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The results of recent laboratory-scale studies regarding the joint effects of wet strengthening agent polyamide-amine-epichlorohydrin (PAE) and internal alkylketene dimer (AKD) sizing on Nordic bleached softwood pulp (NBSK) handsheets indicate that AKD internal sizing increases the wet strength of PAE wet strengthened handsheets. The boosting effect of the internal AKD sizing was long-lasting. At the molecular level the actual mechanism behind the effect is unclear. The present study examines if the enhanced effect of internal AKD sizing, which is potentially exploitable in practice, also occurs in paper made by VTT’s Suora pilot paper machine. The trials were done using a similar type of NBSK pulp and the same chemicals as in the laboratory-scale studies. The paper was formed at 400 m/min using a hybrid dewatering mode (Fourdrinier + gap). Just as in the laboratory-scale studies, the internal AKD sizing of PAE wet-strengthened NBSK paper resulted in a long-lasting increase of the paper wet strength. In accordance with the laboratory trials, internal AKD sizing had no noticeable effect on the dry tensile strength of the pilot-made paper. The only apparent difference to the earlier observations was an increase of dry tensile strength of the paper treated solely with PAE.

Contemporary Hong Kong is riven by serious political and social polarization. Hong Kong's problem does not lie in ideological differences among citizens; rather, the major issue is that people of different political stripes view each other as enemies. In this study, we conducted two experiments to compare the impacts of deliberation and discussion on political depolarization. In study 1, we invited participants of opposing views toward the Article 23 legislation and conducted a 90-min discussion session. The participants were divided into two groups: deliberation and causal discussion. The deliberation group received an information booklet on the issue and had to strictly follow rules of deliberation whereas the causal discussion group had no such stimuli. In study 2, we used video recordings from study 1 and presented the videos to two groups of participants. One group of participants watched the deliberation video and the other group watched the causal discussion video. The main finding of the study is both deliberation and causal discussion had mixed effects on reducing political polarization. After discussion, issue attitude and issue polarization remained largely the same, but people's attitude toward others with opposing views became more favorable and affective polarization was reduced. No systematic differences were found between deliberation and discussion. And watching discussion and deliberation will deliver similar effects but to a lesser extent.

Lines and angles are essential for students because of geometry and its many applications in daily life. However, there are still many students who have difficulty grasping the material. Therefore, it is necessary to design learning using the right approach, context, and media. This study aims to produce a learning trajectory that can assist students in understanding the concept of lines and angles, maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of learning, create meaningful learning, and motivate student learning. This study used the Joglo Traditional House context as a starting point and the design research method developed by Gravemeijer and Cobb with three main steps: preparing for the experiment, designing the experiment (pilot experiment and teaching experiment), and retrospective analysis. However, in design experiment step is limited to the pilot experiment. In this study, all activities were designed based on Indonesian Realistic Mathematics Education. It involves six 7th-grade students from one of the junior high schools at Juwana Resident with three different abilities, namely two students for each level with high, moderate, and low ability. The learning trajectory generated in this study consists of a series of learning processes in four activities that can be used to develop local instructional theories and develop designs for further activities. Those are observing Joglo traditional house video for understanding lines and angles concepts, deducing line positions, discovering the angles' properties on parallel lines intersected by other lines, and solving lines and angles problems.

The low oil productivity of tight oil reservoirs is mainly caused by poor reservoir physical properties such as low porosity and permeability, a small pore and throat ratio, and bad well connectivity, which lead to bad water injection capability and rapid pressure decline for the reservoir. In this paper, an enhanced oil recovery technique for tight oil reservoirs is proposed by combination of horizontal well volume fracturing and CO2 huff-n-puff to improve the reservoir physical properties and increase the flow capability of crude oil. In the initial reservoir development stage, the precise horizontal well trajectory and reservoir volume fracturing scale are designed by analyzing the distribution of sand body thickness and the oily sedimentary facies. The micro-seismic tracking technique is also used to monitor the fracture elongation. When the reservoir energy cannot satisfy the economic limit of oil productivity, the CO2 huff-n-puff technique is applied to increase the reservoir energy quickly. After the precise fracturing technique is used in tight oil Block X, the average oil production rate of six fractured horizontal wells increases by 5 ton (1 ton = 7.33 bbl) at the initial production stage, and the effective oil production increase life lasts for 32 months. When the reservoir energy is supplemented using the CO2 huff-n-puff technique, the oil production rate of pilot experiment well SP-1 increases from 1.9 to 12.8 ton with a cumulative oil increase of 1333.8 ton.

PurposeThe anticipated benefits of connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) include safety and mobility enhancement. Small headways between successive vehicles, on one hand, can cause increased capacity and throughput and thereby improve overall mobility. On the other hand, small headways can cause vehicle occupant discomfort and unsafety. Therefore, in a CAV environment, it is important to determine appropriate headways that offer a good balance between mobility and user safety/comfort.Design/methodology/approachIn addressing this research question, this study carried out a pilot experiment using a driving simulator equipped with a Level-3 automated driving system, to measure the threshold headways. The Method of Constant Stimuli (MCS) procedure was modified to enable the estimation of two comfort thresholds. The participants (drivers) were placed in three categories (“Cautious,” “Neutral” and “Confident”) and 250 driving tests were carried out for each category. Probit analysis was then used to estimate the threshold headways that differentiate drivers' discomfort and their intention to re-engage the driving tasks.FindingsThe results indicate that “Cautious” drivers tend to be more sensitive to the decrease in headways, and therefore exhibit greater propensity to deactivate the automated driving mode under a longer headway relative to other driver groups. Also, there seems to exist no driver discomfort when the CAV maintains headway up to 5%–9% shorter than the headways they typically adopt. Further reduction in headways tends to cause discomfort to drivers and trigger take over control maneuver.Research limitations/implicationsIn future studies, the number of observations could be increased further.Practical implicationsThe study findings can help guide specification of user-friendly headways specified in the algorithms used for CAV control, by vehicle manufacturers and technology companies. By measuring and learning from a human driver's perception, AV manufacturers can produce personalized AVs to suit the user's preferences regarding headway. Also, the identified headway thresholds could be applied by practitioners and researchers to update highway lane capacities and passenger-car-equivalents in the autonomous mobility era.Originality/valueThe study represents a pioneering effort and preliminary pilot driving simulator experiment to assess the tradeoffs between comfortable headways versus mobility-enhancing headways in an automated driving environment.

The use of bioretention areas is common in urban stormwater management, but their performance varies significantly depending on rainfall characteristics and design conditions. In this study, a pilot experiment using bioretention columns with different media (commercial activated carbon and river sediment-derived biochar) investigated the influence of rainfall on bioretention performance. The results indicated that the runoff volume retention ratio (Rv), which included the runoff purified and discharged at the bottom of the column, and the runoff retained in media during rainfall event, decreased significantly with increases in the rainfall event return period (p 0.05). The addition of adsorptive material, such as activated carbon and biochar, may not be the key factor for improving nitrogen and COD removal under heavy rain that exceeds the 2-yr return period. The bioretention performance of phosphorus removal from urban stormwater runoff could be improved by replacing or adding media with high adsorption capacity, but these improvements would not be significant under heavy rain that exceeds the 2-yr return period. The results provide some reference for evaluating bioretention performance and optimizing bioretention design in the future.

The results of recent laboratory-scale studies regarding the joint effects of wet strengthening agent polyamide-amine-epichlorohydrin (PAE) and internal alkylketene dimer (AKD) sizing on Nordic bleached softwood pulp (NBSK) handsheets indicate that AKD internal sizing increases the wet strength of PAE wet strengthened handsheets. The boosting effect of the internal AKD sizing was long-lasting. At the molecular level the actual mechanism behind the effect is unclear. The present study examines if the enhanced effect of internal AKD sizing, which is potentially exploitable in practice, also occurs in paper made by VTT’s Suora pilot paper machine. The trials were done using a similar type of NBSK pulp and the same chemicals as in the laboratory-scale studies. The paper was formed at 400 m/min using a hybrid dewatering mode (Fourdrinier + gap). Just as in the laboratory-scale studies, the internal AKD sizing of PAE wet-strengthened NBSK paper resulted in a long-lasting increase of the paper wet strength. In accordance with the laboratory trials, internal AKD sizing had no noticeable effect on the dry tensile strength of the pilot-made paper. The only apparent difference to the earlier observations was an increase of dry tensile strength of the paper treated solely with PAE.

This study investigates the user experience in cloud-based environments. As a result of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)restrictions, we were not able to execute the experiments as initially planned and hence this study is being presented as a pilot experiment that can be used as a prototype in future research. The aim of these experiments is to find a metric that can be used in estimating the performance of remote desktop systems. This study mainly focuses on latency, within and across networks, as the primary factor in the remote-desktop user experience. © 2002 Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, Inc.

Architecture's reach into neuroscience has demonstrated the value of biometric data, particularly neurophysiological data captured through the use of portable electroencephalography (EEG) technolog...

In this research, we designed and manufactured a pilot scale magnetic separator applying in magnetic-nanoparticles-assisted chromium containing tannery wastewater treatment. The separator is mainly composed of 186 magnetic bars and an in-situ cleaning system. The magnetic bars arranged vertically and arbitrary three magnetic bars are arranged in an equilateral triangle. Effect of dosage of magnetic particles, pH and alkali type on chromium capture efficiency and outlet chromium concentration of chromium containing tanning wastewater in laboratory scale experiments were investigated. In pilot experiment, the separator kept continuous running 15 days for 8 h per day with magnetic nanoparticles-chromium complex removed every 4 h by in-situ scraper. The treatment capacity is 16 m3/day for a device and outlet chromium concentration always less than 0.5 mg/L. The separator has simple structure and large processing capacity, and is energy-saving and easy to be scaled up. It has great potential in magnetic nanoparticles-assisted wastewater treatment.

This study was intended to reduce the generation of waste activated sludge (WAS) by injecting a microbial agent into membrane bio reactor (MBR) system. A pilot equipment with a daily treatment capacity of 3,000 L, equipped with a anoxic tank, a MBR, and a permeate storage tank, was manufactured, and a blank operation and an operation with the microbial agent injected were conducted successively after a stabilization operation for approximately 81 days. According to the quality of the treated water in the operations above, T-N removal rates were almost the same, but CODMn removal rate in the operation with the microbial agent injected was approximately 32% higher than that in the blank operation. In addition, it was demonstrated that the changes in the total MLSS amount were 8,154 g in the blank operation and 6,496 g in the operation with the microbial agent. Hence, it was possible to confirm that the sludge was reduced by approximately 20% when injecting the microbial agent. This study concludes that the characteristics of the microbial agent can be sufficiently exhibited and the higher effect of the reduction in sludge generation amount can be obtained if the limitations of the composition that the equipment for the pilot experiment has are improved and if it is possible to operate for an extended period of time.

The present paper illustrates a pilot experiment in which a new model for fostering creativity in the product development process is tested with novice engineers. After introducing creativity in th...

This study aims to produce statistical learning designs in the introduction of the concept of average values and knowing student learning outcomes in learning average values by previously learning about the presentation of data consisting of tables and diagrams through learning trajectories and what happens during the learning process. This learning is based on Lesson Study for Learning Community (LSLC), the approach of Indonesian Realistic Mathematics Education (PMRI). This study uses a type of Design Research method research design type of validation study, which involves in MTs 1 in Palembang. There are three stages in design research type validation studies namely Preparing for the experiment in the form of literature study and the design of the Hypothetical Learning Trajectory (HLT); Design experiment in the form of a Preliminary Teaching Experiment (Pilot Experiment) and Teaching Experiment; and Restrospective analysis. The instruments used were written test, video and field notes. The results of learning experiments show that the design of learning provided has helped students understand the concept of Mean.

Concrete is a common material utilized in the structure sector in huge amounts. This man-made construction material is utilized for the construction of bridges, buildings, roads, dams, etc. It has waste usage from structure to roads, drains pipes, etc. Engineers are continuously trying to improve the performance properties of concretes by incorporating supplementary material like blast furnace slag, fly ash, steel slag, silica fume, etc. This review paper is based on the findings of three such supplementary materials – nano-silica (NS), silica fume (SF), and steel slag (SS) which have been reinforced in concrete. However a thorough study of the use, to better understand its mechanism, of NS, SF and SS in concrete is missing. This paper, therefore, seeks to provide a study of the usage of concrete NS, SF, and SS. The Nano silica is comprised of a high purity amorphous silica powder which generally exists in a powdered form. Other materials that are discussed herein are SF and SG. SF is a by-product obtained while producing silicon metal and ferrosilicon alloys whereas SS is obtained when impurities are separated from molten metal in the steelmaking furnace. The main motivation behind this review paper is to gather the relevant papers in a single place so that a concrete mixture can be developed by reinforcing NS, SF, and SS in different percentages. From the results of previous studies, it can be inferred that the combined use of NS, SF, and SS increases certain properties of concrete, particularly mechanical, which may help to produce superior concrete properties in the further studies of NS, SF, and SS. Also, the results from the pilot experiment to affirm that the combined effects of NS, SF, and SS enhance the mechanical properties of concrete are presented herein.

Fusion-fission hybrid systems (FFH) represent a coupling between a fusion device and a subcritical fission reactor driven by neutrons produced by fusion reactions. This kind of systems, in principle, can be useful for different purposes, for example, as energy amplifier or as nuclear waste burner. In this work, the preliminary characteristics and potentialities of a FFH based on a tokamak device characterized by high magnetic field (B > 9 T) and high-density plasma (n > 1014 cm-3) have been evaluated. During the years high magnetic field compact tokamaks have been designed, built and operated. Thanks to their characteristics, such as compactness, high field and high density plasma, these devices can produce intense neutron fluxes, and therefore are good candidates to be incorporated in FFH while operating in a sub-ignited regime. An additional advantage is that their design is based on relatively simple existing technology. In this work, a coupling between a tokamak (operating in DD-mode) and a subcritical molten salt fission blanket has been proposed. Molten salt reactor could be adapted for this purpose and could help the hybrid system to increase its energy balance. A model with a molten salt fission blanket (keff = 0.92, P = 95 MW) instead of the lithium one, has been considered and studied in terms of neutronic evaluations. Presented preliminary numerical calculations based on a neutron Monte-Carlo code confirm the potentialities of the system.

As earlier leaf removal experiments in tomato had shown that this improved dry matter partitioning to the fruits and production, a pilot experiment with high-wire cucumber was conducted in the spring and summer of 2016 at the experimental research facilities of Wageningen UR Greenhouse Horticulture. The five treatments were combinations of 3 or 3.5 stems m-2, and 0, 16 or 33% leaf removal in head of the crop. The combination 3.5/0% was lacking. The experimental data were analysed with the INTKAM crop growth model. The total number of fruits m-2 was the most important factor for production, which is determined by the optimal combination of stem density and assimilate supply. It is therefore important to grow the crop such that the maximum number of fruits with sufficient weight can be realized. Leaf removal in itself led to a slightly higher abortion, a lower development rate and therefore less axils, and a lower LAI with less light interception, and therefore produced less fruits and kilos. This, however, can be compensated with a higher stem density. It results in a crop with a normal LAI and architecture, combined with more axils m-2 that can bear fruits. Production and light use efficiency increase. On the other hand, labour and the risk to harvest small fruits will increase.

This article presents a pilot experiment conducted to better understand how Middle Pleistocene hominins might have processed and exploited elephants using simple stone and bone tools. The experimen...

The composite solid absorbent was developed for simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification of low-temperature flue gas. The efficiency of this absorbent was confirmed by a pilot experiment in...

Ochre, waste iron sludge from the treatment of iron rich groundwater for potable use, makes up a significant waste problem. Furthermore, wastewater treatment plants with enhanced biological phosphorus removal and the digestion of sludge are in lack of iron for the prevention of hydrogen sulfide production and the release of phosphorous during anaerobic digestion. Thus, the addition of ochre to anaerobic digestion is a potential beneficial reuse of ochre. Sludge from wastewater treatment plants with enhanced biological phosphorus removal was used for the experiments. Batch and continuous pilot-scale tests were performed for the mesophilic digestion of primary and waste-activated sludge with different doses of ochre. Two different doses of ochre corresponding to molar ratios of 1 and 2 moles Fe3+/mole P released in the batch test resulted in 29% and 57% reductions of phosphates respectively in the sludge liquor compared to the control sludge without inhibiting the digestion process. In the pilot experiment, the dosing of ochre at both a high and low dose (molar ratios of 1.6 and 0.8 Fe3+/S2&minus, respectively ) resulted in an immediate drop in the H2S concentration (from &gt, 2000 ppm down to 570 ppm), while the control reactor still produced biogas with a high hydrogen sulfide concentration. The inhibition of the digestion process was observed (accumulation of acetate) at the higher dose. In a second pilot scale experiment, lower doses of ochre were tested continuously (1.5 and 0.75 mole Fe3+/mole Preleased) to avoid any inhibition, while evaluating the phosphate precipitation. A reduction of phosphates in sludge liquor (33% and 66% for the low and high doses respectively) was obtained.

This paper investigates the possibility of a holistic interdisciplinary and cross-thematic educational approach of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) and HASS (Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences) knowledge fields. The interdisciplinary educational approach of STE? and HASS knowledge branches, set out to resolve complex issues in an innovative way, can assist the development of the students into active and knowledgeable citizens so they will be able to face actual problems whose nature is always interdisciplinary. There is reference in elements which advocate the necessity of this holistic cross-thematic approach and additionally theories and techniques are established which are able to support it. Main characteristic of this development is its support with ICTs. Characteristics of a relevant educational scenario are presented. The scenario is implemented as a pilot experiment and relevant results can be extracted. The scenario is recommended as prototype due to its special interdisciplinarity, the educational techniques that were utilized, and its design procedure based on principles of Educational Management & Engineering and due to the positive results from its pilot implementation. Relevant conclusions are projected.

This study investigated the performance of organic pollutant degradation using the electro-Fenton process and low-cost titanium (Ti) electrodes as cathodes. Three Ti electrodes with different morphologies, i.e., a plate and two meshes with large (MS-L) and small (MS-S) opening sizes, were evaluated using electrochemical characterization, as well as kinetic and energy studies based on the COD removal performance of the electro-Fenton process. The preliminary results indicated that the MS-S electrode, which has the largest electrochemically active surface area and lowest resistance amongst the three electrodes, could reduce Fe3+ to Fe2+ most effectively in the synthetic solution. However, when treating real wastewater, MS-L rather than MS-S exhibited 13.8% higher COD removal efficiency with a 1.5-fold higher rate constant (i.e., 0.0362 min−1) during the initial 30 min of the electro-Fenton process. This unexpected anomaly was due to excessive clogging by suspended solids (SS) present in the real wastewater that were easily captured by the narrow openings of MS-S. Consequently, a pilot-scale electro-Fenton system was operated using MS-L. The pilot experiment demonstrated stable degradation of organic pollutants for five consecutive months with an average COD removal efficiency of 86%, showing its feasibility in treating real wastewater. With its competitive regeneration of Fe2+, low manufacturing cost and energy consumption, the electro-Fenton process using Ti mesh with large opening sizes appears to be a viable and practical technology for wastewater treatment.

This article is devoted to the study of the slang language of youth on the basis of the results of a pilot free associative experiment. The purpose of this study is to identify the content of the stereotypical notions for native speakers, and to reveal the links that exist in the conceptual system of native speakers. In this regard, a pilot associative experiment was conducted among 40 students, belonging to the youth, who are either native English speakers or who speak English fluently. There were also presented the results of a free associative experiment aimed at identifying components that reflect national and individual characteristics of the perception of slangism, as well as the metaphorical characteristics of naive discourse, which are universal for young people. In addition, we were able to identify the influence of extra-linguistic factors on the content of the associative thesaurus.

This study presents results of the pilot experiments made with new parametric multi-site multi-variable stochastic daily weather generator (WG) SPAGETTA. The experiments are performed for eight European regions and we focus on spatial characteristics of temperature. The WG is calibrated using the gridded weather data E-OBS. In evaluating the generator, the spatial and temporal temperature autocorrelations derived from the synthetic series were found to perfectly fit the values derived from the calibration data. Next, the WG is validated in terms of the frequency of “spatial hot days” and the annual maximum length of “spatial hot spells”. The results indicate a very good correspondence between characteristics derived from synthetic and calibration data. As part of the validation tests, the performance of the WG is compared with a regional climate model (RCM), which shows a similar performance as the generator. In a final experiment, the use of the WG for the future climate is demonstrated, the WG parameters (including the temperature autocorrelations) calibrated with the observed data are modified according to the RCM-based changes in these parameters. While analyzing synthetic series produced with the modified generator, we discuss partial impacts due to changes in individual WG parameters on the spatial hot days and spells. We show that the impacts are mainly (but not only) due to changes in temperature averages. The projected changes in temperature autocorrelations have also some impacts, larger for the spatial hot spells than for the spatial hot days. Climate change impacts on spatial hot days/spells based on the WG are compared with impacts based on the RCM, and we conclude that the differences are mainly due to simplifying assumptions adopted in our pilot experiment.

The feasibility of implementing encapsulation technology for the biological anaerobic treatment of high-strength wastewater was investigated. The small pilot-scale wastewater treatment process, deployed at a local brewery, consisted of a 4-L fermenting first-stage reactor containing alginate-encapsulated fermenting microorganisms and a 30-L methanogenic second-stage reactor containing alginate-encapsulated anaerobic digester sludge (CH4E reactor). A parallel second-stage 30-L anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) was operated for comparison. The first-stage reactor produced 40.4 ± 47.3% more volatile fatty acids than present in the influent wastewater. The CH4E reactor stared rapidly, with an off-gas methane content >60% after 14 days. It took >1 month for the AnMBR to achieve this performance. Nevertheless, the CH4E reactor performance declined relative to the AnMBR over time. This was thought to be a result of encapsulant leakage and the encapsulation of a non-ideal initial community. Further optimization is needed, but encapsulation shows promise for small-footprint anaerobic biological treatment applications.