Digital Commons Network^™

Facilitating Smart Haccp Strategies With Process Analytical Technology, Fintan Moran, Carl Sullivan, Kevin Keener, Patrick J. Cullen

Articles

The critical feature to any food management system, be it safety or quality focused, is timely and accurate product and process data. The HACCP framework is one of a systematic preventive approach that addresses hazards as a means of prevention rather than finished product inspection. The PAT initiative is a framework which also aims to change product assurance from end-product testing to preventive control through timely measurements of critical product and process parameters. The continued emergence of sensitive yet affordable sensors capable of direct measurement of biological, chemical and physical risks associated with foods during production, processing or over their …

Abusive Text Detection Using Neural Networks, Hao Chen, Susan Mckeever, Sarah Jane Delany

Articles

Neurall network models have become increasingly popular for text classification in recent years. In particular, the emergence of word embeddings within deep learning architecture has recently attracted a high level of attention amongst researchers.

A Software Development Process For Freshman Undergraduate Students, Catherine Higgins, Fredrick Mtenzi, Ciaran O'Leary, Orla Hanratty, Claire Mcavinia

Articles

This conceptual paper presents work which is part of an ongoing research project into the design of a software development process aimed at freshman, undergraduate computing students. The process of how to plan and develop a solution is a topic that is addressed very lightly in many freshman, undergraduate courses which can leave novices open to developing habit-forming, maladaptive cognitive practices. The conceptual software development process described in this paper has a learning process at its core which centres on declarative knowledge (in the form of threshold concepts) and procedural knowledge (in the form of computational thinking skills) scaffolding freshman …

Improved Protocols For Pre-Processing Raman Spectra Of Formalin Fixed Paraffin Preserved Tissue Sections, Hugh Byrne, Fiona Lyng, Ola Ibrahim, Adrian Maguire, Aidan Meade, Steven Flint, M. Toner

Articles

Although formalin fixed paraffin preserved (FFPP) tissues are a major resource for retrospective studies of disease progression, their use in vibrational spectroscopy studies has been undermined by issues of contributions of substrate and paraffin wax which persist in the spectra and can compromise spectral analysis. Recognising the microcrystalline nature of the wax in the tissue, which are inhomogeneously oriented with respect to the polarisation of the Raman source laser, in this study, we have developed a novel method for removing the paraffin wax contributions to the spectra using matrices of multiple wax spectra. FFPP tissue sections from the oral mucosa …

An Ionic Liquid Based Sensor For Diclofenac Determination In Water, Emma Brennan, Pauline Futvoie, John Cassidy, Benjamin Schazmann

Articles

This paper details a miniaturised, solid state ion-selective electrode selective for diclofenac. The sensor comprises a novel ionic liquid electroactive material – an imidazolium–diclofenac ion associate. The ion associate is present in a plasticised poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membrane on planar carbon electrodes, with an intermediate poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) layer. The sensitivity and selectivity of the sensor were determined using chronopotentiometric methods. In response to diclofenac, a slope of −53.3 ± 3.6 mV/dec was observed. A limit of detection of 2.90 × 10−3 g L−1 is reported, with a linear range of 3.18 × 10−3 g L−1 to 3.18 g L−1. …

Nano-Magnetic Resonance Imaging (Nano-Mri) Gives Personalized Medicine A New Perspective, Lorenzo Rosa, Jonathan Blackledge, Albert Boretti

Articles

This paper reviews some of the major and most recent advances in nanoscale-magnetic resonance imaging (nano-MRI) for personalized medicine (PM). Nano-MRI may drastically expand the capabilities of the traditional magnetic resonance images (MRI), down to the nanometer scale and possibly, in the near future, at the atomic scale. Nano-MRI is potentially able to observe structures which cannot be seen using today’s molecular imaging, with sensitivities of many billions of times better than MRI as currently used in hospitals, for example. The paper briefly reports on the foremost research themes in nano-MRI.

Information Hiding With Data Diffusion Using Convolutional Encoding For Super-Encryption, Jonathan Blackledge, Paul Tobin, J. Myeza, C.M. Adolfo

Articles

The unification of data encryption with information hiding methods continues to receive significant attention because of the importance of protecting encrypted information by making it covert. This is because one of the principal limitations in any cryptographic system is that encrypted data flags the potential importance of the data (i.e. the plaintext information that has been encrypted) possibly leading to the launch of an attack which may or may not be successful. Information hiding overcomes this limitation by making the data (which may be the plaintext or the encrypted plaintext) imperceptible, the security of the hidden information being compromised if …

Characterization Of The Sub-Micrometer Hierarchy Levels In The Twist-Bend Nematic Phase With Nanometric Helices Via Photopolymerization: Explanation For The Sign Reversal In The Polar Response, Vitaly Panov, Sithara Sreenilayam, Yuri Panarin, Jagdish Vij, Chris Welch, Georg Mehl

Articles

Photopolymerization of a reactive mesogen mixed with a mesogenic dimer, shown to exhibit the twist-bend nematic phase (NTB), reveals the complex structure of the self-deformation patterns observed in planar cells. The polymerized reactive mesogen retains the structure formed by liquid crystalline molecules in the twist bend phase, thus enabling its observation by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Hierarchical ordering scales ranging from tens of nanometers to micrometers are imaged in detail. Submicron features, anticipated from earlier X-ray experiments, are visualized directly. In the self-deformation stripes formed in the NTB phase, the average director field is found tilted in …

An Analysis Of Harmonic Heating In Smart Buildings And Distribution Network Implications With Increasing Non-Linear (Domestic) Load And Embedded Generation, Chittesh Veni Chandran, Keith Sunderland, Malabika Basu

Articles

Harmonic distortion is generally not taken into account within domestic installations and the associated wiring systems, as its potential is considered sufficiently small to be neglected. Standards to limit harmonic manifestations in the low voltage (LV) network are available, but these can be breached as a consequence of advancements in power electronics in some modern household devices contributing higher levels of harmonic distortion than permitted. While these devices individually might not be considered serious in terms of system level harmonic distortion manifestations, electrical equipment failures and insulation failures - increasingly being derived from harmonic cable heating - suggest a different …

Magnetic Field Sensing Using Whispering Gallery Modes In A Cylindrical Microresonator Infilitrated With Ferronematic Liquid Crystal, Aseel Mahmood, Vishnu Kavungal, Sudad S. Ahmed, Peter Kopcansky, Vlasta Zavisova, Gerald Farrell, Yuliya Semenova

Articles

An all-fiber magnetic field sensor based on whispering-gallery modes (WGM) in a fiber micro-resonator infiltrated with ferronematic liquid crystal is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The cylindrical microresonator is formed by a 1 cm-long section of a photonic crystal fiber infiltrated with ferronematic materials. Both ferronematics suspensions are prepared based on the nematic liquid crystal 1-(trans-4-Hexylcyclohexyl)-4-isothiocyanatobenzene (6CHBT) doped with rod-like magnetic particles in the first case and with spherical magnetic particles in the second case. WGMs are excited in the fiber microresonator by evanescent light coupling using a tapered fiber with a micron-size diameter. The Q-factor of the microresonator determined from …

The Role Of The Dendritic Growth Models Dimensionality In Predicting The Columnar To Equiaxed Transition (Cet), M. Seredynski, Marek Rebow, J. Banaszek

Articles

The dendrite tip kinetics model accuracy relies on the reliability of the stability constant used, which is usually experimentally determined for 3D situations and applied to 2D models. The paper reports authors` attempts to cure the situation by deriving 2D dendritic tip scaling parameter for aluminium-based alloy: Al-4wt%Cu. The obtained parameter is then incorporated into the KGT dendritic growth model in order to compare it with the original 3D KGT counterpart and to derive two-dimensional and three-dimensional versions of the modified Hunt’s analytical model for the columnar-to-equiaxed transition (CET). The conclusions drawn from the above analysis are further confirmed through …

Adaptive Linear Prediction For Optimal Control Of Wind Turbines, Mahinsasa Narayana, Keith Sunderland, Ghanim Putrus, Michael Conlon

Articles

In order to obtain maximum power output of a Wind Energy Conversion System (WECS), the rotor speed needs to be optimised for a particular wind speed. However, due to inherent inertia, the rotor of a WECS cannot react instantaneously according to wind speed variations. As a consequence, the performance of the system and consequently the wind energy conversion capability of the rotor are negatively affected. This study considers the use of a time series Adaptive Linear Prediction (ALP) technique as a means to improve the performance and conversion efficiency of wind turbines. The ALP technique is introduced as a real …

An Enhanced Spring-Particle Model For Red Blood Cell Structural Mechanics: Application To The Stomatocyte–Discocyte– Echinocyte Transformation, Mingzhu Chen, Fergal Boyle

Articles

Red blood cells (RBCs) are the most abundant cellular element suspended in blood. Together with the usual biconcave-shaped RBCs, i.e., discocytes, unusual-shaped RBCs are also observed under physiological and experimental conditions, e.g., stomatocytes and echinocytes. Stomatocytes and echinocytes are formed from discocytes and in addition can revert back to being discocytes; this shape change is known as the stomatocyte–discocyte–echinocyte (SDE) transformation. To-date, limited research has been conducted on the numerical prediction of the full SDE transformation. Spring- particle RBC (SP-RBC) models are commonly used to numerically predict RBC mechanics and rheology. However, these models are incapable of predicting the full …

Extraction And Quantification Of Sinapinic Acid From Irish Rapeseed Meal And Assessment Of Angiotensin-I Converting Enzyme (Ace-I) Inhibitory Activity, Leah Quinn, Steven G. Gray, Steve Meaney, Stephen Finn, Padraig Mcloughlin, Maria Hayes

Articles

Phenolic compounds, including phenolic acids, are known to play a protective role against the development of cardiovascular disease. The aim of this work was to generate a phenolic acid extract from Irish rapeseed meal, to determine the quantity of sinapinic acid (SA) in this fraction and to assess the ability of this fraction to inhibit the enzyme angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE-I; EC 3.4.15.1). A crude phenolic extract (fraction 1), free phenolic acid containing extract (fraction 2), and an extract containing phenolic acids liberated from esters (fraction 3) were generated from Irish rapeseed meal using a methanol:acetone:water solvent mixture (7:7:6). The …

Cd10 − /Aldh − Cells Are The Sole Cisplatin-Resistant Component Of A Novel Ovarian Cancer Stem Cell Hierarchy, Brendan Ffrench, Claudia Gasch, Karsten Hokamp, Cathy Spillane, Gordon Blackshields, Thamir Mahmoud Mahgoub, Mark Bates, Louise Kehoe, Aoibhinn Mooney, Ronan Doyle, Brendan Doyle, Dearbhaile O ’ Donnell, Noreen Gleeson, Bryan T Hennessy, Britta Stordal, Ciaran O ’ Riain, Helen Lambkin

Articles

No abstract provided.

Electromechanical Instability In Silicone-And Acrylate-Based Dielectric Elastomers, Liang Jiang, Yanfen Shou, Shaojuan Chen, Jianwei Ma, Tony Betts, Stephen Jerrams

Articles

Electromechanical instability (EMI) is regarded as a significant factor in preventing dielectric elastomers (DEs) fromachieving large voltage-induced deformations. In this study, the strain-stiffening effect was used to control the occurrence of EMI in DEs. The results show that the stretching ratio required to provide a feasible strain-stiffening effect in silicone rubber (SR) was smaller than that needed for a commercial DE material, VHB 4910. The experimental data were compared with currently used models for the simulation of EMI in DEs. We found that EMI could be eliminated in the deformation of these elastomers when pre-stretching was used. Through the application …

Enhancement Of Dielectric Properties With The Addition Of Bromine And Dopamine Modified Barium Titanate Particles To Silicone Rubber, Liang Jiang, David Kennedy, Stephen Jerrams, Tony Betts

Articles

Dual-coated barium titanate (BT) particles were prepared using dopamine (DP) in conjunction with bromine (Br) in order to enhance the dielectric constant of silicone rubber (SR) composites containing evenly distributed BT particles. The results showed that both DP and Br were deposited on the BT particles. The dielectric constant of the SR/BT composite was significantly increased from 3.6 to 4.7 at 1 kHz with the addition of BT modified with dopamine (DP–BT). Moreover, the dielectric constant further rose to 4.9 at 1 kHz when the DP–BT particle was grafted with bromine (Br–DP–BT).

A Review Of The Recommendations Governing Quality Assurance Of Ultrasound Systems Used For Guidance In Prostate Brachytherapy, Andrea Jane Doyle, Deirdre King, Jacinta Browne

Articles

Ultrasound guided brachytherapy for the treatment of prostate cancer has become a routine treatment option, due to many benefits including patient recovery and dose localisation [1]; however it is not clear whether the standards which govern the image quality for these systems are adequate. Upon review of the recommended standards for ultrasound systems used in prostate brachytherapy procedures, the recommended tests do not appear to be specific to the clinical application of ultrasound guided prostate brachytherapy. Rather they are generic and similar to those recommended for other clinical applications such as general abdominal scanning [2]. Furthermore, there is growing evidence …

The Mainstream Scientific Community Is Open To Incremental But Not Holistic Ideas, Maurice Goodman

Articles

NeuroQuantology

doi: 10.14704/nq.2017.15.2.1041

Broadband Acoustic Measurement Of The Agar-Based Tissue Mimicking Material: A Longitudinal Study, A. Rabell-Montiel, Jacinta Browne, S. D. Pye, T. A. Anderson, C. Moran

Articles

Commercially available ultrasound quality assurance test phantoms rely on the long-term acoustic stability of the tissue-mimicking-material (TMM). Measurement of the acoustic properties of the TMM can be technically challenging, and it is important to ensure its stability. The standard technique is to film-wrap samples of TMM and to measure the acoustic properties in a water bath. In this study, a modified technique was proposed whereby the samples of TMM are measured in a preserving fluid that is intended to maintain their characteristics. The acoustic properties were evaluated using a broadband pulse-echo substitution technique over the frequency range 4.5–50 MHz at …

N-Isopropylacrylamide-Based Photopolymer For Holographic Recording Of Thermosensitive Transmission And Reflection Grating, Tatsiana Mikulchyk, Suzanne Martin, Izabela Naydenova

Articles

In recent years, functionalized photopolymer systems capable of holographic recording are in great demand due to their potential use in the development of holographic sensors. This work presents a newly developed Nisopropylacrylamide(NIPA)-based photopolymer for holographic recording in reflection and transmission modes. The optimized composition of the material is found to reach refractive index modulation of up to 5  10-3 and 1.6  10-3 after recording in transmission and reflection mode, respectively. In addition to fulfilling the requirements for holographic recording materials, the NIPA-based photopolymer is sensitive to temperature and has lower toxicity than acrylamide-based photopolymers. Possible application of the …

Ltl Type Nanozeolites Utilized In Surface Photonics Structures For Environmental Sensors, Sabad-E Gul, Dervil Cody, Suzanne Martin, John Cassidy, Izabela Naydenova, Anastasia Kharchenko, Svetlana Mintovab

Articles

Environmental monitoring has been continuously increasing due to an emerging global emphasis on the importance of sustainable development. Improving water quality monitoring and control is a challenge that calls for innovative solutions. Current methods of water monitoring are costly and analytical techniques suitable for field use are limited. There is a need for accurate, long–term monitoring of environmental contaminants using sensors that can be operated on site. The aim of our research is to theoretically model, fabricate and characterise holographic sensors for water quality monitoring that are simple to operate, capable of sensing copper present in fresh water and have …

Theoretical Modelling And Design Of Photonic Structures In Zeolite Nanocomposites For Gas Sensing: Part I - Surface Relief Gratings, Dervil Cody, Izabela Naydenova

Articles

The suitability of holographic structures fabricated in zeolite nanoparticle-polymer composite materials for gas sensing applications has been investigated. Theoretical modelling of the sensor response (i.e. change in hologram readout due to a change in refractive index modulation or thickness as a result of gas adsorption) of different sensor designs was carried out using Raman-Nath theory and Kogelnik’s Couple Wave Theory. The influence of a range of parameters on the sensor response of holographically-recorded surface and volume photonic grating structures has been studied, namely phase difference between the diffracted and probe beam introduced by the grating, grating geometry, thickness, spatial frequency, …

Development And Characterisation Of A Bath-Based Vertical Blackbody Cavity Calibration Source For The Range −30 °C To 150 °C, Sam Boles, Igor Pušnik, Dubhaltach Mac Lochlainn, David Fleming, Izabela Naydenova, Suzanne Martin

Articles

Industrial use of Radiation Thermometers (RTs) is becoming increasingly common due to the perceived advantages and wide market availability. Blackbody Cavity Radiation Sources (BCRSs) are typically used for calibration of these instruments, and these cavities are oriented horizontally in most cases. For BCRSs based in thermal baths, this necessitates the use of custom-built baths with side openings. This paper presents a unique design of vertical bath-based BCRS that may be immersed in conventional calibration baths without modifications to the baths. The method, results, and analysis of an international comparison comparing this vertical BCRS, standard horizontal BCRSs, and a previous iteration …

Development And Testing Of Low Spatial Frequency Holographic Concentrator Elements For Collection Of Solar Energy, Hoda Akbari, Izabela Naydenova, Hind Ahmed, Sarah Mccormack, Suzanne Martin

Articles

The aim of this research is to use holographically recorded diffractive optical elements (DOEs) recorded in photopolymer in order to effectively collect and concentrate solar radiation. The potential for recording high diffraction efficiency DOEs with a large angular and wavelength range of operation in acrylamide based photopolymer and the optimum recording conditions have been presented in our previous work (Akbari et al., 2014b, 2014a). Theoretical modelling and experimental test are presented which demonstrate that low spatial frequency components, around 300 line pairs/mm, have an appropriate spectral bandwidth, high efficiency and very limited polarization dependence. Pairs of concentrating off-axis lenses are …

Evaluation Of The Effect Of Plasma Treatment Frequency On The Activation Of Polymer Particles, Hisham Abourayana, Vladimir Milosavljevic, Peter Dobbyn, Denis Dowling

Articles

This study investigates the influence of treatment frequency (1–150 kHz) on the atmospheric plasma activation of both silicone and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) particles. These polymer particles with diameters in the range 3–5 mm, were treated using either helium or helium/oxygen gas mixtures, in a barrel atmospheric plasma system. The level of polymer particles activation was monitored using water contact angle measurements. The effect of plasma treatment frequency on barrel heating was monitored using an infrared thermographic camera, the maximum barrel temperature after 15 min treatment was found to be 98 °C at a frequency of 130 kHz. Optical emission spectroscopy …

Evaluation Of A Reel-To-Reel Atmospheric Plasma System For The Treatment Of Polymers, Kate O'Flynn, Vladimir Milosavljevic, Peter Dobbyn, Denis Dowling

Articles

Plasma treatments are widely used to enhance the surface energy of polymers prior to bonding or the application of functional coatings. This study investigates the performance of a linear atmospheric pressure plasma source for the reel-to-reel treatment of polymer webs. The continuous argon plasma treatments were carried out on 15 cm diameter polyethylene terephthalate (PET) web substrates using the linear plasma source (Plamax), operating at 13.56 MHz. The study investigated how the processing parameters influenced the effectiveness of the plasma treatment in enhancing both the polymer web's water contact angle (WCA) and surface energy (SE). Based on these measurements the …

Time-Varying And Constant Switching Frequency-Based Sliding-Mode Control Methods For Transformerless Dvr Employing Half-Bridge Vsi, Hasan Komurcugil, Samet Biricik

Articles

This paper presents time-varying and constant switching frequency based sliding-mode control (SMC) methods for three-phase transformerless dynamic voltage restorers (TDVRs) which employ half-bridge voltage source inverter. An equation is derived for the time-varying switching frequency. However, since the time-varying switching frequency is not desired in practice, a smoothing operation is applied to the sliding surface function within a narrow boundary layer with the aim of eliminating the chattering effect and achieving a constant switching frequency operation. The control signal obtained from the smoothing operation is compared with a triangular carrier signal to produce the pulse width modulation signals. The feasibility …

A Fast Linear Electro-Optical Effect In A Non-Chiral Bent-Core Liquid Crystal, Yuri Panarin, S.P. Sreenilayam, J.K. Vij, A. Lehmann, C. Tschierske

Articles

We report the observation of an electro-optical effect for a linear rotation of the optical axis as function of the electric field in an achiral tilted bent-core liquid crystalline compound, in which 4-cyanoresorcinol bisbenzoate core is symmetrically terminated by long linear alkyl chains (n =16) on both ends. The linear electro-optic effect observed in this material is similar to the deformed helical ferroelectric liquid crystal (DHFLC) effect reported previously in a FLC material except that dimensions of the helical pitch differ by two orders of magnitude. In the chiral systems, the helical pitch usually lies on the scale of sub-optical …

Evaluation Of Levels Of Antibiotic Resistance In Groundwater-Derived E. Coli Isolates In The Midwest Of Ireland And Elucidation Of Potential Predictors Of Resistance, Jean O'Dwyer, Paul Hynds, Matthieu Pot, Catherine Adley, Michael Ryan

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Antibiotic-resistant (pathogenic and non-pathogenic) organisms and genes are now acknowledged as significant emerging aquatic contaminants with potentially adverse human and ecological health impacts, and thus require monitoring. This study is the first to investigate levels of resistance among Irish groundwater (private wells) samples; Escherichia coli isolates were examined against a panel of commonly prescribed human and veterinary therapeutic antibiotics, followed by determination of the causative factors of resistance. Overall, 42 confirmed E. coli isolates were recovered from a groundwater-sampling cohort. Resistance to the human panel of antibiotics was moderate; nine (21.4%) E. coli isolates demonstrated resistance to one or more …