within the GI. The results of this experiment are useful in designing the SFN network and make it possible to determine the appropriate C/N threshold for the design of the digital terrestrial television network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The knowledge of Biot's effective stress coefficient is of particular importance to simulate the effects of pore pressure variations during reservoir depletion and injection operations. Direct experimental evaluation of this parameter can be limited by the availability of good quality cores. The experiments can also be expensive and time-consuming particularly in low-permeability formations. This paper presents a method to evaluate a 3D spatial model of Biot's effective stress coefficient based on well logs and the empirical correlation between dynamic and static Young's modulus in the wells. To estimate static Young's modulus, uniaxial compression tests are performed on the cores obtained from Asmari reservoir in the Gachsaran oil field and the correlation between static and dynamic Young's moduli is established. The mineral volume fraction in the wells is obtained from mineralogy log and validated using thin-sections, XRD, XRF, and SEM studies. Bulk and solid bulk modulus are estimated and a 1D model was built for 47 wells in the field, which is validated using two samples in one of the wells. An empirical relation has been obtained to estimate Biot's effective stress from total porosity log. Then, a 3D spatial model of Biot's effective stress coefficient has been presented by Sequential Gaussian Simulation (SGS) in the Gachsaran oil field, southwest of Iran. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Educational games are widely used in business classes in general, and supply chain management (SCM) classes in particular. These games are designed to familiarize students with the real business world. Most SCM games are ready-made, with pre-set learning objectives focusing on a certain module in a supply chain. Intervention. This article presents the new spreadsheet-based Flexible Supply Chain Management Game (FSCMG) and the findings of its pilot study. FSCMG's features are transparent to instructors and students alike. It is easily modifiable to suit an instructor's learning objectives. Method. Six groups of undergraduate students took turns playing three modules, namely a wholesaler, manufacturer, and supplier. There were two groups per module to represent two supply chains. The students' spreadsheets are analyzed and presented. Results. Students' spreadsheets revealed that they were able to employ SCM conceptual understanding in FSCMG, particularly pricing strategy, inventory management, forecasting, and the relationships within a supply chain. Conclusion. FSCGM helped the students apply their in-class knowledge in a real-world situation and be well prepared for their future careers where an extensive understanding is required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the design and implementation of a minimally hazardous, environmentally friendly, and energy efficient sequential reaction sequence within a sophomore level Organic Chemistry lab course to efficiently synthesize N-phenylmaleimide precursors for a Diels–Alder reaction. Substituted N-phenylmaleimides are a class of very expensive precursors of considerable interest due to their biological properties and use as intermediates in synthesis. The synthesis described herein produces a substituted N-phenylmaleimide in two steps from maleic anhydride and a substituted aniline followed by its Diels–Alder reaction with 2,5-dimethylfuran. The experiment exposes students to the green chemistry principles of atom economy, use of safer chemicals, design for energy efficiency, waste reduction, and inherently safer chemistry for accident prevention and enables students to use 1H NMR spectroscopy to characterize the products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of green chemistry is widely recognized in chemical laboratories. To properly measure an environmental impact of chemical processes, dedicated assessment tools are required. This paper summarizes the current state of knowledge in the field of development of green chemistry and green analytical chemistry metrics. The diverse methods used for evaluation of the greenness of organic synthesis, such as eco-footprint, E-Factor, EATOS, and Eco-Scale are described. Both the well-established and recently developed green analytical chemistry metrics, including NEMI labeling and analytical Eco-scale, are presented. Additionally, this paper focuses on the possibility of the use of multivariate statistics in evaluation of environmental impact of analytical procedures. All the above metrics are compared and discussed in terms of their advantages and disadvantages. The current needs and future perspectives in green chemistry metrics are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Ochrona Srodowiska i Zasobów Naturalnych is the property of Sciendo and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The present paper offers a competency-based approach to evaluate high school laboratory skills during a chemistry course. The Secretaría de Educación Pública (Mexico's Ministry of Education) has identified experimental sciences specific competencies that are to be established in high school. This study investigated the following competencies: Formulating scientific questions, posing hypothesis, obtaining and registering information, applying safety norms in handling substances, materials and equipment, conducting practical activities appropriately in the laboratory, handling residues, collecting qualitative and quantitative data, contrasting results, communicating conclusions, and documenting information sources. An assessment tool where the students' level of achievements was created. This assessment tool evaluated these competencies by considering the curriculum and the students' graduate profile. Results indicated that by having a consistent evaluation plan and providing students with effective feedback, the students competency levels addressed in laboratory practical's can be improved significantly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The NOAA Chemical Sciences Laboratory (CSL) conducted the Southwest Urban NO x and VOCs Experiment (SUNVEx) to study emissions and the role of boundary layer (BL) dynamics and sea-breeze (SB) transitions in the evolution of coastal air quality. The study presented utilizes remote sensing and in situ observations in Pasadena, California. Separate analyses are conducted on the synoptic conditions during ozone (O 3) exceedance (>70 ppb) and non-exceedance (<70 ppb) days, as well as the fine-structure variability of in situ chemistry measurements during BL growth and SB transitions. Diurnal analyses spanning August 2021 revealed a markedly different wind direction during evenings preceding O 3 exceedance (northerly) versus non-exceedance (easterly) days. Increased O 3 occurred simultaneously with warmer and drier conditions, a reduction in winds, and an increase in volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and fine particulate matter (PM 2.5). While the average BL height was lower and surface pressure was higher, the day-to-day variability of these quantities led to an overall weak statistical relationship. Investigations focused on the fine-structure variability of in situ chemistry measurements superimposed on background trends were conducted using a novel multivariate spectral coherence mapping (MSCM) technique that combined the spectral structure of two or more independent measurements through a wavelet analysis as reported by maximum-normalized scaleograms. A case study was chosen to illustrate the MSCM technique, where the dominant peaks in scaleograms were identified and compared to BL height during the growth phase. The temporal widths of peaks (τmax) derived from VOC and nitrogen oxide (NO x) scaleograms, as well as scaleograms combining VOCs, NO x , and variations in BL height, indicated a broadening with respect to time as the BL increased in depth. A separate section focused on comparisons between τmax and BL height during August 2021 revealed uncorrelated or weakly correlated scatter, except in the case of VOCs when really large τmax and relatively deep BL heights were ignored. Instances of large τmax and relatively deep BL heights occurred near sunrise and as onshore flow entered Pasadena, respectively. Wind transitions likely influenced both the dynamical evolution of the BL and tracer advection and thus offer additional challenges when separating factors contributing to the fine structure. Other insights gained from this work include observations of descending wind jets from the San Gabriel Mountains that were not resolved by the High-Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) model and the derivation of intrinsic properties of oscillations observed in NO x and O 3 during the interaction between an SB and enhanced winds above the BL that flowed in opposition to the SB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The laboratory is a high-risk place for scientific research and learning, and there are many risk factors and great potential for harm. Hazardous chemicals are important to consider and are the key objects to monitor in a laboratory. In recent years, hazardous chemical fire accidents have occurred in laboratories in various industries, bringing painful lessons and making it urgent to strengthen the safety management of hazardous laboratory chemicals. In this study, a semi-quantitative comprehensive risk assessment model for hazardous chemical laboratory fires was constructed by combining the bowtie model, three-dimensional risk matrix, and analytic network process (ANP). This study applied this method to the management of hazardous chemicals at the TRT Research Institute; evaluated the probability, severity, and preventive components of the corresponding indicators by constructing different index systems; and calculated the evaluation results using the weight of each index. The evaluation results show that the comprehensive likelihood level is 2, the comprehensive severity level is 3, the comprehensive preventive level is 3, and the final calculated comprehensive risk level is tolerable (II). Based on the results of the risk assessment, the corresponding control measures that can reduce the fire risk of hazardous chemicals in the laboratory are proposed according to the actual situation at the TRT Research Institute. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Medical Biochemistry is the property of Society of Medical Biochemists of Serbia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The leakage of hazardous gases and chemical vapors is considered one of the dangerous accidents that can occur in laboratories, workshops, warehouses, and industrial sites that use or store these substances. The early detection and alarming of hazardous gases and volatile chemicals are significant to keep the safety conditions for the people and life forms who are work in and live around these places. In this paper, we investigate the available mobile detection and alarming systems for toxic, hazardous gases and volatile chemicals, especially in the laboratory environment. We included papers from January 2010 to August 2021 which may have the newest used sensors technologies and system components. We identified (236) papers from Clarivate Web of Science (WoS), IEEE, ACM Library, Scopus, and PubMed. Paper selection has been done based on a fast screening of the title and abstract, then a full-text reading was applied to filter the selected papers that resulted in (42) eligible papers. The main goal of this work is to discuss the available mobile hazardous gas detection and alarming systems based on several technical details such as the used gas detection technology (simple element, integrated, smart, etc.), sensor manufacturing technology (catalytic bead, MEMS, MOX, etc.) the sensor specifications (warm-up time, lifetime, response time, precision, etc.), processor type (microprocessor, microcontroller, PLC, etc.), and type of the used communication technology (Bluetooth/BLE, Wi-Fi/RF, ZigBee/XBee, LoRa, etc.). In this review, attention will be focused on the improvement of the detection and alarming system of hazardous gases with the latest invention in sensors, processors, communication, and battery technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to investigate the relationship between a wide range of hyperspectral chlorophyll indices and wheat crop chlorophyll content using laboratory measurements. These measurements included the GER-3700 spectroradio-metric data, leaf chlorophyll content using the Soil-Plant Analyses Development (SPAD)-502 meter and leaf chlorophyll content estimated from chemical laboratory analysis. The SPAD-502 readings were correlated with leaf chlorophyll content extracted in the laboratory to establish calibration equations for the computation of chlorophyll-ab (Chl-ab) and chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) content. This resulted in a coefficient of determination (R²) of 0.72 for the Chl-ab content and 0.69 for the Chl-a content and a root mean square error (RMSE) of 3.53 and 1.94 μg/cm², respectively. These estimates were used to establish relationships against hyper- spectral chlorophyll indices calculated from the GER-3700 data. From the investigated indices, the NPCI showed the best results with R² of 0.84 and RMSE of 11.0. The other indices, such as GNDVI, OSAVI, PSSRa, PSNDa, CAl, HNDVI, and MTCI did not perform satisfactorily. The better ones, but still showing a relatively week relationship with leaf chlorophyll content, are the indices NDPI, SIPI, PRI and SRPI with R2's of 0.56, 0.62, 0.54, and 0.57, respectively and RMSEs of 11.06, 10.27, 11.32, and 10.96 μg/cm², respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous materials and products used on university campuses, especially in chemistry schools, have the latent possibility to become hazardous waste. As described in this work, the Facultad de Ciencias Quimicas of the Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon initiated a hazardous waste classification program in 1994. Later, in 2003, a new comprehensive program for hazardous waste management emerged to provide a systematic program of collection and classification of hazardous waste generated in laboratories, for the purpose of confining and reducing the amount of hazardous waste produced by the Facultad de Ciencias Quimicas. This paper presents the scope of this program and describes how the comprehensive program for hazardous waste has impacted the Chemistry School and the Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo Leon community in the period from 2009 to 2013. The classification of hazardous waste by type has been useful and was quickly adopted by the student community as well as academic and non-academic staff. The largest quantities of generated hazardous waste consisted of liquid acid waste and toxic inorganic materials with corrosive characteristics. The largest quantities of generated solid hazardous waste were pieces of glass impregnated with toxic hazardous substances. Additionally, the comprehensive program for hazardous waste contributed to the acknowledgement of the Facultad de Ciencias Quimicas by the Mexican Government with a Certificate of Environmental Quality, making it the first educational organization in Mexico to be given this distinction. However, the most important result of the comprehensive program for hazardous waste management is the legacy of environmental care imparted to the student community. The scientific value added in this paper is the development of a new classification of hazardous waste, which can be useful in chemistry schools in any university. Finally, this work acknowledges the challenge for universities and organizations to act, develop sustainability, and change the paradigms and assumptions on which these organizations are currently based. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]